Thursday, December 1, 2016

Refinish, Refurbish, Repair, Repeat!


The Villa del Vigneto construction is lagging and dragging behind schedule. Although I shouldn't say "schedule" because I don't have one. I'm making forward progress, but it isn't the progress that I thought I'd be making by now. You may remember that my first speed bump appeared when I realized that I couldn't put the ceilings on the first level because if the ceilings were on, I wouldn't be able to reach the back walls to do all the fiddly things I needed to do. So I held off on the ceilings and concentrated on finishing the back walls. 

Except that I found it impossible to just STOP when the back walls were complete. One wall led to another, as they will insist on doing, and before I knew what I had done, I had completely finished the kitchen, the dining room, and the foyer of the villa. But all that is just as well, because the next speed bump is the LONG delay on shipment of some light fixtures and lamps that I ordered in early October. I definitely need to get the wiring done on those lights before installing the ceilings. Perhaps I was a bit hasty in even thinking about ceilings. (Impatience rears its ugly head.)

So - I've been concentrating on refinishing, refurbishing, and repairing various furniture pieces and completing, against my better judgment, the dining room and the foyer, in addition to the kitchen that I finished in September. (See "A Tale of Two Kitchens" from October 1, 2016. I still don't know how to create a LINK!)



This was last month's project - except for the pitcher on the right side of the table; that was the one last thing I needed to complete the back wall of the dining room. The pitcher (I'm sure there's a better name for it, but I can't think what it is at the moment) came from an antique store in Corrales, New Mexico.



And that's when I lost all reason and went on to finish the whole thing! I started with these pieces: an unfinished buffet, an Italian sgabello chair that looks way too new, and an estate-sale settee that's way too green.



I painted the buffet, aged the chair, and reupholstered the settee. All ready to go.



Here are some additional make-over projects: two of the dining room chairs that I've had for years and years were broken; the wood on the two new brocade chairs was a bit too shiny, as was the dining room table. Disregard the brass and silver pieces on the floor; I decided not to use them.



Make-over complete! All the pieces have been aged, painted, or mended as needed.


 

A close-up of the buffet that holds the cappuccino machine, some pretty Italian pottery, and several bottles of (Italian) wine.



This is a straight-on view of the complete dining room. (Except, of course, for the chandelier and the ceiling!)



A view looking towards the wall that separates the dining room from the kitchen and the loggia.



This view looks through the arched doorway into the foyer.



The narrow wall between the two doors was the perfect spot for the interesting sgabello chair. (I hope it never needs to be used for extra seating; it looks very uncomfortable!)



This metal chair came from an estate sale and needed a little work.



I used a piece of ribbon to reupholster the chair. This is my second attempt, because I stained the ribbon with glue on my first try. Then there wasn't enough ribbon left to choose a smaller-scaled portion of the pattern. 



The chair rests against the staircase wall, along with a carved "stone" table that once belonged in a "fairy garden." I added some gold paint to trim the table. There will eventually, in the fullness of time, be a chandelier hanging from the ceiling. I also hope to find an umbrella to join the walking sticks in the large urn.



And now - this big stack of upper-level walls and lower-level ceilings awaits my attention. Working in our garage, I barely succeeded in finishing all the cutting, stuccoing, and sanding while the November weather remained unseasonably warm in Nebraska. I sanded the last piece late on a Thursday afternoon, and by Friday the cold had arrived! But before I begin painting that stack of walls and ceilings, I must first complete the FINAL back wall - in the living room. (Will I be able to stop with the back wall? I think not. What do you think?)




May you have a Merry Christmas and a Happy December!

14 comments:

  1. Hi Marjorie! Your RL Christmas tree looks very lovely! And hooray for getting carried away with your projects.... even if it means getting distracted from the "plan"! Because it means you are making progress anyway! And maybe it will be easier to get most of the "decor" completed while it is easier to reach into those rooms with the ceiling not in the way. It can be very tricky trying to decide which steps must be done before other ones .... I always waste time in dithering when I am unsure! So at least you are getting a lot of the fun stuff done! You have a wonderful collection of pieces to "make over" for this property. And I agree they look better with the aged and worn appearance! I always love to see the views through doors to other parts of the house... and your rooms have a lot of wonderful vistas to admire! Keep up the great work! And what luck that it stayed warm so late in the year!

