Placing Concrete Counters

This experience has been so much longer and harder than either Greg or I expected.  The foundation and underbelly of our cottage had to be replaced except for the two original 1929 rooms.  Greg decided to build three new rooms on the "wing" due to extensive water damage.  He felt it easier to build back new.
We have been enjoying our two new bedrooms and Jack and Jill bath.  While new flooring and tile have given it a updated appearance, trim and final coats of paint still need to be done.  Greg has currently got one coat of enamel paint on all of the bathroom trim you see here, but another is needed.  Also, our final bath mirror has not been installed.  

 Greg installed a modified antique mahogany dresser refinished to act as a double sink vanity.   

 The wainscoting is solid wood and lightens up the small space.  Here is one coat of a bright white oil based enamel which should last for years to come.  He likes the wear of oil on trim though many are choosing to use a latex gloss which is easier to clean up and does not require the drying time. 
The wall color is SW Historic Charleston Eliza Lucas, 125%. This color is carried throughout the master bedroom, also. 

In our front courtyard stood a overgrown bush that rather looked like a tree.  We had long since reduced it's gnarly limbs to a stump, but Greg had wanted to grow vegetables in this plot of soil.  We have missed having fresh vegetables and herbs to pick.  Ethan, our son, was down for SEWE in February and before he left, they both wrestled with this old stump.  It gave a hard fight, but with much digging and prying, it gave up its roots leaving us with a clean slate.  He embellished our soil with mushroom compost and bone meal; planted tomatoes, kale, zucchini, crooked neck yellow squash, green beans, and Brussels sprouts as well as a variety of lettuces.  

 We were able to share many canna lily bulbs with friends and family that were planted here decades earlier.  We have heard good reports that they have been multiplied and are thriving all over Charleston.  If you got some of these heirloom bulbs, we hope you enjoy them for years to come.

A small project we tackle over a weekend was to install a set of metal sconces turned on their end to candle-lever our bar lights over the coming wooden bar. (pictured below)  The flat kitchen ceiling transitions to a vaulted ceiling over the sitting area making traditional hanging difficult.  These sconces were purchased from an architectural salvage store on King Street several months earlier.  We were told they were taken from the Charleston home of  Ted Turner's daughter.  

Greg worked on our counter-tops.  He purchased half bull nose molds and platinum coloring from Cheng, a counter-top supplier.  (The home stores do not carry much in the way of added materials.)  Greg has had extensive experience with pouring outdoor concrete projects, but he had never poured concrete indoors.  These pictures show the bull-nose forms which are filled and then broken off the concrete once it dries.

He taped off the entire area so that our cabinets were not affected.  Added steel to the concrete to bring added strength and keep it from cracking and then he started placing 9 bags of Sakcrete 500.  He had to float and steel trowel it to its finished top.  Both of us were a bit nervous because tearing them out would be a nightmare.  But our worries were futile because as you can see they came out beautifully.  We loved the half-bullnosed side.

This is the raw product.  He covered them in acrylic to make them less porous and buffed them with a wax finish.  Below is the back splash that we are considering to bring the colors of the maple cabinets and concrete counters together.  The concrete feels like a natural stone.

This was a cool and rainy weekend in Charleston and the semi-annual Greek festival was in full swing within our city block.  Moving our vehicles would mean losing our parking space and a rather long walk to the house motivating us to work inside the house.  Last week on Friday, Greg tore out our final room to expose our ceiling beams and open the walls for repair.  He and I loaded over 1600 lbs of debris and took it to the landfill on Saturday morning.  Needless to say, we did nothing else on the house the remainder of the weekend.  We

were so glad to see the majority of our demolition completed.  This is dirtiest part of the job.  Most of this has not seen the light of day in 90 years.  Above is our exposed fireplace, part of it covered in plaster.  Once he sees the condition, we can make decisions on how to repair it.  The kitchen side of the fireplace is in much better condition.  

    One of the most difficult issues we have is storage for Greg's tools and construction debris.  We have no outside storage and want to have things readily available.

Today, Greg opened up the firebox and we were pleasantly surprised to find it in good condition.  Both sides were bricked up.  He is saving these bricks for our patio in the backyard area.  They are much newer than the bricks used for the fireplace.  A chimney was dismantled in the original kitchen.  Those brick match the fireplace and can be used as replacements.  It has been awhile since we updated you on progress.  We hope to see the inside mostly complete in the next several weekends.