Here in Delta, there have been discoveries of old license plates – sometimes lining a garage or barn wall, as well as many other historic items, to include early electrical fixtures and even tools which, by virtue of their uniqueness, must have served a very special purpose, identified today only through old catalogues.

       Those of you that knew Esther Stephens, our first museum curator who for 30 years, organized and catalogued our thousands of artifacts, know what a historic scavenger she was. One has only to take note of our archive furniture to see how well she did at acquiring cast-off county furniture over the years, as well as early county records. I am told that Esther made regular inspections of county trash – when the museum was in the county building – and rescued numerous historic records, not to mention the chairs and desks which were being thrown away as more modern furniture was acquired as replacements. Yes, there was a time when “old” records and furniture were simply tossed in the trash. Today, our awareness of the historic value of such items seems to take priority, and in this era, many records are also saved digitally for more efficient access. How computers have changed our office conduct!

       Other early county records have turned up in attics, rescued by new occupants of the homes, who have had the foresight to bring them to us for preservation.

       Even today, in the basements of some of the buildings on Delta’s Main Street, artifacts of historic value simply collect dust, like the sign making device once used to make merchandise signs in the old Hollands store at 4th and Main, or the office equipment once used in the J.C. Penney store in Delta.- all still in basement “storage” in the buildings where they were last used. In the old Hollands store, a remnant of the sling system still remains. It was used to convey customer payments to the bookkeeping office above, and for change to be returned in the same tube.

       Then there is the Davis Clothing store, now in it’s 99th year under Davis family ownership, where early stiff collars and other apparel can still be found in their basement inventory, some of which can still be purchased. Entering the store is like stepping back into history. It is an experience unequalled in Delta!

       When the Delta Hardware business was at Third and Main, the public access portion of the store was as modern and efficient as similar stores of this time, but if you needed a part for an old pot-bellied stove or other early hardware, it likely could be located somewhere in their basement.

       I know there are similar stories regarding many Delta businesses and buildings, and though I am sure many historic items belong in a museum, this museum simply cannot take all large items; we have no room. So things like the old Speas Vinegar equipment will continue to rust away in outdoor storage, or, more than likely, will end up in a metal recycle facility.

       One large item we would love to find – the original wood sign for the Farmers & Merchants Bank that once stood on the roof-line of today’s Delta Cleaners at Third & Main. The sign was removed in the 1960’s – we are told – and then disappeared.

       Any other historic artifacts out there relating to our Delta history? Even if you do not want to part with them, we would like to know what remains of historic value in our community attics and barns, etc.

Jim

*********************************************

Did you know that the 21-gun salute stands for the sum of the numbers in the year 1776?

Linda

http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com

http://deltacountyhistoricalsociety.wordpress.com

When we first purchased this house, we were very impressed with the amount of work and upgrades. Thousands of dollars were spent to take this 1950′s house and update it into the 21st century.

This bathroom was totally re-done. Modern vanity and fixtures, porcelain tiles from Mexico in the shower and also wrapping around the vanity wall plus a new vinyl window. We couldn’t believe our luck when we first saw it, knowing we wouldn’t have to spend a dime to upgrade. It looked perfect!

The wallpaper was extremely modern with a raised white on white geometric pattern. The only things that were missing were a towel bar, ring and robe hook. I thought, wow, we just have to purchase those items and voila the room is complete. The toilet paper dispenser being the only accessory, I was fortunate enough to discover it was from Moen and was able to purchase the matching accessories.

A few weeks ago, we noticed part of the seam on the paper was lifting off, so being the handy person that I am, I decided to glue it back down. As you can see in photos 1 and 2, the glue ran down the paper and stained it. I was frustrated that it was discolored, but to add insult to injury, the glue didn’t stick the paper back down.

After discussing the situation with my husband we came up with a few alternatives. First, we knew the paper was still available at Home Depot, however it was bright white and this paper had discolored over the years. Because the two other walls had the same paper, if we replaced just the one wall, the coloring would be very noticeable. Then we came up with the bright idea of taking down the paper on the one wall and paint it a complimentary color. What could go wrong?

Before stripping the paper we were all excited about the new decor and raced off to Home Depot to buy the paint, rollers, brushes and tape. We could have this done in one weekend.

Imagine my shock when I started to take off the paper and discovered the disastrous plaster wall hiding behind it. I guess the original wall was tiled in 3×3 tiles with a row of smaller tiles above as a border. Whoever removed these tiles didn’t take the time to remove the glue and patch all the holes and nicks created by a chisel to separate them from the wall. Also, they tried to patch the edges with compound, but didn’t bother to sand them smooth. Hence, big globs of compound ran along the edge of the shower tiles. Also, I’m assuming there was once an insert toilet paper dispenser (which was removed) and patched with some sort of paper and compound. It will be probably have to be re-done as it bulges out from the wall and has a large bubble in the middle. No wonder they papered over it.  The wallpaper was put up first and then the ceiling was painted and caulking down the side of the shower, over top of the paper. Therefore, the caulking will have to be removed and replaced.

