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This is a quickie web page showing some of the work we're doing on our 1889 Victorian in Hudson, MA.

Note, pics have been resized to make them more download friendly. Please enable Javascript to see everything on the page.

The before & after link got buried in the middle, so here it is: before, after, and after some more: Compare the start & finish shots

2002

• Front view of house as we bought it.
• Front 3/4 view of house as we bought it.
• Front of house after stripping and priming east face of 1st & 2nd floor Fall 2001
• Closeup of corner bracket showing how bad paint is
• Closeup of Drew using Metabo LF724
• Drew stripping North wall
• Progress to date as of 14Jul02

First coat of color is done (for some value of done)

• Preparing to paint the color
• Progress by lunch
• Finished
• NE corner
• NE corner from farther away
• Front view, color on last years work

Wrapped up for the year

• Front porch, including decorative trim
• Porch ceiling after painting
• North wall, all painted
• Back door painted

2003

This years project is redoing the clapboards on the south wall of the house, plus installing a new window in place of the two in the kitchen as part of a kitchen remodel.

• South wall towards driveway. New windows going here
• West wall showing mud room/laundry room/pantry
• North wall towards dining room (this wall to be removed)
• East wall towards front of house
• Outside view of south wall

• Scaffolding supports are up
• Drew on the scaffold with Metabo setup
• Drew stripping 2nd story window frame
• Side porch, Misty-Anne has been stripping cornerboards

• The scaffold doesn't quite go high enough
• Working on the side porch

• With the work platform off, and a temporary safety bar, it almost went high enough
• Using methods neither Misty-Anne nor OSHA would approve of, I reached the top
• Corner bracket, face stripped, showing how thick the paint is inside the detail work

There are a bunch of pics to come of the in between, but to cut to the chase, here's the finished view:

• Done for the year

2005

Time to finally tackle the third floor of the front.

• New scaffold, set up on the roof of the porch
• The paint up here is the worst yet
• End of the day, Labor day.

Skipping ahead a bit to the end.

• It's done! 3/4 view
• It's done! front view
• Compare the start & finish shots

2006

This year, we're putting on an addition on the back of the house, expanding the existing 1 story bumpout back, and up to the 3rd floor

• Before starting
• Scaffolding in place
• Misty stripping trim
• The contractor removed the deck
• Misty marking the Hardiplank siding for the wave course
• Drew cutting the Hardiplank.
• Cut boards stacked, ready for painting
• 1050 pounds of wood siding that just got delivered

• Digging the foundation
• Digging the foundation
• Digging the foundation
• Footing poured
• Foundation is poured
• Our inspector gives it the seal of approval
• Foundation backfilled
• Floor framed
• Walls for first floor are up
• Lumber delivery for next stages

• Second floor framed in
• New roof framed
• New roof from front

Today they took out the old hip & valley framing, opening up the space into the new 3rd floor area. The roof sheathign was finished and the shingling started.

• Driveway side window relocated to new gable centerline
• Looking up at the new gable ridge beam and valley beam where it meets the old roof
• Triangle on the right is the old back wall. Beyond it is the new 3rd floor space
• Looking over the old wall into the new space. New bathroom goes in this gable
• Straddling the new/old line looking towards main part of house
• Looking at where the old gable was extended upwards showing old & new construction

Much has happened in the last month. The exterior is 99% finished. Interior framing is done, plumbing & electrical rough in is done.

• Exterior sheathing finished, starting the roofing
• Most of the windows are in. This view nicely shows how the new space sits on the old bump-out
• Putting up the clapboard siding
• The clapboards are 99% finished and the double window over the tub is in
• The old bathroom, before breaking through to the new space (visible through the window)
• The bathroom as we've been living with it for a couple weeks

Some intermediate shots coming, but here's a couple recent ones

• The new gable suns installed, and that side mostly painted
• View from the back

The plaster walls are up, the bathroom is being tiled in slate, plus finishing up the outside.

• The new rear gable
• Installing the fiber cement boards on rear gable
• Boards done, needs painting
• Installing floor in laundry room
• Laying out the boathroom floor
• Laundry room floor finished
• Setting the floor around the toilet
• Setting the floor in front of the tub
• Wider angle view of setting the floor
• End of day 1 of setting. Upstairs floor 98% finished
• Starting on the shower walls
• Starting to tile tub surround, backsplash already done
• Going around the curve of the tub surround
• Finished setting the tub
• Setting the border on the shower floor
• Laying the field tiles in the mudroom

• The tub grouted & color enhanced
• Fresh coat of enhancer on laundry/entryway floor

• The whole bathroom is grouted
• Looking into the shower
• Inside shower high
• Inside shower low
• Inside shower looking at door wall
• Ginger likes the new tub
• Ginger likes the new tub
• Assembling the new cabinets
• Sink base & side cabinets

• Toilet & sink installed in the powder room

The fixtures in the new bathroom are all installed, and the old one cut out. Windows are trimmed and the main task remaining is to install the shower door. After 9 weeks of doing without, we have a washer & dryer again.

• Bathroom is functional, temporary shower curtain in place
• Inside the shower with fixtures installed
• Sink cabinets & medicine chest in place
• Laundry room in use with temporary dryer vent

Progress has been slow on the remaining items because we're both pretty burnt out on the house right now. But a couple things have been accomplished. More than what you see here but this is what I have pictures of.

• It only took 8 months, but the shower door is finally in place
• We had copper gutters installed on the front
• And aluminum gutters installed on the back
• Reworked the laundry storage for more hanging space
• Moved the laundry shelves
• New ceiling fan in the living room