Gussying up the Vestibule

Doesn't the word "vestibule" make you think of men smoking pipes and women in peticoats? I'm not even sure what I have can be called a vestibule but thats what I call it.

Todays post is about the least touched "room" in the house - the parlor vestibule. Although this doesn't really count as a room as much as a pass through, it got some renovation attention but mostly cosmetic touch ups.

Here is how it looked when we got started:




As you can see, the ceiling had the most damage - it was a total mess. After the plaster was repaired, a single light was added. Somehow this became a recessed can when I really wanted a small hanging fixture. But once it was there, I sort of liked the drama that the single arch of light added and how the empty space overhead added to the open feeling. Its not like I'm going to be reading Proust in there so the recessed light worked out well.

Thankfully the detail on the walls wasn't in terrible shape. It had a few cracks/chips but it was entirely intact. Our contractors did a nice job of touching up the ornate plaster work while smoothing out the rest of the wall.

The wood wainscoating got a few coats of bone white while the wall above got its due with the lovely Silver Fox. The light switches the control the exterior light and the light in this room got push button switches and an aged brass switch plate.





Our contractor suggested doing a gold leaf treatment on the detail. At first I wasn't too crazy about the idea but the concept has grown on me. Maybe I'll give it a try once I have some free time?

Ideally, I'd love to put a mural of some Brooklyn landmarks in the "frames" I know Patricia of PVE Design would do the most amazing job but alas, that is not in the current decorating budget. So that will have to wait when I don't have more pressing needs (like finding a bed!) on the horizon.



In other weird mix up, the contractors put down a coat of white grout on the floor. Not sure why as we never asked them to and would never want to put white grout in the vestibule. Hey, they meant well. The floor still needs a good scrub down but that will have to wait until the winter is over.

This concludes the end of the vestibule tour. Hope you enjoyed the ride. :)

The making of my home office - part one

This post is part reno, part decor. I was just going to do a decor post but it seemed out of line with my blog to just go straight to the nearly finished part without recounting how it was rehabbed in the first place.

Traveling back to before we started renovating, the very top floor of the house was a separate apartment while the lower two floors was the owners duplex. (I use these terms loosely as I have a hard time truly calling any space without working plumbing a duplex but I digress). The top floor apartment had what some might call a "kitchen" (again, using term loosely).


Since our plan was to reconfigure the space and make the top floor our bedrooms, the "kitchen" had to go. Before the construction really started, Mr. Limestone did some of his own reno by carefully removing the leaded glass doors from the cabinets and removing the disgustng floor to determine if there was hardwood underneath.

Then during the reno, this room became a sort of garage for extra parts. The clawfoot lived in here for a few months as did the marble top for our master bath vanity.


This room doesn't have the same wow transformation as the kitchen or bathrooms but I think it came out pretty well. The things that were done in here: removed cabinets, wallpaper, old lino floors, new window, recessed lights, electrical outlets, crown molding, skim coat, floors sanded and poly, paint.




But now that the hard work is over, I feel like I need to do something really fun in here. As you can tell, its a small space and its just for me. So I feel the need to go a little wilder in here (as you probably can tell by the bright color I selected for the wall). So I'm adding to my to-do list a project to make my office a little more pretty and whimsical. I want it to be fun and stylish. I already painted it a bright color but I think it needs something more.

Inspired by this photo found on flickr, I think I want to do a similar treatment.


I originally thought I would do something small in the left space between the window and the wall. But in my search for images, I didn't find anything that would work in a tall narrow space. So I moved my attention to the opposite wall with the door that has more space. More space = more work of course.

Naturally Ive looked at about a thousand pieces of clip art and I haven't found anything that just right so I doctored some scroll work I found. My plan is to use a projector to get the image on the wall, trace with a pencil and then fill in with the same color paint that is on the trim. Here is a photoshopped version of what it might look like:

Thoughts?

Disclaimer: I fully reserve the right NOT to do this project if a) I don't have time b) don't feel like it c) can't figure out how to do it without making a mess of it.

More on window treatments

I'm familiar with the saying "measure twice, cut once" but there is no saying for someone who buys a curtain only to realize the molding above her window precludes her from installing a standard curtain rod. Doh!

This falls into the category of acts I have committed that I would rather not admit to but I figure I'd come clean in exchange for some advice.

This is my dining room/kitchen


If you recall, I'm putting those patterned restoration hardware chairs in here along with yet to be found wood chairs. My plan was to add to the drama of the dining room side by putting up a beautiful drapery. I lusted after these Restoration Hardware curtains for my bedroom but because I needed 6 of them, they were certainly out of the budget. However, I happened to find a single drape on ebay for 1/4 of the retail price. So I pounced on it and was very proud of myself for finally winning something on ebay (I never win the auctions I really want!).


