Yes, we do windows!

               Four months...almost missed having a post for Spring. But there is a light at the end of the tunnel, and it is coming through our NEW WINDOWS.  Our sashes have been refitted with both new and original glass and have been installed. Also, all new windows were made for the bay off of the kitchen. Fotos:

                                                            North side, before.

After. 

Patio/rear kitchen before. 

New bay, after. 

New front windows. 

Traditional storms are now being made. 

BONUS FEATURE!

Found objects....

CF Martin ukulele with case in need of some restoration. 

Original strings and felt pick included. 

                      

Vicarious Renovation

16Feb14

Tired of snow. Tired of being cold. Tired of winter. NOT tired of having a responsible contractor manage this project. 
Without lifting a finger--except to write checks--we now have new French doors from the keeping 
room to the patio, and a bay window roughed in on the patio side of the kitchen. 

View of patio with new French doors. Black rectangle to the right will be new window replacing former rear access to 1970's addition. Note adequate supply of snow. 

Keeping room showing new doors. They add a great deal of light.

New framed-from-scratch kitchen bay window. Sized to match original windows. New sashes and storms being made to order to maintain age-appropriate look. 

The Winter of Our Discontent...

2Feb14

Again, a break between entries. Three reasons: 1)we are still not at the point where we will be able to do any significant work on our own since there are many structural and architectural issues underway being fantastically addressed by our contractor and his crew; 2) battling the cold(weather)--still no heat, the crew works with portable propane heaters on, gallons of Poland Spring remain frozen on the floor; 3) battling the cold(the disease)--lingering classic mid-winter uri, still trying to shake after three wks.
Anyhow, I will attempt to post some progress fotos, maybe before and afters, depending upon how the blog connects with the iPad today.

Top, north side of house with original windows. Bottom, sashes removed for restoration--hope to save many original panes, some windows will have to be entirely reframed. 

Top, upstairs bath as found. Bottom, view now from opposite wall. Sink and vanity were against wall that was removed to expose center chimney. 

Top, newly framed second floor landing adjacent to bedroom allows for safe egress from steep center stairs, creates walkin closet and possible work area.

Bottom pic shows newly framed bedroom with ceiling temporarily opened to attic, added 2x4s to allow for insulation and greater structural integrity. 

Two shots of kitchen showing preparation to create cathedral ceiling. 

Until next time, 

ciáo!

No heat? No water? No problem!

12Jan14

Yes, a long break between blogs.  Schedule conflicts, holidays, family commitments, weather, UConn football...the usual.  And in the interim some revelations.
The weekend before Thanksgiving we arrived at a cold house and found the heat off, oil tank empty; something we had not planned on.  So we arranged oil delivery and went on our merry way.  Our contractor checked things out and verified the furnace was working and went on his merry way.  The holiday season came and went with no significant problems or progress, then last week the same thing happened--no heat, no oil. So we arranged for another delivery to protect the pipes and went on our merry way.  And yes, this week, no heat, no oil. We have now drained the plumbing and turned off the well pump and returned the house to its original 1767 status--no central heat, no indoor plumbing.  This too shall pass, but in the meantime structural and cosmetic restoration has commenced. Walls have come down, more bracing in place and new interior framing to prep the walls for insulation.

Some fotos:

This shows the large keeping room, fireplace on the right.  At the far end, new plywood covers the old kitchen and the area where the unused staircase going up to a closed hatch in the ceiling used to be.  Stairs down to cellar also removed.

Above, how it looked before. 

This shows the old kitchen, keeping room to the right through the panel door with the square window. Basically everything here has been removed including the wall at the back which was the powder room, also removed. 

Same view now. Everything gone, fireplace in keeping room is visible on the right.  Greenish paneling is cupboard from front room; this will be taken out as well.  Many temporary braces to maintain integrity.  Two by fours on left wall typical layout to make insulating possible.  

Rough layout of possible future...

So in the next few weeks more structural improvements will be taking place.  We will be investigating reglazing many original windows and adding custom wooden storms as well.  

We are always the same age inside...

24Nov13
Funny how pervasive the internet is. Our contractor received info from a friend about our house. Turns out it is likely older than we thought. From the Connecticut State Library archives comes the following:

