period homes Archives - Page 2 of 4

Saving the Medallion

February 25, 2010 RH 3 Comments

Our hallway ceiling was beyond repair. It was sagging with too many cracks for a skimcoat and the plaster is so dry that it just crumbles. So we needed to take down the ceiling and put up sheetrock.

Why not simply laminate you ask? Well, we have the original wood molding near the staircase, so the sheetrock had to fit underneath that.

Anyway, we’re talking medallions. So, we have this medallion, see? Obviously needed to save that baby! It could be a diy job, but I wouldn’t trust myself or my husband to do it. I just had visions of that medallion crashing down on the floor. So, Dimas the contractor to the rescue.

Here’s what he did:

1. First thing is, he secured it with more screws, making sure it stays with the remaining ceiling. The screw holes can be patched up later.

2. Cut around it. Crap, I forgot to see what tool he used! I’m sure the hubby would’ve gone in there with a Sawzall , but he either did it manually with a utility knife or maybe used a Jigsaw.

3. With the medallion secured and separated from the rest of the plaster, it was time for the ceiling to come down.

4. Sheetrock hole was cut as close as possible and plastered all around.

5. This is as far as he got, but you get the picture now. Maybe another coat of joint compound, sand, prime and paint.

Hire “Our Victorian House” Guy!

January 21, 2010 RH 2 Comments

Last we checked on Craig and Yvonne’s Victorian House, it was on the market for $799k. Well, it looks like it’s still up for grabs. Down to $699k. Totally worth every penny, but alas…still not affordable for the likes of moi.

But here’s the good news! Craig has gone pro. Blackstone Architectural Restoration LLC works in Central Jersey. There’s not much on their website yet, but hello, have you seen his house? I’d say this guy does meticulous work.

Check out the video walk through of their house. It will bring tears to your eyes.

Victorian Hallway Color Scheme? Help!

January 11, 2010 RH 12 Comments

Now that we have resale of our home in mind, all bets are off as far as crazy renovation ideas. We have to cut back on costs, number one, but also we must keep in mind that the home should appeal to the masses, not just us.

Any room can be repainted by a new owner. Many of our smaller rooms are already painted in shades of pink and purple and the next person easily change that if they wish.

But the hallway? We never got to it because it’s a major job that means building a scaffold. In our minds, the hallway was always going to be red. Now we’re concerned that it may be too dark. A dark hue would be historically correct (source here) and we do want to retain as much historic accuracy as possible.

But we also want to sell it. What’s your opinion? Red? Maybe one of the colors in the stained glass window? Please post your opinion here. We leave it your hands!

Crown Heights North House Tour 2009!

September 22, 2009 RH 1 Comment

Crown Heights North has some of the most glorious architecture in New York. Yes, I used the word “glorious”. The 3rd annual house tour is coming up next week, so head’s up! You don’t want to miss it (like I always do because I work weekends).

Be sure to check out the Crown Heights North Association’s website for more info.

The Lady Is Waiting To Be Painted

June 26, 2009 RH 1 Comment

San Fran scene. Hmm, blue is an option.

All of this porch demolition. It’s now time to start thinking about what we’ll replace it with and to get a feel for the color scheme. I got seduced by the painted ladies of San Fransisco some twenty years ago. “Someday I want a house like that.” said I. My house could be every bit as spectacular. She’s just a little rough around the edges is all.

Anyway, I’m spending some time looking at porch spindles, corbels and fanciful gingerbready things to add. Plus, I need to find an intense color scheme!

Kind of like the contrast of the dark gray with the red.

Holy Mother of God! I would kill for this place. Kill!! This is the Carson Mansion in Eureka, CA. I wouldn’t mind adding do-dads to my peaks though. And some iron work.

Cape May, NJ. The husband won’t let me go pink. Nor will landmarks. Eh, maybe this is too frou frou even for me.

Iowa. Interesting porch woodwork, but I think I have my heart set on chunky balusters.

paint124elgin_srch_feed_20081010_12_20_50_837-400-265.jpg

Like these.

A Visit to Vaccaro’s Salvage

June 15, 2009 RH 4 Comments

We needed to match a couple of Victorian ball tip door hinges so we finally got to visit the new Vaccaro’s location on the Park Slope/Carrol Gardens border.

Vaccaro Brothers Scrap Metal had been selling wholesale and retail out of a garage on 15th Street for about 50 years. The family had been in the scrap metal business for around 50 years prior to that. Now you can find Roy Vaccaro’s “New York Old Iron” right under the F train el near the Lowe’s parking lot.

The specialty here is iron. Gates, stoop ballusters and posts. If you’re looking to re-do the front of your brownstone stoop as we will be soon, this is the place. Be sure to have photos and measurements if you’re ready to get going on your project. Lots of pieces look similar but won’t necessarily work together.

Vaccaro’s has a decent selection of doors and sinks. There isn’t much furniture or wood as this is an outdoor place and only so much is sheltered from harsh weather.

