131 Mansfield Ave: Saturday, March 15, 2008

Saturday, March 15, 2008

sheet rocking - progress

Sheetrock is really transforming the look!
Open spaces along stairs are sites of future bookcases.

granite - runners up

These were other stones we looked at ....and considered for the kitchen.
We are still deciding .....so if you see one of these and love it... post a comment!!!

We were planning on using Autumn Brown granite for the kitchen counters. However.......when we saw the other options, and learned that the Autumn Brown is coming through lately without much in the way of interesting amber extrusions and irregularities (our favorite part), we were open to looking at other stones. We kept coming back to this one stone and have tentatively selected it.......what do YOU think? The kitchen cabinets are made from a light fiddleback maple for the cabinet facing and the cabinets themselves are made from cherry. The appliances are stainless steel --which actually looks like brushed nickel. This stone seemed to harmonize nicely with the two tones of wood and it has streaks of silver/grey stone in it. This stone is from Brazil.

Choosing Granite

Glenn and I went to Stansted Quebec to visit the Dominion Granite yard. We purchased granite from them in '03 for our Derby, VT house and were quite pleased with their craftsmanship.

We crossed the border at the Beebe Plain crossing and only got a little lost as I tried to find the Dominion granite "shop." We met with Maryse and Norm from Dominion granite. Norm took us for a walk outside amidst the snow to view the dozens of beautiful stones. He is THE most knowledgeable person I know about granite. That has been his life's work for 27 years. He is a true craftsman -- It makes such a difference to actually see the entire stone in real daylight. These are photos of the stone we chose for the master bathroom suite. The counter will be 54 x 22 inches with a 'double pencil edge' -- The stone we choose -- see photos -- is called Desert Blue -- from India -- it looks like undulating mountain scenes. We are planning on having a white porcelain undermount sink with a brushed nickel single fixture. Norm suggested we look for a clear glass sink and mount it on top of the granite as an option.......we're thinking about it.....

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!