Now That's an Open Floor Plan!!!

As luck would have it, I had to be out of town when the guys removed the walls on the first floor.  It killed me to miss all the fun!  So as soon as my plane landed back in Portland, I rushed over to the house to see the result.

Now, I thought I knew what it would look like.  I have spent hours and hours working through the floor plan design, trying to envision the rooms with the walls eliminated.  But despite all that, reality exceeded my expectations!  I couldn't believe how fantastic it is!!!  With the walls gone, the house feels twice as big.  And the rooms just flow together, to create a wonderful living space.

Let's start with the view from what used to be the enclosed front porch.

Before

Going

Going

Gone!!

See those big LVL beams across each opening?  They are triple thick and carry the load from the walls we've removed and the weight of the new dormer.  That's why we needed to pour the new footings in the basement.  Oh, and the blue insulation?  That's the stairwell to the new second floor.....it will be opened up later, but now we're trying to keep everything warm with our cold Maine winter nights.

The first peek without the wall to the sunroom shows just how much sunlight starts to stream into the living room.  Now it will be a nice bright space!

See what a big, beautiful room it's going to be!

We took out a 15 foot wall between the living room and dining room, doesn't it make a huge difference?

And last but not least, the kitchen now feels much bigger and brighter.  The refrigerator will be moved to the other side of the room and there is no longer a pinch point for traffic going back and forth to the dining room. The best surprise in here?  Original red birch floors were under that vinyl tile.  It's like winning the lottery to find them!

We still need to update electrical, move some radiators and install a kitchen, but it's already a huge step forward.  What do you think?  

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