Here’s an example of the pricing….We did find our hinges. Well, not really. We picked up 4 more ornate ones instead for $10 apiece. They’ll need stripping, but no biggie. Olde Good Things charges $125 for 3 of the same hinges, stripped. Less expensive places are around $25 apiece. So, not a bad deal.

Casa Cara’s article on Vaccaro’s

The Shutter Project

June 8, 2009 RH 9 Comments

Three out of four stories of our brownstone had the original shutters on the windows. This was both a blessing and a curse. Obvious as to why it was a blessing, but have you ever stripped shutters? What a *%#{$# tedious job!

On the third floor, we found them painted and caulked into their housing. Again, a spectacular discovery until the actual rescue process.

Anyway, that’s mostly behind us now. The only shutters that need work are for our garden apartment. They’ve already been stripped, so the weekend project was just to paint them. Why are we choosing to paint instead of leaving the wood exposed? Well, first of all, they are not in good shape. After lots of glue and wood putty, the soft, water damaged pine didn’t look too great with stain. Secondly, I wanted to bounce the sunlight from the windows a bit with white paint. I think I actually tested this theory with a meter reading at the time, but I forgot the results.

As with all of our weekend projects, not a lot got done. Actually, there was no painting. It took close to 2 hours to take off all of the antique hardware, what with the stripped screws and all. Wiping all the shutters down, getting painting supplies, gossiping on the phone……too late to start painting!

Today is painting day. The quickest way to paint plantation shutters is to spray them. Although I do own a paint sprayer, it’s such a pain in the arse to set it up and break it down that I bought some Shur Line pad applicators to do the job. Haven’t decided which route I’ll take yet.

One tip I can give you is that you don’t use a brush. Well, it’s fine on the flat bits, but don’t even attempt to use it on the louvers. That’s where Shur Line is your friend. They make a small pad that fits between each slat and won’t get damaged as quickly as brushes or foam.

No matter what you use, it’s still a painful process.

The Life Of A House

April 27, 2009 RH 3 Comments

Hello. My name is Phyllis and I am a home improvement junkie. I have been one for the past 15 years. My husband is my enabler but I believe he leans towards addictive tendencies himself.

There was a great article in The Times on Friday about the history of a house. It shed light upon my own situation. I now understand why I do the things I do and I know I’m not alone. The saga of the author’s Bed Stuy home is fascinating. The house went from sheltering Hugo Tollner of the Gage & Tollner family to becoming crack den. “We buy a house believing it’s ours, but in fact it’s an ever-shifting palimpsest and we are merely the latest to write over it.”

My weakness? I look at a sad old decrepit house, with chippy paint and overgrown weeds and I want to resurrect her. I want to know her history and how she ended up so lonely and forgotten, even while people are living within her walls. The chase is always more exciting than the catch, though. Once she’s back on her feet, it’s time to move on.

Is the home a living entity? No, come on, I’m not that nuts! But I do pick up vibes. Call it ghosts of inhabitants past or ambiance, but I do believe that there’s karma in them walls. Think about it. Each of us leave traces of our energy behind.

Is that why I’m addicted? Am I being possessed? Or am I a closeted history buff? I’ve always thought of rejuvenating old houses as a major creative outlet, but maybe there’s something more to it. In any case, with housing and the economy the way it is, I’m gonna have to go cold turkey on this addiction.

Holy Crap, Look What’s For Sale!

March 31, 2009 RH 4 Comments

Craig and Yvonne’s Victorian home is up for sale! I read about it on Brownstoner, of all places, a Brooklyn centric blog. I have a love/hate relationship with Craig and Yvonne even though I’ve never met them. I’m just sooo damn jealous that they have such a beautiful home that they’ve actually finished. Finished?! That’s unheard of in my world!

The Fanwood, NJ house is listed at $799k with Burgdorff Realtors. The 1875 six bedroom single family sits on 0.35 acres with taxes listed at $11,633. The restoration is friggin impeccable! Go to their website and check out the before and afters. These people are mad! Mad, I tell ya!!

I’d move to NJ for this. Who’s buying?

MLK’s Birthplace = Great Victorian!

January 19, 2009 RH

On January 15th, 1929, Martin Luther King Jr was born at 501 Auburn Avenue in Atlanta, GA. His grandfather purchased the 1894 Queen Anne Victorian for $3500 in 1909.

By 1941, the King family moved out of the home and it was converted into a two family dwelling. They kept the house in the family and rented it out. Dr. King’s brother, also a reverend, lived on the second floor with his family into the early 60’s.

The home was restored in the 70’s and is now maintained by the National Park Service. Period furniture was brought in to replicate how the family lived during the 1930’s. Tours are limited so the home can be preserved for future generations.

Photos are not allowed in the home, which is probably why I couldn’t find any interior shots online.

Official Site

Tour the neighborhood

Wiki

Uh-Oh. Bradbury Has A Blog. And A Sale!

