Tiffany Lights

Here is one of two Tiffany Lights that hang from the center room divider between the living and dining area. This house did not originally have these but were optional during that era. Beneath the Tiffany lights will be colonnade bookcases that I will have to build since they were ripped out many years ago.

Dining room wood

Dining room

Finally got the dining room painted. Next will be the living room. Still have to sand and stain all the wood work. I will also be refinishing the floors. 

Dining room & Living room

I have installed a six switch panel for various lights. I also have the attic fan switch with a green vintage Leviton light that is period correct (Top Left).  The switch plates are solid brass Hart & Hegeman that I bought on EBay. The top right switch box will be used as a spare box possibly for front yard light. 

I have been installing drywall in the living room and dining room. I still need to mud and tape. I made a built in box for the thermostat that will have trim and door on it. I will use pie safe tin in the door frame so the sensor can work properly.

The dining room has a stove pipe clean out access that will be plated. Prior to tearing out the lathe and plaster, it had been painted and mudded over some years back. 

Painting

My wife caught a glimpse of me painting. This side was a breeze. The opposite side of the house is another story. 

Tearing apart the living room lathe and plaster

My wife and her friend decided to take matters into their own hands and tear apart the living room lathe and plaster. Meanwhile I am outside scraping and painting. They are having a great time believe it or not. Having tore apart five rooms thus far, I don't envy them!

Half way done painting

Our house is halfway done with the painting. Having to sand the old paint really takes the longest but it puts a smile on my face when I can feel proud of the finished product.

Painting the front of the house

I can't even begin to say how time consuming the prep work is to paint a house. I began with flaking and scraping all the paint that would come off. Then I took an orbital sander using 60 grit to sand more paint and feather the edges. I would have used a pressure washer however, the Modesto Police are writing citations for violators. All the new primer and paint are being applied with a brush. 

New Color Scheme

Painting the house a section at a time. Lots of scraping and sanding. The current paint is 30 years old. Lots of prep work.

New Old Style Screen Door

Took me a solid 8 hours to make this screen door and door trim. I kept it original using Douglas Fir wood and cutting to 4 1/2 inch width. 

New old style wood window screens

I finally decided to make my own wood frame windows. These are the type of screens that came with the house in 1915. I bought the original screen hangers at Houseofantiquehardware.com  . I also used Douglas Fir Wood as was used 100 years ago. The only thing I did not do that was done 100 years ago was use copper screens. I may change that down the road. 

Kitchen Panoramic

Master bedroom floor sanding and staining

I finally tackled this project of sanding the floors. The most challenging part was sanding through the floor paint from 100 years ago. Otherwise this would have been much easier and faster. I rented a drum sander this time. I am very pleased how good it works as opposed to the square disc sander I rented for the back bedroom and hallway. So from now on, I will rent the drum sander for the remainder of our projects. 

I just finished staining the floors. Next will be polyurethane when the stain dries.

New Master Bedroom Door

We finally bought a custom door for the master bedroom. This is for the door that leads to the dining room. I still have one more door to buy for the hall entry. I will buy one at Buckeye Antiques in Stockton. It will match the closet door since they share the same wall. I also made new door jams out of Douglas Fir. 

Homemade Broccoli Cheese Soup

Jovita making Broccoli Cheese Soup. It was delicious. She love to cook.