That was until I took a closer look at the area above the window. I had planned to install a rod in the smooth wooden frieze area between the larger crown and the window frame. See the key word in that sentence? Planned.

Its hard to see here (apologies for the bad photo) but the molding in this room is set up in such a way that there is a center piece of molding that juts out right where one side of the curtain rod bracket would be installed. So installing a regular curtain rod is a no-go. I also can't install a rod above the molding altogether because the molding sticks out considerably from the wall and the wall itself is curved into a cove so the curtains wouldn't hang straight.

My first thought was using some sort of tension rod but the weight of this drape is pretty substantial. I don't think a little rod meant for cafe curtains is going to hold up. Not to mention, I think a thin rod here would look out of place.

I'm most definitely NOT wise in the way of window treatments so perhaps there is a good solution to this problem. Anyone know what that magical solution might be? If there isn't, should I just give up on having my curtain and go with a shade instead?

Punching up the the built-in.

I picked a the "greige" shade of my living room + music room with intent. I wanted something classic and fairly neutral without being beige. The plan was to have that as the canvas and then add punches of pattern strategically to punch up the look in a non permanent way. Kind of like throw pillows on a classic couch. But since I don't have a couch on which to throw pillows just yet, I'm turning my attention to the finally finished (but not to my specifications but Ive given up and let it go, sort of) built-in unit.


So one way I'm going to carry that concept is to wallpaper* the back of my built-in unit. I got several samples from graham & brown . I discounted half of the samples right out of the envelope because I didn't like the pattern up close as much as I liked it online. That left me with 4 options.

Option 1 (starting at left side) - Beige damask with gold pattern. I like it but it doesn't have much impact. Good b/c it will be subtle and not compete too much with what's on display. Bad because it doesn't have wow factor.
Option 2 - Flocked Victorian pattern - brown on bronze background. Has wow factor but is in a bit in the wrong color family for what I'm going for. Its definitely the nicest choice of paper but I'm sorry to say I don't think it will work for me.
Option 3 - Silver/Charcoal damask - Has wow factor and punch and has the right color scheme. Might be too much to put behind display items.
Option 4 - I liked it out of the envelope but its just not right for this so scratch that.

What say you?

*Actually I'm not going to wallpaper it in the typical way since I want to be able to remove it really easily when I'm sick of it. I'm not quite sure how I'm going to do this in a way to looks like its been pasted on but really is not affixed. My first idea was to affix it to poster board cut to the size of each shelf but b/c the unit shelves aren't perfectly straight (another reason to be angry but as you can plainly see, I'm letting it go :) ), that would look wonky. I could use double sided tape but that probably will look like a poster hanging up. Open to ideas on this one.

I have a weird streak.

Im not the type of person who wants to be weird. At least not from a home decor standpoint. Some people go out of their way to put in a quirky touch of personality that goes against the grain. I always admire those homes and think "how cool" but its just not my way to do it in my own house. Im too busy trying to just get it to look the way I imagine it. While I don't stop myself from adding my personal treasures, I don't feel it necessary for every room to scream that I live there. I know I live there. But I have recently discovered that there is one area where I diverge from my tendenancy to be mainstream. I like spooky paintings!

At first I thought it was just a one off. My father had this painting hanging in his house and I always liked it. He picked it up at some sort of junk market. I always found it hard to look away from it because it captivated me. When he passed away, I knew I wanted this painting and kept it for the day when I would be able to use it.

I think its safe to say most people would not like this painting but I think its striking. I can't wait to hang it! Its going to go into the middle room, aka the music room which is across from the built-in unit.

I figured that was the extent of my freaky collection. But then earlier this week I discovered this on ebay. Naturally I got outbid a long while before it hit its max price but Mr. Limestone knew I wanted it and bid on it at the last second.

Im not sure where I will hang this. I'll have to see it in person to determine which lucky room is getting her. Any suggestions?

Is it wrong to love a closet?

Love is probably the wrong word but its the one that immediately comes to mind. I love it so much I didn't move my clothing out of their boxes (Ive been living out for the past 5 months)because I don't want to make it ugly with the addition of my rag tag wardrobe.

If you've been following along you may remember my angry rant about how these closets are a pain to put together. They absolutely are - no question about that. But now that its finished and all in working order, I've forgiven Container Store.

