Next Up ... The Kitchen!

Despite my trepidation, I am glad that the restoration has progressed to the point that work on the kitchen has begun. My kitchen is currently a mini fridge and my bathroom sink, so regaining kitchen functionality will complete the interior transformation and allow me to feel truly at home. I have some great fixtures from Schoolhouse Electric and Rejuvenation that I can’t wait to see installed. I will also have a door I purchased from Silverlake Yards installed. I bought a great amethyst and clear glass doorknob set from there as well. I used the amethyst for my bedroom door and the clear glass will be for my linen closet. I went eclectic with the doorknobs, mixing colors here and there to fit the décor of the room instead of going for a uniform look overall. For the bathroom, I have an emerald green glass doorknob to go with the Etched Glass walls and I chose an amber glass doorknob for the Office/Den which is painted Wythe Blue.

For the back door, I will use an existing oil-rubbed bronze egg-shaped doorknob from Baldwin along with the matching deadbolt. Somehow the original deadbolt “disappeared” from the time that I moved out and the last tenant moved in. I’m sure the lock was not defective, but then again I was able to replace it without a problem so I’m moving on.

I’ll post a picture or two of the kitchen work in progress shortly. It was discovered that the ceiling had some curvature in the center – but that has now been corrected and the ceiling looks great. At least I didn’t have to deal with the acoustical ceilings in these rooms. The rooms (kitchen, nook and laundry) should be painted and the floors installed this weekend. I can’t wait to be able to use my own washer and dryer. It will be great to stop stalking the communal laundry room at the apt and wash whenever the mood strikes.

Restoration Update

Around the end of March, I began the transition of moving into the house. I haven’t moved all of my belongings, but since my bed is here and I have a functioning (and larger) bathroom, it made sense to make the transition now. Not that there were no setbacks though. Try 2 broken windows, no attic door and enough rain and wind to make me question my decision to remove my wall heater in favor of installing central heat at a later date. Those setbacks either resolved or set aside, I am enjoying being in the house again. Jolie has finally acclimated as well though she doesn’t venture to the living room and the kitchen as she did initially. I didn’t want her to get hurt crawling around tools and materials so I waited until at least half of the house was livable. Since I didn’t want to leave her alone days at a time, leaving her at the apt was no longer a workable solution either. The eBay sconces are up in the living room, but not functioning yet. The switch needs to be connected to the new wiring. My style throughout the house has evolved – combining art deco, vintage and modern with an arts and crafts flavor. It makes for an eclectic mix, but I’m really pleased with the results.

Restoration Westhaven?

After witnessing the final installation of my front door, I was inspired to try to obtain the original building permit for my house. Who knew it would be so easy? The district office for the County Assessor is nearby so I took the opportunity to track down a piece of my home’s history. The original permit is short, yet informative given it is only a single page. The permit describes my home as a bungalow, built in 1924 and owned by A.W. Grant. No fireplace existed (except for the decorative one) and no built-ins were listed. My house is modest in size (less than 1000 sq. ft.) so this makes sense – there just is not a lot of room to accommodate them. What caught my attention was the street name – Westhaven. Why not Harcourt? Then I recalled during my online library research that several streets in Los Angeles were renamed in the 60’s, so it would not be uncommon for a street to undergo a name change. There still is a Westhaven in South LA, but it is not in the general area where my house is located. I was also intrigued to find out the original cost of my home - $2200. Comparing this amount to prices listed in old Sears home catalogs, homes of a similar size and detailing to mine were generally around $1000. I think the cost on my permit includes the land along with the structure although I’m not certain.