Indholdsfortegnelse for January/February 2020 i Old House Journal

Last week I went to a real-estate open house because the listing said the interior was “remarkably intact.” It is, and what a treat! The house was built in 1920 as a “summer camp” on the water. It feels more like a turn-of-the-century house. The owner had done a meticulous job upgrading for year-round use while preserving the house’s integrity. He insulated walls from the outside so that the rustic interior still has exposed stud walls and original beadboard. The kitchen is a throwback—with a soapstone sink and a restored 1920s Glenwood range and not much else. A small back-hall added behind the kitchen holds the refrigerator and an extra oven. The pantry, the rustic granite fireplace, the stairs, and the original bathroom remain as built. The house has a…

This handsome bathroom is in a 1917 Sears bungalow—the ‘Ashmore’ model—in Minneapolis. Three tiny former bedrooms and a remodeled bathroom were combined to create a bed/bath/dressing suite. It’s accessible to the master bedroom, and also to the hallway leading from guest bedrooms. SALA Architects’ Joseph Metzler was the architect and interior designer for the project. “It’s a fairly unconventional arrangement, but one that made it possible to get enough space for the suite without adding to the house,” he says. “When the owner has guests, he sacrifices a bit of privacy. But it was a cost-effective idea—and this is space worth sharing.” All of the finishes are new. Two small windows, one of which is in the tub alcove, came out of bedroom closets. The wood wainscot matches paneling in…

Tread Horizontal surface of a step. Riser Vertical surface between each tread. Nosing The edge of the tread that projects over the riser below. Balusters Vertical posts that support the top rail of the balustrade; may be called spindles, especially if slender or square. Balustrade The entire railing system of an exposed stair, including a handrail and balusters. Carriage Another word for stringer, especially for a third, center support. Flight A continuous series of stairs from one landing or floor to another. Landing A level part of a staircase, where one flight ends and another begins. Coffin Niche In a tightly formed spiral or elliptical stair, a hollow or niche in the wall into which a large object can rest and be maneuvered. Newel A structural post and support that…

What if you’ve created a perfect Victorian bathroom complete with a marble console sink, a sitz bath, and even a rib-cage shower—but the right medicine cabinet remains elusive? Wall-hung and recessed cabinets, especially those with a period-furniture feel, are small and have little storage capacity. If only it could look like a 19th-century mirror carved of burled walnut.… Solution: using an actual Victorian walnut mirror! The beautiful piece above came from a local antiques shop. At 32" tall by 20" wide, it fit perfectly above the bath sink. It was a good size to become a door for a generous cabinet to be built into the wall behind it, with a mahogany frame that projects a bit from the wall. Fortunately, the antique frame was in good condition, with its…

SPANNING DECADES Not a big decorating book but rather one with historical insight into 1950s-60s kitchens during a time of “optimistic consumerism.” Amusing text and archival images. The Midcentury Kitchen: America’s Favorite Room by Sarah Archer (Countryman Press, 2019) A yearning for authenticity comes through in this presentation of rooms classic and personal, all with patina. The author exhibits a fine sense of the regional and the vernacular; rooms are in houses from Texas to California, so this book is a fresh departure from the Americana of New England. Lots of antiques and salvage use. Find inspiration for curating and displaying collections. New Americana by Holly Kuhn (Gibbs Smith, 2019)…

1 A Colonial Revival classic, the ‘Farmington’ comes in standard and custom sizes. Shown in white paint on poplar, it’s available in pine, maple, oak, or cherry for staining and natural finish. Easy to install, starting at $900 (overmantel sold separately). Find surrounds, stone facing kits, gas and electric fireplaces, and accessories at mantelsdirect.com 2 Decorators Supply sells such components as corbels, plinth blocks, and ornamental compo onlays as well as finished wood mantels and shelves. Furniture-quality custom mantels in Georgian, French, and Adam styles; see too the White River line of carved lindenwood mantels in stock sizes. Prices range from $2,800–3,200 and up. decoratorssupply.com 3 Show off a collectible, sculpture, or taxidermy in a glass dome or cloche on your Victorian mantelshelf. This company inventories new (handblown) and antique…