This closet is not big by most standards (approx 6 feet by 3 feet) but its quite big compared to my prior closet. Its also pretty huge by NYC standards. Most importantly, it maxmizes the space and is pretty to look at.

I wish I could transport you into my closet so you could feel the serenity that comes over me when I walk into this little box. Until a blog to home transporter is invented, this frankenstein like photo merge of my closet will have to suffice.

What you are seeing is all three walls of the closet (the fourth wall has the door) arranged into a flat panorama. Have no fear, my walls are not bowed like this nor are you on a weird home renovation acid trip.

Off to find pretty hangers now.

Fixing the Fixtures

It feels like a long, long time ago that we visited the house and found this bathroom staring back at us.

From very early on, we knew we wanted to keep whatever was possible to save. The clawfoot and the sink made it on the save list right away. I could pretend its my concern for being green or even my appreciation for the history of the home that drove that desire. While those two factors definitely counted, I think the biggest reason for keeping these items was that I liked them - they had personality and they fit the imaginery picture in my head of what the house would look like post-renovation.

We were originally going to keep it in the upstairs guest and/or potential limestoner offspring bathroom. After some thought, we realized a clawfoot tub isn't the most ideal place for drunken guests or children to bathe so the tub got moved to the downstairs parlor bathroom off the kitchen. It won't get used on a daily basis but will be handy for potential child/dog baths if the need should arise. The sink got reinstalled in the same place.

One of the first renovation foul ups we had in the demo days was that the clawfoot got thrown away accidently. Luckily, Mr. Limestone was making his rounds at the house that afternoon and spotted the tub peeking out of the dumpster! The tub got hauled out of the trash but had some signficant collateral damage.

And the sink was just a general mess from being abused for a 100 years.

After many months of waiting for its star treatment, we had the sink and tub re-surfaced this weekend. Sort of randomly, I found the website of Custom Spraying and Mr. L made the appointment. It was a pretty quick and painless process. They showed up on time, prepared the rooms by covering everything with brown paper and tape, did their spraying and were done in a few hours.


I've never had this done before so I wasn't sure what to expect. The owner, Jimmy, was very honest about the process and what it would/would not do. It would make it look a thousand times better but its not perfect nor would it last forever (he says once a decade should do it). It has to be treated slightly more delicately than you would treat something new. So no abrasive cleaners, no scraping the surface with metal, etc.. It seems pretty straightforward and easy to follow. He warned me that my sink had some pitting so I should be prepared for it. And while there is some tiny pits in the sink that I can feel with my fingers, I would never even have noticed if he didn't mention it. I didn't expect them to be like new, I just wanted them clean and useable and this did the trick.

One more thing off the to-do list, about a thousand things left to do.

Nearly finished kitchen
(minus one lightbulb and other to-dos)

Taking a break from the eternal search for furniture that doesn't exist, Im back to report on actual renovation progress. I can't believe Im saying this but (with the exception of a lightbulb, glass shelves for the upper cabinets and a few other minor things) my kitchen is finished!!

You read that right: appliances installed, countertops oiled, fixtures operating, lights shining, backsplash gleaming.

I think I just saw a pig fly by my window!!


It is not perfect but it is lovely and as close to what I imagined as is possible in my imperfect life.


They don't exactly jump out at you but the backsplash was done with the very same tiles that Mr. Limestone so painstakingly removed from the upstairs bathroom. The very same tiles we spent a good deal of time soaking and scrubbing and sorting. Hard to imagine but we barely had enough unscathed tiles to do even do this much backsplash after all that. (We had a lot of extras that have some minor damage) Its one of those things that no one but us will notice but Im happy we were able to use these.


Despite telling the crew we didn't want them to oil the soapstone, they couldn't resist. I loved how it looked gray and I love how it looks black. And lastly the shiny bridge faucet. This is one of those very rare things that the Mr. and I both agreed on from fairly early on. Im especially happy with how it doesn't look out of place despite its central location.

For comparison sake, lets travel back in time to what this room looked like before we touched it (photo 1) and on the first day of demo (photo 2).


I think I see the end of this renovation tunnel that has sapped all of our energy (and money!) for the last year.

Where art thou lovely headboard?


I saw this headboard in (of all places!) a JcPenney catalog about a year ago. It would be perfect if the frame were dark wood. It would seem to me that something in an advertisement like this should be pretty easy to find. But I am clearly wrong because I can't locate it despite looking at every source I can think of. I even emailed JCP to ask them if they could point me in the right direction. Whoever was on the reading side of that email must have had a good laugh and then quickly pressed the delete button because I never even got a response.

Any chance that anyone has seen this headboard before or its dark wood cousin?


