Welcome to Ittybittybungalow and Thanks for joining me on Stucco House’s 3rd Annual Bungalow Blog Tour.
The Bungalow Blog Tour is a chain of linked blogs about old houses all over the net. At the base of my post you’ll find a link to take you to the next and previous homes on the tour (everyone’s links should be up and running by Saturday morning).
Ittybittybungalowis an 864 square foot home in Rochester, NY. My cat and I have been here for just over a month and have been making some pretty solid progress in updating the house and restoring some of the original charm. Here you can see a picture of the house as it looked when I bought it on March 24th, 2011.
Since then I have removed the windows in the porch, installed a new walkway and am currently working on the gardens.
On the inside I have been able to paint most of the rooms, repair some of the window weights and get settled in many of the spaces but both my kitchen and bathroom continue to be disaster areas. I hope that you will take a minute to view some of my previous posts as they really cover everything I just mentioned in more detail. As a new homeowner I really don’t know much about anything that I am doing and often use this blog as a platform to get better ideas and advice so please feel free to comment and subscribe I’d love to get input from those of you who have more experience.
Here is a picture of the house as it looks today:
As you can see I’ve made some progress but much more needs to be done. For one -The pink porch needs to go ASAP.
In my posts you can expect to hear about vintage items scored from thrift stores, estate sales, Craigslist and curbs all over the city in addition to updates about my progress both in and outside of the house. You’ll also notice that my blogroll links to all sorts of design blogs where I enjoy browsing for unique ideas for decorating with limited funds, and some where I can read about other people spending lots of money. One of my favorites Apartment Therapy, runs an annual Small But Cool contest each year; which is something I am gearing up to enter next spring.However I know I am going to need lots of help and encouragement on the way from readers like you!
Thanks for visiting,
Brad
Next Tour Stop: 1916 Bungalow
Previous Tour Stop: From the Doll House to the Dog House
Ittybittybungalow 
Holy cow you have made a lot of progress in one month. Your house is adorable 🙂 I have a weakness for bungalows with porches. Thanks for joining the Bungalow Blog Tour this year!
Thanks StuccoHouse. I think I was just reading on your blog about how you were spending so much time removing the paint from your scored plaster and I just spent the last month skim coating mine in the kitchen and in the bathroom. I also have red linoleum counter tops in my kitchen. I wish I could embrace them as you have but I’m afriad I am going to be trying out the new Rustoleum Coutertop kit for countertops ’til I can replace them with Soapstone.
Looking good! That Apartment Therapy contest is certainly a worthy goal. I’m glad the tour introduced me to your site and I just subscribed to your feed. Cheers!
Thanks Josh!
That’s just adorable — wow you weren’t kidding about the itty bitty part. Was the house 864 sq ft before or after you opened up the front porch? Nice curb appeal.. 🙂
864 sq feet before I opened up the porch!
I love what you’ve done so far! I like that you opened the porch back up and put up window box planters. Keep up the hard work!
Congratulations on your new purchase! Can’t blame you for wanting to get rid of the pink porch.
I love the porch now that the windows are gone! It makes it look so much better.
I agree and I’ve been able to meet almost all my neighbors since opening up the porch.
Great little house. I love opened up porches also. An exterior paint job in the right colors will be really nice.
Thanks Karen Anne. I agree about a new paint color. I am trying to get up the nerve to rip off the aluminum siding but I’m afriad of what I will find underneath.Plus its the only insulation the house has and I can’t afford to have it blown in just yet.
Jayne at http://daintydigs.blogspot.com/ ripped off shingles that were over clapboard and did some patching, and got amazing results. Maybe when you can replace the insulation you could gingerly try removing a bit at a time.
Great to see the new houses on tour this year. I love the porch and look forward to adding this as a blog to follow.
Hey Brad! What a great house you have, and opening up the porch made a big difference already. Thanks for your comment on my blog. The single best piece of advice I can give you about removing the aluminum is what my friend John told me: usually, clapboards were sided over because the owner didn’t want to paint anymore, so it’s a matter of stupidity over necessity, and usually the clapboards underneath are in excellent condition because they’ve been protected all this time. (John knows whereof he speaks, because he tore asbestos siding off his huge 1901 Cape Cod to reveal the original clapboards–he was the inspiration for my shingle-ripping.) Pry up a bit of that aluminum & see what’s underneath. I’m betting your clapboards look great. If you’re really brave, you can remove a clapboard carefully with a wrecker bar to peek under it and see if you have insulation in the walls. I could go on about this for hours…if you have other questions or need affirmation that you’re not completely crazy, just e-mail me at The Kelly House Rules at yahoo dot com. (No spaces, of course.)
Thanks for your adivice Jayne! Taking a sneak peak under the clapboard for insulation is a great idea! I guess I’ll be having a look this weekend! I’ll let you know what I find, keep your fingers crossed!
Scrolled back through your past posts – love the stove and fridge!!!
You’ve got a great little bungalow. It’s just a touch smaller than mine. Best of luck with your ongoing projects.
Wow, that is a lot to do in such a short time! I really like how you changed the front porch, that red really adds flavor to the house. You should try some soapstone or granite countertops for the interior of the house, like in the kitchen. great material 🙂