The story begins in a woolen mill in Pendleton, Oregon, which by 1895 was making Indian trade blankets and robes. After rigorous study of the color and design preferences of local and Southwest Native Americans, trade expanded from the Nez Perce nation to the Navajo, Hopi, and Zuni. Interpretive designs are taken from traditional baskets, pottery, and weavings. The Bishop family is in its sixth generation of company ownership. Shown here is the Pueblo Dwelling Heritage blanket, a vintage design from 1923. Arrows symbolize the paths of life and power, while stars represent the bright morning star. In virgin wool and cotton, un-napped, the twin-size blanket (64" x 80") in Dark Charcoal reverses to a black figure on gold and sells for $269. Pendleton Woolen Mills, (877) 996-6599, pendleton-usa.com…

While they’re slightly more expensive than modern wire nails, these wedge-shaped nails are significantly stronger, with almost twice the holding power. Because of their square shape, forged nails “will actually cut into the grain of the wood rather than splitting it,” says owner Eric Delong, who also owns Acorn Manufacturing, a third-generation family business. Delong bought Tremont Nail in 2006, moving it from its long-time home in Wareham to his Mansfield headquarters in 2007. (All but one of Tremont’s workers at the time came along.) Remarkably, nails are still made using the equipment that came with the purchase. “Most of the machines we have are mid- to late-1800s,” Delong says. Since it’s impossible to buy parts for a 150-year-old nail-making machine, “we either make them ourselves, have them made, or…

TIP • The lateral spread of the legs should be not less than two-thirds of the height of the sawhorse. Again and again during restoration, you’ll be working over your head: stripping paint-encrusted ceiling beams, cleaning a chandelier, papering a stair hall. Having a sturdy platform is essential. Working from a ladder is fatiguing (you have to constantly re-balance), bad for feet and shins, unsafe (it’s too tempting to over-reach), and inefficient (you have to keep moving the ladder). From OHJ’s archives, here are some suggestions for inexpensive “scaffolds” you can build, and then disassemble. TWO LADDERS The staircase scaffold shown above stretches the limits of what you might work from safely without guardrails. Be sure the plank you use is sufficiently strong to span between the ladders; you can…

Are the hinges to be hidden, or part of the decoration? Concealed hinges are best when hardware will detract from, say, a very ornate frame; semi-concealed hinges are partially visible when the door is closed, and may have a decorative finial; exposed hinges are fully visible on the front of the cabinet when the door is closed, so they work well with simple mirrors. Now, do you prefer a traditional or European hinge? Butt hinges with finial tips, with two pivoting plates held together with a pin, are traditional; these may require a mortise. European hinges are concealed with a mounting plate on the cabinet and a cup mortised into the back of the door; these are best on frameless cabinets and have the advantage of being adjustable. Also note…

PAINT COLORS on original 18th- and early-19th-century Cape Cod houses were the same as the limited pigments used on any house of the Georgian Colonial or Federal period: brown, russet, ochre, and eventually blue and green. By the time Greek Revival details were added to Cape Cod houses (1830s-50s), white was popular for body, trim, or both. Capes built in the 20th century are often conservative in style and decoration. Classic body colors are grey, blue-grey, brown, buff, and white. Trim is almost universally light or white. In the postwar era, the pastel and yellow-undertone colors we associate with mid-century decorating were in vogue. Paint-company ads and brochures touted such colors as lemon yellow, peach, and turquoise, which were shown modeled on even sedate Capes. How do you decide whether…

BY COPELAND FURNITURE The minimalist ‘Estelle’ stool has Midcentury Modern design with a split back and tapered legs. Black-walnut base price is $1,168; also in cherry (min. purchase is two). Through vermontwoodstudios.com TORII STOOL The Asian-fusion stool in cherry, walnut, teak, or mahogany features mortise-and-tenon construction. As shown in cherry, $1,980. berkeleymills.com CLASSIC CAFÉ WALNUT STOOL This design from West Elm has a midcentury frame and tapered legs. Made of rubberwood with a walnut finish; $199. westelm.com PASADENA STOOL Stickley’s Pasadena Bungalow collection interprets the work of California architects Greene & Greene. In cherry, the backless stool is available in two leather options for $726. stickley.com MISSION COLLECTION SPINDLE An update on Stickley’s Mission designs, this one features Prairie spindles and a copper-covered footrest. In solid oak or cherry; starting…

