Another goal was to recycle and refurbish when possible. After the couple rented the house next door to get out from under the work crew's feet, Andrea made a stockpile of the hardware, a mishmash of brass hinges, glass knobs, and painted miscellany. "I had it all replated—even the screws—with an oil-rubbed bronze finish and reinstalled it to tie together the old and new rooms upstairs."
Most of the old radiators still worked, even if the 50-year-old boiler didn't, and sturdy red-oak flooring was hidden under a protective layer of carpet, awaiting a second life. Veteran floor doctor Roy Reichow salvaged boards from a bedroom to patch holes downstairs and alternated old and new boards in staggered lengths elsewhere. His surgery, along with a walnut stain topped by satin polyurethane, means "the naked eye will never see the change," he says.
Pictured: The new knotty alder mantel and paneling and Santa Rita soapstone surround provide a focal point for the room and a warm backdrop for holiday trimmings.
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