When Jenna Phipps started an Instagram site to document the renovation of an abandoned house she and her boyfriend bought, she didn't expect it to go viral.
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YouTube content creator Jenna Phipps has racked up scrapes and bruises since buying an abandoned house on a rocky bluff in West Vancouver in September, and has amassed about 1.5 million new followers on Instagram.
Some people are worried (“I feel bad for you with this terrible investment”), while others are hooked like an IV and want to see more of her heartwarming, goofy, dopamine-inducing posts (” Jenna, baby, I don't mean to stress you, but once a week isn't enough.”
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They offered advice (“Buy a wheelbarrow!”), criticism of her DIY approach (“Hire a professional!”), and even questions about her integrity (“It’s about her, the house is It's a MacGuffin.'')
Admittedly, it took her a while to realize that work gloves, a respirator, boots, and overalls were more appropriate for demos than a hand-knitted sweater or her favorite green sweatpants. The change in style was real.
Before renovating her home, her online persona was charming, funny, and a maker of fiber art (think candy-colored knit projects). She also posted videos of her thrifted finds, including her dog Jack, who she “thrifted” from a rescue group, and videos of her asking friendly questions about everything from her height to how she deals with anxiety.
Now, as she wears Carhartt work overalls and wields a sledgehammer, her online following has exploded, with her posts touring the grounds receiving 40 million hits.
One follower wrote, “If you restore this absolute gem in a mid-century home, I'll definitely be here for every episode.”
So are her celebrity followers, including Jessica Chastain, Kira Kosarin, and Cynthia Erivo.
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Since she first posted about buying a vacant home in January, she and her boyfriend, Nick Volkoff, have already turned down multiple requests to appear on the network's home improvement show.
There's a reason she doesn't call it home. It's more than just a house. It's a home and a love story.
Phipps, 28, and Volkov, 27, a technology project manager, had been dating for only a year when they started talking about moving out of their 700-square-foot rental. They wanted to buy it out and were open to a fixer-upper. He's handy and she's creative. What could go wrong?
Volkov stumbled across the property while scrolling through online listings. The listing featured stunning drone footage of a West Coast modernist home perched on a cliff, with panoramic views from Howe Strait to the Gulf Islands and Fisherman's Cove below.
The interior was not open to the public and the home was listed as having been demolished.
They were required to sign a liability waiver before entering the premises.
“The roof was caved in, the drywall was peeling off and there were holes in the floor,” Phipps said.
“I was a little shocked,” Volkov said.
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Nevertheless, they saw potential.
“That was architecture to me. I had never seen a house like this in Vancouver. Something like this was so unusual,” Phipps said.
Designed by architect James Tettamanti and later home to architect Herbert Charrier, the house was once featured in a four-page photo spread on the cover of Western Homes & Living magazine.
This design features classic principles of midcentury modern architecture, including clean lines, floor-to-ceiling windows, flat surfaces, natural wood and wood paneling, and flow between rooms and indoors and outdoors. .
Inside there was a two-story stone fireplace, and in the backyard was a long-neglected swimming pool, half-filled with rainwater and reeds growing beneath the surface.
The house is a time capsule, vacant for at least four years after Sharier's son died. Books, personal items, mid-century furniture, forks, knives, architectural plans, and two pianos were all abandoned along with the house, leaving an impression of a life full of style, elegance, and optimism at the time. .
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The house had been on the market for months with no offers, but Phipps and Volkov were able to snap it up for $2.1 million. It's not cheap by any standards, but it's a bargain in the Vancouver housing market.
Plans to pack up the room and move right away quickly disappeared.
The carpet was so rotten that we had to rake it out like manure. They found black mold, carpenter ants, a collapsed 67-year-old roof and a switchboard that emitted smoke when turned on.
“We were the first to go into the deep end,” Volkov said.
“He's good at design and he's good at DIY,” Phipps explained. “I'm more focused on the story.”
The couple carries out the renovation work themselves in the evenings and weekends. The worst part was removing the drywall, which took 10 tons.
“We had to carry it piece by piece to the dumpster,” Phipps said.
When we removed the drywall, we discovered good bones, including rot-resistant native wood studs, a solid foundation, and completely intact wood panels that we plan to restore.
The couple plans to carefully preserve the home's architectural integrity.
As you walk through this space, you can't help but imagine what life was like here and what it will be like again, and feel Phipps' creative imagination coloring the space.
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Nor are they tempted to sign up with any of the television networks eager for their content.
“I don't want to give up the freedom to do it my way and own it and share it,” Phipps said.
There is also another reason. This project is not inside out. They plan to build a life at home.
dryan@postmedia.com
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