SUCCESS! FIREPLACE CONSTRUCTION Jove Cantelon, Cantelon Finishers, Ann Arbor, MI: cantelonfinishers.com TILE field tile Lee Green 5002 (4x4, 2x4, 2x2) • amber accents Sepia 2019 (4x5, 2x4, 2x2) • blue accents Midnight 5924 (4x6, 2x6, 1x4) • relief tiles Halsted in Lee Green glaze • accent relief Sulivan • mouldings Oxford trim and picture frame corner in Midnight glaze; all Motawi Tileworks motawi.com ART GLASS John Zawadski, Tiffany Art Glass, Northville, MI: tiffanyartglass.us LR FURNITURE settle, chair, coffee table King’s Chosen Furniture Craftsmen, Ann Arbor, MI: kings chosen.com FABRIC Archive Edition Textiles archiveedition.com LR SCONCES ‘Exos Pasadena’ Hubbardton Forge hubbardtonforge.com LR/DR BEAM LIGHTS ‘Moonband’ Hubbardton Forge ART PAINTING (birches) Sviatoslov Kozakov artkozakov.com BIRD-PROTECTIVE GLASS (at windows) Ornilux ornilux.com BASEMENT TILE Syzygy Tile syzygytile.com HEAT PUMP Bosch bosch-climate. us SOLAR COMPONENTS Northern Lights Solar…

1. GREEK CLASSIC The Winfield mantel in black Nero marble with a bullnose shelf recalls the style and appearance of slate mantels in Greek Revival and other early-19th-century houses. Weighing1500 pounds, the mantel requires professional installation. About $7,435. MantelsDirect, (888) 493-8898, mantelsdirect.com 2. MASONRY REFRESH Peel away dirt and soot from any masonry fireplace with the Waterless Fireplace Cleaner, which also works on ceramic, tile, terrazzo, and concrete. Simply apply, let dry, and peel the debris away. One gallon covers 30 to 50 sq. ft.: $98.96. ABR Products, (800) 346-7532, abrp.com 3. REALISTIC FLAME Heat the whole house with model 34 DVL gas insert, shown with a custom, hand-hammered Artisan bronze-patina surround. Capable of heating up to 2,000 square feet, it’s pictured with the Ember-Fyre high-definition log set and handmade…

“The prominent fireplace is glaring in white paint—and the decision did nothing to brighten the wood-clad room.” The soaring living room in our 1913 Adirondack Arts & Crafts house is sheathed with dark woodwork, a historic element we’re reluctant to paint. In an attempt to brighten things up, the previous owner painted the tall, freestanding brick fireplace and chimney a blinding white! Already prominent, the glaring structure is now all you see.—Jimmy McLaughlin & Anna Spears THE FIX It’s happened before: a resident uses white paint in a bid to brighten a Craftsman or Tudor room clad in stained wood. But it doesn’t work; the contrast is jarring, and it gives the wood grain and the room a flat, two-dimensional appearance. To play up the architecture and minimize contrast, the…

Have a Question? Ask us at ppoore@aimmedia.com Q: We found this fixture in pieces, carefully wrapped, in my grandmother's house in Mississippi. It's all glass. I have no idea about its value or even what it looks like assembled. Can anyone help identify it? —Charlotte Tincher A: Your chandelier is Murano glass (aka Venetian glass), made in Italy. With any luck it’s the real thing. This isn’t my specialty, but it probably dates from the 1850s–1940. The colors and style look to me like 1920s. Find an expert who can date it and also restore it: expertlightinginc.com. See also wikihow.com/Identify-Murano-Glass. These fixtures are quite collectible and can be found on many vintage-lighting websites, eBay, and 1st Dibs. They are more attractive when assembled, especially the curved glass arms. —Patricia Poore…

Despite good bones, the house built in 1900 “was in very poor condition,” says Aaron Pempel, who’d long wanted to restore a rundown house. “The first floor had been used as commercial office space without a kitchen or bath; the second floor was residential.” Indeed, the interior was a forlorn mashup, made worse by the building sitting vacant. The Nike executive had discovered the abandoned house in the same Northwest Portland (Oregon) neighborhood where he and his wife, Kristen, and their son live. By coincidence, interior designer Midori Karasawa—a family friend and former Nike colleague—saw Aaron’s Facebook post about buying the property. She contacted the family to offer her own talents and to recommend her studio mate, architect Mary Valeant. “The minute Midori offered to help, we said yes!” Aaron…