March 22, 2020.
News surrounding the Coronavirus becomes more alarming by the minute. Tim and I continue to remain isolated in our tiny condo. I’m walking twice a day and practicing Yoga every morning. Timmy and I are out here on the patio getting our daily dose of Vitamin D. Tim’s trying to identify my favorite butterfly. These orange beauties are so elusive, I still can’t snap a pic. Still waiting for De Santis, Florida’s Governor, to follow New York State’s Andrew Cuomo and shut down the state with the order for everyone to stay home.
So if this is your first time reading the blog, you might want to go back a few pages and read the first installment of our renovation saga.
This is a panorama of the condo before the demolition. I did tell you it’s tiny. Tiny, but perfect for us.
Here are some pics of Raffaele Dolgetta, renovation god of Southwest Florida. Here he is with his nephew Aniello, showing me how the stack stone will look on the fireplace.
This is the guest bath before.
And after.
The painters doing their thing.
We purchased the Quartz from Paul in the stone yard at Florida Design Works, but Wes, the owner of Wes Stone and his guys installed the countertops and bathroom vanity tops.
Raffaele watched over the installation like a hawk.
I wish you could see how perfectly Wes matched the waterfall edge on the kitchen counter.
Wes in the guest bathroom
It was beyond hot on countertop install day.
Raffaele has many nephews. Three of them worked on our renovation: Aniello, Gian Franco, and Daniel. Here’s Aniello in one of the bathrooms.
Daniel on the phone, Aniello, and Raffaele.
Raffaele, Gian Franco, Daniel and Aniello.
We returned to Sarasota at the end of July, staying for a few days at Sarasota Surf Club before accepting the completed project. Here’s a pic of the beach at the club. Siesta beach truly is a treasure and a treat to walk on.
Here are some manatees mating.
One morning I came upon a wedding ❤️
Master bath. Before.
After.
Raffaele cleaning the floors.
The crew.
Kitchen before.
After.
We are super happy with the results.
I’m so grateful that we have this lovely space. Although we are sad that we won’t be able to travel home to New York for Easter with our Lovebugs, we continue to appreciate each day that we spend here in the warmth and sunshine. We will continue to stay home, and hope that all folks everywhere will do the same. We need to stop the spread of this virus. Stay home. Be well. Be kind.
