How to Renovate a Victorian House

Bringing life back to a Victorian home is worth the effort. Read more about Victorian paint colors and other ways to restore your painted lady.

Things You'll Need

• a house built between 1850-1910
• patience
• money
• time
• LOVE for the house!

Instructions

1. Fall in love. Whether it's the delicate, detailed woodwork on the front porch, or the decorative mantels, the nook-and-cranny bay windows or winding mahogany staircase, you will need to fall deeply in love with this old Victorian house in order to have the energy to restore her.

2. Survey the damage. Hire an inspector who specializes in historic homes to evaluate the heating system, structural integrity, plumbing, electrical and other home systems. You will need objective information about how much it will cost to renovate the home, particularly if major systems will need repair or replacement.

3. Peel back the layers. If the home has been botched up over the years by various forms of siding, porch enclosures, or ugly storm windows, seriously consider doing everything you can as a homeowner to restore the front facade to its original appearance. Strip back one added layer at a time- the original house is waiting underneath to shine again!

4. Find your true colors. Victorians loved bold colors. If your house has been painted over the years in a mix-matched palette of modern colors from 1960s blue bathrooms to avocado green in the kitchen, start thinking about choosing authentic Victorian hues. Victorians took their color cues from nature- greens, browns, deep reds were popular; they weren't afraid to use dark shades. Contrary to the modern white Victorian house, this wasn't a color used in the period.

Tips & Warnings

• Be patient! It will take years until the home appears to others as it does in your dreams!

• For the interior, do the renovation one room at a time and seal the room off. This is much better than starting projects in a number of rooms.

• It will cost more than you think!