Have windows now

There are two sets of casements along the long north wall of the addition. The east wall which faces the ice house has a french door flanked by two casements. The south back side of the addition has two sets of windows also.

ice house interior decoration underway; windows delivered

Whimsical chest of drawers, olive drapes, and rug installed. Big stacks of windows including sliding doors for porch were delivered. Since windows are here, siding can begin soon.

New version old door

The siding will get painted yellow and the decking is dark gray. The door is the original one from 1909. I had it dipped to get rid of many layers of paint. Then I stained it a chestnut color, put on 2 layers of satin finish polyurethane, added privacy film that looks like arts and crafts stained glass, and choose a dark lockset. Looks fantastic if I do say so myself.

more framing

Front doorway was widened for 36 rather than 32" door. Framing for the first of three coffers has been started. Beam was added underneath ice house floor so it now connects to concrete block pillar. And the framing for the gas fireplace was completed. The issue for that was the size of the double sided firebox and enough interior space in the chase (column going up) to contain the flue.

no activity but purchasing

Found a tweed area rug with browns, rusts, and greens for $30 .. Score! Also purchased some olive green drapery panels and nickel finish rods. Cheaper to buy than can get material and sew them up myself. Will have to hem.

gravel in case of rain; heating/cooling unit almost in

Interesting that the wires and connections for the heating/cooling unit run thru what looks like a drain spout. Keeps it neat though. We also put some gravel down at the breezeway stairs in preparation for the next rain. It will cut down on the mud and keep mosquitoes from breeding in the puddle.

Ceiling fan is up in ice house

Looks cool and makes interesting shadows on the ceiling.

H2O and toilet in progress in ice house

And the electrician is re-working wiring to accomodate heating/cooling unit on back wall instead of side

more photos from inside ice house

Formica counter top simulates granite with gray markings in brownish cream matrix. Existing built-in bookshelf will get brown organizers to complement peach paint. The heat/cool unit is white and will do cornice that extends across window to cover it up.

nominal markings for coffers and fireplace

The contractor marked out on the floor where the fireplace and ceiling coffers will go. Gives me a better sense of the flow of the room and is critical for the framers.

nothing really exciting to photograph while roof going on

As you can see in photo, big red dumpster is getting the old roof and new roof is finished on the addition. One interesting note is that the old cedar shakes from 1920 still have that distinctive odor which now wafts from the dumpster as you walk by.

Sunny Newfield Hah!

When I was a pre-teen a person could call the local AM radio station and make requests. My sister and friends would call and say the song went out to all the residents of Sunny Newfield. This summer gives the lie to that moniker.

Anyway, the decking went on the breezeway today and more shingles went on the main house before the rains started around 3:15pm.

The photo doesn't show it, but the material is dark gray and will look good with the paint scheme I have planned. White trim, main body of house pale yellow, pargeted crawl spaces and basement in dark grey.

Curiousity seekers

People in town who see me outside stop and ask questions about the renovation. This is unusual entertainment for a mile square NJ borough that hasn't seen a new house in at least five years. Everyone seemed to draw a sigh of relief when they saw the two foundations finally tied together at the sill plate with large beams. The new foundation had to be separate from the old one because the area around the old one is back fill and goes deeper because it is a true basement not just a crawlspace.

The architect stopped by this weekend and was so happy to see the design going up in person. It is one thing to see it on paper or a computer model and another to actually stand inside of the structure. He told me that I would go through cycles of feeling it was too small then too big and then too small as changes occur. I already have experienced that. The new foundation seemed so small, and now the inside structure seems so large.

Another visitor was the artist, Keith Ragone, who bought the 1910 large craftsman home and the remainder of the pigeon plant buildings from my parents. He uses the old cannery for his studio and recently remodeled the picking room as an office. They used to can squabs and vegetables in the cannery before the Great Depression. The picking room was used to remove the feathers from the squabs. It had to be completely done by hand because the birds skin was so thin, not at all like chicken skin where they use mechanical pickers to get rid of the feathers. I know that first hand because I used to be one of the pickers -- the slowest, of course.

Anyway, it feels good to know that all that wonderful open space in the cannery and the picking room has been re-purposed rather than torn down. Keith said they are planning a 100th birthday party for the house next year and I hope to attend. There may be a wonderful chestnut fireplace surround in this house, but all the trim and wainscot in the craftsman house is chestnut and beautiful. Whatever I do here is wonderful but will never approach the grace of that old house.

lots of shingles up; ice house interior painted

Ice house interior color scheme is brown, peach, and sagey green. I painted the toilet room green, the ceiling white, and the walls peach. The floor has a vinyl that looks like weathered scarred wide pine.

The addition and the ice house has been shingled. They will tear off the old roof next week. 1 layer of cedar shake, 1 layer of plywood, 2 layers of regular shingles all have to be removed. A dirty, messy job for which a big red dumpster was delivered.

adjusted roof eaves for breezeway

The plans showed the eave edges of the breezeway lining up with the eave edges of the ice house. Unfortunately, that meant the height of the doorways leading off the breezeway was too low to pass building inspection. They cut them back so there is no overhang to speak of. Means more sunlight on the breezeway so that is the silver lining.

shingles are being applied

Lots of roof to cover

plywood gives scale and shape

roof and sides are covered with plywood