Lights, action

More and more stuff is moving upstairs. Not on its own, of course. I spent Saturday vacuuming oil paintings and wiping down the frames of prints. Seven were so dirty that I carried them around the corner to a framing shop – some of the dirt and damage surely predated this construction project. The rest I carried up to the guest room closet. The guest room is nearly full of boxes, and the playroom is nearly full of furniture, so most of the remaining 2^nd floor furnishing will be headed to the SUN room (thanks cousin for the great new name!)

While I cleaned, electricians swarmed the building. They fixed the pesky intercom problem without cutting too many holes in the walls. They hung most of the wall sconces, after D spent many nights agonizing over which should go where. The effect is very nice, with round portholes up the stairways and into the 3^rd floor. Also really nice are the brass outdoors sconces.

During the previous week, our little crew had finished the bathroom tiles, making way for the stone suppliers to install marble for the shower floor and granite for the countertop. I still think the effect is ‘midnight in the bamboo around an algaed pond,’ but it’s not unattractive. The wall tiles will be sealed so the lines between them won’t be so prominent.

As we’ve cleared furniture off the 2^nd floor, we’re noticing unexpected new features. The east wall is basically 50 feet of doors: the pre-existing bathroom (hidden at far left in the photo) and closet, two new closets (the old hall closet has been inverted, with the original red doors now inside the house instead of out in the entry stair), and the new entrance door – 10 panels in all. D suggested painting each one a solid color of the rainbow – I nixed that as soon as I heard it. I suggested a paraphrase of an Asian screen or a subtle graphic that travels across all the doors – he said ‘yeah, like a Rousseau jungle scene with gorillas!’ Help!