In other bedroom triumphs, I picked up some curtains that will do to cover my bay windows. They aren't the $450/panel silk taffeta beauties from Restoration Hardware that I lust after but they will do the trick without breaking the bank. They are the right color blue with a thin gold pin stripe, inverted pleats and a polyester that looks close enough to silk if you squint your eyes and stand 20 feet back. Linen and things is selling them for $50/panel.

I really have to learn how to sew.

This is the question: to bling or unbling?

My living room chandelier had its unveiling this weekend. (It had been wrapped in plastic for weeks). This photo doesn't really do it justice as it has the most beautiful scrollwork on the arms. I should have gotten up on the ladder to take a detail shot but oh well - you'll just have to take my word for it.

I like grand lighting - its like beautiful earrings with a simple outfit. So while I do love it, Im thinking it might be too much. Should I remove the crystals? Its a fine line between glam and gauche. What say you?



I won't do anything until the furniture is in and I can see the full effect but I wondering what the impressions are at first glance.

Countertops are in!

They have been mostly under wraps as the work continues around the kitchen but I had to pull back the brown paper and take a peak.

Here is a section of the soapstone in its "virginal" unoiled state.


Its really such a beautiful stone. I like to touch it. Yes, Im a stone pervert.

Sometimes I give in.

Im sure you were all at the edges of your seats to see how the great stair debate would turn out. I figured I'd let the collective universe breathe a sigh of relief that I went with the cream risers.


Even an unrelenting bitch like me gives in sometimes :)

Will it ever end?

Intellectually, I know the answer to that question is yes. But it doesn't feel that way right at this minute. Everything was supposed to be done by now. And about a month ago, the job was 90% finished, so it was only logical that it would done now. But its not.

For one thing, the floors in our living room/dining room are being redone AGAIN. This will be the third time as the people doing the refinishing can't seem to do it right. Of course a whole lot of finger pointing takes place but I really don't care - JUST FINISH!!!

In addition to that, there are a long list of "little" things that need to be done like paint touch ups and knob installations. Why the crew is dragging on this last list of things is beyond me as they are not being paid by the hour.

I was so looking forward to being able to unpack and start settling in to a worker free house this week. Ive accepted that is going to happen now but it doesn't make it any less depressing.

Anyway, here is a peek at one room that is completely done (short of putting in the rest of the light bulbs in the sconces) - the master bathroom:


If the dust creation in this house would ever cease, I could add my lotions and potions, a potted orchid, fluffy towels and enjoy it!

More Shopping Help!

I hope Im not boring everyone with furniture discussions. I'll get back to the reno later this week but the furniture decisions are weighing on my mind since everything seems to take 3-4 months to arrive.

I broke down and ordered the tufted chairs I was lusting after. I got two - one each for the ends of my dining table.

in this fabric (which looks and feels much nicer in reality than it looks here)


My dining room is open to my kitchen and the colors are all cream on cream with hardwood floors.


I think the chairs will add a nice pop of color and pattern. But now I need to find the other chairs. I want to go with a dark wood. Any suggestions?

I *may* need a table, I may not. When we bought the house, there was one piece of furniture left in it which was this very old, ornate dining room table. Its large (seats 8?) but a little too wide for the room in my opinion. I would have also preferred an expandable table so when we have Christmas dinners with 12 guests, we can seat everyone comfortably without having to jimmy rig another table. It would need to be refinished so there is some investment involved. But its clearly an antique with great detail. There is no where else this table would fit. And its such a waste to let it go to waste. So Im torn on the table issue right now. I'm going to postpone that decision until Im able to clean it up and see how it functions once we are using it.

Furniture Snafu

Just when I thought I was making headway on the furnishings, Ive run into a problem. The store that I ordered from has filed Chapter 11 - meaning they won't be paying their creditors and I won't be getting my sofa. Damn!

I really like the style and fabric but its not carried by any other stores (manufacter is McCreary Modern). My usual haunts of pottery barn, restoration hardware, etc.. don't have anything like it.

Anyone have any suggestions?

Unfinished projects whine

A lot of work has happened in the house over the past few months. The team of tireless workers has made that happen so I don't want to sound ungrateful but sometimes its very frustrating when smaller projects drag on.

I've been very lucky that most of the really frustrating projects have been pretty unimportant in the scheme of things. That doesn't make it much less irritating.

Here is a sneak peek at two projects that take two steps forward and one step back on a regular basis.

