About three years ago I stepped out on faith..to start a business. It began as a hobby. I started painting and refinishing furniture..mainly for my home and then for friends and family. I posted a few of my pieces on Facebook and sold them! I was so excited that anyone would pay me for something that I loved to do. In June of 2016, a friend and I decided to set up a tent in the parking lot at Woodstock Market to try to sell our pieces. It went well.. so we moved inside of the market into a showroom. It was so much fun! It was also a lot of work.
When Richard and I decided to move to Rockmart, I started to look at options for my business. I always wanted to have a little shop in a downtown area. I grew up in Kennesaw near the downtown area and worked near Acworth's downtown area. I have always loved the old buildings and the history.
I mentioned in my last blog how God led me to this building. A friend connected me with Anna and she introduced me to the owner of this building. When I first walked in, it was a little overwhelming. I knew it would need a lot of work..but I could see the potential. I saw a section of the wall that was not covered up and it was slate.
This is how the building looked when I first saw it.
After talking to Richard and praying about it...I told the owner that I wanted it! I was so excited to get my hands on it!! Richard and I filled 3 dumpsters the week of Christmas. After we cleaned everything out of the shop, we tackled the walls and ceiling. The left side of the shop had a roof leak which made the plaster soft and much easier to remove. The right side was a different story. We kept a few sections of the plaster to keep the character and history of the building.
The floors...boy were they a challenge. We removed the tiles (not easily) and rented a concrete grinder to remove the glue. We spent 5 weekends grinding this floor and rinsing the dirt (mud).
We also pressure washed the walls a few times. It is amazing how much dirt we removed. Under the ceiling tiles was the original wood ceiling. We pulled the tiles down and had to remove thousands of staples!
After cleaning and scraping, the ceilings were ready to paint! My dad sprayed the ceiling (thank goodness). It would have taken my mom and I days to roll it by hand.
We added this wood bead board wall to cover a cinder block inset. The board was unfinished and came in 4 x 8 sheets. It served a dual purpose because I needed a place to hang items that I am selling. The slate walls can be difficult to put nails in!
Did you notice the pile of tin in the "before" pic? I asked the owner if I could have it. This awning is one of the places we repurposed the tin!
We removed the wall in the back and rebuilt it. We added old tin from the shed at our house.
Can you tell we love to repurpose? Lol!
Can you believe that the barn doors were a kit from Home Depot? We get a lot of questions about these.
Finally, we filled the space with new, antique, vintage, and repurposed home goods and furniture. Then, I asked some very special ladies to join me! They added handmade jewelry, soaps, boutique clothing, and handmade gifts to give us a complete shop!
I am so excited to be part of the Rockmart community! I have already met so many friendly people. The local business owners have been so kind and supportive. I can't wait to see what the future holds!
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