I only hope they didn’t spend a lot of money on a professional contractor to do this job.

Using every scraper available we began to chip away at the glue and compound. This was a very tedious, slow job and it didn’t seem to be working very well. We decided to get out the power sander and using the heaviest grit, started to remove all the excess glue and compound. It worked like a charm but filled the entire house with dust!

This is just the beginning. Now the entire wall will have to be coated with a skim coat of compound to ensure the surface is prepped, smooth and ready for paint.

Stay tuned for my next update on this so called “quick fix”.

We have been plagued by a mouse again. Being a nocturnal creature he stalks us at night while in bed. Some of you might remember my episode with a snake earlier this year. The constant influx of creepy crawlies and four-legged creatures into the dressing room were due to the hole in the wall.  We are unable to finish the ceiling right now due to budget constraints.

So after the training concluded on Tuesday I decided to tackle this challenge.  The hole needed to be closed up with mortar. There was another hour or so of sunlight left, so I started right away.

The dressing room is situated right at the back of the house.  It was like verging into unknown territory.  It looks quite terrible and needs a proper facelift as you can see…

Back of the house

As soon as funds become available, we will rebuild the top part of the wall, fix the roof and finish the interior with ceiling.  But for now, my pressing goal was just to close the holes.  I unfortunately didn’t take any pictures while in progress.

It was my first time plastering and I actually enjoyed it.  It was like icing a cake…except this was much messier and uncomfortable because of the height and angle.

Closing the holes

I managed to close up the 3 major holes and was quite chuffed with the result.  Yes I know, it doesn’t look glamorous to you…but to me it was a great achievement.  Girl power!

Hopefully the crawlies will now stay out!

Upon researching the photo of the interior, I discovered the photographer behind this image is none other than Michael Eastman (a photographer you are probably more familiar with than you think). An image of Eastman’s was selected by designer Martyn Lawrence Bullard (which he used on a much larger scale to cover the majority of Daisy Fuentes’ Living Room wall) on a recent episode of Bravo’s Million Dollar Decorators. Now, that’s delicious.

Photo credits: Dariamirbach and Michael Eastman.

We’ve been M.I.A. because we’ve been in kind of a funk. The work we’re doing around the house right now is boring and tedious. For example, we spent 2 entire days mudding — that’s not even worth photographing after the first round. Not that I didn’t try. I snapped hundreds of photos of Bradley putting a second (and sometimes third) coat of plaster in the Smurf room and hallways. But when I reviewed the photos later, they put me in a coma. That’s how boring plastering is.

Here’s the most exciting sequence of the entire weekend: Bradley cracked open a fresh bucket-o-plaster and thought it seemed a bit dry, so he added a splash of water.

Then he gave it a whirl with his paint mixer drill attachment.

He blended until it was smooth and ready to smear on the walls.

Funny aside. Bradley’s first job in NYC was as a building maintenance guy for a very shi-shi-poo-poo restaurant in Chelsea. He pretty much did what he’s doing in our house right now: fixed things in a very, very old building. Anyway, the chefs used these same paint mixer drill attachments to mix giant batches of soup. Bradley thought it was hilarious to walk into the kitchen and see a chef mixing a vat of  lobster bisque with a drill.

Aside from plastering, we also put up the rest of the ceiling in the hallway:

More plastering to follow. (Insert huge groan-sigh here.)

While the plaster dried, we insulated the hallway. Our plan was to simply attach furring strips to the plaster wall, add 2 layers of styrofoam insulation and then throw drywall up right on top of that. Bradley started by drilling some pilot holes with his concrete drill:

Then he attached a furring strip along the bottom of the wall:

Once that was secure, he put up a vertical furring strip along the edge of the wall and made sure it was level:

And that’s when our entire plan fell apart. It turns out our 130-year-old walls aren’t exactly level anymore — they’re actually curved. To make a level wall, Bradley had to do some creative shimming. Here’s what the finished framing looked like:

The wall starts out straight, then starts curving. By the time it gets to the floor, it’s up to 2 inches off from where it started!

This explains the massive gaps where floor meets wall. Remember those?