The first is the built in unit in the little room that sits between my living and dining rooms. I'm told its a "music room", useful for the Victorians but who knows if that is true. Since its too small to put it to any specific purpose, we decided to make it a bit of a pass through library. I wanted to make use of the leaded glass doors that were elsewhere in the house (and couldn't be used in their old spot)

As part of the bid for the contractor, I drew this out sketch so the contractor could see exactly what I had in mind.

Ok, so maybe its not the worlds most beautiful drawing but I think the general look is pretty clear. I made notes in the margins about how it was to be constructed as well as providing photos of other cabinets that looked similar.

I had discussed exactly what I wanted with the contractor multiple times after the drawing was given to make sure it was on track. I was told it was being custom made at the woodworker and would be installed toward the end of the job. We'll, "it" was installed

I'm not sure what drawing they were looking at but it was not what I had specified and it was definitely not custom made. Not entirely apparent from this photo but this is a bunch of crappy stock cabinetry screwed together. I was not a happy camper.

I seriously considered having them remove the whole thing and scrap the project because after seeing this, I was so frustrated and I didn't want to deal with it. But then I remembered they had removed some of the inlay detail floors under this to repair the missing pieces in the living room. Arrghh.

In the interest of maintaing good relations and my own sanity, I focused on the two main issues: the cabinet doors were tiny (to give you a sense of scale, they were about as wide as a shoebox) . I wanted 4 doors, not 8! I also pointed out that there was a lot of molding that needed to get added to make this look finished. I let go the other issues of it not being made of quality wood; the lower part not having the inset style as specified, it having a toe kick area despite specifiying a furniture like base, it not being custom fit for the space; it not going all the way to the ceiling; as well as a few other problems. He agreed to make the change and it looked a lot better.

But it still wasn't right. For one, they had broken our glass doors while installing them. Did they think I was not going to notice that? Secondly, the doors and drawers didn't work properly. And lastly the molding was added but in a weird way - like the crown was not sitting at the edge but rather it was pushed back a few inches. And there were other issues too (I won't bother boring you with those).

This built-in continues to be a source of annoyance. Every time something gets fixed, something else is either broken or done improperly. I have nightmares about this monstrosity. Hopefully it will get done "well enough" and I'll replace it with what I really want some years down the road when my memories of this renovation has faded.

The other nagging project is our closet systems. This has nothing to do with the contractor. My annoyance is aimed directly at the Container Store. Dear Container Store: You lured me in with your pretty advertisements and promises of an organized wardrobe in easy to follow steps. You cruel vixen, you evil temptress, I trusted you and you have left me unfashionably bereft.


We selected the Container Store's elfa closet system because it was a) easy to get b) could be configured to make the best use of the space c) cheaper than similar alternatives d) looked pretty cute in the store and e) promised it was easy to install.


My closet all ready to receive its due.

We went to the Container Store during their 30% off sale with measurements in hand. The salespeople were very helpful and designed our closets for us. They even delivered right to our door! It seemed pretty straightforward. We left with the plans and waited for the parts to get there.

When the boxes did arrive our hopes for a straight forward assembly vanished! There were so many parts without much in the way of labeling. We had ordered systems for all of the clothing closets in the house so it took us a lot of carrying these heavy things all over the house to get them to the right room.

The main rails that the system hangs on got installed but other things were going on so I decided I'd take a crack at putting it together myself. Just unpacking the boxes took forever b/c every part is wrapped within an inch of its life. And then to be extra annoying, every single piece (and there were many) had one of these sku # stickers on them. Is this really necessary? Its time consuming enough to put this together, peeling each of these off one by one only adds to the frustration level.

The shelves have a locking mechanism to keep them in place. It took me about 20 minutes to figure out how to press down in the right place and the right amount of brute force (while precariously balanced on a ladder) before I picked up the technique. So far, so good.

The drawers were a lot less cooperative. I spent at least an hour unpacking, unpeeling, setting up on the rails followed by trying to lock them into place, hearing the telltale "clicking into place" sound only to have the drawers fall to the ground if I put some minor pressure on them. I kept reading the directions, trying again and I'd still get a heap of drawers at my feet. Arrgggghhhh!


In walks contractor who tells me he tried to install this all earlier and the drawers don't lock into place properly. File that under things I would have liked to know before. :)

Anyone else have these drawers and like to share with me the secret to getting these things not to fall out into a heap of metal and wood veneer?

Contractor's solution is to put a screw in the sides of the drawer rail to hold in place. Seems like a good idea. Of course, its not done yet and so my closet sits idlely mocking me while I continue to fish my clothing out of cardboard boxes.

Ok, end of bitch session. Im hoping both of these projects will be done by next week and I'll be able to share the happy outcome. Anyone want to take the under/over?