Do you like before-and-after transformations as much as I do? There’s something compelling about makeovers. It’s astonishing to see what a great hairstyle, well fitting clothes or skillfully applied cosmetics can do to change someone’s appearance. And who doesn’t like to watch talented carpenters and home decorators tackle a fixer-upper? (I’m lookin’ at you, Chip and Joanna.)
There are some before-and-after pix of my life I’m delighted to share with you today, and others I wouldn’t even if I could.
Our garden shed after the wasps were banished and much of the junk removed.
One of the bonuses that came with the purchase of our current home in western North Carolina is a small garden shed about 16 x 12. Someone designed it to resemble a little Appalachian cabin overlooking the pond but it was intended to house a lawn tractor and tools, not people. Or pests!
When we gingerly stepped inside the first time we found rotted floorboards, drafty windows and dozens of wasp nests. But where I saw problems, my husband the visionary spotted potential. He’s good at that, having worked for a Master Carpenter as a fixer-upper of a different sort.
The shed had no front door, only a side ramp that had completely rotted through.
So late last fall after we unpacked boxes and completed the most pressing repairs on the house, Mike tackled the shed. My brother on a visit from his home in California helped him cart out junk and assassinate the current occupants, while Mike’s buddy Peter drove down from Wheaton to put both brain and brawn into tearing out old windows and showing Mike how to install a working front door.
Brother Dan was a huge help in the initial stages of cleaning and prepping the shed for renovations.
Our friend Peter is as kind as he is smart. He taught Mike a lot about rehabbing and blessed our home with his presence.
Here’s the shed stripped down to the studs.
Two neighbors stopped by to observe the work.
Insulation now in! Plus Mike added two new windows to the back wall to let in more light.
Mike installed the drywall and did all the mudding and taping himself. And we now have a front door! Mike and Peter found this old cabin door at the Antique Tobacco Barn in Asheville. It reminds me of a hobbit door.
Shiplap! We have shiplap! OK, only the back wall as an accent. This stuff is more $$ than we anticipated so the other three walls will just be finished with paint.
Ready for the Big Reveal? C’mon in!
My little writing desk! We found it super cheap at a thrift shop in southern Virginia.
Indoor plumbing wouldn’t be authentic in a southern Appalachian cabin, but I do have a washstand! (Another thrift store find.)
The cowbells came from the farm where I grew up (great for summoning folks up in the house or scaring away crows.)We light the room as people have done for centuries, with oil lamps.
I bought this on sale at Hobby Lobby years ago for my office at Tyndale. Fun to see my book arrangement in its new home!
No longer a shed, I now have a working cabin! Here’s the right side of my cozy space. The futon pulls out for sleeping – it’s lovely to hear the rain on the metal roof.
And here’s the left side of the room, complete with braided rug from Goodwill and my caned granny rocker ($20 from the local Habitat for Humanity shop, reStore.)
But the most special piece of all is the vintage prayer kneeler my friend Catherine gave me when we moved from Cape Cod. She’s with the Lord now but this will always remind me of her.
And here is our little porch overlooking the pond! The twig furniture was left behind by a previous owner. I love it.
SO WE WENT FROM THIS…
TO THIS! No longer a shed, we now have a cabin to work, pray, and share.
I do love makeovers, don’t you? It’s been so fun to share these before-and-after pictures with you.
But the biggest transformation of all is the one that takes place in the human heart.
I’m glad photos don’t exist of the interior of my life before Christ came in. You, too? During this Lenten season we celebrate the One who gave his own life to make ours over again. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!
Thanks for stopping by today! Newly yours, Maggie
Amber said:
Yay! It looks fantastic! Are you sure you want grandkids stomping around in there? I do predict it will become a favorite slumber party location in a few years. But maybe we get them an electric lantern….
maggierowe said:
Yes, not sure we want to leave the littles with open flame. But I can already picture Libby with her teasers on the porch and Everett finding dinosaurs in the stream!
Elaine Sohlo said:
Maggie and Mike, you are great Fixer-uppers. It looks wonderful and so cozy. It is a nice place to retreat from the busyness of the world.
maggierowe said:
That it is, Elaine! Much love to you! Mom turns 94 next week, How about you?