The whole process shimming process, start to finish, took a few hours. Once the wall was framed, we put up a layer of styrofoam insulation in between the furring strips:

A second layer went right on top of the first:

We have a few more pieces of insulation to cut before it’s drywall time, but the wall is shaping up. It’s nice to not look up and see a crusty, textured ceiling:

What we learned on our long weekend:

• Plastering blows.
  It’s one of those jobs that you have to do so you can move on to the more exciting stuff like priming and painting. But that doesn’t make it suck any less.
• Deadlines are maddening.
  We’d originally planned a big Fourth of July BBQ weekend with four of our favorite New Yorkers. We thought we’d easily be done with the Smurf room and guest bedroom. And then we started changing things and tweaking things and finding brick walls that needed uncovering. We’re way, way behind schedule and it’s driving us nuts. So instead of fretting over it, we’re throwing out our schedule. It’ll get done when it gets done.

It’s all sheetrocked and ready to be mudded on the left side. But the right side needs some love. It’s plaster on brick (no lathe), so there’s no insulation there. While Bradley was busy sheetrocking the Smurf room, I decided to remove all of the window trim and the floor board to prep the hallway for insulation. I also had to remove the trim around the doorway leading that leads into this hall so we could sheetrock that wall.

It was a pretty simple task. Or so I thought.

Hoo boy. Where to begin?

I started with the floor board because it was easy (famous last words), and used a crow bar to pry the board from the wall. Unfortunately for me, I quickly learned that the wood was permanently glued to the plaster. I’m not sure if the wood was attached to the plaster while the plaster was still wet. Or maybe the lead paint that covered both the wall and the board had formed some kind of super bond. Or maybe it was pixie magic that held the two together. Either way, when I pried the floor board loose, 8 inches of the wall pried loose with it.

I think the technical term for this is “a hot mess.”

At least the window trim and sill came off OK:

Too bad I can’t say the same for the door frame I had to remove at the end of the hallway:

Half of the plaster surrounding the doorway fell off in big chucks as I removed the trim. It looks like a bomb went off in the hallway, even after the cleanup.

Our plan was simply to put up some furring strips, insulate with 2 sheets of 1″ foam, and then sheetrock right over everything. The wall was perfectly level, so it would have worked out really well. Now we have to shim the wall to make sure we’re putting our sheetrock up straight. And we have to build it out a little to compensate for the missing plaster. We also have to make sure to build out enough to cover the giant gap between the floor and the wall:

There’s as much as a 3 inch gap at some parts. Ugh. By our calculations, with the stud we’re going to attach to the floor, plus the furring strips, insulation and sheetrock, we’ll be able to completely cover it. No promises, though — we’ve learned our lesson!

What we learned with our little hallway incident:

• Lathe walls are a pain in the @*%.
• Our house, like many other super-old houses, has settled a little. We prefer to think of it as our house having a Gangsta Lean.
• If all the plaster in our house came off this easily, we’d probably expose a lot more brick.
• Don’t ever start a project by saying, “This is easy. We’ll finish it off in one day.” It only leads to broken hearts and shattered plaster.

with its lovely garden.

Until recently this garden was called the Biblical Garden because every plant in it is referenced in the Bible.

I always step off the street and wander down it’s little paths. It has been fun to see the garden mature and change, as gardens do.

Within the last few years new arbors,

fountains,

and paths have been installed.

Once in a while, I go into the church to enjoy the beautiful stained glass windows. This is a popular place for weddings. Up go the decorations, music sounds from the church and then the bride and groom exit triumphantly. Often member of the wedding party stay at the Cypress Inn which is across the street.

It was quite late in the day the last time I stopped to snap a few shots.

As I entered the chapel, the minister was just about to close and lock the door.  He regretted cutting my visit short, and so invited me to “ring the bell” in the Bell Tower. What a treat!  Pull hard on that rope and hear the joyous sound.  The steeple, the first one in Carmel, houses “THE BELL”. It was given to the church by anonymous villagers. In earlier days it served Carmel for fire and emergency calls.

Church of the Wayfarer

Lincoln Street at Seventh Avenue
P.O. Box 2205
Carmel-by-the-Sea, California 93921
(831) 624-3550 – FAX (831) 624-2530

Click here to view a map of our location.

Unless otherwise stated, all photographs are copyright (c) Linda Hartong. All rights reserved.

You may not use any image on this site without my written consent. If you are interested in using a photo from my website for any purpose, please send me a quick message and let me know which photo(s) you are interested in.

After pinning most of them onto the walls so we could see them in different light, we started the process of elimination, pulling down ones we didn’t like until only the winner remained: Sharkey Gray:

This is what it looks like on the walls (the photo is taken after dark):

It’s a really cool color because sometimes it looks gray and sometimes beige. That’s the corner where the refrigerator will stand. You may remember what it used to look like.

We were inspired by gray and white kitchens like these:

And I have to say, Teresa is right. Gray is the perfect backdrop for our really bright, white kitchen.

