Friday, December 26, 2014

miscellany...

 Given my long absence, today will be a bit of a photo dump.  I noticed that my stats actually went up in the last week, so I'm assuming people were checking in on me, and that a failure to post would result in a search party appearing on my doorstep.

The reason for my disappearance (other than a very needy puppy); the tedium of painting our plaster moldings in the current entry room (future library).  Given that our moldings are quite simple, I was shocked at how impossibly long they took to paint.  The cove seems to have been gilded and wallpapered in its past lives, and currently sports a thick uneven coat of joint compound and white paint.  While I know it should have been fully scraped, I just didn't have it in me, especially given that there is a layer of drywall over the original plaster ceiling.  The drywall was extremely well done, and we'll most likely leave it alone until we're ready to do the final restoration of the room - rebuilding the lost built-ins and wallpapering.  I'm hopeful that the drywall is hiding original wallpaper or stenciling, and as long as I believe that, the drywall doesn't stand a chance of surviving us finishing this space.  For now, several coats of gold paint are in the cove, with a brick red picking out some of the bullnosed sections, and the ceiling has been painted a pale gloss gold.



The scaffolding remained a feature of the room longer than I care to admit as I figured out one unassailable truth - decorating a 10 1/2 foot Christmas tree becomes infinitely easier when one has jolly yellow scaffolding to do it from.



In other news, this is the most perfect tree that has ever been grown, and I don't know that we'll ever find it's equal...  Also, in just a couple of weeks our dear little Maugrim has doubled in size (now 30 pounds, and taller than I'd care to admit).  At this rate of exponential growth I fear for the future of the planet, as such growth must be some sort of Grey Goo scenario.


PRESENTS!!!!!!

And for the rest, let me present: Christmas decorations, part of a huge parlor set we recently obtained, the enormous framed antique photo of our house that we've been waiting to hang for almost 3 years, and the finished painted crown (and partially finished woodwork).



 

 




And while I had fully intended to take photos of our Hanukkah party (actually HAMukkah, because we just can't find it in ourselves to ever be normal), we had too much fun to bother with pictures.  Our lonely menorah is all that remains...

14 comments:

  1. Wow! Your house is looking fabulous! Love your style! Also i sent you a link on Pinterest but I don't think the link worked and I don't think you saw it. Not sure you already know about this page but it's pretty good- full of old house stuff https://www.pinterest.com/Rydeng/

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    1. Now if only the progress could make it's way through the rest of the house! Thanks for the link, I love it. Chances are that it made it's way through fine, but got accidentally deleted. I delete most of the Pinterest e-mails (so many!) without opening them, checking just the new followers and comments and such - but I'm sure I must occasionally miss something I care about when I'm not paying enough attention.

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  2. Well, I was halfway out there but I guess I'll turn around, knowing that you're OK :)

    That new pup is darling. Look at him smiling!

    And I admire your patience with the moulding. I'd start it with good intentions, spend six hours doing one small section, get frustrated, and hire a pro. I'm sure crying would be in there somewhere.

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    1. Well, at least have some mulled wine before you turn back!

      And trust me, you'd have finished the moldings too. The room is quite dark (northeast facing with a dark green glass chandelier), and the gold throws just enough light around to make it cozy, rather than dreary.

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  3. I have the same awesome type of scaffolding, except mine is red. Best thing ever invented for working up high! I love mine.

    Only an old house fanatic would put the 'finishing' touches on crown molding, while not-so-secretly scheming to rip into the surfaces adjacent to it. Sounds perfectly normal to me.

    What you have accomplished is beautiful!

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    1. If mine were red I'd have just thrown some garland on it and called it a day!

      I've never understood the restoration advice of do one room at a time - if that's the way I went about things my house would still be uninhabitable, and I'd have already lost what's left of my mind. I prefer the "circle back around" credo... So painted plaster now, stripped and gilded plaster at some point in the distant future....

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  4. It's amazing! Oh, and look ... there's the bookcase of my dreams!!

    Was thinking of you the other day as I was unpacking picture hooks, for which we no longer have any need. Got any picture rails in that house? Need any hooks? They're the repro ones from Classic Accents...

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    1. You were unpacking? That's ever so exciting!

      Sadly, that bookcase has been through hell and back. We love it, but it's likely even beyond restoration. On the other hand, it's the first thing we dragged back that suited the scale of the house.

      At the moment, the only picture rail in the house is a gessoed/gold leafed 6 foot section I found in the attic that miraculously survived being thrown away. Every room on the 1st and 2nd floor originally had it, and I vow it will have it again! (All that to say, I would love the hooks, let me know how much with shipping and such)

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    2. Email me your address after the holidays and I'll send them to ya!! My treat ... I'm just happy they'll be used. :)

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  5. The room looks amazing and I love the tree!

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  6. Beautiful, beautiful room! Merry Christmas!

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