Title.  Killingworth historic building 007.  
Town.   Killingworth. 
Subject - LCSHDwellings; Killingworth (Conn.).
Keywords. Historic homes; Old houses 
About the survey dataThe text in the following fields, up to the Tell Us More field, is transcribed from a survey form that accompanies the photograph.
Date [built] (Source)1767 (marker); c. 1780-85 (?) (EDK)
Present Owner [1935-37]Griffings
LocationFaces east on the west side of Route 81;.1 mile north of Congregational Church.
Description [Material]WoodRoofGambrelChimney Type/No.ofStone / central
HeightStory and half
Fenestration2 windows each side of front door. 2 small dormers on eastern slope of roof. 12/12 and 8/12 sash.
OverhangNone
FoundationStone
Condition - PhysicalGood
AuthenticityOriginal
ExteriorThe gambrel is an unusual type in Killingworth - by far the greatest number of old houses are one and one half story peak.Clapboarded walls. The upper pitch of the roof is very flat, and the lower pitch quite steep. The two small dormers on the front areoriginal. The moulded cornice has small dentils.DoorwayPlain casing and new door at entrance doorway
Tell Us MoreTell us more about the building, its history, its address, etc. mailto: CSL.diginfo@ct.gov Put the Title in the email Subject line.CreatorW.P.A. Federal Writers Project, State of 
ConnecticutDate - Created1935-1942Date - Digital2010 June 28
CollectionWPA Architectural SurveyTypeimageFormatjpegLanguageengSource - OriginalPhotograph, b&w, 4 x 6 in.; Pre-printed form, b&w, 8.5 x 11 in. with typescriptSource - LocationConnecticut State Library, State Archives, RG 033:28, WPA Records, Architectural SurveyRelationResearch Guide to Old House Resources at the Connecticut State Library: http://www.cslib.org/OldHouse.htmPublisherConnecticut State LibraryRightsDigital Image © Connecticut State Library. All rights reserved. Images may be used for personal research or non-profit educational uses without prior permission. For permission to publish or exhibit, see Reproduction and Publication of State Library Collections,http://www.cslib.org/repropub.htmFile Namewpa_archsurvey_kilw007.jpgHeight1232

So suddenly, we may have a pre-Revolutionary War house where possibly Longfellow stayed and wrote The Birds of Killingworth. A lot more work has to be done on this, and though it is hard to see, the date marker over the door does say 1767.

Progress update: new insulation to basement of addition has been or will shortly be in place. We are still working on plans for kitchen changes and readying the addition for occupancy. 

Bucket list...and a mystery!

17Nov13
               Yes, two weeks since the last post. Instead of working last Saturday, we headed it NYC to celebrate a friend's birthday at The Dead Rabbit, a destination bar on everyone's top ten list.  Specialties are old drinks from the late 19th and early 20th century.  Ward Eight or a Maiden's Blush anyone?
              Sunday we did go the house just to get more accurate measurements since we are now planning to move the kitchen to the front parlor, use the former powder room as a butler's pantry, move the powder room space back into what was the kitchen and make a den out of the rear bump-out addition with the stone fireplace. Got it?  Also this past week five large and mostly ailing trees were taken down.
              Yesterday was spent taking care something that I guess snuck onto the bucket list--removing the popcorn from the popcorn ceilings in the addition. A slow but reasonably easy process using a spray bottle to moisten the surface and a scraper to remove the popcorn.

And then there is the mystery.  I found the following on a website about Killingworth:

The Birds Of Killingworth

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote The Birds Of Killingworth http://www.hwlongfellow.org/poems_poem.php?pid=2047  while staying in Killingworth Connecticut many years ago. It is said that he stayed in the house across the street from the town trash compactor (the dump). I thought it would be fun to document the many birds living in Killingworth. I will be adding to this collection as time goes on. Feel free to send me any photos you may have and if you'd like I could add your name below any photo sent.

These two fotos are of one of the fireplaces:

So someone wrote "Birds of Killingworth" on the stone lintel.  We are planning to contact the historical society to see if can get any additional info.  Our contractor should be back from vacation this week and the structural repairs will begin in earnest. 

Now you see it...

3Nov13

            Restructuring continues.  I am going to try like the devil to post some before and after shots with captions. This does not seem to be intuitive on an ipad.

Above left, kitchen in place, and on the right after its removal including removal of powder room behind cabinets at rear.  Note additional brace supporting beam at rear of original structure, taken
from the back addition.

Kitchen fireplace before and after. Stone chimney continues to roofline, becomes brick above roof.  Go figure.

Bathroom in the 1907s addition, totally gone leaving about a nine foot square space to configure.  Input welcome.

Left above is a shot from last week of recently exposed original door in front parlor--which will 

become dining room.  On right is follow-up after original plaster was removed showing chestnut 

panels.  Note temporary braces for impending front girt repair; fingers crossed.  

West side of addition showing studs being sintered due to water damage where handicapped ramp was removed.  Much water damage due to lack of flashing. 

BONUS POSTING

Found objects, an occasional feature.

One of a pair of handmade oil lamps found in the attic.  Research has not found any markings except those on the actual wick and oil resovoir from the Edward Miller Company.  Brackets on the back show it could have been mounted on a ship's mast. This was suggested via email from a lamp expert. They are quite heavy with solid construction and thick glass.  Convert to electric, yes or no?