Warning: The next time we choose a Martha Stewart color, we’ll have it mixed into another paint brand. It peels and took two coats over primer. The quality is non-existent and it cost more than the other brands at the Home Depot.

More pics (of our room) to come soon, promise!

Here’s a glimpse at what we had to deal with:

This was the surface under the back splash (unpatched on the left):

I used a premixed plaster patching compound and several different sizes of spatulas. Some spots required mesh patches. This particular spot required three layers of mesh patching:

The important thing to remember is to sand really well between each layer of plaster. It’s better to apply many very thin layers than one or two thick ones.

It took me about three days to prepare the walls for primer paint. I went through a gallon and a half of compound. A good, fine-grit sanding block is worth its weight in gold. Soon enough the walls looked like this:

A weekend of demo, a long weekend of plaster patching, a day 0r two of priming and the walls were ready for rebuilding a kitchen. It was a lot of work but it’s worth it and it’s over now. Happy day!

This room is technically supposed to be a living room.

A previous roommate decided to make it into a bedroom and created a piss poor doorway out of the original plaster wall archway.

Gross windowsill.

I cannot imagine how one could live with such nastiness.

I’m assuming that there was water damage at some point here.

Had to scrape the eff’d up portions of the wall. This is going to need some rebuilding.

Another area that need’s to be rebuilt.

Shot of the room prior to starting in on the taping and painting.

We’ve been working on this room on and off for about a week now and we’re still not done. Though we are pretty close. I’m hoping to be complete tonight, but my arms are killing me from painting so high about my head. Our progress so far:

I just don’t get how a person would live like that, let alone have people over. Maybe we’re old school or maybe we’re just house proud

Our kitchen needed to go. We know, we know…a lot can be done with what T calls “lipstick fixes.” However, this kitchen had some pretty bad offenders that made demolition the best option:

• Plaster walls in desperate need of repair
• Kitchen carpet (enough said)
• An 18” sink
• Badly installed, damaged tile
• An 18” dishwasher (yes, they apparently make those) with a bright red interior
• Two different types (eras, really) of cabinetry

So demolish we did. :D

See the kitchen carpet (on the right). On the left is the vinyl that lined the sink cabinet. Not exactly complementary.

As you can see, the plaster wall behind the range was filthy (we cleaned it up here).

We removed the cabinets to reveal badly stained, unfinished and cracked plaster walls.

Removal of the tile backsplash revealed that the tile had been installed with something like Liquid Nails (just not kosher, people). Large chunks of plaster were loose behind the tile.

T and I couldn’t believe that they still sell this same cabinet hardware at the local shop:

On the opposite side of the kitchen was this weird desk-like section of countertop. Our real estate agent joked that the little plastic thing on the side was for recipes.

So that’s for taking it down. Now for putting it all back together!

So taking down the wall will range between $1500-$2500 (per one contractor’s estimate), which is quite a wide range.  I’m thinking more along $1500.  The walls are made of brick (cinder blocks) and plaster, which is something I can’t do myself.

As for the textured plaster walls, I am thinking of skim coating it rather than just putting 1/4″ inch drywall on top (I think that also increases your insurance cost…but it is relatively cheap at Home Depot at $4.55 per 4×8 board).  We are thinking of trying this ourselves. I have read and watched plenty of YouTube videos that I think it is a doable DIY project.  One of my favourite videos can be found at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8iUcenpHg84.

Skim coating may be the best option because dry wall is easy to dent.  From what I’ve read, we should apply two coats of setting compound (the powder type) because it is harder when it dries, then a coat of the mixed compound for the finishing layer because it is easier to sand for a smoother look.  Apparently there is another product called structolite, which is an insulated base coat plaster.  Will have to look more into that.

I’m starting to put together a budget for how much I want to spend on my new kitchen – which is something I highly recommend so that “you don’t go crazy spending” as my bf says…

I’m all the way from South Africa and am in the process of making sample boards for a client on a plaster that I think is similar to Versiplast. Would you mind sharing the 3 layer process. I enjoy your blog thanks for sharing.

Hi Linda from South Africa!   I like to use the Versiplast this way -  First layer I trowel on the plaster,  100% coverage. When dry I lightly sand any crusty,crunchy areas to knock it down (prevents chatter on next layer).   The second troweled layer is pretty much a 100% coverage, except here and there I leave little open areas/pits etc.

When the 2nd layer dries I light sand with a sand block -  it gives the final finish a nice soft feel.

