My 1920's house is weird... and why we didn't change it!

[@robinmichel9048]

I always say that you should live in a house for a year before doing renovations. Sometimes the quirks make sense after you've given them a chance.

[@Paul_Wetor]

That's a good idea. Sometimes things are that way for a reason. Or for a wrong reason. The upstairs porch of my 1938 house was supported by two angle beams and was failing apart. I took it down for safety but hesitated a long time about replacing it. One day it finally dawned on me: it was too big. I had seen an old railing in the garage so I knew there was an even earlier version. I reasoned that a previous owner had made it larger, but it really needed to be smaller - rug-shaking size. So don't assume that the way it is currently is the way it's supposed to be.

[@anonymousanonymous2625]

I think I would replace that upstairs toilet with the type that has a hand washing sink that sits on the tank and recycles wash water with the next flush. It would take zero space from the existing room. If you only have one door, I hope you have fire ladders in the bedrooms. A single egress is a problem in event of fire. I give you a standing ovation for preserving the wonders of the adorable house.

[@TheErador]

Came to say exactly this. Not very 20s style but definitely better than taking up more wall space.

[@ohioitis200]

@@TheErador Or adding more plumbing.

[@zippa20]

Yikes. I just posted a comment suggestiong this before getting to your suggestion. oops.

[@DestinyR7]

Came here to post this same thing!

[@mckayfan]

same

[@jvalravn7228]

I found one of my childhood homes on Zillow once. My dad did so much work on that house: built an add-on dining room, built his workshop, my playhouse, and installed this pretty built-in desk in my bedroom. All of it was still there. The wallpaper he used in the dining room was still the same, too. My dad passed in 2016, and it was so nice to see the mark he made on that house all those decades ago. I imagine that’s how Mr Freestone must’ve felt to see his father’s handiwork still there.

[@elsiestormont1366]

I recently saw my aunt's home on Zillow. I regret even opening it up. She bought her early 1900's craftsman home in the early 1970's and spent the rest of her life lovingly restoring and improving on her vintage home, a little at a time, as she could afford it and with a lot of elbow grease😢😢. To see the authentic 1920's kitchen gutted and modernized was so sad. It lost all it's character and charm and HISTORY. 😢

[@jvalravn7228]

@ aw man, that sucks. I don’t understand why people buy older homes just to destroy the historical quirks. Why can’t they just buy a new home if they want a modern house??

[@paulinelarson465]

Usually because the old houses are cheaper and people figure that they can "remodel" bit by bit, as money comes available. No one seems to understand that old places were built with better workmanship and better quality of materials. All the old ​houses that my sons bought stayed intact. Except for one bathroom with rotted floors and a thousand pound (?) cast iron tub. The tub was the victim of four guys who "knew what they are doing" and tryed to muscle it out of the way. USE A DOLLY ! ! Toilet and sink made it but some ceramic tiles died. Modern tub with surround instead of tile on that wall. r@@jvalravn7228

[@lewis8423]

@@elsiestormont1366 Maybe to you as you have memories of that property. But you no longer own it , it belongs to someone new. They have their own ideas and memories to make in the property.

[@Maeglin7936]

I might be wrong on this, but my guess is this: They most likely didn't have a hot water heater and had to heat the water on the stove. So, to save some steps, they just installed it right there.

[@jinnymay3371]

I live in a very old house as well, bathroom door off the kitchen. You are exactly right about the bathroom being there. Hot water came from the stove and it was a luxury to have a separate room with a bath and sink inside. Originally there was no toilet in my house, it was outside. I have left my bathroom where it is as well, it can be very expensive to move a bathroom. I also like the reminder that having hot water, heating and electricity are not luxuries that have been around for a particularly long time ☺️

[@johnhpalmer6098]

I'm from the US and for many of us that own an older home, the bathroom was adjacent to the kitchen due to the ease of adding plumbing. See, here, we didn't get indoor plumbing until at least the 1890's, some homes like mine didn't get it until much later, like in the mid 20's at my place, thus the kitchen and bath are from the 20's with an addition. The house was a 2 room house or cabin, and likely got electricity then too and was initially built in either 1905 or 1908. Hot water and central heat was available in the 1890's for some folks, but definitely after 1900. Farm houses, likely not as electricity was often not available until the 30's at the earliest for most rural homes and farms. I should say, by the mid to late teens, on, most new homes had indoor plumbing.

[@TrineDaely]

Minimizes indoor plumbing (and plumbing problems) to the smallest possible area, too.

[@Nan-59]

Good point!! I ❤❤

[@Nan-59]

Now that you mention it, the house, my mom grew up in… her grandmother’s house had the bathroom directly off the kitchen!

