Thornewood Antics

[Gothichome]

James, only four months, you do have the magic touch. Will the flowers get larger as the plant does, or do you get a perfusion of smaller flowers?
And what about the bathroom project, you left the story with a picture of destruction. We need an update.

[Manalto]

Will the flowers get larger as the plant does, or do you get a perfusion of smaller flowers?

The plants should get much bigger next year, about 3' tall, so that they blend into one big clump. The large bottle-brush flowers sit above the foliage and should make a striking mass of red. We shall see. I'm learning that some plants struggle under live oak, so I'll have to keep an eye on this one.

And what about the bathroom project, you left the story with a picture of destruction. We need an update.

i asked the tile guys if they could give me a couple of days to get the hurricane-damaged ceiling in shape before they lay the floor. (I didn't want to risk damage from falling plaster.) It worked out well for them because it rained on all three days they stayed away. (They set their tile saw up outside so rainy weather becomes a hassle.) Ceiling is now patched and I'll be able to skim-coat a couple of times this weekend.

Here's a view of the bathroom as of today.



I stripped the woodwork and was surprised to learn that it was originally shellacked, so I'm bringing it back as well as I can. Still some more work to do on it. The window needs restoration and a pane of Florentine will go in the bottom sash.

Below the rail is faux-handmade 3x6 subway tile in sage green. In the shower is standard 3x6 glossy white subway tile (incomplete), with vertically-laid 4x8 dark red subway tile on the back wall to pick up the red of the vintage (1953) sink and toilet, which are American Standard 'Loganberry'. A glass-block window in the shower helps to alleviate the claustrophobic feeling of the tiny shower and brings in some natural light. Shower curb is rainforest marble, repeated as a sill on both sides of the glass block and again in the room threshold, here lying at a diagonal on the curb. Nothing has grout yet.

Not visible is radiant electric heat set in the floor for those frosty mornings.

Still to come is the floor, 1" square matte white porcelain with dark red dots that match the sink and toilet. White cove base will join the wall to the floor. Shower floor will be same as the room only plain (no red dot). A new wooden rail will have to be made for the shower-stall wall, to match the original as closely as possible. Wallpaper above rail will harmonize with the reds, greens and browns in the room; it's a Thibaut pattern called 'Tabriz' - ancient Persians in turbans, riding on elephants and other fun stuff.



I got a new wool rug runner for the hallway outside the bathroom, that I'm hoping will work well for that space. FedEx says it arrives tomorrow.

[Gothichome]

It certainly will be a colourful room. It kind of makes my bathroom project boring as far as visual interest.
Ron

[Manalto]

It certainly will be a colourful room. It kind of makes my bathroom project boring as far as visual interest.
Ron

Not by a long shot. Your choices are elegant and soothing and perfect for your house.

[Manalto]

Looking around for a kitchen clock, I stumbled upon this:



Here is the text that accompanied the listing: "The Frank Lloyd Wright Exhibition Typeface Wall Clock design is adapted from the Exhibition typeface that was developed by Wright in the 1930's for use in exhibitions of his work. Each letter was constructed mechanically using only 45 and 60 degree slant lines and two compass curves."

It's a sham - made of plastic ("cast resin") and has a battery-driven quartz movement - and it may be a little serious for a kitchen, but I was seduced by the clock's appearance, so I pulled the trigger.

The font can also be found in the form of house numbers on rectangular metal (brass?) plates that have a stippled background. Cost is a bit steep at $20 per.

[Gothichome]

James, if that clock had been original period manufacture,
you (or I) could never afford one. So other than those visiting the district we’ll keep it a secret. You know you now have to find FLW style furniture to go with the clock. Just maybe not in resin.
Ron

[Manalto]

At the historical commission meeting tonight someone had a photo of my house. Judging by the car in the foreground it can't be any earlier than the mid thirties. This is the first old photograph I've encountered of the house and I'm delighted.

[stonefarmhouse]

Wow what a great find! Looks like the only thing missing today are those great windows on the left side.

[Manalto]

Wow what a great find! Looks like the only thing missing today are those great windows on the left side.

I love the photo, particularly because it shows the house with the original lap siding (clapboards) instead of the asbestos stuff I've got now. If you click on the image and expand it, you'll see that those windows are really a tiny screened-in porch. According to the architect's drawing, the second-floor sleeping porch (in the rear, not visible) had the same attractive screened openings. These houses were owned by a ship-building company and, at the onset of WWII, most of the screen porches and sleeping porches in town were enclosed, presumably to house more employees year-round. On my house, they extended the small porch and wrapped the structure around the back of the house, adding a bathroom, laundry room, and den. Aesthetically, I would love to have it returned to its appearance in the photo (with screens on every window, and a gentler front stoop) but that ship has sailed (shameful pun intended) and I find the additional space useful. I noticed that the notches in the molding at the bottom of the stucco, where the downspout ran down the house, were already empty circa 1940. I wonder what made the homeowners remove the gutters and downspouts so early in the house's existence.

[Gothichome]

James what a great piece of history to show up. Yes getting that porch back would be nice, but as you mentioned it has become part of the living space. The landscaping in my eye has the same simple but well thought out style you have designed.