Doe a Door

It look longer than we thought and planned (of course), but Steve managed to get the door installed the first week in December.

It looks good, way better than the old door, and best of all, it won't fall apart!

It would have been better, much better, if we had started the project earlier. Upon removing the old door, we were not surprised to see that some masonry repair was needed-especially on the arch over the door. Masonry work cannot be done when it's (ejem), freezing outside.

So, to make a long story not so long, I'll just say that come Spring, we have to disassemble the door and repair the brick work as well as remake some of the trim because it's not fitting "perfectly" (translation: less than 1/8"). Things must be perfect for the ARTIST Steve you know. :o)

There is nothing I cherish more, you know, than doing a job over especially because we have nothing else better to do (cough cough ejem).

Here is the threshold. Steve managed to repair the concrete on a not so cold afternoon in November. The door has two coats of oil based primer and 2 coats of Bunglehouse Blue paint(also oil).

We plan to build an overhang above the door to protect it from the elements. I think it will be very charming.

We used old hardware from our house that we painted with industrial enamel paint- about 5 coats! We mean business.

Oh, and we added a deadbolt. We will be adding an iron grate on the inside to deter any burglars too. The first one we ordered didn't fit!

My favorite thing about the new door is the window panes. And you can see when the garage is left open now too from the inside of our house.

I am looking forward to restoring the adjacent windows on the garage and having a nice cottage look in the back yard next summer.

Next up: Finishing the pantry

Last Ditch Effort

We are determined to get the new (salvaged and restored) garage door in this year. Mark my words.

I've been busy and remiss on blogging, but over the past weeks we have accomplished the following on our lovely salvage find:

Steve built a completely new door jamb with an arched header. He made it out of pressure treated lumber as it will be outside and painted.

I scraped the one layer of paint off the door, sanded it. We installed the hinges.

We hung the door inside the jamb. I am proud to say we have a completely pre-hung door that Steve made from scratch.

Steve fabricated replacement muntins for the window panes (several were missing) at the Loyola Park woodshop.

We still have to go to the locksmith and buy the lock and put it in. Then, we have to hang the door and install the locks.

All this in November! Chilly chill!

Last Saturday, Steve & I spent the whole day outdoors working on the hinges and getting the right fit with the planer etc... Our neighbors on either side were outside working too...for a few hours. Not like us cuckoos out there from 9am till 5pm. But by God, we'll get it done!

Making an entrance

We've been slowly working on our curb appeal for a few years. Little by little... giving our entry a makeover, restoring the french doors to the 2nd floor, and adding a decorative railing, landscaping the yard, etc...

We're down to the last bit of work we have planned for the facade of the building and that is adding awnings. We ordered our awnings yesterday from Chesterfield Awnings. They had been out a year earlier to quote the job ad now we are finally ready. The awning will be installed in about 6 weeks. We are putting a small one over the patio doors and a large one over the entrance.

I am excited to see this last change come to fruition. Other than that, my main "curb appeal" goal for this year is to add some more evergreen foliage to the front yard.

We also took a trip to Home Depot today and are ordering a new door for our garage. The door had to be special ordered so it will be here in about 3 weeks. It's nice because it will only need to be shimmed and we can eliminate the framing around the door that is currently there and kind of oddly done.

I'm glad that we are gettng going on some projects but nothing can compare to last year though. Looking back now, I realize how intense and exciting it was. I can actually kind of see how people can get hooked on renovation because one really feels like you are accomplishing something of significance. I have to adjust because we can't afford to keep that pace of spending money or working. I do miss it though sometimes. Such is the life of a renovator.