ModVic - Modern Victorian Home Restoration

Week 38 of the Restoration (03/17/2008 – 03/21/2008)

Mar 24

Written by: Bruce Rosenbaum
3/24/2008 12:00 AM

20 Guys in 20 days…will we finish in time for our first Home Tour Date on April 5th?
 
This week, all the guys were working at a feverish pace: baseboard and crown molding installation; back and circular staircase restoration; ceiling and wall priming and first coat of paint; caulking and gap fill in of windows; floor sanding and sealing. So much to do and now so little time to complete.
 
Eric Ayre from Top Cat Construction – our hero contractor stepped up and brought in a crew of 4 more guys to help us with all the finish work (molding, trim and door installations). Eric’s master carpenter, John, went about the difficult work of installing large profile dentil molding in the library and dining rooms – with many angles and cuts around the bay windows. One snag was that about 50 feet of the molding came damaged – so we need to get new crown for the dining room – hopefully it’ll come early next week and will not hold up the installation. We also purchased a rubber crown molding (same as the other molding in the room) that wraps around the master bedroom circular wall. It only took about 15 minutes to install versus hours of doing relief cuts in a traditional wood crown molding circular wall install. You would never know it’s not wood – three cheers for modern technology!
 
Marcelo’s guys got most of the first coat of paint color on the walls… WOW! The C2 paint jumps off the walls and has really added more drama to the home (like it needed more). One coat of paint over the primer would be sufficient – but we want to make sure that there is no question on coverage so we’re planning two coats over the primer. We also primed the kitchen cabinets and bench. We’ll be painting all the cabinets and trim with C2 oil based ‘Architectural White’ color. The oil base paint will hold up longer and will be easier to maintain and clean.
 
We needed to problem solve on some gaps behind some of the original window casement and the wall. We purchased a foam rope material that can be twisted and pushed in gaps behind the window casements. The foam untwists and expands to fill in the small cavities under the trim. We then will fill in on top with caulking and wood putty so the side of the casements will look flat and true.
 
Renato finished the back staircase spindle placement and installed a large cherry wood half wall cap on the second floor. We also got the wet barin place in the family room. Next week we’ll finish refinishing the circular staircaseand front grand pavilion of the house.
 
I spent quite a bit of time this week looking for salvaged doors. After removing some doors and adding some doors to the home in the restoration – we needed about 10 more doors to use in hallways, closets and bathrooms. I checked on availability of new solid core wood doors and found out that just plain old boring colonial doors would take about a week to deliver. Custom, period doors would take 4 – 6 weeks – much too long (and expensive) for what we wanted. After rummaging around at Nor’east Architectural Antiques and New England Demolition and Salvage – I found all 10 doors – the exact sizes and look (6 panel various size insets with trim) I needed! They were even less expensive then buying new, although it’s going to take our carpenters more time to install – well worth the effort.
 
Did you also see Melanie and I on New England Dream House last Sunday? They showcased our Sharon home and they did a great job with the look and feel of what we were trying to accomplish. You can see the show, by going to the “In the Press” section of our web site and clicking on the appropriate link. We also got an article as the feature story on the front page of the Homes section in the Providence Journal. I’ll have the full article with pictures up on our site sometime next week – but you also visit http://www.projo.com/business/content/HO_modvic032308_03-23-08_N39E4ST_v22.2b3a722.html to view the story online. Next week is the feature article story in the Sunday Real Estate section of the Boston Globe – let me know what you think.
 
See you soon at our Home Tour on April 5th and April 6th – you’ll be amazed on how it has turned out.

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Location: Blogs Diary of a Restoration 390 Mount Hope St.
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1 comments so far...

Re: Week 38 of the Restoration (03/17/2008 – 03/21/2008)

This is incredible. And I thought we were frantically trying to meet deadlines! What a project....Best of luck with all this! We'll watch with interest.

- (we are: howardhallfarm.com)

By Howard Hall Farm on   3/31/2008 8:15 PM

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Neighbor Comments

2/27/08
I read about the Houdini thing at the jail in North Attleboro. I was born and raised there in North Attleboro and I remember my grandfather telling me about a magician that had a floating lady in one of the store fronts in downtown for a week. I not sure if that was Houdini, for some reason I think it was Blackwell. Not sure if he was around the same time or not. Just thought I would give you that info in case it helps you out. By the way, what a beautiful job you have done with the Freeman house. If I win the lottery, I would buy it in a second. Keep up the good work there and will come to open house in April.
John Amaral

1/27/08
Hi Bruce and Melanie,
My Great Grandparents were Annie and Herman Theile who lived at 390 Mt. Hope Street (Mt. Hope Manor) in the early 1900’s.  I would love to talk with you and your wife about the house and the history I know from my Great Aunt Mrs. Bell and my mother who was born there.  As a young girl I used to polish the mahogany banister on the circular staircase to the third floor.  I have a lot of fond memories regarding that house, and I would love to reminisce and share what I know about its history.  Sincerely, Donna Jurdak, N Attleboro MA

8/27/07
Just wanted to tell you we are watching your progress with great enthusiasm and excitement!  We are only one house away and my ten year old son is fascinated with your progress and checks on your work several times a day.  We can't wait to come in and see your progress. Thank you for bring this house back to life, I have been waiting for its rebirth patiently for years. Julia Wheatley (juliawh@comcast.net)

7/24/07
Hi Bruce :My cousin Dorothy Forbes just called me to tell me about the Victorian Home in North Attleboro . My great great grandparents owned and lived there many many years ago. Dorothy was thrilled to of had the opportunity to go thru the home. My name is Albert Berard ,my age is 83 and I don't remember too much about the house other than what was told to me by my parents and grandparents on the Berard side.I once had a photo of some relative by the name of LaPlant that was recently discarded because I have no other living sister or brother that could explain to me who the person was . In past years I've seen the house many times and remember the servant quarters and also a carriage house that I believe is no longer there. the years have taken a toll on my memory.I still have an old brownish grey photo of the home .It's been many years since the relatives lived there. I seem to remember something about a Priest by the name of LaPlant living there after his retirement. I'll have to talk to Dorothy about that when I see her in a couple weeks. Albert J. Berard.

7/23/07
I drove by the house on Mt. Hope Street earlier this evening. I read about your project in the Sun Chronicle, Sunday. I am an artist and one of the pieces I did a few years back was a pen and ink drawing of North Attleboro center around 1900. I was going to drop off one of the prints, if you'd like it. I can appreciate your undertaking. A friend of mine and I gutted his Queen Anne Vic close to eight years ago and remodeled it. Neither of us had ever done something that involved before. We have since parted ways. I work for a landscape company now and do some remodeling/ fix up jobs in the winter, if the opportunity comes along. I'd like to see the work you are doing, just curious and if you need a hand (weekends, rain days, evenings) let me know. Learning and gaining experience are always of interest to me. If you'd like the print, free, let me know. Best wishes to your success.
Sincerely, Peter Clarke.
  
 

For further information, or to schedule a personal visit of a property with Bruce and Melanie Rosenbaum please call 781-784-0250 or email bruce@modvic.com. Thanks for visiting!
  
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