[@anonymousanonymous2625]

I once tried to buy an old farmhouse in Florida, part of an old berry farm. The house had been started in 1879 as just one large room with a lovely fireplace at one end and a cast iron cook stove at the other. As the farm prospered and the family grew, they added rooms around the core like a s snail shell. Then when hard times hit (The Great Freeze of 1894-95 ) the family added rooms they could rent, using the same spiral pattern. These later rooms were built, according to the story, by folks who would do a day's work in exchange for a meal and a bed, so you can imagine the quality of the construction. When I came upon her, it was love at first sight, but because of the odd construction I would have had to pay cash, as no one would finance it. I loved every lopsided spiral sloping room of her, and I am pleased she found someone with deeeeeeep pockets who loves her too.

[@l.annahlstromdickson7497]

Quirky houses often mean there's a history of craftsmenship and DIYers. I love houses like that.

[@annmarie9664]

I don't know where you live but I live in a small town in southern New England and a lot of the older farm houses and houses build during the beginning of the Industrial Age have bathrooms and toilets right off the kitchen. I think that installing all things needing water pipes in the same part of the house just made sense to them.

[@hildajensen6263]

Yes. It's the same reasons why the bath/shower and the toilet are traditionally in the same room. Saves money on plumbing. I don't really know how many times my old house has been redone. But everything that needs water is all stuffed in one end on the lower floor. And I am sure it's all about the cost.

[@justme8108]

In my 1910 house, they chopped the kitchen in half, and installed an indoor bathroom, and this way all the plumbing is near the same place.

[@heidibock1017]

I was about to say this for the 1900s duplex I lived in that had been split into 2 apartments---bathrroom right next to kitchen.

[@amyfromflorida4518]

You could just put an old Victorian dry sink with a bowl and pitcher up stairs so you can wash your hands! It would look cute and serve a function. ❤ and I Love that you met a previous owner! That is so cool.

[@StephanieHall-n6m]

What a wonderful idea ❤

[@KJ-lb4tj]

Yeah, it would be cute. But pretty tricky to fill it with fresh water after every use.

[@hildajensen6263]

Or you could choose this one place to go modern and install a toilet with an sort of sink build in. I've seen them in videos of tiny flats in Japan. Not sure if they are available in the UK, though.

[@TheErador]

​@@KJ-lb4tjnot really, can tip it down the loo

[@TheErador]

​@@hildajensen6263you can get them, they're not cheap tho! I agree it's the best use of space tho

[@Raggedy-Ann]

It drives me absolutely NUTS when some buys an old house and removes all the beauty from it…they “ remodel” it instead of RESTORE it….I seriously cry…especially if I’ve been in the home they are destroying… I’ve never understood why some people want their home to look like a cookie cutter copy . The quirky charm is what’s so special about a home…

[@FemaleVillageElder]

Exactly. I had been in my best friends’ old home many times. She passed away a few years ago, and the home was stripped of all its own character and made into a modern white kitchen, etc. to make it more sellable. They took away the book shelves. I guess thinking people don’t read anymore. All the character is gone. It makes me very sad.

[@bonnieboo2159]

One of my biggest worries is someone buying my grandparents’ beautiful country home and completely gutting it and changing it 😢 I really hope that somehow we can keep it in the family once they are gone, we all have so many wonderful memories within those walls.

[@Raggedy-Ann]

@ make sure you and your siblings can purchase it.. my great grandparents home was so awesome that was the one and only home they had in there entire married life.. they have been gone for 50 years now… the people who bought there farm and home promised to take care… but they tore the house down and sub divided all that land for housing they made a fortune . I was about 21 years old when the house got torn down.. I was seriously devastated… I walked the property and found papers blowing in the wind with their handwriting on them… the very best childhood memories I have are at their home during the holidays.. with all our aunts uncles cousins and parents I felt so loved and I felt like I belonged… something I’ve never really felt again in my life. Sometimes when I miss them I close my eyes and take a tour of their home… even in every cupboard , drawer etc.. and all the out buildings and huge glass green house. I wish I could go back and spend a day with them as an adult.. boy the questions I would have for them❤️

[@perle13930]

People do what they like! Thier money thier house

[@lewis8423]

@@bonnieboo2159 Once it’s sold unfortunately the people who have bought the house do not have any emotional attachment to the previous owners handy work. That goes the min the papers and cash is deposited in their account. The new owners are perfectly entitled to smash out anything they choose o do and put their stamp on the property.

[@justclaremarie]

I've lived in a few houses with downstairs bathrooms. As for your upstairs loo, have you thought about changing the toilet to one that has a sink on top? I think they're a really clever idea for limited spaces x Love the channel

[@Loupdelou-ly1ve]

Totally agree - that's what I'd do. Easier re water pipes and saves precious space.

