Fixin 8 Jefferson

The Purchase

Back in February 2012, we took on the daunting task of purchasing a historical building in downtown Newnan (on mainstreet) and turning it into a home decor & gift boutique.  It had been 18 months since I sold my last business of 5 years (The Vintage-Flea) and I was ready to do it again!  In the 5 years that I had TVF, I realized that I spent over $60,000 in rent not to mention all the $$ that we put into the place for improvements such as new flooring, new AC duct work, new stairs, new paint, etc.  The list was endless.

So this time I was going to do it right.. be the owner & landlord!!  We purchased this little gem for $15,000 below asking price which we then put all that savings into renovating the building.

Here are the before pictures... the front with aluminum siding and a monstrous wood awning.

Walking towards the back of the space you see 2 different offices...and lovely carpet tiles.

On the left side of the space.. the brick wall had be at hello!

The right side of the space.. one massive concrete block

At the very back of the building.. first door goes into office, second door goes into bathroom, then you have the kitchenette area

Inside office #1 with built in bookshelves



Turning around you can see the front of the space

2 large windows divided into 6 rectangle sheets of glass

Wood paneling above the windows

 

Viola!!  This is what the building looked like when we purchased it.  Many people looked at the space but couldn't see the potential.  Luckily, we did!

The Process

Before buying the building, we wanted to make sure what lies beneath the carpet.. concrete!

What lies beneath the aluminum siding... brick!

What lies beneath paneling??

Transom windows!  Finding that was like striking gold!! 

The first step was to take down the walls of office space #1.

My son Brice, age 10, was the youngest worker on the job site.   Down to the studs..

 

I decided to leave the wall with the bookshelves and we extended the wall by the bathroom to hide the kitchenette area.

 

Time to choose a paint color...

Started painting.. using Sherwin Williams Mindful Gray.

Began to tile bookshelves.  Found old shutters at Salvage yard for $5 each!

Awning coming down...

Then siding.. we found glass tile going across the building.  Things that make you go hmmm??

 

 Chose my front door at our local Habitat store for $35!!  Yipee!!

 Removed the windows on front of building

 Looking sweet!!

 Clean up before paint

Before & After