Progress on the Upstairs at Poplar Cottage

THE POPLAR COTTAGE

Now that the weather’s turned, we’ve been working inside at the Poplar Cottage and making great progress upstairs. The brand new second story now has flooring, moldings, tile, and planked ceilings and we’re hustling to get it finished for our Christmas move-in date. I’m not sure we’ll be able to swing that, but it’s good to have goals ;) Have a look around and excuse the mess…

I took these photos yesterday and that’s Garrett working on the handrails, which he almost finished by dinner time. Yay! There’s paper on the floors over the newly-finished fir hardwoods and the ceilings and moldings are all in. We’re almost ready for paint! It’s such a joy to be at this stage of finishes after such a long, drawn-out renovation. We’ll be enjoying holiday movies on a cozy couch up here before we know it!

psst: catch up on the Poplar Cottage with these posts: the day we bought the house, lifting the house 8’ in the air, a new foundation, what the new foundation cost, reframing the second story, windows+doors, and the evolution of the exterior, and all Poplar posts.

Floor Plan

Before we get to more progress photos, let’s start with a floor plan of the second story…

The second story adds about 500sf to the Poplar Cottage, essentially doubling the square footage of the house. It’s a relatively simple floor plan up here, but simple is good. We were able to squeeze in a narrow bathroom and a second bedroom.


Now that you’re oriented, let’s walk through each of the three rooms.

Living room

First up is the living room, the brightest room in the house. There are windows facing south, west, and skyward. Did we overdue it with the windows? No such thing! Even in December with thick, Pacific Northwest clouds and not a speck of sun, this room still feels bright. And with all the blown-in insulation, this is just a cozy spot to hang out!

Bathroom

The bathroom opens onto the stair landing with a pocket door. We tiled it this summer and it’s probably my favorite tile job we’ve ever done. We shared more about the DIY patterned penny tile floors and the shower tile.

vanity (similar option) | White penny round | Silver penny round | Marble 12x12 tile | subway tile | shower faucet

The vanity is sitting in the shower at the moment in preparation for painting the walls. Can’t wait to finish putting this space together!

The bedroom

The upstairs bedroom should be a bun kids bedrooms. It’s got a bit of awkward geometry but we’re planning to add built-in bunks for two twin beds and we’ll add another twin or a queen bed in the nook by the window (currently labeled ‘closet’). Stay tuned!


What’s next

We’re getting so close to finishing this space! Here’s what’s left:

  • Finish the stair railing

  • Caulk and prep for paint

  • Paint

  • Hang bedroom door

  • Add heat/cooling in living room

  • Install toilet and vanity

  • Furnish and decorate!

It’s been quite the learning curve to bring this brand new to life space after only doing remodels for the past decade plus, but it’s been really fun! And all the crazy work it took us to get here is about to pay off!

xx