It’s no secret that older homes can come with some quirks, and ours is no exception. When we first laid eyes on our home, we were bewildered and excited all at the same time. At first, the charm blew us away. Who cares about the quirks, do you see these ceilings?! And this yard?! When can we move in?!
Upon visiting a few more times once we knew it was to be ours, of course, we started to notice things here and there. None of them seemed to be deal-breakers though, and it’s fair to say that we are adjusting well to the changes. The bones of the house are beautiful and to me, these quirks add character.
A lot of these quirks are probably fairly noticeable if you were to step foot in our home. But since I’m writing about these one-of-a-kind features, I figured I’d share what some of them are.
We pay no mind to them though, we’re kind of a quirky group.
Quirk #1: One of two homes on property
You may know this already, but the biggest quirk of all about our home, is that it’s not the only home! And we’re not the only family that live on the property. Our house used to be a studio and garage for the main home and was expanded and converted into the beautiful little bungalow it is today. We share our property with my husband’s family.
Quirk #2: House is basically a big rectangle
Ok, this is not that strange of a quirk, but it is still a quirk in my eyes. It doesn’t make a difference to us, but it’s something we’ve had to take into consideration as we contemplate quirks three and four.
Quirk #3: No dining room
I quite literally didn’t notice this quirk at first. It was when I saw a copy of the remodel blueprints the former owners provided that I said, “wait a second….” Right there in ink was the words “dining room.”
I’m not sure if there was supposed to be more space than we ultimately ended up with or if the designer truly thought there would be enough room for a dining room table, but we have chosen not to use the space that way. It’s where the French doors open into the kitchen, so a table would obstruct that. We’ve made do and there is plenty of space outdoors to sit down for a meal if we’d like.
Quirk #4: No front door
Ok, this has to be the second-biggest quirk. I’ve seen a few solicitors look quite confused as they approach our home (sort of a score for us?). But after living in it for some time now, I want to be able to access our front yard from the home. Is that too much to ask? I hope to be able to remove this quirk from the list, or at least, update it soon! We are talking about ways we can incorporate a front door with our contractor.
Quirk #5: There is no bathtub
No bathtub for us here at the bungalow (yet). I keep scheming on how I can make one happen, including a freestanding claw foot tub in our room…swooooon. When Henry was still really tiny, I may have stuck a rubbermaid bin in the shower to create a makeshift “tub,” he was none the wiser. Luckily, grandma has a vintage blue tub next door that the kids splash in from time-to-time.
Quirk #6: Half of the house is on central air the other with split units
You can tell in our home where the original dwelling was, because the central air runs through it via a large industrial style duct. The part of the home that was eventually expanded has split wall units that we operate by remote per room. It was an adjustment, but honestly we kind of like it. There’s nothing better than blasting one of those puppies with cool air on a hot summer day.
Quirk #7: Have to walk through closet to get to primary bedroom’s closet
When people come over for the first time and I explain our bathroom is through the closet, I’ve seen a few bewildered looks. I’m like, “trust me, just walk into our closet you’ll see the bathroom.” Haha we just really like to keep people on our t oes over here! I don’t think this was the original plans, but it’s what we have to work with at this point.
Quirk #8: The roof pops really loud
I saved the most surprising quirk for last — our LOUD roof. The really strange part of having redwood ceilings is that they expand and contract depending on the weather. When we first heard a roof-related noise, we thought maybe some pecans were landing on the roof. However, we quickly realized it was the house expanding as the heat increased during the day. At night it will settle as the air cools, and honestly, I don’t really notice it anymore. But it is very bizarre the first time you here one big wave of roof expansion across the house. I joke that the house and I have old bones (the roof sort of sounds like my back in the morning).
There you have it, eight unusual quirks that make our home one-of-a-kind! Did you learn anything surprising or can you relate to any of this?
