Today it was great to see all the completed enamel work in most of the rooms by daylight. It is so smooth and deeply colored. New areas such as the Library and the long hall to the Garage are being prepped. In the Hall, all the stone and stucco must be protected as well as the Mahogany cabinetry.
Additionally, it was time to remove the plastic from the windows and the views are really beautiful as you can see from the Master Bath and Master Bedroom photos below.
There are also seemingly countless adjustable shelves, drawers and doors to be installed in the Master Dressing Room and Closets. Each of the doors you see below will receive glass inserts.
Here are a group of assorted images that my Client may not have seen earlier. The Library Closet is complete. The interior is painted the lightest of the color being used in the house. The Pantry is next which has bright cabinetry, the Bronze base and (will have) Warm Stone colored walls. The view to the Living Room is next. An interior shot of an exterior door leading to the West Patio is next. We also have additional shots of the Master Bath. The enamel work in the Laundry Room is complete as well as the trim which finishes off the Skylight in the Dressing Room
The game plan includes wrapping prep up in the areas addressed to day so that spraying of primer can occur before bed. The painters seldom stop before 10:00pm We expect to start rolling walls and ceilings on Tuesday and Wednesday "if the good Lord's willing and the creeks don't rise".
Lots has been happening at Spicewood. The painters have been very productive as well as other subcontractors.
The rework of the wall texture in the house has now been wrapped up with spot touches and lots and lots of sanding being complete. Some of it is rather perilous.
Once the walls in all the rooms except the two which we are using as the "on location" dormitory were complete, the priming of all these areas began. Using a mid-tone base primer they put the sealer coat on the walls. This helps to "seal" them and prevent dust from working its way out onto the enamel that was to come. Omar is cutting in the walls to the ceiling in the Master Bedroom below. To the right you can see the furr down that exists over the bar which divides the Family Room from the Kitchen. Removing the large beams from this space was absolutely the right choice.
Once the walls and ceilings were primed, the millwork and cabinetry had its turn. In most of the areas, the enamel is a deep bronze of a deep toned primer is used. Then the seemingly endless prep work which is so critical to getting a top quality finish continues. Jose (aptly nicknamed the Sanding Machine is shown doing the first pass over the existing enamel. Then the millwork (base boards, door and window casings, etc) are examined closely with a high powered light looking for tiny dents and old scratches which are filled with the red filler you see below. This is Isaiah's specialty and very exacting work. They are then sanded again. Primer is applied and the areas are ready for the first coat of enamel.
All of the cabinetry in the Pantry is new so it was one of the first areas that was completed (in the enamel stage). Omar is installing the adjustable shelves and cabinet doors (which will be outfitted with clear glass) below. After this was completed, the cabinets were covered so the contrasting base could be painted. The same procedure was followed in the new Master Closet since the backs of the wardrobe cabinets are enameled in a color to match the walls while the cabinets themselves are all finished in Bronze.
I should mention that the painters wear "whites" on all our projects unless we are out of town and the Client is not in residence. They are a very professional bunch of guys. And not bad singers.
It is Sunday night and I have returned from a few days spent finalizing the upholstered furniture selections, the fabrics and leathers for the project with the Client who is currently staying in Houston while the work is underway. I left the team here Wednesday afternoon and they really produced while I was away. The enamel work in all the areas of the house with the exception of the Library and the two guest rooms we are using as dorm space has been done. Pretty amazing. The iPhone photos taken at night don't do the work justice and I will post more later, but I wanted you to see what they have gotten done. You may click the image to see them larger and read the captions which identify the space.
The tall and impressive Living Room has also completed the enamel stage. You can see the doors for the house also being staged here. As in the other areas similarly finished, the stone walls are draped with yards and yards of clear plastic.
These photos are all awfully dark but better ones will be posted soon. The house is starting to take shape and as always, I am impatient for the next thing to be wrapped so I can see just how great it is going to be. It's always very exciting.
The renovation of the interior of the beautiful lakefront home of our Client in Spicewood Texas is well underway. The first 9 days were taken with the complete inventory of the home's contents: every piece of furniture, each accessory and every piece of art were all photographed. The photos were then provided online for the Client to evaluate: Love, Like, Lose. The items that were no longer wanted or needed were then passed on to family members or donated to very worthwhile causes in the area. The expert crews of 6 men working for 6 days then packed up the contents: Ship, Store, Donate.
When I organize an operation like this one, we carefully group the items in like categories, then photograph the groups so that when the boxes are packed we have a photo on each box which indicates exactly what is inside. This way we can put them where the need to be since things don't go back to their original locations. Additionally some things will go into storage.
And then the painters arrived. I am very lucky to have the same great group that has followed me around the country working on the homes we redesign and renovate. You may remember them from the Cousteau house and the recent Durango mountain home. The painters did some of the demolition required so that we could begin modifying the texture that was original to the house. The "stucco-esque" nature of the finish was too intense, especially in a house that features this much natural stone. Rough surfaces everywhere give the eye nowhere to rest and without the contrast of rough and smooth, the surfaces all become to monolithic. This especially an issue when the walls have been glazed as well. You can see samples of the texture below. First the crew begins to scrape away the highest points. They then sand and begin to float the entire wall. Yep, there is lots and lots of dust.
Some things look much better in plan view than in the actual implementation. This was the case with the sunburst beam arrangement that used to exist in the Family Room as well as in the Master Bedroom. Even if we set aside the Feng Shui warnings, the beams really brought the ceilings down and added yet another element to spaces that did not need distractions. They are now gone. As you can see in the photo below, this then requires repairs to the stone on the overmantel. That is actually very good news since the central niche is really "gilding the lily" as far as I am concerned There are many elements that are asymmetrical on this wall and that inverse keystone shape centered over the firebox created one issue after another. It will soon be gone. You will also note some floor to ceiling glass shelved bookcases which have been removed.
You may remember from an earlier post that I mentioned that this house has one of the coolest Entry Galleries that I have every seen. While the Foyer is almost two stories with a fully glasses atrium, the Gallery begins at a standard ceiling height. But as you move forward deeper into the house, the floor steps down in a several series of three steps between each zone of the house in a straight line to a Living Room that is shaped like the prow on a ship and glassed almost fully on three sides. The Foyer is bright and the Living Room is bright, but the Gallery is a tad bit on the dark side. To lessen this just enough, we are adding doors which open into an adjacent space which are flooded with light. The frosted glass will allow the light to enter and add another interesting element to the stone and wood lined Gallery. There is also a single interior Bath with no windows that will get the same treatment.
Dale Buchanan, the cabinet maker arrived today as well with his crew to install the new pieces for the Master Closet and Pantry. The Pantry formerly was a standard large walk-in pantry with shelves at 12 and 15 inches deep. This makes it very hard to maintain control over one's food items. Even with the group of 22 lazy Susans that were installed there. The new cabinetry will make it a breeze to stock and replenish the food a household needs. There is even a large glass fronted set of cabinets for seldom used, but needed, small appliances and oversized cookware.
The Master Closet has now been outfitted with glass front wardrobe doors to keep the clothing free and well organized. At the end are located shoe shelves and a bench which will receive an upholstered cushion. The large chest is topped with glass fronted cabinets for sweaters.
That wraps it up for me for today. Of course, the painters will keep going until at least 10:00pm. So from high atop the scaffolding in the Gallery Midway Skylight, Isaiah and I wish you a very pleasant "Good Night"!
The final piece of the Durango Renovation is now in place. The slab material for the backsplash which was damaged during fabrication has been replaced and now installed. What an amazing location!
