Blending old and new to bring a Brigus biscuit box back to life

Upper Island Cove man reaches end of challenging and rewarding home restoration

Standing in the middle of his biscuit-box home restoration, Walter Lynch takes a minute to admire how far the project has come.

With just floors to lay and some other small jobs to complete, Lynch can see the finish line for the job he started in early February by completely stripping the interior to the studs.

“I enjoyed it, but it was way more work than I anticipated,” he said. “I’m happy to have it done, but at the same time, I don’t know what I’m going to do with my time (now).”

Old homes always present a challenge and in reflection, it might’ve been easier and cheaper for him to level the building and start over.

However, that wasn’t the goal. Lynch wanted to restore an old home and maintain as much of made it great as he could.

“It’s like comparing the Mona Lisa to a gift shop print of the same painting,” said Lynch. “An original is always worth more than a copy, imperfect or not.”

In this case, Lynch’s work is a mixture of the old and the new. Many of the walls and the ceilings are original and mesh seamlessly with the new materials Lynch added throughout the restoration of the more than 100-year-old home.

Leading upstairs, Lynch is installing a new railing that feels like is belongs in a home built early in the last century. They new work complements the original pieces of the second level that remain.

Some new beams were added to help reinforce the floor on the second level and the frame of a fireplace was added to the living space.

“I really like the trim and the finish work,” said Lynch.

The exterior white clapboard is complemented by the blue trim and a wooden deck at the back of the building.

Another feature sure to draw attention are the horizontal pieces of clapboard that make the home look like it is wearing a dress.

“It is fulfilling,” said Lynch of the work he has done. “I think it is going to take a while for it to sink in.”

It wasn’t an easy task getting to this point in the build. Lynch did most of the work by himself and dedicated much of the year to get it done.

That drive to do the work himself kept the cost close to his original plan, even with the spike in lumber costs earlier this year because of the pandemic.

However, the level of work he put into it also dampened his motivation at times.

“The project was long and challenging,” said Lynch.

When he started it, he logged every piece of the build through pictures and posts on Instagram and Facebook.

Those posts garnered thousands of likes and followers. Having people following along and anticipating the next post helped keep him going.

“Having people other than myself waiting for the next update on the progress kind of helped keep things going,” he said. “It’s something I plan on doing from now on.”

His work has attracted frequent physical visitors to the site, as well.

Charlie Donnelly and his wife, Debi, have been regular visitors to the Brigus biscuit box house since Lynch started the project earlier in the year.

They have friends in Brigus and each time they go for a visit, they’d be sure to drop by the house. Sometimes, they’d just drive by just to look through the windows.

“If (Lynch’s) car was there, we were stopping in,” said Donnelly.

The Donnellys live in Heart’s Delight-islington and have their own experience restoring traditional Newfoundland and Labrador homes. The home they live in was built in 1840 and they spent over nine years restoring it.

So, they can appreciate the work that goes into restoring an older home. Donnelly feels it is important to remember what came before and the old homes that dot the landscape around the province are keys to doing just that.

“The extent (Lynch) went to was extra, but it needed to be done,” said Donnelly. “I thought he did a magnificent job.”

The couple made their latest trip on Sunday. When there, they marveled on the mixture of old and new that Lynch was able to produce in the final product

“I love what he’s doing,” said Donnelly. “He’s trying to keep it as much as it was but making it modern. Making it livable.”

Going forward, Lynch anticipates using some of what he learned in the restoration in other future builds.

He is also on the hunt for another heritage property to restore. While he’s looking for that, Lynch’s next project is already starting to take shape in Cupids.

There, he is building a traditional-style home from the ground up. For him, it’s about the architecture and preserving little pieces of the province wherever he can.

“I’m happy I did it,” said Lynch. “It was a lot of work, but what I’ve learned and the people I’ve met, I wouldn’t take it back.”

“I enjoyed it, but it was way more work than I anticipated. … I’m happy to have it done, but at the same time, I don’t know what I’m going to do with my time (now).” Walter Lynch