Lea Vinal said:
Oh Maggie it’s beautiful!! I especially like the kneeling bench and remembering our sweet friend Catherine. She had so much love for everyone. Your cabin feels so cozy, I hope someday to see it in person❤️
maggierowe said:
Lea, I love that you knew Cath too. I had to cry when I knew I had the perfect place for her prayer kneeler, wishing she could see it now. But I hope you will someday soon!
boucherpye said:
Loved seeing this transformation! Praying for you as you write, that your words will spark inspiration and help bring people closer to God.
maggierowe said:
Thank you Amy! I am amazed to be on this side of the publishing process. And your prayer is spot on – there is no other reason for me to write. (And by the way, just saw the finale to Victoria last night – what a queen you were blessed with!)
Katherine Scott Jones said:
Love this, Maggie! When I come over?? 🙂 I love makeovers too, for all these reasons. You articulated it so well.
maggierowe said:
Katherine, you know you are welcome anytime! We have to meet in person sometime, good friends that we have become!
Pat Langley said:
That is wonderful Maggie! You and Mike are so creative and how do you find such amazing bargains! All so beautiful!, Love, Pat
maggierowe said:
Pat, we are blessed with so many thrift and resale shops in this area. People of southern Appalachia have always been good at making do what what they had on hand. It’s been fun finding things and giving them a new home and purpose!
Jenny Sorenson said:
Your writer’s cabin is beautiful! Mike did amazing work. And your decorating is perfect for NC!!
maggierowe said:
Thank you Jenny! It’s already giving us so much joy.
Kathy Bates said:
Lovely, Maggie! What a wonderful transformation!
maggierowe said:
Thank you Kathy! All credit to Mike the Fix-It Man, whose vision it was to give me this space to create. I love the symbolism of old becoming new again.
Jan de Chambrier said:
Oh, Maggie – your dream come true! I can feel the idyllic serenity of that pastoral setting just beckoning to me! Congratulations to Mike and Dan on a superb job. Can’t wait to see it!
maggierowe said:
Jan, when you visit next I would love for you to do a cabin blessing just as you prayed over all of Peace Ridge!
Donna Whitmer said:
What a beautiful little cabin! And what a transformation. Mike did a wonderful job! Hope we get to see it some day.
maggierowe said:
Donna, I hope you do too! Mike learned a thing or two by watching your talented husband over the years. 🙂
Pam Sanderlin said:
Wow! It’s fantastic! I love it! And so pleased for you!
maggierowe said:
Pam, you need your own “she shed” in the Colorado desert so you can paint! Nothing can beat your view of those amazing mountains.
joleensteel said:
Oh, I’m so thrilled to see this darling make over. The best picture though is of you looking towards the future God has in store for you. Blessings and joy!
maggierowe said:
Miss Joleen, I’m so glad you were here to see it in person before The Big Reveal online! Praying for your writing and drawing too, my friend. God has so GIFTED you.
adaisy4you said:
I love this so much! Can I come see sometime?!?❤️❤️❤️
maggierowe said:
Miss Maureen, of course you can! If you can ever sneak away from home, you are welcome to come write here yourself! I am stocking the cabin with prayer books, too.
Judi Ferrin Schuhmcher said:
What a wonderful transformation , so glad we got to see the “before “. Can’t wait to read the writings that come from this site . How blessed you are . Congratulations to you and Mike for a job well done .
maggierowe said:
Judi, you and Glen truly did see the “before”, minus the wasps I think. Mike worked hard to convert this from musty shed to a working cabin. The only thing is lacks is a privy, but for this we have the woods. 🙂
adaisy4you said:
Yesterday when we visited the Billy Graham Library in Charlotte, I read on Ruth Bell Graham‘s memorial stone, “End of construction — Thank you for your patience.” And I just thought, thank goodness He isn’t finished with me yet! But one day… one day. (Phil. 1:6) ❤️
maggierowe said:
Maureen, we are going there for the first time next Thursday!
Stephanie Rische said:
Oh my goodness, Maggie, it’s stunning! I can see so many beautiful words coming out of this place. Happy writing!
maggierowe said:
Stephanie, what a lovely thought. A place of beauty for words to emerge!
Dan Wallem said:
Maggie — Very fun to see the start-to finish-photos. This cabin already is a place of inspiration and one that I look forward to returning to.
maggierowe said:
Thank you for all of your help with it, Dan! Appreciate you so much, brother.