Kitchen Rennovation I

We decided to vent the stove hood out the front of the house through 15' of 8" round duct with one 45 degree and two 90 degree turns mostly along the original brick insulated exterior wall frame. A few no longer insulating bricks have been removed.

Only two brands 27" double wall ovens fit the cabinet space here; GE Cafe and Kitchen Aid. I found the latter at a scratch and dent store in RI with a replaced broken glass door and dents to it's interior frame. It is new, 1/4 the original cost and will look great after installation. We picked it up on the way to visit Old Farm, in Bill's Volvo 940 wagon.

New Kitchen Ceiling

We are installing "Roxul Safe 'N' Sound" insulation in Christian's kitchen ceiling before sheet-rocking. This is fireproof; sound-deadening insulation inspectors love, made of lava stone from Canada. It will insulate below the master bathroom and dressing room above in the old addition to the main house structure. Both floors of these rooms have Runtal cast iron wall radiators, hydronic floor heat and forced hot air which will be cozier with Roxul insulation below them. Having Alex here to help is great.

Two-by-four braces were built to hold sheetrock boards in place after securing with glue and then screws.

Installing A Plaster Ceiling Medallion

Alex and Bill installed this very fine 3 ft.; 13 piece plaster acanthus leaf design ceiling medallion, together this weekend. The mold for this medallion is from an antique found in a 19th century brownstone in Boston's historic South End, circa 1850. Alex first fashioned a metal apparatus behind the center piece to allow for easy access to the electrical box with parts from Home Depot. He then used an electric disc sander to make the backs of all pieces flat before brushing smooth and priming fronts with a spray coat of "Cover Stain". The next day Bill painted the fronts with Benjamin Moore latex white ceiling paint to match the surrounding sheetrock ceiling. The first exterior pieces were glued with "Loctite Power Grab" along a centered parallel line to the long wall of the room. By laying out the medallion on the floor first, the spacing and positioning between parts was noted. Light: Tom Dixon Etch Web.

 

A 45th Princeton University Reunion

In May of 2020, our Princeton University Class of 1975 will celebrate it's 45th Reunion and the planning for this 5 yr. major event has well begun. Since Bill and I helped with the 25th (I designed the fabric for Class blazers to be worn) housing families and contracting food, beverage and bands; while continuing as chairs for the next ten years....we will be involved with costumes and libations only. Whew. Above is a teddy made from Class of  '58 Reunion fabric "Hand Print" by Lily Pullitzer and a gift to me from a wonderful '75 classmate... which inspired several stuffed animals below of '75 Class Reunion jacket fabric.

I used a vintage McCalls pattern sold on Etsy which originally cost $.35, came without sewing instructions and smaller in scale compared to their inspiration. They do have squeakers I stuck inside and real diploma ribbons though. Below is the fabric on "Prade".

Making Mugs

This Thanksgiving week Bill has had enough time off to make ceramic mugs for the seasonal studio show and gifts this time of year. He has also managed to finish a second tall "sister" sculpture.


The Open House Studio Show will be Saturday, Dec. 8th from noon until 6pm at 1177 Croton Rd., Flemington, NJ.

Heating The House

This Jotul F 3CB wood stove burns over night and all day during the weekend to help heat Christian's 2,000 sf farmhouse. It is the world's best value for heating dollar and best selling small/medium cast iron wood stove in North America. Before getting it installed much work went into digging out from under it, rebuilding the foundation, creating a hearth topped with old bricks and installing a new chimney liner. Bill and Alex drove to Maine to purchase this stove (used six times) for half price. It came with all parts for installation and some we sold, besides fire tending tools.

Bill also helped Christian install an efficient Weil McLain six zone gas burner system which runs PEX hydronic floor and modern Runtall cast iron wall heat, as well as forced hot air in new duct work.  Christian spends about $100/mo. for heat during the winter here.

 

The air handler is installed in the new crawl space under the dining room, fireplace and oldest part of the house. Left are the PEX lines installed 6" apart instead of the usual 8", to create more heat in the bathrooms. The carved out return boards came from a company in Montana and the solarium to the right has a Runtal cast iron wall heater.

Maya Lin Coffee Table

We have been using our Maya Lin Stones around the newly painted barns and now have a coffee table from this Knoll collection. They are lovely shapes and colors together while easy to move around the lawn and then store or use in the barns.

This week was the dedication of Maya Lin's two Princeton University installations, "The Princeton Line"; an earth sculpture commemorating Princeton's Dinky train, and "Einstein's Table"; a granite water table paying tribute to Princeton's resident Albert Einstein. I went to hear her speak about the works and her focused environmental approach to art and life. What a brilliant artist and architect who grew up playing with clay and exploring the southern woods of Ohio.