Monday, August 31, 2020

bargeron barn | doors.

As of the day before we left for our recent (epic) two-week vacation, the barn is officially closed in! Our goal was to get to this point before we left our house vacant for so long, and we were puuuumped when we actually pulled it off. We used the same material for the barn doors as we did the ceiling because we loved the look of the panels, and we looooove how they turned out.

Side note: my man can BUILD things, y'all! He's such a freaking HUNK!

Okay, I just had to get that out publicly, because he has been suuuuuch a force in working to finish this project. This has been his baby since March, and I'm so proud of the ways that he has learned new skills and not given up until he's mastered them. He's quite the perfectionist (which is sometimes frustrating and others times amazing, LOL), and it has definitely paid off for us this time. I'm proud of him, and the best part -- he's proud of himself, even if he doesn't admit it.

I love catching him in action.

And here is the fun part -- the big reveal!
Be sure to scroll all the way to the bottom to see a few before and after shots. The transformation is amazing and so, so beautiful!

Isn't she beautiful?! We are sooooo in love!

Here are a few fun before and afters, just so we never forget the humble beginning that this building had.
We went from three open bays and a shop room to three enclosed rooms that each have a unique purpose.
Side / Frontal View

Tool Room / Man Cave

Before: three open bays
After: two distinct rooms with doors.

At this point in the process, we only have finishing touches left to go. And aren't those the most tedious part of the process? LOL. The lights have been purchased, we just have to install them. The outlets have been wired, we just have to get the breakers situated and get the power turned back on. We need molding for the floors and ceilings. You know, little things like that that add up to one big thing. The hardest parts are over, and now we just have to finish this beauty and start enjoying her!

It's crazy that I only have one more post to share about this, but it's true -- the next time you see an update, it will be the finished product. EEEEK!! Here's to hoping that it happens sooner rather than later. Like I said, we are soooooo close!

This sure has been fun.

Who would've ever dreamed that we could have pulled something like this off without killing each other or financing our dream. I love living inside every day miracles!

Sunday, August 30, 2020

bargeron barn | electrical + dry wall + ceiling.

It has been quuuuite a while since I've shared an update on how our barn / garage is coming. My lack of updates hasn't been because there hasn't been anything happening, but rather because there has been SO much happening in regards to this project. We have been little worker bees over here!

We have devoted an enormous chunk of our lives and finances to this huge project since we officially "broke ground" in mid-March. This project has kept us busy and laser focused for nearly six months now, and I'm grateful that we are nearing the end. I think TJ an I have both loved taking something broken and making it so beautiful, but I'm thankful that we'll be able to check this off our list in the coming weeks and turn our focus to being able to enjoy the space instead of trying to create it. This is the biggest project we've ever taken on, and I think we both feel like we can conquer the world now. LOL!

The next few things we completed were basically done simultaneously, hence why there are three focuses of this post. First, TJ ran electrical throughout the whole building. This was a tedious part that included drilling holes through wood and running power through them. We needed lots of guidance on this part because we had never done anything like this before, and we were soooo thankful for the friends who coached us during this phase. Whether it was through a quick phone call or someone stopping by to give us a visual, this part of the process would have been a lot harder without their wisdom.

After electrical came the beast known as sheetrock! Hanging the sheetrock was one of my favorite parts of the whole process, because we could finally see what the space would look like with each space being separated. We (TJ especially, of course) spent lots of hours cutting and hanging, and we decided to hire someone to mud and tape it because we wanted it done both right and quickly. We, also, had our faithful helpers stop by to hang and cut, too.

Like with several stages of this construction, what we thought would be less thinking and more manual labor turned out to hold its own challenges. Fortunately, however, we stayed up into the wee hours of the morning the day before the the mudding/taping began to finish all of it. I, also, did some cleaning this night for the first time in a few weeks, too, and it felt so good to do some tidying. Contruction dirt is no joke!


We started on the ceiling during this time, too. This was a bit of a doozy, because our original plan for them went out the window when it looked horrendous. You know how some things work better on paper but not in real life? This was one of those times. We were trying to save money by doing it one way, but we ended up deciding to spend extra to get material that would 1) not drive us mad trying to hang and 2) look great for a looooong time. By the time we got to the ceiling, we were already projected to be over budget, so we just resolved our minds to be content with a better built space for more money than we originally planned.

Verdict: we are SO pleased with how it turned out! Definitely worth the extra cash.


And here you have it! All three rooms with drywall, mud, tape, and fresh ceilings! WAHOO!!

This is the tool room / man cave.

This is the place where the Chevelle will call home.

And this is the large center room that will be used as a gathering space. See that good lookin' shiplap on the back wall? I loooooove it! Especially how it flows so perfectly with the ceiling.

Stay tuned for what comes next! We are SO close to finishing this beast of a project!!