[@JennyHanlon]

I was going to suggest this as well. The cistern top could be replaced with a plumbed in sink basin and the hand wash water is in turn used to flush the loo so less waste all round!

[@hannahgooch6562]

That's what I was going to suggest.

[@ButterflyTwinkle1968]

Was about to ask her that? Good on ya

[@ttenrabdn]

​@@JennyHanlon you can even buy just the sink portion which would replace the lid on the water tank, using the existing water supply.

[@lululongmizzlegarden]

‘Millennial grey’ is just the worst 😂😂😂 Lovely story about Mark & his dad’s fireplace ❤

[@StellaWaldvogel]

Yes! The house is perfect (though I agree, a back door would make sense.) I'm glad nothing was changed, it feels good just knowing there are people out there who love old things and loathe millennial grey as much as I do. How people can live in places the color of despair is beyond me.

[@LostintheTangle]

Lol, I call it 'house flipper silver.' 😅

[@anonymousanonymous2625]

@@lululongmizzlegarden I call that "Magnolization". Thanks to the Gaines shows. Gray EVERYTHING, bad laminate floors, every house aspiring to the same gray faux farmhouse. When I was house shopping I came across such a Magnolized house, all the doors had been removed and replaced with cheap slab doors. The original carved doors were piled up behind the garage and if I had the space I would have saved them all.

[@WhisperingPines7]

Hahaha!! My 30 something daughter loves Joanna Gaines and had painted her house shades of gray in each room!!😅

[@anonymousanonymous2625]

@@WhisperingPines7 I think it's contagious. I've never seen so many 100% gray houses before.

[@killedbyrabbits]

I love all the quirks of old houses, I'm always a little sad when I see one that's been fully remodeled with everything unique removed. My grandparents live in an old house, and their back stairway is set up a bit like a gallery with family photos and some of my mom's drawings, it's always fun to look at. I'm not sure how easy they are to find, but there's a type of toilet that has the sink built on top of the tank. The water from the sink and washing your hands fills the tank. I'm also not sure if there are any potential design flaws in a toilet like that but it would save the space from having to put a whole seperate sink in that little nook toilet.

[@suewilkinson910]

I sold my parents home this year. It was a 3 bed end of terrace on a main city road. But still it was 100 years old and my parents were it's 3rd owners. It was pretty much original. Sadly the new owner has knocked 7 bells out of it. The chimneys have gone. The lean-too extension and outside loo and coal store gone. The front garden gone. God knows what they have done out the back. There is now nothing original left. People have no idea. It lacked mod cons but was warm and welcoming and bright. He's a middle aged Asian man on his own. It will be painted grey and black and it will look awful. I can guarantee it. Sad.

[@killedbyrabbits]

@suewilkinson910 Aww, that's so sad. My grandparents bought it in the early 70s and went with a sort of vintage at the time decoration so they have reproduction victorian/edwardian wallpaper, lamps, and furniture. They still heat the house with what I think are the original radiators and they have the coke fireplace still, although it's been closed up on the inside so it doesn't work but it's beautiful. They're older now, and I hope whoever ends up with it keeps the old charm.

[@suewilkinson910]

@@killedbyrabbits There are people out there who love old charm. We just have to hope they scoop up the older houses and leave the people who like blank walls and box shapes to live in the newer builds.

[@shiralleehaggart72]

​@suewilkinson910 Sorry this has happened to your parents old property that sounds like it had a lot of character and original fittings. As you say as well it will no doubt end up like every other Grey and White soulless minimal colourless house after renovations like many of them nowadays.

[@shiralleehaggart72]

​@@suewilkinson910I am one of them. I hate all this cheap modern stuff compared to the 'made to last' old stuff.

[@susancrawford5927]

Charm cannot be replaced. I love the upstairs toilet, it's so cozy. Your gift for storytelling held me enthralled and I felt spirited away to another time. Thank you.

[@frogmella]

Gorgeous story about the fireplace 😭 I live in a 1904 end of terrace in east London. I was curious recently and looked up the 1911 census to see who lived here then. Found a family of 7 lived here - really fascinating, and one of the daughters remained here until the 1930s! Sadly we don't have loads of original features - we have original cast iron fireplaces in 2 rooms though, very lucky. Recently we did an extension to our kitchen dining room, and upon digging below the floorboards under the stairs we found evidence of another hearth there. Just fascinating. I love the history of houses.

[@StephanieHall-n6m]

What a beautiful video, love that Mark got to see his dads fireplace again, beautiful ❤

[@cherylsmith9042]

Your such a natural story teller and you seem absolutely lovely and your house is beautiful full of quirky character I live in a 1917 house out in the country side Australia it’s very large and rambling but I love it thankyou for showing us a little look inside your darling original style home 😊

[@twistoffate4791]

I wanted to stay in the stairwell and take my sweet time checking out all the beautiful artwork. ** Heavy Sigh ** I think it's a very charming and warm home.

