Antiquing Brass

Lots of websites will claim you can antique brass with vinegar.

It didn't work for me no matter how long I soaked the piece.

I picked up some Brass Darkening Solution at Rockler the other day. It works like a charm. And fast. Only a few minutes soaking in the solution produced the results pictured. On the right are the new screws and washers; middle are the results after soaking for a few minutes; on the left are the 115 year-old originals. I soaked the washers in a small bowl filled with the solution. The screw threads are still bright because I held the screws by the threads and dipped in only the heads for a minute or so. I've hardly made a dent in my 2-ounce bottle and done 10 of the ~75 screw/washer sets. So it goes a long way and it beats having to wait 50 years...

Rockler also had what's almost a perfect match for the missing latch for the storm window.

Rockler is my other "new" favorite store. I bought some stuff there a million years (and two houses) ago. The salesman was impressed because I had a 4-digit customer number and they are up to 8-digits now... If you are a woodworker stop in; they have some stuff you cannot find anywhere else.

The Pedimented Window - Part 2

After removing the nails holding the screen frames in place (and the other nails distributed randomly about, with heads protruding, and serving no apparent purpose), it was obvious that the screens weren't removed the last time this window was painted. There were big blobs of paint in the gaps between the screen and the frame; all over the hinges; etc. And much of it needs to be scraped off or the storms won't close properly.

(Maybe that's why the screens wouldn't stay closed and needed to be nailed shut - hint, hint... Or maybe it's the missing latch hardware - it's probably in the same place as the missing window stop screws!)

And, of course, the holes for the hinge screws on both the screen frames and the storms are completely stripped out.

Back to the workshop for the materials needed to ream the holes and fill with dowels and glue. I've had lots of practice at this, so it goes easy until...

One of the screw holes in the storm has a framing nail in it. It doesn't appear to be serving a purpose, either. Someone just pounded it into the existing screw hole, but the hole is so loose I can pull it out with my fingers.

So, um..

Why?!

At any rate, if I find the last missing piece of latch hardware, this project is done. For now...

The Pedimented Window...

"The pedimented window above the portico is particularly fine." At least, that's what it says in Larry Millet's AIA Guide to St. Paul's Summit Avenue and Hill District.

Who am I to argue? Excepting the work I have to get it back to expectations...

The screens are shown in this picture.

OK, what is supposed to be screens. The frames are there, but only the bottom openings actually have screen in them. Even the bottom screens have holes large enough for an Acteon Beetle to get through...

A while ago I'd found the storm windows in the basement. I've replaced the broken glass, scraped & painted them, and am ready to swap them in for the winter.

I can't get them open. Good thing the screening is missing so I can get outside. And what do I find?

The screen frames have been nailed into place...

Back to the workshop to put on my tool belt. This isn't a 10 minute project.

The Black Hole

You know the black hole that consumes socks from the laundry so that you eventually end up with at least one sock that's missing its mate?

Well we've got a black hole that consumes the screws that hold window stops in place. Note the screw near the bottom of the side stop and the holes for the two missing screws on the bottom stop.

Not surprisingly, between the various windows in the house, there are 74 missing screws by my count - and a handful more missing their washers.

There are also a few screws that have been replaced with the wrong type. It's not like the correct ones are made out of Unobtanium by Bavarian Elves, they're just brass screws with round, slotted heads.

So I might as well buy a box of 100 each next time I'm at Seven Corners.

And I'll have to find a way to antique/age them so they don't look so out of place next to the old ones.

Piddly Project Day

Too many little things have started to either annoy me or prevent me from checking things off my "honey-do" list.

I'm tired of sliding off this toilet (note that the missing pieces on the bottom of the seat that are supposed to keep it level). Every time I sit down I feel like I'm in one of those episodes of "Mad About You" with the sloping floor. So there's now a fancy, new, unstained seat installed. There's still an unpleasant odor on occasion, so I think think the wax ring is shot. A minor mechanical update of this room may be in the cards soon.

I finished painting the study walls, too. Yeah, I know, supposedly this was done a while ago. Well, some friends stopped over just as I was close to finishing up and I didn't get to the exposed radiator pipes on one wall along with the 6-inch by 10-foot strip behind the pipes where the roller wouldn't fit. Done now.

I also installed the other half of the base shoe in the study. It had been removed when we had the floors refinished and I finally found it.

Also caulked and foamed the threshold in the carriage house. All the rain over the past few days exposed some shortcomings at the bottom of the door frame/jamb.

And re-glazed a storm window for the kids' bathroom. Still needs paint before it can be installed. Of course we're out of that color, so paint and installation will have to wait for another day.

Break time is over! Back to Work!

More Shades

I installed this shade last night. Its mates on the other back hall windows have been installed for quite a while, but this one had to wait. The window frame is an odd shape at the top so I had to make and upholster a piece that fit the top 6-inches of the opening. It also had to provide a place to mount the shade. It's 1/4"x 6 on the face and 1x2 for the cleats around the edges. The fabric on the face is the same as the shade. The back is painted to match the eventual woodwork color.

Of course, the woodwork needs some help...

More Tile Installation

This afternoon I finished grouting the tile in the carriage house entryway. It's the same tile and grout as in the carriage house's kitchen and bath.

You can see the new threshold and door sweep as well. I had to shave a half inch off the bottom of the door, but at least there is a true threshold there now. Before the floor inside and sidewalk outside were at the same level, so there wasn't anything keeping snow/rain from getting inside...

Carriage House Update

Got the carriage house windows painted over the past few weeks (inside; the outside of the windows will have to wait until next year). This morning we installed a bunch of valances and I got prep work done on several projects.

More on those later...

What Else Can I Say?

She received this as a gift from some neighbors, Mary and Mark, and is taking advantage of it this weekend.

Now there is trouble!

More Tile Removal

I finished removing the tile in the entry of the carriage house tonight. At one point She Who Must Be Obeyed came out to check on me and claimed I was "bleeding profusely". I wouldn't call it "profusely", but that's the difference in our personalities. With little shards of the $#%! tile flying everywhere, I'm not surprised I received a few cuts here and there. Safety glasses are a good thing, but they don't protect your forehead...

Some of the tiles came up easily; mostly the ones that were along the left side of the picture. The ones that were in the foreground and along the right side tended to break into a few large pieces - not so bad. But, the ones close to the stairs tended to break into little #$%! pieces. And of course, the concrete under those (close to the stairs) isn't in the greatest shape either...

But that's why I did the demolition before the long weekend - to allow extra time for fixing the stuff you can't see before you start.

I'll also be installing a new threshold. The old one has been removed, but I'm not sure you can tell in the picture. The old wooden one was mostly non-existent!