Then I chip brush on the glazes (this one I’m using 3 colors) randomly, working in about 3ft sections, kindof like this below-

and then with stipple and chip brushes I work the colors into the plaster-

then wipe it back with dry rags, in areas that I want less-

This was onsite, glazing the big wall -

Use a good glaze – I love Faux Effects Aquacreme,  keep a wet edge and don’t overlap your sections when you’re coloring -

Take the time (I like to use a small chip brush) to blend your sections-

My glazing helper – applying the color ahead of me so I can keep moving… this big wall took us 6  hours to glaze-

Getting there -

Hope this helps!

]]> http://fabulousfinishes.wordpress.com/2010/08/12/versiplastered-great-room-with-woodgrain-on-top/ Fri, 13 Aug 2010 04:04:23 +0000 Patty Henning http://fabulousfinishes.wordpress.com/2010/08/12/versiplastered-great-room-with-woodgrain-on-top/ For the last two weeks I’ve been busy applying a three layer plaster finish in a two story Great Room.   It’s Versiplast plaster – one of my favorites for a soft textural durable wall finish -

When I started plastering the walls,  trimmers arrived to create decorative column tops for the wall of windows.    The client wasn’t sure about painting them white – they considered staining them to match the fireplace, but parts of the columns were made out of mdf.   I went home that night trying to see how close i could get a sample to their fireplace color using faux wood grain techniques -

I taped the sample wood grain up to the windows, where the columns will be mounted.  The color was perfect!

The client base painted the columns – a custom mix of Setcoat Chamois and Setcoat Camel,  then I started the graining process by flogging them with Stain and Seal American Walnut-

They are already looking awesome, I can’t wait to see them after I do the final layer of S&S Antique Mahogany.    A shout out to Cait Whitson, who came to America several years ago and taught wood graining and marbling to a group of us -  those skills have come in handy more times than I can count,  THANK YOU!

I can’t wait to see the room completed…  I thought I’d be finished by Friday -  today I started glazing the near 800 sf  of walls and realized, even with a helper tomorrow, I don’t think I’ll get it all done.    Rats.  My body is achin’, but the end is near!

Thank God tomorrow is Friday!

]]> http://pooldude.wordpress.com/2010/05/07/it-burns-what-is-making-your-eyes-so-red-and-irritated/ Fri, 07 May 2010 18:10:56 +0000 pooldude http://pooldude.wordpress.com/2010/05/07/it-burns-what-is-making-your-eyes-so-red-and-irritated/ Your chemistry! 

Not you… the water in your swimming pool! 

pH is the single most important element in swimming pool water chemistry. It affects every other chemical balance in pool water.

If pH is too low

• Water becomes acidic
• Chlorine residuals dissipate rapidly
• Eye irritation occurs
• Plaster walls are etched
• Metal fittings, pump impeller, heater core may corrode
• Dissolved metals may leave stains on walls
• Rapid Loss of alkalinity

If pH is too high

• Chlorine activity is slowed and inefficient
• Scale formation and discoloration of pool walls
• Water becomes cloudy
• Filter is overworked
• Eye irritation may occur

pH Adjustment
To avoid the problems listed above, pH must be maintained between 7.2 and 7.8. The most desirable level for pH is between 7.4 and 7.6. If pH is too low – run alkali demand test if available. Raise pH by adding soda ash (sodium carbonate). Never add more than 2 lbs per 10,000 gallons in a single treatment. Be sure the pump is running when chemicals are added. Allow to recirculate then retest to determine if further treatment is necessary. Caustic soda (sodium hydroxide) is sometimes used with chemical feed pumps to raise pH. If problems with low pH persist, it may be necessary to raise total alkalinity to stabilize the pH.

Chart No. 1 – Raising pH with Soda Ash
(If pH is under 7.4, add this amount of soda ash, then retest)

If pH is too high – run acid demand test if available. pH is lowered by adding muriatic acid (hydrochloric acid) or sodium bisulfate. Carefully add acid at the deep end of the pool. Try not to pour acid near pool walls or fittings. Remember: When using or diluting acids,” do as you oughta, add the acid to the water” (never add water to acid)
NOTE: 10 lbs. sodium bisulfate is roughly the same as 1 gal. muriatic acid.

Chart No. 2 – Lowering pH with Muriatic Acid
(If pH is over 7.6, add this amount of acid, then retest)

I subscribe to their weekly e-mail newsletter. This week, Rural Intelligence, which is spearheaded by two former New York Times editors, digs deep into questions that perplex old-house owners when it comes to greening up their historic structures without robbing them of all character.

Read on for more:

This Saturday, October 24, Herrington’s, the local hardware chain, is hosting Lean Toward Green, a showcase of environmentally responsible home building products and systems that promise to make our houses more energy efficient and comfortable.  There will be special seminars on window replacement and insulation, where the tax incentives for doing both will be explained.  There are the right things to do.  Absolutely.  In theory.