[@egl3369]

I bought a 1950s house that had never been renovated. I also didn't have the budget to do much, but I still love it. It also has frosted mottled glass on the upper half of the toilet door :) Recently I had a letter from the grand daughter of the person who built it, asking if I was selling. I emailed her back saying no, but here are some pictures of how it looks now. She then replied with stories and memories of her time visiting there as a child. It's a wonderful thing having an old house. So long as there are no ghosts!

[@shelleymatthews5050]

We’ve got a ghost ,,,fully documented by the neighbours and we were warned before we moved in, we know a lot about her and she’s not so bad 😮twist of fate my husband works with her son in law

[@Eric-Indiana]

My cousin has an old farm house built in 1915.... wrap around porch, two front doors...and....a door in the kitchen that opens into a bathroom. She bought the place from descendants of the original owners. The reason they gave her for the location was that when indoor plumbing was installed the only place that wouldn't have required any construction was the pantry. The quickest way to reach the old outside toilet "facilities" was through a door in the kitchen onto a side porch and about fifteen feet away was the privvy. So they were used to the kitchen being sort of related to bathroom things anyway so it wasn't that strange to them. By the way, the old outhouse was never torn down, just had the pit filled in, it's still there. My cousin has turned it into a potting shed.😉

[@EmmaCruises]

I love that toilet room!! So snug. It's horrible to be on the toilet in a huge cold room 😂👏

[@SecretKeeperForever9]

This is the kind of details that are missing in modern homes. This shows amazing craftsmanship and the greatness of the human mind. I wish they still made homes like this.

[@kathleenorr9237]

An upstairs toilet is a lifesaver as you get older…trust me! Your home is lovely and full of character, look forward to the door transformation. Growing up in a farm cottage we also had one front door..my mum battled mud/muck for years 😂

[@Realvintagedollshouse]

Ah! You're like the ONLY other person who has experienced only one front door!!! ❤❤❤

[@kathleenorr9237]

@@Realvintagedollshouse Really! My mum always wished for a back door into the kitchen so the mud (and being on a dairy farm cow poop!) we all trailed in could be contained there 😆

[@resurrectedwreck]

I love that you met a previous owner and in doing so solved the mystery of the floor stencil. Amazing! Your remarks at the end about embracing the journey of the house rather than tearing things down to render it a "blank slate" put me in mind of the documentary film Charlotte's Castle. It's about an old Edwardian apartment building here in Toronto and the residents who are trying to save it from developers. It's on KZbin, I think you would enjoy it. The building itself and its residents, past and present, are quite remarkable and gloriously quirky.

[@Motherhubbard170]

going to look it up, thank you

[@susancrawford5927]

I will have a look, I'm in Toronto.

[@margaretorden7568]

I live in a row of 6 terraced houses built in 1929. I believe mine is the least altered and the only one not knocked through and that still has a dado rail in the hall. I know from the deeds a joiner and his wife bought it in 1959. I think he built the large cupboard in the front bedroom and the garden shed. The house was bequeathed to the person I bought it from 7 years ago and I was lucky to be given a small desk and a cupboard which I believe he made for the house - the desk exactly fits the space just inside the lounge door. I love that you have met Mark and found out more of your home’s history. About half of the houses in my street have downstairs bathrooms. Mine was built with one upstairs.

[@tinabennett8524]

Really enjoyed the video, the story, the tour. I’m in the rural US in our area the old homes often have the bathroom off the kitchen. Ours does, it’s an addition, most likely the 50’s. Sometimes a back porch off the kitchen is converted. When we removed the carpet from one bedroom, we found a stenciled “rug” at the door, there’s old asphalt printed flooring which re-save chosen to remain. We have a door in the floor that needs raised to get in the root cellar below the kitchen. I like exploring the special details of older homes, they have individuality. Thanks!

[@suewilkinson910]

What a lovely video. Just perfect. And how wonderful that you met a previous resident. I was going to say the stencil is probably 1983 - 1990. I did a LOT of stencilling for customers in the later 80's and early 90's. Many of my stencils were vintage, Victorian, Art Deco etc. But some were modern designs. Always complex. That one on your floor is a simple design but very of the time and jumped out at me. You could buy them in the equivalent of HomeBase etc. You've just reminded me I have a box of handout stencils still in the attic. My favourites were hanging clusters of wisteria, brambles with blackberries and ivy. I made some really pretty rooms using those, if I say so myself. One ivy decorated sun room still exists here in the village I've lived in for nearly 30 years. The lady wanted it stencilled even though it was no longer fashionable. How do you get into the back garden? Hopefully it's easier than using the bathroom window like the cat! You have logs to bring in as well as gardening to do out there. If the current bathroom wasn't a later extension, it was probably a scullery, for the washing and rougher jobs. Leaving the kitchen for the cooker and table. I love your stairs as well. Although, as you said, I bet that was really hard to get bedroom furniture up! Whatever you do, don't decide you want a piano in your bedroom!! I really enjoyed this video. Your home is lovely. A wood burning stove is marvellous. The whole thing is very inviting and comforting.

