Restoring a vintage stove turns out to be far less glamorous than the photos suggest. This week we’re pulling back the curtain on the hidden quirks and unexpected headaches that come with vintage appliance restoration. We also share several real regrets and lessons learned from our beach house renovation: the tile decision we wish we hadn’t made, exterior details we’d change, and how we plan to fix things going forward. And, because life is messy, we even explain why we’re spending money to make the house smell better. Not exactly picture-perfect, but honest and helpful.
You can download the podcast episode on platforms like Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, TuneIn, and Spotify — or listen to the episode on your preferred podcast app. Then use this page to find the links, notes, and photos we referenced. Note: If you’re reading in a feed reader, you may need to open the full post to see any embedded player.
What’s New
- If you missed it, we originally wrote about finding the pink vintage stove and the journey to bring it home.
- Can you spot the small red light that’s always on in the photo above? It’s one of those charming-but-annoying quirks vintage appliances reveal only after you live with them.
- Here’s Ol’ Pinkie right after we moved it in last October. When we plugged it in it “popped” on us — a reminder that restoring older stoves often requires more troubleshooting than a beautiful snapshot implies. Thankfully it’s mostly back in working order now.
Beach House Regrets
- Below are the main renovation regrets we discussed on the episode. The podcast goes into much more detail, so give it a listen if you want the full, clarified rundown.
- First: the blue accent tile in our upstairs hall bathroom ended up hidden behind a door because code required the light switch placement that dictated the door swing. We love the tile, but wish we had installed it in the downstairs bathroom where it would be visible from the doorway instead of tucked away.
- Here’s the downstairs shower, which sits right off the mudroom and laundry room. With a different layout the blue tile would have been enjoyed by everyone passing by — a simple reminder to consider circulation and sightlines before finalizing materials.
- We also debated a breakfast nook versus pantry. The nook looked charming on paper, but when we considered function, we chose a pantry and ended up loving it. Charm is great, but function won this round.
- We built walk-in pantry shelving to maximize storage and make the space genuinely useful rather than just pretty.
- One small regret is the tiny sink in the en-suite bathroom. While a designer friend loved it, we sometimes wish it were slightly larger for better day-to-day practicality. For now, the shower and tub make that bathroom one of our favorites.
- Below is a sink we loved in our previous home — a reminder that certain fixtures work best with particular architectural contexts and tile choices.
- The front porch on the pink house still looks rough in spots. We regret not addressing it sooner, but it’s on our to-do list along with staining the front door — true curb appeal projects that can’t be ignored for long.
- Another practical oversight: the original washer and dryer electrical outlets were placed too high, which would have left plugs protruding above the appliances and blocked the shelf area we planned. We had the dryer outlet dropped about 6 inches so it sits under the back lip. The other outlet sits behind a storage cabinet. The shelves in that area are not permanently fixed, so we can still access hookups easily when needed.
- Thermostat placement was another consideration we weighed carefully. We positioned upstairs and downstairs thermostats near corners and away from prime wall space so we would still have uninterrupted areas for hanging art. Later we swapped standard units for Nest E thermostats for better control and a cleaner look.
- We also noticed an uneven threshold between the living room and dining room. It hasn’t caused accidents, but we’d prefer a flush transition like the one in the adjacent doorway.
- On a high note, the addition of a wall with pocket doors in the back bedroom has been a great solution for nighttime privacy while still keeping daytime light from the large window and preserving access to a private back staircase.
We’re Digging
- Sherry has been loving a series of photographic prints from a small Etsy shop called 527 Photo. The travel photos are affordable and made a lovely addition to our living room. If you like travel photography, it’s worth browsing similar shops for affordable 8 x 10 prints.
- For podcast recommendations, we’ve enjoyed shows that explain quirky facts and everyday mysteries — light, informative listening to complement our renovation podcast.
If you want a single place to find topics we’ve recommended over time, we keep a master list of everything we’ve featured and referenced across past episodes.
Finally, thanks to Universal Furniture for sponsoring the episode. They ran a sweepstakes for new living room furniture during the summer; listeners were encouraged to enter through their campaign at the time.
Thanks for listening and following along — we appreciate your interest in the real, imperfect parts of restoring vintage pieces and renovating a beach house.
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