The joy is in the journey
Over a cup of tea with my childhood friend’s mother, I was excitedly explaining our plans and hopes for the bakehouse. She listened, nodded, and then—without mincing words—looked me straight in the eye and said,
“If you’d have talked to me, I would have told you not to touch that building.”
By that stage, we were well and truly committed—no way out, no undoing the purchase. So, I smiled and replied, “Awk sure, the joy is in the journey!”
That phrase has become our motto as we’ve navigated the minefield that is restoring an old building in the middle of Tandragee. What we initially thought would be a straightforward gut-and-renovate job quickly revealed itself to be a full-blown epic—a “vehemouth” of a project. Honestly, we might finish it short an organ or two, just trying to finance the restoration!
When we first saw the building, it seemed perfect. Our house was bursting at the seams with bakery machinery, sacks of flour, and general baking chaos. This little place looked like the ideal solution. But once we stripped everything back, it became clear we’d taken on a mammoth task.
First up: the structure.
The building was diagnosed with the charming news that the facade was pulling away from the rest of the structure. Excellent. I didn’t even know that was a thing—but apparently, it is. “The joy is in the journey,” I reminded myself again as we brought in a specialist team, Stronghold Preservation, to quite literally hold the building together. No small feat.
Next: the roof.
Up on the top floor, sunlight streamed through the gaps—because yes, there were holes. The roof tiles needed replacing, and, to make matters worse, the beams were completely rotten. At this point, Tim generously offered one of his kidneys to cover the cost, since mine had already paid for the facade. But by the end of 2024, we had a brand-new roof crowning the bakehouse. Progress! The joy is in the journey.
And now: the next chapter.
The building is finally deemed “structurally sound” (music to our ears). We’re moving on to the back of the property to create a proper production unit. No more juggling a home kitchen with a commercial one—this will be the real deal.
We’ll keep you updated as things move forward. It’s been a long road—messy, challenging, and full of surprises—but one thing remains true: the joy really is in the journey.
