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A Maryland couple bought a 120-year-old church for $320,000 and now live in it with their 3 kids - here's a look at how they turned it into a homehttps://www.businessinsider.in/slideshows/miscellaneous/a-maryland-couple-bought-a-120-year-old-church-for-320000-and-now-live-in-it-with-their-3-kids-heres-a-look-at-how-they-turned-it-into-a-home/slidelist/72460412.cms2019-12-10T19:48:02+05:30

A Maryland couple bought a 120-year-old church for $320,000 and now live in it with their 3 kids - here's a look at how they turned it into a home

Dec 10, 2019, 19:48 IST

Anastasiia and her husband Gunther bought All Saints' Church, which they now call All Saints House, for $320,000 in 2017.

The church, according to Maryland.gov, was designed by New York architect Henry Martyn Congdon nearly 120 years ago. It was built to replace a previous church, also designed by Congdon, that burned down on December 31, 1899.

In fact, the home's stained glass windows were imported from Munich, Germany during the turn of the century.

Anastasiia told Business Insider that she and Gunther complete the projects on their own with the help of YouTube tutorials. The renovated kitchen is the biggest project they've completed so far.

The three-month-long kitchen renovation included redoing the flooring and replacing the joists, updating the plumbing and electrical work, and installing new cabinets and countertops.

Anastasiia told Business Insider that the hardest part of the entire restoration process is making sure the additions complement the church's original style.

"We try to keep everything as original as possible, as the owners prior to us did," she said. "We don't want to change anything that would damage the architectural integrity of the building."

But preserving the building's architectural integrity doesn't come without its challenges. According to Anastasiia, the ceilings in the home's great hall are 25 feet tall, making it difficult to change lightbulbs and clean the wooden beams.

When it came to decorating, Anastasiia and Gunther had to buy new furniture because what they had was too small. To better understand just how big the space is, consider this: The brown couch in the great hall (pictured below) is 12 feet long.

The grand piano, which was originally a church piano, sits next to the fireplace. According to Anastasiia, it dates back to the beginning of the 20th century.

Currently, there are three bedrooms and two bathrooms in the home. The loft, which looks out over the great room, serves as the master bedroom.

One of the home's three skylights covers almost an entire side of the master bedroom.

Directly under the loft area are the two other bedrooms.

Anastasiia told Business Insider that during the colder months, her family spends a lot of time in this small, cozy living room, which was originally an altar.

The belfry — the tower attached to the church — is made up of three levels. The top level still features a bronze church bell from the 1900s, Anastasiia told Business Insider.

The first floor of the tower is usually a library, but the couple recently (and temporarily) converted it into a guest bedroom.

Behind the house is an old cemetery. While they don't own it, Anastasiia told Business Insider that her family takes care of it by maintaining the land and doing some of the gardening.

Anastasiia believes the best part of owning and restoring the old church is the inspiration and creativity it fuels.

"My husband always says that we're just stewards of this place," she said. "This place has been here for over 100 years and it will be here long after we are gone. Our job is not to just make it what we want but to make sure we preserve it."

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