Summer Plans II

[oldhouseman]

As the summer starts to wind down I wanted share my summer projects as they are also starting to wind down. I repaired the plaster walls and ceiling in the guestroom, painted the room and am currently sanding the floor. I also restored the mahogany grain painting on several interior doors.

Here is what the room looked like three months ago. The walls and ceiling had many, many cracks and a lot of water damage from the leaking roof. The door beside the fireplace open into the Parlor, the other door opens onto the front piazza. Now for some updated shots...

 

[oldhouseman]

Still in progress

but a huge change.. Dark green walls, tan picture frame moulding, "haint" blue ceiling. Sorry for the large pic.

 

[oldhouseman]

And...

another. The terra cotta color on the mantel and doors is the base color for the mahogany grain painting. I'm using a paint method I found in a book on the subject publish in 1826. That floor sanding as you can see is a slow process. The window sashes have already been mahoganized.

 

[oldhouseman]

And the doors

that were grain painted. The Parlor door leading into the center hall.

 

[oldhouseman]

Also

the inside of the front door. Originally all the doors were grainpainted to look like mahogany. The paint colors you see were determined to be the original (discovered with the help of the good folks at Colonial Williamsburg).

 

[filter-flo_rob]

Great job!

... like the colours. When you said you had to repair the paster walls, did you actually have to take chunks out and rebuild the wall?

Does the fireplace work? it looks shallow-enough as to throw lots of heat in the room.

What is the age of your house?

Rob.

 

[oldhouseman]

In progress

a shot of me working on the paint. The first door I did took 2 days, by the time I was on the 3rd door I had the process down to 4 hours.

Ok, how did everybodys else do on their summer plans??

 

[oldhouseman]

The plaster

God what a nightmare that was. 14 foot ceiling with many chucks missing and lots of cracks. That was the worst part. It took six coats of paints on everything. Yes the fireplace works but it will get gas logs. No way I will take a chance on a using one this old. The house was built in 1797, this room was added in 1848.

 

[rayjay]

Greg, The color choices in that room are great! I love the dark green walls and tan moulding. ANd of course the terra cotta.

You are doing a fantastic job.

Ray

 

[oldhouseman]

The terra cotta will look

much better when the mahogany graining is applied! Thanks for the compliment.

 

[maytagbear]

Wow-

What an accomplishment, Greg!

Love the dark green and terra cotta!

My Summer II plans?

Wading through a pile of funding requests. I am on Outreach/Benevolence at church, and I am to make the preliminary decision on which organizations to fund. At the moment, I am inclined to recommend that we fund the same organizations at about the same levels.

$100,000 sounds like a lot, but not when it's divided 20 or more ways.

Lawrence/Maytagbear

 

[frigilux]

Fantastic color choices, Greg; What an amazing house! My hat's off to you for all your hard work. Thanks for sharing pics of your archive-worthy house! I would love to see the....darn it, what's the document called that traces the sale/purchase of the house from the time it's built...oh, well, whatever that document is called, I'd love to see it; I can only imagine the rich history involved.

 

[rickr]

Cool house Greg!! Thanks for the detailed photos. Am looking forward to seeing more progress pixs some day!

 

[oldhouseman]

Thanks Frigilux

I am only the 3rd owner. The fellow that built it sold it in 1811 and it stayed in that family until I bought it a few years ago. It passed down mother to daughter every generation in the 19th and 20th centuries. The town, Sparta, is in the middle of no where but I'm hoping to have visitors from AW and the door is aways open should anyone want to come spend a few days. As you can see the guest room is almost complete and will be very comfortably furnished.

 

[oldhouseman]

Sure rickr

when I get the mantel and door grained and the furniture moved in I will post some more.

 

[classiccaprice]

Quite a lovely home, Greg. It's amazing how far it has come along. I've got my hands full with my 1958 Rancher, though I've heard your stories and seen your pictures, I can only image the amount of work on a house 4 and a half times as old.

 

[volvoguy87]

Wow.

A little paint, some spackle, good as new! (If only people knew how much effort that really takes.)

Keep up the good work,
Dave

 

[rp2813]

Greg, you are doing a truly masterful job. I almost get emotional when I think of how much love you have for your home and your dedication to its complete restoration. You are quite the inspirational homeowner!

Ralph

 

[oldhouseman]

Thanks Ralph,

I hope some of you guys will come visit and spend a few days!