before and after

Okay I"m doing this super thorough post on the before and after of our new house for three main reasons:
1) I like being able to visualize where my friends and family are living- especially if I can't visit them
2) I want to show what an amazing job John did on the transformation of this place
3) I know at least a couple people will want to see all these pics (feel free to skip this post- it's a long one!)

Okay so no before photo of the gate, but it was an iron gate that you could see through. John installed an automatic gate opener, added wooden slatting for privacy, and made the official sign. The automatic opener is kind of a safety thing- our road is so busy with motorbikes and cars and it's pretty narrow too- so getting in and out of the car to open and shut it with the two kids in the car would be a bit much (and a risk too)


Here's the before of the front view of the house


And here's the afterHere's another before front house view...

And here are a couple after views of the gardenHere's a view of the side of the house:

I didn't get that exact pic- but now there would be the fish pond, the picnic table, and a bamboo screen divider so you can't see the backyard (our family space) from the front garden (office space). Here's part of that view...This was the inside of the office
John is still working on all the inside rooms, but the basics are in place now- here are two pics of the office


This is our upstairs living area before from one view
and looking from the opposite direction
Now that space has our couch (John had it made at a bamboo shop) and it also has our
our upstairs kitchenette and Sam's play space and table- John installed the kitchen cabinets, the sink and plumbing, and the other shelving
This was our bedroom before

And after (two views)

This was one of the biggest transformations- a regular balcony became...

An awesome screened in dining area- I think it's my favorite room in the house- there is bamboo on the left side and John is trying to grow vines in it, and to the right is the wooden "exterior" of the house, a water cooler and a long shelf



This was the office/guest room before (it leads to the main bathroom)

And after (two views)This was the bathroom before

And after... (another big transformation- there was no tub or shower and he had to move the toilet and sink
This was the boy's room

And now (from two views)
This was the backyard before (two views)
And after (I didn't get a daytime shot, but note the bottom left corner where the well is covered like a table now
In this pic you can see how he built a bamboo shade around the water pump
This was the side of the house before (on the side that is now "family space"

He covered those two circle things with a table for the kids to play at and added a sandbox and a swing and covered it so it's shaded


Here are some shots of our place at night- I couldn't do it justice though- it's so lovely (note our dining room lit up in the top of the picture)


Our fountain in the fish pond has a light in it :-)

And here's the guy who made it all happen- AMAZING!!