Goodbye Man Cave, Hello Den!

Chadwick has a vision of our house as it will stand 2, 5, and 10 years down the road. I'm lucky I can "see" to next month, but as I sit in our new den, I'm so thankful that he has vision! Our house was purchased with an attached shop-type room, sandwiched between the kitchen and garage with the laundry room running the length on one side, the outer wall on the other side. A rolling garage door allowed the previous owners to drive their riding lawnmower inside (why didn't we have the chance to buy that with the house?), storage shelves, and a wooden workbench (which they were kind enough to leave).
A man cave.

Months of dreaming, planning, and scheming came to a close at the end of May. Remodeling is interesting in that the final product rarely matches the original plans. We certainly went through several drafts as the construction began and plans had to be altered due to unforeseen circumstances.

Our "hiccup" - the plumbing and HVAC from the second floor run through the wall we wanted to open up and make a half-wall. Scratch that and move to Plan B.
Truthfully, the process was a smooth one and there weren't too many hiccups. I credit that to the experience of our contractor, Ben, his Darwin-loving subcontractor, Bob, and an architecturally inclined husband.

Bob's "graffiti" - a Kokopelli and Zia symbol

The tiki man above the fireplace. Still visible in the right light.

After we moved the contents of the shop (who knew we had so much stuff!) to the garage, I commented to Ben that I totally understand now why people have three car garages. Two for the cars and one for the things of life. With a smile, Ben informed me that he could do that should the need arise. He is the husband of a dear friend and it was fun to get to know him a little more. He adores my children and always had a moment for them. Bob, on the other hand, adores our dog, frequently bringing extra lunch to share and throwing the ball between hammering.

Looking from the den into the kitchen

We moved the laundry room door back and removed the corner and parts of the wall.

I'm not going to lie that although the overall process was smooth, the day-to-day things were a bit rough. From the pounding of hammers and nail guns to the incredible amount of dust that had to be cleaned before dinner could be started, I was often cranky at the end of the day. I just wanted our house back!

I didn't have much motivation to mop...this is from the kitchen to the back porch.

The transformation from shop to den is stunning. It's an understatement to say that it's a whole new room. I've always planned to have a room in my "grownup" house that had a Southwest style to reflect my roots.

Chadwick took it one step further and suggested that the architecture reflect a New Mexican flavor in addition to the decor. I love that man of mine!

The highlight of our den is the built-in bookshelf. Chadwick worked meticulously to draft plans and Ben worked just as hard to make sure it was built to specification. And it's solid!! I love this series of photos as it provides a little glimpse into our family.

Life is good.