Teaching skills to her daughters

Some wainscotting, new backsplash, countertop and sink completed the simple additions.

Thanks to all the renovations and the ripple effects from Toronto’s redhot real estate market, the house is now worth close to $1.5 million.

Next up are plans to redo the upstairs level and complete an exterior facelift of the house, which is so close to their daughters’ school they can even hear the bell ringing.

Wagar says that while she loves the creative outlet of renovating, she gets bored easily and wants to start the process all over again once a house is finished.

“I’m one of these crazy people — I love to move,” she laughs. “I think my husband’s getting really tired of it.”

She finally decided that in order to keep her husband happy — and avoid making her children and dog live through another dusty renovation — she would have to put her creative skills to good use again and come up with a compromise.

Wagar recently completed a sixmonth home renovation apprenticeship and is starting a new business overhauling spaces and turning them into rental properties. As part of her new endeavour — Revival Property Innovations — she will be filming how-to videos with renovation tips as she develops each property.

But before she satisfies her creative urges outside of her home, her family will have to be patient for a little while longer with one last project inside their own. Wagar has her sights set on a reno of the home’s upper level and, instead of using a contractor this time around, she wants to put her new skills to work and do the job herself. The ambitious project will include two new bathrooms and a master bedroom update.

“I anticipate a few bumps along the way, but I’m up for the challenge!” she says.

At least Wagar will have her two daughters by her side as a support system — just like she was for her dad. “The girls love to help out and I am starting to teach them how to use small power tools,” she says. “They love to get their hands dirty — like their mama.”

Wagar says she thinks it’s important for her daughters to learn these important life skills and become handy around the house. “It will help them in the future to save time, money and maybe even parlay into a career path!”

“The girls love to help out and I am starting to teach them how to use small power tools. They love to get their hands dirty — like their mama.” JENNIFER WAGAR

ANDREW FRANCIS WALLACE/TORONTO STAR NOW: “The kitchen to me was where we really won,” says Wagar, with her family, about the $10,000 they spent to upgrade the room.

COURTESY JENNIFER & ANDREW WAGAR THEN: The original kitchen included a bulkhead that was eliminated to open the layout, and cabinetry that Wagar had her contractor reuse.

COURTESY OF JENNIFER & ANDREW WAGAR THEN: Pale hardwood dated the living room of the Burlington house that Wagar said had great bones but was stuck in the ’80s.

ANDREW FRANCIS WALLACE/TORONTO STAR NOW: The living room benefitted from refinishing the hardwood floors, removing ceiling moulding and a fresh coat of paint.