It has taken five years to get around to setting up this blog with info about what we have been accomplishing. We planned on doing it weekly as we proceeded with the reno. So much for best laid plans........We bought this 1872 former Methodist/United Church building in the summer of 2014. A month before it was slated for demolition, if no offers to purchase were to be had.
We had started this renovation by COMPLETELY gutting the inner structure of all plaster and lathe and some remaining knob and tube wiring on both levels to reveal the outer walls. Some exterior foundation work as well. New windows. Luckily the steel roof was only 10 ytrs. old and the electrical entrance with upgraded 400 amp service was only 7 yrs old. Closed cell foam insulation, wiring, plumbing and gyprock were, and continue to be, installed through out the structure.
Besides being an art gallery and gift store, community rental space for parties or anniversaries, concert and jamb session venue, etc. etc. It is also our home! It is so awesome to live in such a beautiful historic building with such character.
We have an artist paint group that utilizes a portion of the former sanctuary space every Monday afternoon during the fall and winter months. We have Jamb sessions every Tuesday night with local singer/song writers. We have had many concerts brought to us by Musique Royale and Boxwood music work shops from Lunenburg. Choirs, Pipe Organists from the RCCO, drama monologues, and many , many others that were a pleasure to have on our stage.
We have had birthday parties and wedding receptions in the former sanctuary as well.
We have many guitars and other instruments, including a 1902 Casavant Opus 163 pipe organ, stage gear and recording equipment. The acoustics are awesome!! When we are finished with the reno we can offer our space and gear to singer/song writers for recording their music. Take a weekend or take a week. You can live in the studio while you work on your project. We are not music producers or sound engineers by any stretch of the imagination but there is no shortage of them in the area to be approached to help with these types of projects. Or bring your own people.
We are not quite there yet, but soon we will be set up as a fully equipped high end vacation rental suite for a party of up to six people. With Dawn's artwork, the stained glass windows, 1902 Casavant Opus 163 pipe organ and an eclectic mix of furniture and decor, we can be your home base as you explore the beautiful Annapolis Vally or the Lunenburg, Mahone Bay or Bridgewater area on the south shore. We can help arrange popular tourist activities as well. Such as whale watching down off the islands of Digby neck. We can take a group of artists to local areas of gorgeous landscape or seascape to spend the day in front of your easel. Contact a few of your artist friends and make a week long holiday of it!
Price packages will follow as we near completion.
The following pics will give you a sense of what our space looks like. We are including some reno pics as well so you can see the extent of the work involved.
Thank you for visiting our website!
Before the hammers, crowbars and 8lb malls
Dawn on day one. Her first and
last day with 8lb mall in hand.
Must save these hands for painting!
Debris pilling up in the stairwells!
Basement walls stripped down.
Bare walls in the sanctuary.
Insulation in the sanctuary.
Our beautiful stained glass rose window.
Looks prettier in person.
New chimney for the wood burning
cook stove in the sanctuary.
Early stages of Dawn's store.
Getting there!
Store completed!
Opening up the walls around the Casavant.
Casavant was not forgotten.
Colin and Freeman performing their magic.
Tin ceiling above the stage and Casavant
pipe chamber. Too costly to do
the entire sanctuary ceiling!
New Gyprock. Ready for paint!
Topless glass railing system in the balcony
so as to give spectators unobstructed
view of the performers on stage.
Laying out the deck and wheel chair ramp.
Trestle style framing and floor joists.
Thank God for Premec! A back packer
from the Czech Republic helped us
complete the deck and wheel chair ramp
hours before the wedding reception.
He stayed with us for a month to help us with it.
The ramp.
The deck.
Set up for a wedding reception.
Set up for a concert.
Christmas time!
More photos to come.