Guest bathroom...

I'm not quite finished with remodeling my guest bathroom, but here is a quick look at the progress so far.

This photo was taken when I first moved in:

This is from when Dale first removed the "box" around the cast-iron tub so that we could see what was underneath:

Unfortunately, the claw-feet I was hoping to find were missing, so we improvised. Dale shored up the tub with wood blocks and the plan is to build a stand for it to turn it into a pedestal tub:

I laid the tiles seen in the picture below. They're not perfect, but I think it came out OK for my first time:

Originally, the tub didn't have a shower so I had one installed:



The toilet, medicine cabinet, and vanity with drop-in sink were from the 1950's; lovely pieces, but worn, leaky, out-dated, and in serious need of replacement. I had them removed (even though I kept them on the off-chance that I might be able to do something with them in the future) and installed a new toilet, larger mirror, and spacious vanity with a vessel sink and high-arch faucet:



There are only a few minor details left before the bathroom is completed (sealant on the tiles, trim around the tiled area, baseboard moulding, paint touch-ups, etc.) but this should only take a few more days to do...

W.H. Berger, Carpenter

A few weeks ago, a friend came to visit and decided to update the old knob-and-tube electrical wiring on my porch. Originally he thought to run covered exterior wiring, but after removing a few boards he found that he could actually run the wires behind the porch frame.

One of the boards he removed revealed the following:

March 13 - 1937

W.H. Berger, Carpenter

I have yet to do any serious research on Mr. Berger, but I do know that there are only a handful of Bergers in the area. Still, I'm hoping that a visit to the Muncy Historic Society's research library, the Muncy Library, and perhaps even a few of the town elders that I know, may turn up some information on him. It would be interesting to learn more about the person who built my beautiful enclosed porch.

As far as the board goes, I took several photos of it and had my friend return it to its spot. Perhaps a hundred years from now, when the new owners of the Riverstone House are replacing the "outdated" electrical, they'll make the same discovery and enjoy it's mystery as well...

Exterior painting...

I've been procrastinating a bit with posting before and after shots of the work done on my house -- mostly because I can't find the cable to download photos from my Sony camera and haven't taken the time to do a serious search.

In the meantime, I do have the following images to share:

It's a bit hard to tell in these photos, but I chose a rich Cordovan brown to go over the old green-tinged brown, and a pale cream over the old mushroom and olive drab colors. While I wanted colors that would complement the varied hues of the stonework, I also wanted to brighten up the house so that it would stand out a little bit more against the trees. The exterior paint colors are authentic to the late 18th century and were approved by the Conservancy.