Phase One – Garage & Carriage House

You can design, create and build. But it takes people to make those dreams a reality

My husband and I received the keys to our new property on January 10th, 2022. It has been a bittersweet journey relocating from Houston to New Jersey.

We are always on the move from country to country, state to state and city to city. I believe this is our last chapter of moving, as we come to terms with the reality of retirement and settling down.

In some ways, the transition from full time hustle to a laid back lifestyle is very appealing to us. My father told me so many years ago, there are two kinds of people: those who work hard and those who try to take a shortcut in life. He told me to always be in the first group because there are no shortcuts to any place worth going! Through sweat and determination you can make your dreams your reality:)

You can tell by the “original” photo of our new “old garage” it needs a major overhaul. My husband and I have NO FEAR when it comes to a new real estate purchase, we like to wing it. We love a challenge. The gambrel roof is outdated and and badly designed. However, everything is “fixable” when it comes to renovations. The gambrel roof of the garage is my anchor, or perhaps my visual to carry over to Phase Two which will be added to the new addition on the main house. We will remove the old exterior trim, windows and siding right down to sheet plywood. For the garage door openings, new square corners will be framed below the top header. The overhang which extends vertically above the garage doors is too short and needs to be framed to reach the end of the exterior side walls and blend in with the bottom portion of the roofline, so it flows effortlessly and seamlessly. Window choice comes down to style and scale, as you see the front windows are oversized and does not reflect the design of the building. Two new smaller windows will be added to the front. The old shingles on the roof will be removed and we will need to replace some of the decayed plywood that was exposed to leaks under the shingles. New shingles, new cedar shake siding, exterior doors, new garage doors, soffit and rain gutters will be updated. Dormers will be framed and built on the right side of roof. This will help bring in more natural light for each new bedroom on the second floor in carriage house. On left side of the roof are very large windows, those were never installed properly and too large in scale; we need to replace those with new smaller windows. The front and back of the gambrel roof is missing the rake overhang, this needs to be framed and extended out so we can add soffit and trim. Trim is so important when designing an exterior building. It highlights and beautifies the architectural accents.

A few more notes add: The interior main floor of the garage is large enough to accommodate (frame and design) a large private entry way with a closet and seating area by the stairs leading up to guest house. There is a separate exterior entrance door for guests to access the second floor, this is so handy! The main floor garage needs new wiring, insulation, drywall and lights. Second floor will accommodate a kitchen, dining and living area. Two bedrooms, bathroom, washer/dryer, storage and utility room.

There is a ton of work to do for Phase One, both exterior and interior. We are so excited to start, we are waiting for our architect to finalize the drawings and for the approval.

l have added a gallery of photos for the upstairs interior, located above the garage. This was already framed to accommodate a large guest house. I apologize in advance for the lighting. When you are working with only natural light and dirty windows, its difficult to take photos!

Happy New Year! Bring on 2023 and all the dreams and goals each of us are seeking. Its been quite a few months witnessing the transformation of Phase One. Phase One went from an old ugly garage to a miracle, a masterpiece, a work of art. The design of this building was something I had envisioned and our architect was the one who brought my vision to life. Kevin and I are so incredibly happy with the hard work and dedication thrown into Phase One. We applaud our architect, builder, project manager, and framing crew. The framing crew worked tirelessly and through some of the worst weather here along the coast to bring Phase One to this beautiful stage! UGH…it was so cold and we had so much rain, the weather literally made it impossible for the framing crew to work a full day without tarp and extra coffee breaks to warm up! Yes, it takes a village and we still have a few more months of work to finish this gorgeous building, however we are enjoying the process:)

Kevin and I had carefully sought out premier windows and siding. Searching for the right products can be challenging, we wanted to stay within the authentically of the original cape cod design you come across along the east coast of Connecticut, Massachusetts and Maine. The white trim is maintenance free so we do not have to deal with peeling of paint. The siding contractors and myself worked together as we navigated the exterior of the building. Last minutes changes with the trim design were made to give our carriage house a timeless presentation. All in all, we are so happy with how beautiful the exterior of our garage turned out. Still on the hunt for the perfect garage doors…#staytuned:)