[@TheStitchinDietitian]

2:35 also cheaper to run the water since the plumbing is already in the kitchen. My 1930s ish NYC apartment had the bathroom in back of the kitchen

[@kimsherlock8969]

My father built our fireplace out of beautiful timeless stone with a wooden mantle piece. I remembered when you spoke about the history of your brick fireplace 😊 I would love , to have someone appreciate his beautiful work, allowing it to remain as part of a classic 1960s style home .😊 I wonder 🤔 😊

[@RagtimeAnnie]

You can get one of those Japanese toilets, which routes the water that fills the tank above the tank top (forming a small "sink" for hand washing) before draining into the tank for the next flush. They really are quite ingenious, and would solve your hand-washing issue immediately without changing the plumbing.

[@craftynita6633]

i was gonna recommend the same! it would be another unusual solution .

[@royjacques5650]

I grew up in a council built-in 1959 the toilet is under the stairs and there is no wash basin in there the whole estate was the same my parents house is still the same now the bathroom is next to the front door I love old quirky houses they are so homely and cozey modern suff is just lifeless .

[@Stabbs1313]

Awww such a sweet story about Mark!!

[@teslasulu6305]

There are toilets with a sink on top of the tank. Water comes from the wall into the faucet. Wash your hand and the waste water runs into the tank. A flush sends the water into the bowl. Saves a lot of space, and it is quite ecological. The downstairs bathroom is probably located on the back of the kitchen so they could share plumbing lines. I love that you can sit on the step and visit with someone working in the kitchen :)

[@catherineloftus1376]

❤ your house, no need to update its got everything you need for comfortable living. The toilet with sink ontop are great.

[@erikaquatsch2190]

I was moved to tears by your story of the fireplace and the stencil. (watching from the US)

[@patmanchester8045]

AMEN! I have passed up lovely old houses because some yahoo thought opening up the kitchen to the dining room and the dining room to the living room was a good idea.I have owned two older homes that nothing had been done to them ( NOTHING) I repaired structural things, and fixed pu the cracked plaster. but the kitchen ( a large one) I left untouched. It was perfect as it was. I now ( as a woman in her 70s) live in a house built in the 50s. It was a simple ranch but has original maple floors, the worlds tiniest kitchen and bath. but I really like it.

[@zippa20]

Suggestion for upstairs loo: Add a "toilet sink" to your existing toilet. (e.g. SinkPositive Toilet Sink Accessory). BTW: Thanks for sharing your cool home!

[@JustHeAndMe7733]

Hello, I'm a new subscriber. I had an idea for the upstairs bathroom: they make toilets with a sink in the top of the water tank on back of it. The water used to wash your hands is then used to flush the toilet and it's very space saving as well.

[@tanja5292]

Ich liebe Euer Haus und das was ihr daraus gemacht habt. Mein Opa hat die letzten Jahre seines Lebens in einem alten Fachwerkhaus (ca. von 1880) verbracht. Es war genauso urig gemütlich wie Euer Haus. Ich habe ihn dort jedes Jahr während all meiner Ferien (mehrere Wochen im Jahr) besucht. Wunderbare Erinnerungen an unsere Zeit in dem Haus. 😊❤

[@scottfw7169]

Oh, that is so cool about neighbor Mark and the fireplace and stencils. 🙂

[@jodabney4358]

It's grand that you and your mom love your old home that has had so much history. I've only lived in old houses....I like to think about what the walls could tell about the other families 🇺🇸

[@islandgyal507]

The end story about your neighbor gave me tears. How beautiful!

[@madamemarmot]

I LOVE your house, the brick fireplace and the rose stencils, and it is SO COOL that you met the previous owner who could fill you in on their stories. People who tear everything up to make it "updated" just for looks' sake have no souls. Incidentally, my grandma's house, in Iowa, which is (was?) probably older than yours, has the same little bathroom off of the kitchen, and I'm sure it was for the same reason as you say.

[@rubylace9963]

Aww I love your neighbour. I hope you showed him your channel and especially the video where you told the story of all the previous tenants.

