Fallen Oak Cottage Update
We’ve done quite a bit of behind-the-scenes work at Fallen Oak Cottage in the past few months that we’ve kept quiet until we were sure how it would all play out. But now we’re ready to share a proper Fallen Oak Cottage update. First, let’s go back to remind you all of where we started.
Where It All Started
Two years ago, Rob and I purchased a piece of lakefront property right around the corner from our current cottage. Literally in the same neighborhood, which is so exciting. We knew what we were getting ourselves into: The house that sat on the property needs a ton of work.
After we closed, we let the house and property sit for awhile in order to finish another time-sensitive renovation project.
About eleven months after we purchased, we started on our first order of business. Several massive oak trees had fallen in the backyard, effectively rendering the waterfront space useless. Hence the name: Fallen Oak Cottage. We decided to spend some money to hire someone to clear it all out.
Even though Rob and I are do-it-yourselfers, we did not have the tools or time to complete this part of the project.
Saving an Historic Home
Right around that time, I found a listing on Facebook Marketplace for an old house that needed to be moved so the owner could build a modern house in its place. I showed it jokingly to Rob, knowing the house on the Fallen Oak Cottage property was in such terrible shape. And funny enough, he immediately saw the vision and jumped right on board.
We started the process of seeing how we could pull this off. It took months of meetings, phone calls, and flexibility. In June, we eventually signed with a company that specializes in moving structures. Before any work could be done, an engineer needed to step in and draw up foundation plans for the home’s final resting place on our Fallen Oak Cottage property.
The permitting process proved difficult because our project involved permits at two different locations. But the incredible people we’ve met at the permitting offices have been tremendously helpful. While permitting played out, Rob removed the porches from the house to make the structural move safer.
Once the engineering plans came back in early fall, Rob got the green light to begin demolishing the house on the Fallen Oak Cottage property.
And this is where our story takes a pretty dramatic pivot.
A Major Pivot
Rob and a family friend picked a sunny day in November to start demolishing. But as Rob got deeper into the demo, he realized that the bones of the little house on our property were actually very, very good.
So much so that he decided that he couldn’t, in good conscience, tear down a structure that from an engineering standpoint was in great shape.
We spent the rest of the month talking earnestly and praying about what we should do. Follow our dream of moving an old house with lots of character across the county in order to save it? Or do the fiscally responsible and practical thing and save the existing structure.
Ultimately, we just didn’t feel right to spend the money destroying a perfectly good shell of a house for the sake of something we liked better. Even if it meant we couldn’t “save” the other house.
Knowing that sweet old house we had fallen in love with was still going to be demolished by its current owner, Rob asked if we could salvage its architectural features to use on our Fallen Oak Cottage. Thankfully, the owner is allowing us to move forward in that direction. We are so excited!
Where We’re Headed
At the end of last week, Rob and a gentleman specializing in roof truss work removed the roof off the old house. They’re hoping to salvage material to rebuild the roof trusses at Fallen Oak Cottage.
Rob has also been hard at work stripping out the old beadboard, flooring, and structural beams from the old house. He’s uncovered so many incredible paint colors on that old beadboard, all previously hidden behind drywall. So many delightful shades of blue and green … my favorite colors!
Back at the original Fallen Oak Cottage, we’ve contracted with a roofing company to give us a wonderful new, structurally sound roof. From there, Rob will “dry in” the house using salvaged siding from the old house. At that point, we’ll store all of our salvaged materials inside and work a little at a time on that project in between some paid gigs.
I’ll be working on an interior layout. Without adding on any square footage, I need to figure out how to carve out another bathroom and rework the footprint so that the home is more open concept. I’m not really a fan of open concept homes, but I have a reason for moving in that direction.
We Hope You’ll Join us!
We know that for several of you who were invested in our house move, this news comes as a disappointment. Truth be told, we still feel disappointed. But we’re also confident in our skills and our vision, and we know that we can create something beautiful.
We hope you’ll still follow along. Old homes are our passion, and our vision is to take our 1969 cottage and make it look and feel every bit like the 1931 house. We might not have been able to save the entire house, but we feel pretty great about the fact that we were able to save its coolest features and preserve them for years to come in our Fallen Oak Cottage.
