Painting

Next project: a makeover for the old girl! We are starting with the addition at the rear of the LBH. We sanded, cleaned and primed the exterior. The addition is about 20-25 years old. The exterior paint isn't in bad shape. But we're changing the colours slightly. Don't worry, it'll still be the Little BLUE House! The north side is in the best condition, as the weather here comes predominantly from the south.

North Side, Addition

The east side wasn't too bad either. As the primer was drying, the wasps were already trying to gain access to the uncovered vents. They were denied access! I gently relocated many spiders as I was painting this wall. Our youngest child was relieved to see that no spiders were harmed during this project...

East Wall

Finally, we got the south side of the addition ready. This is going to be the toughest side once we get to the original part (age: 118 years) of the house. We plan to tackle that part in early July when the kids are with their grandparents! I've ordered a lead-testing kit from the hardware store, although we're quite sure that amongst the 4-5 layers of paint, lead will be present.

At least the addition seems fairly straightforward to paint. No ancient, flaking lead paint. I should get to it within the next 3-5 days. I'm hoping the rain will go away!

Side Entrance, South Side

Before and After Time

Hi there! I think it's been a good long while since I've posted some Before & After photos. It's an exercise that I find helpful for my state of mind (to help with the, Oh No! Why Are We Spending So Much Time and Money On This Little Falling Down House?)...

I sincerely hope that it will be interesting for you, too. Especially if you are just stumbling upon my blog for the first time. We've been at this for years now, and it's a long process. Restoring a Gold Rush house is a dream come true, and it's something that I love to obsess about. :) If you have the time and inclination (and perhaps a cup of coffee or a cocktail) you may wish to explore my older posts to see what this place is all about.

Before...

June 30th, 2012
(When we were considering the purchase of the Little Blue House)

After...

January 28th, 2016
(I realize now that this is the most recent photo of the house from this angle)

Before...

2012

After...

2016


Before...

After...

Before...

After...

To be continued!

Spring Treasure Hunting...

Last weekend, my husband donned his work clothes and a face mask to explore the far reaches of our wood shed. Built during the Gold Rush, the small cabin was likely home to a miner or two in Atlin, BC. It was the only part of our property that we hadn't yet explored, and it yielded a few treasures!

Rummaging through an old crate...

Goodyear Rubber Co fire extinguisher, circa 1872!

Colourful gas can.

Wringer washer. 

Dairy cream jugs, curtain rod with brass rings, broken rocking chair... And a lot of junk!

It was pretty mousy in that wood shed. We took 3 trailer loads to the dump, and kept the good stuff to clean up and use. 

Lots more coming on the blog. It'll be my first summer off in many years, so I am looking forward to our projects at the Little Blue House!

Spring Display, Atlin Style!

Spring Thaw

Spring is springing really quickly this year. There was still snow on the ground for our kids' Easter egg hunt last weekend though!

We are planning our big summer project: painting the LBH! More to follow on that front. See our peeling, old paint!

I'm coming out of my hibernation, so will blog more soon...

Bay Window Panels are Done!

We chose colours for the exterior of the LBH a while back... We were going to paint last summer & then we kinda got lazy. So we didn't paint the house. We actually sat around and drank beer. 

However, we designed decorative panels to go under each leaded glass window in our "bay window room," facing First Street in Atlin. Then our trusty carpenter built them for us! He installed them last week, and they look amazing!

It gives you an idea of what the LBH will look like when the rest of the house is painted. At least then it'll be finished on the outside, right? That is our major project for this summer. It'd be great if we could build a small balcony for the front door, too...

We are very happy with how the panels look. Way to go, Rick! Thank you!

January Visit

We finally made it down to Atlin for a weekend. It was too short a stay... We were there last in November. There really isn't much snow this year. We tromped with the kids across the nearby alkali flats and up a small ridge. There was a gorgeous view of Atlin Lake, a large blue sky, and animal prints for us to follow. 

The lake is still open - it should normally freeze up in January - as it's been a relatively mild winter so far. We heard that there are many animals in and around town: lynx, wolf, deer... They're apparently waiting to cross the lake to forage or hunt on the other side. Various tracks were visible along this ridegline.