[@sally-annwilson5795]

What a fabulous story!! I absolutely agree that learning the rich history of your home makes it all the more special. We bought an old farmhouse in North East Victoria on 10 acres of land and were flabbergasted to learn that the notorious Kelly Gang (an Australian bushranger gang) held up a Cobb & Co stagecoach on the old Coach Road that runs straight through the middle of our property. Our house was used as the local Post Office in the 1950s. We have met people that used to live in the home who love to share what they remember. They are always so grateful to be invited in to take a look around. Sending kind regards from the Yarra Valley, Australia.

[@diannerobb8376]

Don't change a thing!! That little bathroom is so precious! I am actually thinking of doing that in my 1911 house. I love it & keep watching your videos for just that little upstairs bathroom!

[@ttenrabdn]

I Iove that you were able to meet Mark and learn about the legacy of the fireplace and the roses. As for your mom's toilet needing a sink, look at the Japanese style sinks that go over the toilet tank and use the same water line. The bathroom downstairs being an addition off the kitchen explains the lack of a 2nd external door. Backdoors often came into the kitchen.

[@sharonarrendale8418]

Such a beautiful story! Yes, I think that you are going to be friends forever. It may have its little details, like having to go through the kitchen for everything. Such a cute space. And yes, the front door does need some personality. It’s going to be beautiful.❤

[@lesleyhubble2976]

What a lovely story, it’s a magical home

[@cbythesea]

Plumbing core, keeping all the water/waste pipes together, is less expensive than running pipes across spaces.

[@Realvintagedollshouse]

Makes so much sense! 😂 it sounds like an aesthetic, cottagecore, grandmacore, ✨️plumbing core✨️

[@lindanewton1142]

What a fascinating story so lovely mark got to see his dad's fireplace again after lots of years your home is beautiful x

[@GagaKnits]

I love social history. It's fascinating. Your story about Mark was so lovely it brought tears to my eyes. Homes are much more than just bricks and mortar. In the valleys here in Wales you'll still find lots of houses with bathrooms attached to the kitchen although they don't build them like that anymore. They are usually extensions and all the ones I've known are colder than the rest of the house. It's because originally those houses wouldn't have had bathrooms. Maybe it was easier to build an extension to house a bathroom rather than lose a bedroom. X

[@lejb8962]

This is the magic and history of place. Thank you for your work and care!

[@pumpjackpiddlewick]

This is wonderful. So glad to have found your channel. Just love a fellow vintage lover who adores remembering and honouring the past (whilst making it work for you). The quirkiness of people's past choices coupled with real history is just wonderful.

[@noeraldinkabam]

I was born in a house with one door. You entered…. through the kitchen! Just before I was born they added an indoor toilet/showerroom. On the first floor in our case. We only had gas heating in the sitting room.

[@soniaclarke1171]

IWhat a wonderful surprise for you both and for Mark to see the home as it was with your lovely retro decor. It does look cosy and it has chracter. The only thing I would do, is Build above and around the toilet for your toiletries, giving a little space for the hand wash. Can't wait to see you decor the front door. My daughter bourght a special paint to go over her white PVC doors and they look super.

[@gwencrosswhite9329]

What a touching story. How magical they you were able to meet Mark and make a human connection to the history of your home. ❤

[@dawnriddle-knowlton9932]

Perhaps add an old fashion floral vintage look porcelain wash bowl and pitcher with hand towel as a way to was hands in upstairs bath with character and charm

[@Donna-pl9zn]

The room at the back was probably the scullery, for washing things and heating water. The kitchen is for food prep and cooking and the front room was for eating and family life, including bathing in front of the fire.

[@shiralleehaggart72]

Exactly what I was thinking.

[@wilmahenry930]

Love your house’s story and so glad you’re the new keeper- keeper of the house and its story

[@terrig2298]

💜Your fireplace story brought tears to my eyes. I love it when people keep things the way they were meant to be. 🗝🏚Thanks for sharing your story.💜

[@YarX0]

That's such a beautiful story 😊I love properties with character and I absolutelu adore your home 😍

[@RDebroux]

Loved your cozy home tour and the story behind it….and meeting a former resident, it’s a small world 😊 after all! Love that you embraced it all and it’s history! Thanks for sharing 🏠

[@shiralleehaggart72]

Love this house. What a poignant story about the fireplace. It is beautiful and makes the room look homely and cosy. Your house is beautiful ❤

[@DarleneKhodai]

What a special moment to share with us about the fireplace and the stencil. 🥹🥹 I would have kept them in their original condition as well. Charm and warmth will always win over modern decor and design in my home as well. 🥰🥰

[@tainahollo8567]

I love your old house! I have found that in really many Italian houses the bathroom is next to the kitchen!

