Sleepless in Richmond

Does making decorating decisions keep you up at night? Let's just say my new best friend is Simply Sleep - a little blue over the counter pill that helps me stop the swirling thoughts in my head concerning the house. The latest obsessive thought stream has to do with the kitchen floors. When the decision was made to give up on the original floors (seen above) we had to quickly decide what material to put down in its place. Since these old houses have no sub-floor under the hard wood (hello basement) (they didn't have plywood back then, poor souls) any thoughts of having limestone floors went out the window. I didn't want a change in elevation as the rooms are fairly open to one another. So, knowing that there was no way to match the existing heart pine, we opted to lay down a wood floor and make the finish completely different than anything else in the house. Below is a shot of the floor right after the raw goods were installed. After hours "googling" painted floors I have decided that I can no longer live without a checkerboard floor. I love the checkerboard in this photo from the myhomeideas.com
I hope that our kitchen can feel like this one does - light and airy and happy. A friend and talented artist from Northern Virginia is coming down in a few weeks to lay it out and paint. Here are a few more checkerboard floors that I also adore:

The above image is from myhomeideas.com



This image is from Canadian House and Home.

Also keeping me wide eyed and bushy tailed at 3:00 a.m. is what counter top material to select. Being married to a perfectionist engineer has its upside and its downside. Many years ago we split kitchen duties - I cook and he cleans up. He is obsessive about the counters and I am a messy cook. Not a great match in the kitchen. Add to that the fact that I LOVE honed marble. Sort of a recipe for divorce court. So, I threw caution to the wind and selected two slabs of honed Carrera marble at Marva stone yesterday. I wonder if anyone has ever gotten divorced over counter tops.

Photos from the last week of renovation:

I painted the laundry room floors with Benjamin Moore Floor and Patio latex paint - Cape Hatteras Sand. Here is the before: As soon as the base and window trim go in its off to the appliance store.
Above is one last shot of the kitchen floor - my poodle has already made himself at home.

One of my most favorite places on earth..............

Nantucket, Massachusetts.

Many summers of my youth were spent vacationing on the island of Nantucket. These vacations were very meaningful, inspiring and certainly formed a love of early American architecture that, I'm sure, influenced my choice of major in college (art history), my career (interior decorator) as well as the purchase of Haven on Hanover. The cedar shingles and morning fog is what caused the color gray to get into my blood. I didn't put all of that together until I had the fortune to visit the island again this week. It has been twenty years since my family has been back to Nantucket to vacation. The coordination of the house rental with the ferry tickets and the hike in the price of living out there all caused us to turn to other geographical areas to vacation. While out for a long walk with my camera on Monday I was bombarded by the sights, smells, sounds and tastes and textures that I have always loved and longed for. The fog rolled in and brought with it the smell of the salt and the sound of the fog horns and seagulls.


This house on Main Street was one of our most favorite rentals. I didn't recall that it had a blue door - but it must have stayed with me as I painted my door in Northern Virginia (photo below) the same shade years later.
This home on Union Street was a rental for a few years. The lanterns of Nantucket certainly has influenced my choice of lighting for our renovation here in Richmond.
The lantern pictured above came from a consignment shop here in Richmond. I was told that the fixture came from a house nearby so it seems only fitting that it come back to the neighborhood.

Now all I need is some hydrangeas. But the southern magnolia tree that I have in my front yard probably would object. I always knew Nantucket was in my heart - I guess I just didn't realize to what extent!!Here are some more shots of Nantucket:
The view down Main Street
Early morning fog at the ferry landing.
Steps Beach at dusk.

Brandt Point Lighthouse. No words can describe this accurately.

The view of town from the passenger ferry.
Charming home.
Hydrangeas everywhere.


So, speaking of Richmond, I came back to more progress on the renovation. The Kitchen and Family Room windows have been trimmed out, the walls and ceilings have been primed and I had a date with the laundry room counter top installer.
The next step is to paint the floors (Benjamin Moore Cape Hatteras Sand) and get those laundry machines in there. I'm actually looking forward to folding laundry on that slab of marble.

When I look out my window, Many sights to see. And when I look in my window, So many different people to be

Those lyrics are from and old Donovan song and I'm singing it today because I have four new windows in my kitchen. Light beams are pouring in at all different times of the day but especially early morning - I can just see myself sitting at the future island with a cup of coffee and the sun streaming in. The dogs will fight over the sunny spots. Harvey (terrier) will win. Right now I can't imagine putting any window coverings in these openings - privacy is really not an issue. However, my addiction to textiles will probably get the better of me.

