surprises in every corner

There is never a dull moment when you start renovating a home built in 1953 that has had little, if any, updating since that year. Design styles were quite interesting in Florida during that time and I question the sanity of the people who designed and decorated this property. 

Exhibit A –  There is a planter with a waterfall in our family room. Yes, you read that correctly. That brown hole in the corner is a planter full of dirt and mulch about two to three feet deep. Those little protruding bricks on the wall in the top right corner are meant to spray the water from the waterfall into the planter.

Exhibit B –  Wood paneling. There is never a good reason for wood paneling but it should definitely not be used to cover such a neat piece of 1950s decor. The view below is from the dining room to the bar and that mural is actually wallpaper. We were not expecting that when the ivory painted wood panels were removed. Too bad it was so damaged that we could not try and remove it in one piece. I’m sure that would have been a great little vintage piece to restore or frame.

 Exhibit C – Pirate ship wallpaper.

Exhibit D – Stick-on stained glass for the pink and blue bathroom window…that leads into the family room.

Exhibit E – My final and most compelling exhibit. This entire bathroom. Really?! The tile is pink and metallic brown/black, there is a bidet and matching giant ugly toilet, and the wallpaper, good god, that wallpaper. I’m scared of this room and the nasty brown pocket door will be closed until we can afford to gut this room down to the studs. 

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