But in fact, those who own the antique houses that give our region so much of its special character face greater challenges when it comes to “going green.”  Everyone knows that modern windows are tighter, but those leaky old ones with their narrow mullions and ripple glass look so right. And yes, walls thickly padded with insulation obviously cut down on fuel waste.  But to get them that way may require the destruction of plaster interior walls that have held their own, and lent character to the building, for a couple of hundred years.

If it were just personal taste vs. energy efficiency, there would be no question of the right thing to do.  But these houses contribute mightily to the commonweal.  They are historic relics, symbols of all that is right with this region, and a big part of why the Hudson Valley and New England hold such a special place in the hearts of our countrymen nationwide. So this isn’t just about us.  And this isn’t just about now.  Once these houses have been “upgraded”—once their interiors and all moving parts have been sucked out and replaced with modern materials—the entire region is one step closer to being just another American suburb filled with fake “colonials.” No one wants that.  On the other hand, no one wants to live in a museum—unless, of course, it’s the Bryant Homestead, in Lenox, above, which would almost be worth freezing for.

So, on the eve of their Lean Toward Green symposium this weekend and to get a taste of the kind of advice we are likely to get there, we threw a tough one at the wise men and women of Herrington’s: If we are weighing historic preservation against energy conservation, is there an acceptable choice?

As it happens there may well be.  In an e-mail response, Herrington’s recommended various ways of tightening an older house without ruining it. Replace old windows with new, insulated ones, using a company that can replicate historical details.  Add loose fill or batt insulation to attics without any disruption to the structure.  Insulate the basement, and use rigid insulation on the exterior.  This last, of course, would require the removal of exterior siding, something purists prefer to leave alone until it rots.  Herrington’s even sent a link to the Building Science website that has an excellent article from Fine Homebuilding magazine with three case studies of upgraded older homes, and a list of priorities—first of which is to get more modern mechanicals.  No sentimental value there.

Go here for a bit more.

[Insert unnecessary apology here]

The progress on the house continues, although we are still living at our Spring Lake house.  (Otherwise known as the “Spring Lake Estate” …and when you say it, you must do your best impression of Thurston Howell III.)

When asked, “When will you be moving?”  our automatic response is: “Two weeks.”  We wanted to move before school started, but the first day of school photos took place on the front stoop here for the last time.

I’m going to cover updates a room or two at a time.  We’ve made so much progress!  Here’s C and J’s room, walls and insulation torn out:

Somehow, I haven’t snapped a photo of the completed sheetrock in the room.  Seams are even coated twice.  A quick touch up coat and some sanding, and it will be ready for paint and carpet.

The next shot is from the last day of roof replacement.  Going up the stairs, I could see right out the roof…

Making pictures of our house is going to be decidedly more boring when all the walls are up.

.    Crack-Resistant
•    Very Breathable
•    Self-Healing
•    Wets and Dries Out FAST
•    Naturally Mold-Resistant
•    Time-Tested
•    Natural & Green

Other similar finishes include Anticco, Tuscany, Marmorino ( a much older venetian plaster dated Rome’s 1st century), silkstone and Terra. All can be applied on exteriors as well on interiors. 

Cost will vary from 7.00 to $28.00 per square foot of area to be plastered, with additional costs for wall space over 9 feet and ceilings. (100 sq. ft. minimum each finish per job)

For columns, prices start at $75.00 per linear foot.

All prices include materials and labor.  Because of the artistic nature of Italian plaster application, each wall will be a unique statement with its own distinctive look. We will work with you or your designer to customize colors or combine plaster finishes, creating a beautifully coordinated look within your overall plan. View more samples of Venetian Plaster at www.kbwalls.com.

The English word “plaster” comes from old French word “plaister” which literally means gypsum. The term “Venetian plaster” is mainly used between architects and designers in the US.

None of the materials used to create those finishes is plaster except the Scagliola finish. Basic Plaster mix is gypsum, sand and lime or just the gypsum and sand. In other words gypsum is the main material in the plaster mix. Stucco is the mix of lime and sand (Traditional) and modern stucco is the mix of lime, cement and sand. So, main material in the modern stucco mix is the cement and traditional mix is the lime or hydraulic lime used in polished stucco.

There are HUGE differences between venetian plaster applications and products.  Lowes will sell the products for a fraction of the cost and unfortunately you will get exactly what you have paid for…a fraction of quality.  The technique is a speciality for decorative artists and is very labor intensive.  Venetian Plaster is the rediscovery of effects and techniques typical of Italy’s decorative past. These rediscoveries include both famous (Venetian Stucco) and less famous (Stucco Mantovano) products and application techniques developed through the centuries, whose virtues are now stirring new interest in the Architectural community worldwide.  This websitewill provide you with some QUALITY samples of wall work.  Don’t be fooled…like anything…you will get what you paid for. You can view some of my samples at www.kbwalls.com

and even more progress here .