One great thing about the new windows (besides the fact that they open and close and have screens - unlike the rest of the house!) is the amount of depth created by they way the contractor framed and insulated the openings. The display options are endless. Hopefully they won't get cluttered up with the necessities of daily life like keys and leashes and mail.
Today all of the old trim - which was salvaged during demo - has been sorted and readied for tomorrow's activity - trimming out windows and doors. We were able to save old doors and will use them for closet and powder room openings. Speaking of the powder room - I had a wallpaper contractor come out to give me an estimate. I am going to use this Farrow and Ball paper. It is a lotus-flower design drawn from 19th century French archives.

My friend, Susan, who came down from Northern Virginia last week to visit,  said that the lotus could be used as a metaphor for the renovation and sent me the following information - "The lotus flower starts as a small flower down at the bottom of a pond in the mud and muck. It slowly grows up towards the waters surface continually moving towards the light. Once it comes to the surface of the water,  the lotus flower begins to blossom and turn into a beautiful flower."  I might have to have someone write that in calligraphy and hang it in the loo.

The contractor is calling for paint specifications which is, to me, when the fun begins.  I've got the paint fan decks spread open wide and will make selections very shortly.

The laundry room is also approaching completion and I'm hoping that date night soon can take place other than in the Strawberry Street Laundromat.

A wall in the laundry had to be built out around the ceiling above the back stairs so we've designed a cabinet to hold laundry supplies and it requires some sort of top.

I hate the thought of spending a lot of cash on a custom fitted counter for a laundry room, but on the other hand I want it to be a spot that I'm happy to be in (yeah, right).   This is where Craigslist comes in so handy.  I went to the "for sale" section and typed in granite remnants in the search bar and wouldn't you know there was a posting for a company very close to me that sells remnants.   I went over there yesterday and a gorgeous piece of Carrera marble jumped out at me.  The price was right so I yanked out my credit card (hoping it would start smoking when put through the machine) and made an appointment for them to come out to make a template next week.   I never thought I would see the day when I had Carrera marble in a laundry room - I'm sure it will make the task ever so much more fun.

Things to look forward to this week:

1.  The Second Annual Jonny Z Festival on Saturday- just a few steps from our door. 
2.   The Carytown Watermelon Festival on Sunday - a decent walk but one wouldn't want to drive.
3.  Window trim and priming of walls.

A few days ago we removed the 70's track lighting from the foyer - things feel better in there already .  My next post will address the lighting changes being made around here.

Orange for the Day

In my quest to see all of Central Virginia before I have to start cooking again, I drove to meet two friends for a day in Orange, Virginia. We met at Montpelier, once home to James and Dolley Madison. A very enthusiastic and knowledgeable tour guide took us through the house and then we had a picnic and hiked the grounds. The highlight was coming upon a barn that houses retired thoroughbred horses - Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation - operates from a restored barn on the grounds.
I highly recommend Montpelier and the town of Orange for a day trip. I'm reminded daily of the amazing historic events that took place in Virginia.


Back to the renovation. Yesterday a new crew arrived - the dry wall gentlemen. With each crew a new radio station is tuned in to. This week I am getting a break from country music and the "harmonies" from those who like to sing along. I much prefer this sing along group and I'm pretty sure they are hammering to the beat which is most appreciated.

Drywall has a way of making it seem like a house again. I'm day dreaming of paint colors and plan to take a trip over to see Benjamin Moore today to get some sample pots. To jog your memory, here is a shot of the kitchen as it was when we purchased the house:
And here is the same space with new window openings and drywall.
Under the window in the center of this shot will be the farm house sink.
The photo above is a shot facing toward the back yard. The Wolf range will go between the two windows. The flooring is still a wreck - every day they try to reveal a little bit more of what is under the 1920's tile.
Here is a shot of the back staircase. A large pantry unit will be installed up against here. The poodle is always wanting his picture taken.

After the dry wall is sanded, the next step will be new window installation and all the base trim will be put back (we saved all of the original) or replaced.

Have a great day!

Gorilla Spotted in Tree on Hanover Avenue

A gorilla has been in this tree for days and it cracks me up. A few days ago it was joined by his friend the white bear, however, when I finally remembered to take my camera on my dog walk today, I see that the bear has disappeared. Today the gorilla is sporting a Kentucky Fried Chicken bucket as a hat - fetching, don't you think? This sort of thing would never fly in the old northern Virginia neighborhood. There would have to be an emergency meeting of the home owner's association and no doubt the gorilla would be ordered down from his perch. In the Fan, no one seems to care and it just seems sort of normal. The writing on his stomach says "Got art?" Yes, I think we do.

Today a van pulled up in front of the house and the workers got out and started spraying yellow insulation. It looks like the blob has invaded and brought with him a very odd smell. So, with insulation done, can we be far from drywall?
The other excitement of the day is that my friend, Loi Thai, was featured on the front page of the Home Section in today's Washington Post. Loi has the most incredible shop, Tone on Tone, in Bethesda which you should pop into the next time you're any where near. You will want to go home and throw everything out and start over with some of his inventory.

