Pre-visualization. Paint: Ben Moore, Toucan Black. 
Stone steps + balanced landscaping.

COTTAGE BOTOX

Fab Location. Steps to cute village, a butcher, baker, candlestick maker, had I hit cottage county gold?

But a closer look (& sniff) revealed dry-rot, mushroom-y odours & Titanic sloppy floors. The structural issues alone screamed ‘walk away’. So I did.

A year later destiny pulled me back. Again for sale, the sellers ‘quick flip reno’s tried to say updated. It wasn’t. But I saw opportunity. This 1950’s cutie was getting a facelift. A botox reboot, a mega nip tuck, I was glam-pussing this golden oldie into 2025.

OLD 1950’s MAID

GLAM PUSS 2025

Cameron, Hudson Quebec. Unfinished basement before renovations.

ARCTIC BELOW

The basement was cold. Concrete slab, gale moaning, rotten window cold. Wires dangled. The bulky furnace grumbled. But the 1,000 sft beaconed. A blank canvas with additional
living space potential.

To Do List
Insulation (ceiling/floor/walls)
Windows & Comfy Floors
Build integrated staircase
Full bathroom.
Media/Den/4th bed.
Laundry room area.
Furnace utility room.
Storage options.

The original siding was dirty white & eye-blinding yellow. The rear deck.. in shit shape. As winter & spring passed in a flurry of interior demo-reno cycles, as summer hit, I turned to her outside.

Because i’d ‘test sampled numerous blacks’, she looked like a deranged bumble bee. But once May heat arrived, it was hello Toucan Black (BenJamin Moore). A subtle dark dark navy blue, with sooty noir undertones, her plumage flirted black in some lights and blue-ish hues in others. A brutal ice storm had left some damage, so new gutters were installed, fencing installed around the deck (for sunbathing junkies) and unsafe front staircase repaired.

Curb appeal is real. It says how much you care. Commissioning Chris a local painter, while he sprayed & hung precariously from high ladders, I face-lifted the banged up deck in Vanilla Bean, a creamy white paint with pale sage undertones. And wow, that ol’ flooring just transformed into sweet lil’ extra place to work, chill, flip a burger or sip that evening vino.

DON’T CURB
YOUR TOUCAN