Welcome to the front bedroom. This bedroom is the front “dormer” that you can see in pictures of the front of the house. 
This is the only room in the whole house whose trim work was never painted. The floors were in pretty good condition, too. Now, the curtains hiding that beautiful chestnut trim had to go. As well as the cheap and ugly ceiling fan.
Gotta love the basketball hoop attached to the back of the solid chestnut, five-panel door. And the commercial grade garcy strip shelving system. Neanderthals.
Someday I’ll get around to removing the paint from that brass collar on the glass knob. I can’t even figure out how it got painted, since that door is in original condition. P.O.s baffle me.
The attic access is through the closet, which is under the eaves. I’m really lucky to have such big closets in a house this old. It was definitely one of the selling points.
Tag: Bungalow
New Front Doors Installed!
It has been a long time coming, but it was worth the wait. Bill was able to come up yesterday to install the new front door and the screen/storm door. It wasn’t all easy going, we ran into a couple of problems, but Bill was able to make everything work. Now we just have to do some touch-ups, and it will be perfect.
Also, some cleaning. Bill made lots of sawdust, and the glass needs a serious cleaning. It still has lots of sticky residue from the stripper, the stain, and the finish.
Oh, and Oliver is enjoying the breeze coming in through the screen door.
Look What We Did: Kitchen Cabinets
I think the one house project I am most proud of would be these cabinets in the kitchen. Mom and I labored over these for months, but I think it was well worth it. I should also tell you that I absolutely couldn’t have done this with out her. Thanks, mom!
My kitchen in September of 2003.
My kitchen now, in 2008.
What a difference fresh paint and new hardware can make!
What a difference fresh paint and new hardware can make!
Look here for the full kitchen story.
This post was written for Houseblogs.net as part of a sweepstakes sponsored by True Value.
Indelibly Stamped
I had a couple of days off work this week for the thyroid testing, and nothing else planned, so Mom and I got going on some projects that have been waiting for nice weather.
I collected all the screen and storm window frames that Bill left by each small square window and carried them to the front porch. This is where we do most of our dirty work, and that is why the porch always looks trashy, but it is a great place to work.
We decided to mark each window and both frames with a little number.
I borrowed these neat little stamps from my dad. Just give them a little tap, and you have an impression.
And in no time, all fourteen frames were done, stacked, and ready for staining.
Now, we’ll just wait for Jack’s specially mixed stain…
Framed
We got a visit from the screen and storm window fairy today. Bill called earlier this week to tell me that he is nearly finished with the frames. He’s brought them to the house , fit them in the windows, and made adjustments. One of these days mom and I will stain them, and return the frames to Bill and he will install the glass and screens. These are unique because they will be made to fit inside the small, square windows. A few screens came with the house, most of which I have put to good use, that Bill has used as a prototype for screens for the rest, and interior storms for all the small, square windows.
I also talked to Jack yesterday. He put a new piece of veneer on the future front door, but it didn’t look good, and Jack was not satisfied with it. Then he got sidetracked with another project (that probably pays better), but he said he will start on my doors again as soon as the other job is done. He expects that will be sometime in the middle of next week. Cool.
This timing isn’t too bad because Jack has to mix stain to match, both for the old wood on the front door, and for the new pine on the screen door/storm door. Hmmm… didn’t we just get something else made of new pine? That’s right! The new screen and storm frames from Bill.
Luckily I was not my usual flaky self when I was on the phone with Jack. I told him all about the frames Bill was going to bring today, and that we intend to stain them. So I asked Jack if he would make us a jar of whatever stain he blends for the storm door/screen door, so mom and I can spare ourselves the tedious process of matching stain. Yea!
Green Bungalow Craftworks 