Home and Insurance: A Happy Ending to A Sad Story: My Sis and Mom Have a New Home 2 yrs. After the Fire

Well, Hello! I know, I know!! Four whole days with no post! Well..when you have to choose between a friend or a post, of course the friend wins out, but don't worry--it just means some extra fun posts for the future. Rebekah and I made our LAST trip to Dallas (for at least a little while I hope) to meet with an accountant and get the title changed to the car I inherited from my father. We got a lot done! We were gone two days and the next morning headed to a friend's home to help clean before an upcoming inspection by the mortgage company. We just got home this afternoon after working very late yesterday.

In a few days I'll share the photos from my friend Laurie's stunning new home, but today, I thought I share photos of my mother and sister's new home. They re-built it using insurance money from when their home burned down two years ago (a week before Christmas!).

For those who don't know the story, my sister and mother's home burned to the ground in about 20 minutes..almost two years ago. It was awful...and heartbreaking. I had just met Heather in Fairfield (exactly 2 hours from both our homes) to pass on our family's dogs for babysitting. We were headed to Germany for three weeks and leaving in two days. By the time I got home, the phone was ringing and all I could hear was my sister sobbing, "It's gone! It's gone!". Her and George's home had burned to the ground while we had lunch.. I felt just sick at heart for her. There just aren't words to express how terrible it all was.

This post is a tribute to the wonderful comeback they have made and the beautiful result of 2 years of hard work to recover from it all. All their family heirlooms and treasures, antique furniture vanished in such a horribly short time, along with precious pets...but so much has been restored..even rescued cats from the neighborhood.

Tim and I and the teenagers helped my mom, sister, and brother-in-law move in just a few weeks ago and I was so glad to finally get the cushion covers delivered for their 'new' thrift-store daybed. I thought that while I was in the neighborhood (3 1/2 hours north of home) that I could bring them by. Boy, were they ever excited!

My favorite room in the house...Heather's Bathroom.

Rather than buy new things for their home to replace everything that burned, they hit the thrift stores. This home looks like it has been here for years..rather than having been built and moved into only a few weeks ago. I was impressed with how they used bargain granite to do the bar and used the extra for the livingroom bay windows. The two claw foot tubs had been stored outdoors and survived the fire. These were refurbished. Antique dressers were turned into sinks with cabinets. More photos below.

There were lots of things they dreamed of that I thought were very good ideas, like the plate rack, the closets,

and the pretty Tiffany lamps.

They wanted a huge island in the main living area (very open floor plan) but had to have a hood over the stove. It was a huge, ugly, shiny pipe, but my creative mother painted it solid black and applied these tiny little tiles all over the shiny aluminum ring.

It didn't take long for them to come up with appropriate collectibles. Mom loves colored glass and tile...(the amber vase was given to her by me at Christmas.) I also gave Heather and George the unusual ashtray which I never could have imagined would match the tile. It's from an African village.

I have to say their house is really well done and they were very involved with all the detailing. But even more amazing are the things they have collected--furniture and decor. Their house looks as "Arts and Crafts" and mission style as it ever did.

I really LOVE Mom's bedroom! Especially the bay windows! A good friend painted the iron bed and she picked up the quilt top (all batiks!). Love that quilt top!

However, I'm afraid that I don't care for the pink in the bathroom at all, (so sorry Mom!!) but I do love the the antique baker's rack and the sink she had installed in the dresser. Mom has a VERY eclectic style... :o)

And since the claw foot tub didn't have feet..they mounted it to blocks. Great idea! The pocket doors were a great idea too. We want to put one in our entry way/ laundry room.

Because they saved most of the replacement money for their possessions, they were able to use the savings to build a very environmentally friendly and 'green' home. This was hubby, George's, dream. This house will not burn down again--that's for sure! The walls are cement (12" thick), there is insulation a foot thick on the RAFTERS of their attic, so even the attic is cool. I would love to have their electric bills!

Their house is VERY quiet.

One result of the thick walls that I especially loved, was all the bay windows. But George's favorite part, which cost the sacrifice of three fireplaces, was the solar panels which provide much of their electricity.

Well, I still need to cover the little sofa, but it's nice to find out that the cushion covers I sewed worked out so well. I've got a banner to make this next week, so the second couch will have to wait. In the meanwhiles, George (who apparently was the most anxious about the couch), will be sitting in comfort in a cool, tranquil, and lovely new home.