Today I glued the stairs and painted the railing, baseboard, and ceiling moldings with two coats of Ceramcoat Dove Gray and a couple coats of Minwax satin finish polyacrylic. A simple chore, yet time consuming.
While that was drying, I tested stain on the Houseworks hardwood floors and auditioned them with a piece of trim and the ecru paper. The wallpaper doesn't read all that well in the photo as it is still in the plastic; it's not going to risk smudging until I'm ready to hang it.
From the left, (1) no stain, (2) walnut, (3) early American, and (4) golden oak. They are Minwax oil-based stains, what I had on hand. The walnut was too dark and the golden oak had a greenish tinge I hadn't expected and didn't like. So early American is the winner. Once the shelves and counters have found their final resting place, some aging can take place.
Now the question is which way should the boards run? If they run side to side, there is the issue of butting two pieces. This may not be a big problem, as the cutting table will be along the right wall to hide part of the seam, but it will be seen up front.
If the boards run from front to back, piecing won't be an issue. I think it will help with the illusion of depth in the room to have them going this direction. On the upper level at the back, though, the boards will run side to side. I don't want to deal with having to hide the cut ends that will show under the railing. Only glimpses of the upper floor will show when the accessories are installed.
While the paint and stains are drying, here's a picture of the poor, neglected Pierce that is impatiently waiting to become a Bohemian inn and tavern. Its table has become something of a dumping ground. I keep telling it to hang in, that the garden is now in relatively good shape and the quilt shop room box won't take much longer. I don't think it believes me.
The next step in the plan is to get the quilt shop walls installed and papered -- or papered and installed -- or a combination of both. Haven't worked out the details yet.
If they run front to back you can glue them down leaving just one loose (held in with thin double sided tape or tacky wax) for your wiring if you are electrifying. A tip I've never been sensible enough to take advantage of. :-)
ReplyDeleteWhat a good idea! Will keep that in mind for other builds. All of the electrical here will run up to the ceiling.
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