131 Mansfield Ave

Saturday, June 18, 2016

Fast forward to 2016.....

Love this place!!

Monday, June 15, 2009

Meet the Gauchos

Josh Cohen - of Grass Gauchos made the stone patio, retaining wall and front walk.

We are working on the landscaping and exterior....
New stone patio & retaining wall on N. side of property added June 09 - by Grass Gauchos. Plantings out front transplanted mostly from our Colchester property...

Sunday, August 31, 2008

Moved in .... scenes of the interior ... IV

Downstairs bathroom - still in process of being tiled by Jim Nye.
Mural is glass tile from aristophanes murals -- the famous print by Ando Hiroshige - Moon Over a Waterfall

http://www.amurals.com/products.asp?picID=1277&search=waterfall&affid=&eb=False&cat=&material=

Living room view - looking out onto Mansfield Ave

2nd floor guest bathroom

Another image of master bath mirrored glass linen boxes

Saturday, August 30, 2008

House on August 30th 2008

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Front Porch Railings......fell in love with the natural wood - opted NOT to paint them white for now

Masonry work - PIllars and stairs

Saturday, August 2, 2008

Assorted images.......wood finishes and more

This collection of images features the mudroom maple cabinets - built ins, a photo of Brian Hildebrande - cabinetmaker, the finished stairs, and stair landing and more.

Front door and lockset details

Front door has been stripped and refinished. We are still struggling with trying to get the old lockset to perform up to our standards. It requires some tricky left twists and a little patience to open.......so we may be replacing. Nonetheless, it looks pretty good. All locks have been changed -- thank you Dave Keenan locksmith.

Day 2 Notes

Day 2 began as a gray and rainy, almost blustery day. I stopped by the house before work around 6:30 am and left a bag of snacks for the DREAM team to fuel their efforts. When I returned around 6pm the transformation was remarkable.

Outside:
The garage had been taken down, 2/3 of the concrete driveway was removed, the back of the original house (bathroom, shed, etc., including the chimney) was removed. A large hole around 6 feet deep had been dug and mounds of earth were everywhere. A 30 yard green dumpster was alongside the south side of the house. The front porch pillars (wooden component) were removed, and wooden struts were holding up the front porch roof.

The backyard seemed to double in size with the garage removed. We can now fully appreciate the amazing tree from Rod's yard ( behind our house) that he has been lovingly shaping for years.

Inside the house -- there was much transformation. All the woodwork on the first floor was removed. The casings around the front windows revealed the inner workings of the rope and lead weight pulley system and the windows were actually operational for the first time since we purchased the property.

The built ins are all removed and stored in the basement. The conference ceiling in the former dining room is down, along with the lighting fixtures. The mantle, bookcases, and other doors and trim are also removed.

Most of the old circa 1940 +/- kithen cabinets are removed along with the old washboard porcelain sink.

The carpet and wood floor from the former dining room are removed exposing wooden subflooring.

The door to the basement and the casing and door jamb is also removed.

Foam padding encases the bannister to the second floor for to protect the wood.

On the second floor most of the interior walls have been removed exposing the studs. Its a funny feeling to walk from "room to room" by walking between the studs.

The carpenters did a great job of removing the fancy built in closet and drawers from the second floor landing.

The second floor bathroom is still intact for the time being.

The house is losing its funky 'this old house smell' and I couldnt be happier about that!

Stay tuned for more updates as Peter Post and his crew of wonder workers transform this 1927 house from gloomy to roomy!