[@WensleydaleBrown-wo5rg]

Aww that's wonderful. I have an 1800's home in Canada, and most people would have gutted it I just fixed what needed fixing, patched up some old plaster, and moved on in! I like the charm and the rustic quirkyness of things being less than perfect, but perfect enough!

[@MAC-qt9ko]

I'm watching this in my 1890's house and I agree with you about the importance of the history of the place, and the feeling you have of the house itself having a personality. That's very much the case here as it is for you.

[@audrey5941]

Hello! I’m new here,and love your beautiful little home. I live in a 1948 home in the US. I’ve spent the past 20 years slowing rehabbing it into my dream home, so I love seeing how others deal with their unique spaces. I can’t wait to watch more of your videos and get better acquainted. ❤

[@richardbrobeck2384]

Quirky really fits that house !!

[@sassytbc7923]

I absolutely LOVE your quirky little house!! It’s adorable!!!!!

[@thisorthat7626]

What a lovely house and great story telling. Your home is perfect the way it is. I love the staircase and would probably sit there and enjoy a cuppa. My house is newer, 1947, and I love how it looks. Neighbors keep telling me it needs "updating" but it is comfortable, well built and fits my needs. You have done well decorating your home. It was wonderful that you met Mark and knew his background. I have also looked into who owned my home before me (two other owners) and it makes the house more special, IMO.

[@catherinedouglas8049]

Love your house and your wonderful stories about it. I was teary eyed about your neighbor having such sweet memories of living there.

[@novampires223]

This was fun, lovely story, lovely little house. 😊

[@samanthaostrowski6755]

Yes it baffless me why people buy old houses then spend every penny ripping out the character. As you say, every house has it's own history and we are just a part of it. When a person rips out a houses history it can never be put back . I love finding old wallpaper behind a radiator. I remember lifting up an old floorboard and finding a very old packet of cigarettes . They probably belonged to one of the old builders of the house. Love your videos. Xx

[@davidhookway514]

As a boy i lived in a Georgian House with Victorian Furniture. The Kitchen was ' Updated ' to between 1920s & 1940S with just a few 1950s Touches.

[@JD-zb4ve]

You're making me cry with story about the fireplace! Wonderful video! Question though - how do you get into the backyard garden to look after the pigeons?

[@Symetricallity]

For the upstairs toilet you can actually get a toilet that has a sink built into the cistern, although it is a bit odd looking it would work and would be another quirky feature of your home. And it wouldn’t protrude from the side wall that would limit access.

[@SusannaYeakelDominguezES]

I love your house, especially the stairs!

[@lesleyharris525]

Ok, you made me cry, lovely that you now know the history of the fireplace and the stenciling, older houses are quirky but I love it, they almost have a soul.❤

[@SuzanneU]

We have a 1920s house in San Francisco, but sadly it got hacked about in the 1970s when my parents-in-law bought it and decided to modernise it! They chucked out the lovely antique stove, destroyed the cooler cupboard, and pulled out some of the millwork. I'm now working on giving it more of a period feel without doing any more hacking! I've had to replace the ugly aluminium-framed single-paned windows they used to replace the wood sash windows - and I've put in modern double-paned windows for the sake of affordability and thermal efficiency. We still have beautiful honey-coloured hardwood floors that need refinishing, a big porcelain bathtub that needs reglazing after 100-odd years of scouring, and a big Belfast porcelain sink that also needs reglazing. The old taps were scrapped in favour of some very ugly chrome versions that are now so tired that they look insanitary. I'm looking to spend extra to get brass fittings. It'll take a couple of years and rather a lot of money...one room at a time...

[@jamesmendini]

The fireplace story is just fantastic! Really nice to hear that 🙂

[@veronicawhite398]

Absolutely bang on, kiddo!! I used to investigate the houses my Mum lived in when I would visit her. She moved around a lot. One, I remember, even had an outdoor dunny that I found as interesting as the house, except at night.

[@clevm002]

I love the upstairs toilet room!! Looks so cozy!

[@suewilkinson910]

I'd like reading in there. I like to read in my downstairs toilet, which is bigger, but it's still a small space and cosy! Plus the loo seat is very comfy.

