In the nearly 100 years that the Atlantic Inn has been standing, it has undergone numerous tweaks, changes, and renovations by various owners and innkeepers. Now it's our turn! This off-season, the inn will be receiving a facelift. Don't worry, we would never ditch the original hardwood paneling in the hallways and rooms. Our goal is to create a cozy, coastal ambiance while still paying respect to the history and charm of the building. In some ways, the changes we're making seem small, but very necessary to us. Other times when I think about it, past guests won't recognize this place when they visit next season. In the best way, of course!
Old furniture out!
Thanks to the good folks at Outer Banks Pest Control, during a routine pest treatment of the property, we learned that the underpinning of the building was not quite in the best shape. We knew the first obstacle we wanted to tackle this off-season was replacing it, to ensure a strong and sturdy foundation for the inn. It isn't the most glamorous project, but in our eyes, it was the most important.
Towards the tail-end of the underpinning reconstruction, one of the contractors accidentally cut our propane line. Oops! With any renovation project, you're bound to hit a few snags along the way. This was a day before Mitch and I were due to return home from visiting his parents in Raleigh for the holidays. After a week of gorging ourselves on yummy baked goods, home-cooked meals, and a few trips to Chick-fil-A, we were both eager to cook up a meal not deep-fried or filled with butter once we returned home. It turns out that just wasn't in the cards for us! Thankfully, a few places are still open on the island (shoutout to Gingerbread House!), and we were only without propane for about a day.
Work being done on the underpinning
It's safe to say that Mitch and I have caught the "let's paint everything!" bug. My mom has had the idea for weeks to paint the front desk in the lobby. At first, both of us looked at her a bit sideways. My hesitation when it comes to changing anything is, "Are we replacing/changing something original to the inn?" My fears were quelled after meeting with two of the previous families who ran the inn, where we determined the desk was likely installed in the 80s (at the very earliest). I guess the desk can be considered somewhat "vintage", but it's not necessarily historic. Let's paint it! After some assistance from my Dad with the primer, Mitch and I are proud to say we painted this bad boy ourselves!
First round of paint on the front desk!
Our next unsuspecting painting victim, the beams in the first-floor lounge. Mitch gets all the credit for this idea. We're still deciding which color to paint them...which one is your favorite?
As I write this, I can hear clamoring downstairs as the old flooring is being ripped out. Next season, we will have all new LVP in the lobby, lounge, hallways, library, and two of the downstairs suites. We're refurnishing the dining area with new tables, and both lounges are getting new couches. Since taking over in August, we've slowly been curating our collection of local art to hang on the walls.
Goodbye floors!
Starting soon, we'll also have contractors come in to build a proper coffee bar and extend the breakfast bar in the lounge. Mitch and I love to cook and bake, so we want to ensure we have ample space to accommodate our culinary endeavors. We worked to the best of our ability last season to make as much from scratch as humanly possible, but alas, there are only 24 hours in a day. Once we've hired a housekeeper for next season, we'll have more time to bake delicious homemade goodies for our guests. We already have the sourdough, granola, and various sweet treats down pat, but get ready for homemade scones, muffins, jellies, sandwich bread, and Mitch has even been floating the idea of homemade bagels!
We are beyond thrilled to share these changes with our guests. For those wanting a sneak peek, we will be open briefly for Valentine's Weekend before officially opening for the season on February 26th. We hope the new year brings you new experiences, new adventures, and a trip to the Atlantic Inn!