In my next post I hope to have shots of drywall or windows. Either would make me so so happy.

From the mountains to the bay and back to the city

One of the things I love most about living in this part of Virginia is that I'm able to hike on Saturday in the Shenandoah mountains and on Sunday take a ferry ride out to the middle of the Chesapeake Bay and get back to the city by dinner time. The above shot is of Chimney Rock at mile marker 90 in the Shenandoah National Park. My husband and I did about a 5 mile hike with the dogs and it was beautiful but hot and buggy. The best part was stopping for lunch in Charlottesville on the way back to Richmond.


The photo above is of Tangier Island, an hour and a half ferry ride from Reedsville, Virginia. The island feels like is has been frozen in time - what time I'm not quite sure. We rented bikes for $2.00 each and rode all around the island (no cars allowed out there - only golf cars and the occasional ATV). We discovered a beautiful deserted beach and then headed back to the little town for the required lunch of crab cakes. The ferry ride back was not for the faint of heart as we motored through a thunderstorm. My husband and I stayed up top under the canopy and loved every minute of it - most of the other passengers ran for cover and I was ready to as well as soon as I saw lightning. I'm anxious to go back to that part of Virginia for more exploration but the real world was calling us back to Richmond.

Since my last post I'm so happy to report that we now have air conditioning on the upper level. Central air has a way of adjusting every one's attitude around here (mine). I can now sit at my desk without air blowing at the back of my neck and the quiet is most appreciated. The units are sitting on top of the roof as is customary in this part of Richmond. I wasn't around with my digital camera when the crane came to lift them up there. Maybe that was good.

This week the house is getting openings for the new windows for the kitchen. The mason is out there right now chipping away at bricks and mortar.
So, back to the kitchen design:
Above is a scaled drawing of the back of the house (thanks to the prior owner who is an architect) as it was when we purchased the home. Below are plans for the new kitchen.














The new window that is being cut is is to the right of the range to allow for more light in a north facing rather dark room and also to be symmetrical with the current window to the left of the range. We've eliminated the bathroom from the kitchen area and have relocated it to under the front stairs - also typical for these row homes. The laundry hookups are gone as well - moved upstairs.
Just about every house I've ever lived in and loved had a white kitchen. When I go back into the archives of magazine pages that I have torn out over the years the vast majority are white - I especially love this one pictured above and have kept is as my inspiration for our new kitchen. I"m sorry that I didn't keep the name of the designer or which magazine this came from. If anyone knows, please fill me in. In any case, it has all the elements of what I feel a calm and cozy kitchen has - simple off white cabinetry with glass fronts, honed granite counters, bleached beams and pendants hanging over the island. The backsplash is also simple and elegant. I could move right in.

My budget does not allow for custom cabinets so I've narrowed our selection down to Medallion Cabinetry. It was difficult to find a white finish that didn't look baked on and that would go with the existing exposed brick wall on the back stair wall. We've chosen the Park Place door style for the wall and base cabinets and the island will be in a rustic Alder wood with possibly a butcher block top. There won't be that many wall cabinets in our new kitchen as we've elected to add a window. I can't have glass fronts on the few that I will have, except on the higher units, as I don't want to look at my mis-matched collection of coffee mugs or my spices. Not that I don't love those coffee mugs, painstakingly collected in our travels over the years - I just don't want to look at them all the time.

The final decision on counter tops has still not been made. Harry the Homeowner has done some research on honed absolute black granite and the results are a little disturbing. From what he reads, they stain easily and are a maintenance headache. There is another stone that is quarried here in Virginia that apparently holds up better - I need to go slab hunting soon. I also love Carrera but I don't think it will work in this scheme.

The back splash will most likely be glass subway tile from Villi tile. I've selected a soft gray color that will sing with the brick and the 36" Wolf range. Other selections are a paneled front dishwasher from Bosch, a Whirlpool refrigerator (stainless) and pendant lanterns (verdi gris finish) from Cape Cod Lanterns. We brought a chandelier from our old house with us that also has a verdi gris finish. This will hang over the farm table in the eat in area. The microwave is going to be installed in the island - a Sharpe microwave drawer. I could have lived without a microwave as all I usually use it for is reheating my coffee but we always have to think about resale as we never know where the wind will blow us. Reheating coffee in a drawer might be a spill waiting to happen - time will tell. The flooring selection is still an unknown until it is determined what lies under that last layer of linoleum - the contractor is very hopeful that we can salvage what's there.

Today the electrical inspector from the city is coming and I'm sure we will pass with flying colors. Next week we get some insulation and then I think I heard someone say drywall. I almost don't want to write this down but we are ahead of schedule. So far everything is going so well and smoothly. Right now I hear a vacuum cleaner - the workers have been so considerate and tidy.

It is supposed to be hot here today - I'd better get on my bike now before I talk myself out of it. Have a wonderful day.