I think I’m done. I’m not      q u  i   t    e          sure about the ceiling color I chose.  It is looking awfully green, but I’m going to live with it awhile and see if it grows on me.   I could always throw a light glaze over top to adjust the color, but I’m just not into that either… it’s hard working up the energy to get rooms in your own house done.    And anyhow, if I had that extra time, I’d put it into making the window  and door frames the same color as the cabinets -

REGIONAL DIRECTOR

I found out this week that I have been given the honors of  Regional Director for Caromal Colours.  I was a Certified Independent Representative (CIR) , so what changes?    Well the biggest change would be that I am now considered a training location for anyone in this area of the U.S.  interested in receiving  CIR training.   CIR training allows you to not only buy at wholesale, inform and instruct others, and sign on Independent Reps (IR), but it also allows YOU to teach the Independent Representative (IR)  training class.   IR training allows you to buy wholesale, inform and instruct others, and sign on Independent Reps (IR), but you would have to send that IR to a CIR in the area for the IR training.    Have I lost  you?   Call me if you’d like to understand how it all works.   313-318-6511 is my mobile.

TEACHING OPPORTUNTITIES THIS FALL

I am pretty excited – I received two emails this week,  both offering teaching opportunities this Fall in the surrounding communities.  One is at the Grosse Pointe War Memorial -a lovely historical building right on Lake St. Clair where the community offers enrichment programs-

I have to put together several class scenarios – we may even be able to video tape them for future programming on the Grosse Pointe local cable channel!  The other is closer to home and is through the school district’s community education program.  I can’t wait to get the ball rolling with both of these opportunities!

JULY WORKSHOPS

A Distress for Success Cabinet/Furniture Workshop is scheduled for July 23rd   630pm-830pm.   This class is 1/2 full at this time -    if you are interested and this date/time works for you, please email me.  Bring a friend and you each will receive $15 off the $65 workshop fee.

You can do ANYTHING  you put your mind to,  you just need to find the time…

I’d messed around in this bathroom years ago – the walls were troweled as my first Lime Plaster job.  The color never seemed to have enough ‘ummph’,  and of course I was a hard judge on my new troweling skills…  A couple years ago I got the grand idea to play around with stone over  oxidized gold leaf on the trim work encasing the mirrors.  That wasn’t my favorite either.   I say its hard enough to work on my own place?  It’s even harder to REDO something -

Fast forward to last week.  I was tired of  our missing hardware.  I had removed it months ago  to silver leaf it.   I didn’t want to put it back on until I had updated the wall finish.   And, I had originally intended to silver leaf the cabinets – they were oak, painted off white, and glazed (and they were yellowing).  I even went so far as to silver leaf 2 small drawer fronts and 1 cabinet door, but it dawned on me that I wasn’t going to like the ‘dressy’  silver leaf cabinets with an old weathered broken plaster on the walls…

So OUT came all my color chips, samples, wood pieces, cabinet doors etc… and I decided to change up the cabinets to the Caromal Colour Textured Basecoat Cobblestone color, with some brown distressing peaking through.  I really like that the trim surrounding the mirrors and the cabinets will be one and the same again.  And I like that the cabinets are darker.  I’m not sure I’m keen on the silver leafed cabinet hardware, though, but I will live with that for awhile.   I DO like the silver leaf towel bars etc that I finally hung back up.  Rugs might have to go?

The walls were finished by rolling out a layer of Caromal Colours Textured Plaster, then I randomly layed a damask stencil here/there with a mix of the CC Textured Plaster and the CC Smooth Plaster tinted with a little Earth Brown tint.  Over top I skip troweled the Caromal Colour Smooth Plaster then topped it off by whiz rolling on both the Caromal Colour Tea Glaze and Caromal Colour Coffee Glaze, then wiped off-

The ceiling desperately needs a coat of paint – I need to work on that tomorrow- I’d like to go darker – something in between a gold of the walls and the greenish brown of the cabinets. I’m tempted to just get flat and paint it (dreading doing a ceiling of my own when I have 3 coming up in the next 5 weeks for clients).   But, I do have that raised ceiling that I could do something fun in, if I could only thing of something…. any suggestions?    This picture shows the raised ceiling, either way, some or all of the ceiling needs to go darker….  The cabinets are in-progress here . The right column has been toned.  The rest of the columns and the cabinets have not been toned yet -

I’d love to do ALL the trim in the Cobblestone color – the windows, and the doors….. kind of like I did for this client’s master bath -

but that would would take more work as well, and I don’t have the time.  I still have the water closet (can I just call it toilet room?) walls to finish.  And I need to finish the cabinets – but I am holding off on those until later this week – I have a Caromal Colours Distressing Workshop Thursday evening and thought it would be wonderful if I did the actual product demonstrating on a real, installed set of cabinets!   So  that’s the plan, all ye attendees this week – you can take a seat on my tub ledge and watch a live play by play!