October 28, 2008 RH 4 Comments

Disregard the 4×4 couch legs

Have I ever mentioned how it cost us over $800 to do a Bradbury wallpaper border for our living room? That was just the border. And that was just materials. And have I ever mentioned how I love to sit in there and stare at my lovely border? It was worth every penny. Unfortunately, I can’t afford to replicate it in every room, no less cover the walls and ceiling in wallpaper. I want to bathe my entire house in Bradbury! That’s how much I love it.

I just received an email from Bradbury offering a 10% discount as part of their 30th anniversary celebration. Oy. I can’t even. But maybe you can. I don’t see the offer on the blog (which officially launched this month), but if you sign up for their email newsletters, you’ll get e-lerts on sales and such. Happy spending!

The previous owner got us started on the wallpaper.

Faux Painting Circa 1886

September 23, 2008 RH 6 Comments

We started chipping away at peeling paint and plaster behind an old radiator in the brownstone and made an interesting discovery. The “wood grain” in the above photo is not wood at all. It’s actually painted plaster and it looks as if it’s original to the house. This was the only area of the hallway not skimcoated during our restoration because the radiator was still connected.

The question now is: How far do we go? Now that we found it, we don’t want to cover it up again.

Do we keep that one area uncovered?

Keep going up the stairs?

Leave the faux as we found it?

Restore the entire thing?

I know what I’d like to do. But I also know our limitations on time and budget. And let’s not forget…this is the hallway. Our apartment is not even livable yet.

What would you do?

Retro Countertops

September 12, 2008 RH 6 Comments

**Archive. Originally posted January 30, 2008.

Since we looked at vintage cabinets yesterday, we figured we would give you some options for matching retro laminate countertops.

Formica’s Classic Boomerang: Coral

We all know the biggie: Formica. Their “Classics” collection includes Boomerang, originally designed in the 50’s. This pattern bounces back to us (Get it? Because it’s a boomerang) in 4 historically kitsch colors, including aqua, coral, charcoal and skylark.

Formica’s Classic VirrVarr: Light Blue

Also available from the Classic collection is the VirrVarr, a European pattern. VirrVarr means criss cross in Swedish. This only comes in white and blue.

Read about Formica’s participation in environmental programs such as LEED and Greenguard here.

Nevamar, from Panolam Industries, came out with the Twist N’ Shout retro design not too long ago. There are 3 different color options: orange, blue or yellow.

Nevamar’s LamMate’s “Way Cool Encounter”

Nevamar offers custom print laminates that can allow any digital file to be incorporated into the laminate. They also offer some funky solid colors. They are not as readily available as Formica, so check out their dealer locator.

Nevamar Laminates are Greenguard certified.

Wilson Art’s Retro Mint

Wilson Art offers 4 “retro” designs under it’s Indie Collection. They also have some groovy retro looking designs such as:

Kaleidascope

Mondrian

Plaid

See here for Wilson Art’s Green Guard certification and other environmental info.

House Blogs Internacional

September 10, 2008 RH

One of my (many) dreams is to buy an Italian villa or a Spanish castle to retire to do in my old age. Like 44 would be nice. With all the unfinished work going on in my New York homes, I figured it would be a nice diversion to have a look at some European house blogs and plan my retirement project. Perhaps the project will come up sooner if the election doesn’t go my way. I AM a member of the EU, you know. Marrying an illegal alien does have it’s benefits.

Without further adieu….

No Ordinary Homestead is about an 1834 farmhouse near Frankfurt, Germany. It’s actually about a lot more than the house. The blog is hosted by a Texan gal who is into rock climbing, wine collecting and road trips. She and her ex-pat hubby are planning on building a rock climbing wall and wine cellar. Warning: Stop reading now if you are turning green.

There is a courtyard between the house, the barn and the guest house. I warned you! Now you’re sick, right?

This is the before photo of their avocado bathroom. They saved the tub, but replaced everything else with “the new”. Personally, I love the avocado and would have kept it. So, take that you rock climbing, wine collecting, skinny blond with average taste. You don’t have the chutzpah to go avocado!

Palazzo Pizzo follows the renovation of 200+ year old home in southern Italy. Yes, it’s one of the houses in the photo above.

Like my own blog, there aren’t many before and after photos of her actual renovation. Just lots of daydreaming about what she is going to do.

Like this:

And this:

This Really Old House is written by a woman named Lola. That’s my dog’s name, so I like her already. And her husband’s name is Dawg.

The home is in northern Burgundy and I’m not seeing any finished shots so it’s safe to say there is nothing to get too jealous of. Yet. It was interesting to go back to her first post and find out how they came across this one house that spoke to them. They also looked at a Loire 19th century farmhouse and a home that lost its charm after they learned it was located in a town that was a deportation camp for French Jews in WWII.

Other reasons to feel a bond with Lola:

The house doesn’t have heat.

They’ve owned the house for 2.5 years and it’s still not habitable.

But her last post was in July, so maybe it’s a finished cream puff by now. In that case, Bitch.