Painting, painting and more painting. Oh, and caulking too.

Now with the shutters in. I am finally ready to finish the interior. Caulking the ship lap siding is a lot of work. The gaps are wider than they should be because we made the mistake of not letting the wood cure in the building for a few days. One has to let wood dry out a bit before putting it up as siding because after we installed it, days later, it did dry out and left gaps in both the floor and the walls. I share these mistakes so you don't make them. And I made a lot.

So, the caulking is almost complete and the painting is almost done too. 

 

My intention is to finish the painting of the walls and the floors by the end of September. And then finish the painting of the exterior. The shutters are half primed and the walls are half painted. Oh my goodness, aahhhh-lmost there.  

 

 

Almost there: SHUTTERS ARE IN!!!

We spent the summer in Cuba visiting my husband's family. After returning in late August and getting kids back into the back-to-school groove I have been able to reassess this project. It's been three years since I first acquired the property and it has been quite a journey. My life has made unexpected demands on me and that there have been long stints that I could not work on either the renovation or the documentary. But this is the first time where I really do see that proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. I am really almost there.

In July I was able to put together some funds to get the shutters made. I made it a point to get the historical hinges. They cost me almost as much as the labor and materials for the shutters themselves. Luckily, the vendor is someone I know and who believes in the project. They gave me a discount, but even with the discount it was definitely a pricey item: $25-$30/ hinge. Notice there are four per window opening. That adds up fast!

 

I had some disappointments with the quality of the work on the shutters, and even considered getting them redone. But, I am going to live with it. Perhaps by looking at the picture you can see what the issue is:

 

 ........see it?........no?.....

They are uneven. The carpenter made one side bigger than the next so they can lap, or fold over. It is true some people do shutters this way, but for the most part they are supposed to look even when they are open. It's part of the aesthetics. I considered having it redone and then let it go. They serve their function. The person who installed them also had a little mishap when installing the ones in the bathroom.

 

He underestimated the width of the wall and the bolts came through and damaged the tile. Still waiting to have that fixed. These disappointments are part of construction: things happen, there is miscommunication, different expectations and mistakes. With experience and better communication you can keep these to a minimum.

What the shutters have afforded me is the ability to finally finish the interior of the building. We removed all of the bars and can now secure the building properly against weather and theft. That means I can finish the painting, stain and seal the floors and ......actually begin to put things in the building, like tables, and chairs and art supplies!