My friend Mary is a third grade teacher.  Mary attended both my Distress for Success and All That Glitters Workshops.  She decided to put the products to use to refinish their library built in bookcase, the window cornice, and the walls.   I gave her a mini how-to for the textured plaster – she liked the idea of finishing the walls with it, but the Plaster Workshop hadn’t been held yet.

When the products arrived I got an email which read,   “ It’s official, let the party begin!!  Joe’s a little worried...”   (Joe is her husband )

She worked on the room this past week.   This is the before (I forgot to remind her to get good before shots) -

(the walls are dark plum but look black in this photo)-

She emailed me Monday evening. She had the lower cabinets covered.  She used chipping creme  over the existing cabinets, then 2 layers of the Peppercorn textured basecoat.  She was worried she was doing it wrong – I think because mid-stage its pretty ugly.  So I told her I’d swing by Tuesday for a quick look-see before she started to sand.   (I also made sure to pack my mouse sander in case she’d want to borrow).    She had nothing to worry about.  Everything was dry and ready for a light sand.  I left her my mouse sander.

Tuesday night she emailed me again –    ” I still have to do shelves, knobs, window box, and walls, but I’m exhausted…“

Wednesday I swung by to give her a 1-2 on the textured plaster and took my camera -

Wednesday night I laughed when I got her email -  “ I don’t know how you do this all the time, I have blisters on my hands, my neck is kinked, and i’m sore, like I worked out…BUT HAVEN’T!! Almost done, one more wall left, want to try to get the cornice box down…looks great..Joe loves it..will be ordering more to do island..soon..” I replied back to her ,  “but you DID workout!”.  I reminded her that she tackled one hell of a nice size job in just a couple of days… she rocked the house!

Thursday afternoon she emailed me to say she was done – “Joe keeps walking in there saying…wow, i just can’t believe how nice it looks…“    (Mary, I hope you don’t kill me for snagging clips from your emails but it tells the story so perfectly)

So today,  the Saturday that is my own,  I couldn’t wait to swing back by,  camera in tow, to get some after photos-

Mary,  you have earned the right to do the dance!

For those paying attention,  she used  1 16 oz Chipping Creme,  2 2/3 quarts Peppercorn Textured Basecoat, 1 16 oz Toner (still some left),  1/2 gallon Textured Plaster,  3/4 quart Tea Stain Glaze.  And a little bit of the silver gilding kit – she changed her hardware from brass/chrome to silver leaf-

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]]> http://mrtweeds.wordpress.com/2008/11/14/imperfections-a-confession/ Fri, 14 Nov 2008 13:17:26 +0000 mrtweeds http://mrtweeds.wordpress.com/2008/11/14/imperfections-a-confession/ i’ve been working very hard to record all these imperfections of our house to not only put down for posterity (and anyone out there who might be interested) what this old house looked like in 2008, but also (mainly) to remind myself that imperfections are indeed good for us.

except here’s my confession. there’s one thing about this house that i would do over in a heartbeat, and that is the walls. the plaster, plaster walls.

oh, i’ve seen the photo spreads in all those country magazines of those old country homes where the homeowners have decided that the original plaster walls were just “too beautiful” to cover up with paint or paper. yeah, i’ve seen them. and you know what? those plaster walls are not my plaster walls. and if they were? i’d probably still cover them with paint or paper. because that is how i roll.

you see, our plaster walls are pretty much the bane of my existence. whether it’s stripping wallpaper, hanging a picture, or simply surviving life with children, animals, and, well, me…these plaster walls are not happy walls.

we get dings.

we get cracks.

and we spend a lot, a lot, a LOT of time patching.

but that being said, every once in awhile we do get a nice surprise.

this note was written on the wall in our living room. we uncovered it when we were stripping the rather dated wallpaper before we moved in. on a side note, we did a lot of work before we moved in. and then we sort of stalled. but we’re back on track now, no worries.

it was written by my grandfather. he was a professional painter and wallpaperer, and he knew his stuff. he liked to leave little notes in houses where he papered, and i have to say, this is one of my absolute favorite things in this house. we stripped the paper almost 30 years to the day that he put it up. and, for the record, it was cold and windy then, too. we put a frame around it and will certainly never paint over that piece of plaster, no matter what.

so i guess i do have something in common with all those magazine photoshoots.

do you think they’ve found moldy graham crackers under their couches too?