It’s all about the details

This weekend we didn’t accomplish any huge projects. We spent a lot of time just cleaning, ripping up floors, measuring, and discussing plans (ok, so we also stopped at a flea market for some cute old cameras, saw a movie, and had a couple delicious meals by Terry & Mike too).  But with the cleaning and discussion came attention to detail and we got to appreciate some of the little things all over again. We’re going to try and keep most of the house original, including these great doorknobs.

With this attention, we also made some new discoveries. For instance, I was skulking around the basement with a flashlight trying to find a way into the crawlspace under the kitchen when I looked to my left and saw this hanging on the wall:

I took it upstairs to reassure myself that I wasn’t seeing things, and yes, it’s a GRISWOLD piece!

If there is such a thing as fate, this is a sign! I showed it to Griz (the father-in-law) like a little girl on Christmas day showing off her new toy. Him and the boys were more amused by my excitement, but at least Crystal (another new Mrs. Griswold) shared in my joy!

He said Griswold Manufacturing specialized in cast iron cookware, but they made all kinds of things out of iron. He doesn’t know whether there’s any family relation, but if you come over some time and ask, I’ll probably say that there is. 😉

I found the company listed on about.com under antiques, and read a brief history. Griz said to keep it down in the basement because we can probably still use it.. but I’ll have to see whether I can fight the urge to use it for decoration!

Oh, and I found a way into that crawslpace. This little door was sitting underneath the stairs in our back workshop room:

Yes, I opened it. I couldn’t see much other than dirt, pipes, and wiring. I got as far in as my waist, stretching out my neck to see as far in as I could, darting the flashlight around… but didn’t dare go further. As much as I wanted to go explore, a bigger part of me kept my feet planted right on the safe cement. If anyone is willing to crawl around in there, let me know. I’ll pay you cash.

Here’s a piece of the house that I picked up in the back yard:

The previous owners said that at some point, the house was made into a “tourist house,” or basically a bed & breakfast. I’ve googled “shady rest” and “shady rest tourists” and “shady rest west springfield” and “shady west springfield” and every other phrase you could imagine, but found nothing. Maybe someday. Till then, I am loving the sign with all my heart and trying to decide whether or not I want to clean it up.

Ok, on to the destruction!! We continued our work in (what will be) the master suite. Originally it was sort of an in-law apartment with a bedroom and a kitchen.. here’s the kitchen part, before- and mid-demolition:

Last week I talked about removing the carpet and the sub-floor in the bedroom–pulling all those nails out of the beautiful hardwood… well this room offered even MORE floor fun because it had an extra layer of kitchen floor!

Yep, that’s 4 layers.. the first 2 held down by a thousand nails. And these weren’t ordinary nails, folks:

These were “seriously I’m a HUGE nail that looks like a screw so don’t mess with me” nails! (I’m saving them, don’t worry).

It’s ok, I got to spend some quality time with my favorite nail claw..

Does breathing chipped lead paint affect your brain that quickly?

Here’s the line-up if you’re curious about the other tools:

And if you’re ever crazy enough to attempt this on your own too, I highly recommend these kneepads, purchased for me by my thoughtful husband:

I also need to mention (and should have earlier) that we are lucky enough to have Michael Griswold (Matt’s brother) in the family. He’s a contractor who’s been helping us out, showing us the ropes and will probably be doing the building and other stuff we shouldn’t attempt on our own. He has already saved us so much time with his expertise, offering help and advice on anything while supporting each decision we’ve made. I am so grateful!

Griz has already put in a lot of time too- we came in one morning, and 2 walls in the kitchen were gone! Turns out he had spent hours chipping away at that heavy old plaster stuck to the brick wall. And last weekend, Matt’s other brother Ben was in town from San Diego, and upon visiting just to “check out” the house he ended up spending some substantial time pulling up floor with us! Thanks guys!

I’m going to end by asking your advice. There are many details we’ll be keeping “original” in this house, but quite a few that are just outdated in a yucky way. A part of me really really likes this old light fixture in one of the bathrooms. Should I keep it?