[@blackhagalaz]

Oh gosh the fireplace story got to me, and I am really really on board with the whole "embrace the quirkyness". My Grandparents build their house in the 1950´s. A lovely small brick house in the countryside. Over the years they gave up their veggie-garden to build a house for my uncle next door, and then the flower garden to build a house for my other uncle. So the property where the house was standing on was my mums inheritance. When my grandma died from cancer, the house still had to be devided between my uncles and my mum. My mum decided that she didnt want to live there because we live in another city, but it should stay in the family. So my cousin and her family bought her out and moved in. Its very nice to see them live there. They did a lot of alterations to the house, fixing and modernizing a lot of things, but also adding new aditions. Now its a completely different house, which of course is lovely for them and their needs, but when i recently saw what has become of it I got quite sad, because the old house is just... gone. Completely. Only when I looked out the window to the small garden nothing really had changed there. And I caught myself crying because when my grandma was in chemo, we would often sit out there so she could tend to her roses. I lived there with her for a few mothns to take care of her. I really loved that house, and i feel like its not really there anymore. Thats how life goes, but sometimes I wish I would have been able to buy the house myself and live there instead. I wouldnt have changed a thing. At least I still have some knickknacks from my grandparents house that I have placed in way they had in their home. Like their vintage Kitchen-Clock right next to the doorframe. The old coffee-mill with a sticker on a cubboard. And a cutting from my grandmas old christmas-cactus that has now become a new mother-plant for us to enjoy. But yeah... it is lovely to see when old quirky houses are apreciated like this.

[@Robin.Hollinger85]

I LOVE your living room! So cozy and classic

[@sallycormier1383]

I live in a 1932 craftsman farmhouse and I love all the quirks. I happened to have the elderly lady who grew up in my house and her grand daughter stopped by and filled me in on things about the house. The back hallway always intrigued me because there was brick and a door from my library that looked like an outside door. A bathroom is at the end of that hall with the original curved shower curtain rod. She told me that hall was originally the screened in back porch and she remembers when they built that bathroom onto the end of the porch and even though it was still cold they didn’t have to walk across the backyard to the outhouse so it was pure luxury! Also her mom never got rid of her wood burning kitchen stove when her brothers bought mum a new electric stove. She showed me a square high up on the bead board wall where the stove pipe connected to the chimney. (That answered another question I had about the brick chimney in the laundry room but no fireplace so why was that there, for the stove!!) I wish I had an old photograph of the house back when it was new and my neighborhood was still a working farm!! I love history and I love living in my quirky home with so many doors including 3 to the outside. 😊❤

[@Susan.1958]

I love these old style houses the old houses are the best todays new build are not too good old houses all day long love this video🇬🇧👍👍👍👍👍👍👍❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

[@sandradorsey5001]

Love the house, that you choose🎉🎉🎉I grew up in a house like that, and I truly miss it🎉🎉🎉glad you are leaving it as is🎉🎉truly beautiful.

[@jenniferkindschi755]

I LOVE THIS STORY❣️ ❤️ 💕 💗

[@Nettietwixt]

Did you know it's possible to get toilets with a tiny sink built in to the top. Could be a solution for that tiny toilet. My friend's Edwardian house and all the houses in her road have a weird bathroom added at the back that is essentially on stilts as they live on a hill. It's on the ground floor if you go in through the front door but on the second floor when outside at the back. It's like a like metal box stuck on.

[@lauramorris3409]

I love this story!

[@Annie-49]

You have one door to the outside - our bungalow had five! One front door, three out of the back - from the kitchen, the conservatory and the utility room. At the front we also had one out of the biggest bedroom. We covered over the one in the kitchen to make more space, and the one in the bedroom. But I agree, ripping out everything is a bit sad. Lovely story about the neighbour! I am turning our house back to the 70s where it originated. My favourite era. We still had a lot of the original features - lots of earth tones and harvest gold. Fab! 🥰

[@Penelope-Jane-ke2mp]

Omg this is a wonderful story and I cried and totally agree with you on every aspect ❤❤❤

[@tdhawk167]

Omg, tearing about the fireplace story

[@mp5132]

So great you found out who did the fireplace and stencil. You had mentioned that in other videos. Thats so special❤

[@Myraisins1]

Love the quirky home! You can also use a handheld toilet bidet sprayer with a basin. Or a Japanese toilet with sink on the tank. I believe they sell the sink part separately nowadays. There are creative options but I quite like your home.

[@pennystewart7728]

Loved hearing this story about the fireplace. How wonderful it must be to live in a house with so much history. I absolutely love it xx

[@helendeegan1591]

I love this house, it is so cozy and sturdy, enjoy.

[@danicegewiss862]

My house was built in 1920. My front door is in the living room. It was thin and cheesy so we bought a heavier one. My bathroom is off my living room. I'm from the US. My kitchen is now my dining room. We reversed them because my kitchen was way too small. It's an old Craftsman home. Your house looks older than what was built in the 1920's in the US.

[@season.appreciation8102]

Lovely video, so glad you connected with Mark. Such a lovely story. 🩷

[@nothing2seehere34]

not sure about the uk but in the us you can got to the office where you get your permits and the cam show ou the original plans from 1920. then you can see how it was built cause you might think you know but the could be surprises. Like me my home never had a bathroom in the master bedroom.