Having a dream home does not mean that it has to be new…or even a house for that matter. Just take a look at this loft in New York City. This used to be an old clothing factory. Nothing had changed in 100 years. The ceiling was still the original tin that had never been replaced and the hardwood floors were so well worn that they still had dents in them from where the sewing machines treadles had been nearly 100 years ago. Even most of the plumbing was out in the open for the world to see…well the world that deigned to come in and have a look around that is.
Interestingly enough, the entire neighborhood around the building had also mostly remained stuck in a timeless era too.
This loft was sold as is for 2.2 million to a husband and wife who were Canadian actors. They loved the look of it and wanted it for their own. After they had lived there for 2 years, the charm wore off and they faced the reality that the kitchen and bathroom that were both makeshift were just not as functional as they needed to be.
Instead of giving up on the loft and looking elsewhere they decided to fix it while retaining the original look and feel to it. They had a plumber and an electrician come in and update both of those things while hiding both in the existing walls. This work was painstakingly slow as they needed to protect the surfaces that were already there.
The next step was the windows which were added onto. They are now a full foot taller than they were before the renovations. The ceiling was cleaned and patched and the brick walls were also cleaned and patched. There were iron beams running through the middle of the ceiling and those have now been exposed. In the floor, where the floorboards were creaking, those have been replaced.
The entire place was one large room and because she did not want to lose that feel she had a separate “bedroom” made where instead if walls, there are see through linen curtains hung all around the bed.
The furniture and most of the accessories have also been chosen for the look that dates to the same period as the loft.
They wanted to stay in character and they found a way to do so that fit both them and the loft.