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    1. Hi Betsy - Yes, I felt very fortunate to avoid standing out in a cold garage! We had the first snowfall yesterday, and although it was beautiful, I was so happy to be cozy and warm inside! I appreciate your comments about views through doors into different rooms in a house. I'm trying some new construction techniques (new for me) on the upper level of the villa; if my plans work out, I should have several of those "other room" vistas. Hope. Thanks for your encouraging comments!
      Marjorie

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  2. Marjorie,me encanta que no hayas podido detenerte a la hora de transformar,pintar,tapizar...todos esos preciosos muebles,que tan bien se han adaptado a tu proyecto y que hacen que la estancia se llene de vida!!!
    Ánimo con paredes y techos,estoy segura que avanzarás rápidamente en cuanto te pongas a ello!!!
    Tu árbol navideño se ve precioso!!!!!
    Besos.

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    1. Hello, Pilar - Thanks for your comments on my villa projects. It seems strange to be going about things in "reverse order!" I usually finish all the construction, then take care of the furnishings, furniture placement, accessorizing, etc. as the very last thing. So I've had lots of fun, but I have a feeling that I'll have SO MUCH cleaning up to do in my finished rooms by the time the ceilings and upper level are complete. YIKES!

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  3. ¡Que maravilla de comedor! Marjori, has conseguido encajar todas las piezas con armonía con un toque de calidez. Es una satisfacción ver el resultado aunque te hayas salido de tus pensamientos primeros y seguro que conseguirás terminar rápido los techos en cuanto recibas tu pedido.
    Precioso árbol , feliz Navidad para ti y toda tu familia.Besos:-)

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    1. Hello, Rosa Maria - Thanks for your nice comments! I'm trying not to be impatient to get on with the ceilings and the upper-level work on the villa. It's probably a good thing that I'm very busy right now with Real Life issues centered around the Christmas holidays and family activities; those things don't leave much time for fretting about the villa light fixtures and ceilings. Nevertheless, I hope I can get on with it soon! Merry Christmas to you and yours.
      Marjorie

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  4. Buon giorno Marjorie!
    I am enamored of all of the refurbishment's and accessorizing which you have been doing whilst waiting for your lighting to arrive! It seems to be the part of this hobby which no one ever thinks to mention when you first begin...... the WAITING!
    I can certainly relate to the enforced stalling until another step is completed, but you have used your time wisely because your furnishings and placements are PERFECT! The atmosphere in both the dining room and in the entry speaks of ancient villa with a long established tie to the land.
    The Italian wines and the cappuccino machine and the pottery are a DELIGHT to the eyes and immediately contribute tol their bit of the story.
    The upholstery fabrics are cool and subtle and compliment the walls, the floors and the warm wood finishes, including your artfully placed, Fabulously uncomfortable, sgabello chair.
    The painted surfaces on the doors, the buffet and the mural, all unify the room and tie in with the chairs around the table- Bellissima!
    So even though you have been waiting for your lights to arrive, you have been able to evoke a relaxed, prosperous, convivial Italian family with a heritage of good wines and open hospitality- Brava! :D

    elizabeth
    p.s. I LOVE your Christmas tree too! :)

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    1. Hi, Elizabeth - My goodness, you do have a magical way with words that makes my villa seem so much better than I thought it was! Thank you for the lovely descriptive phrases. I especially like your assessment of the villa's family - that's just the way I envision them: relaxed, prosperous, convivial, with no-nonsense, down-to-earth attitudes. They prefer quiet pleasures with no fuss involved. I see them in my mind's eye, although personalities are still being formed - and their names remain a mystery.
      But part of the pleasure of being a miniaturist is to mull over these matters as I work
      (or play!) By the time construction on the Villa del Vigneto is complete, I should know the members of this family very well!
      Marjorie

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  5. I love your dining room. The furniture is gorgeous you have done a wonderful job finishing them. Perfect spot for the beautiful chair even if it is uncomfortable :)
    Hugs Maria

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    1. Hi, Maria - Thanks for your nice comments on my villa dining room and its furnishings. I'm glad that you like the place I found for the sgabello chair. That narrow wall just seemed made for the chair, even though I didn't plan it beforehand.
      Marjorie

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  6. Your talent with refurbishing the furniture is amazing! All the pieces turned out gorgeous! The dining room looks so perfect (it looks like a real house!)! And I agree, that skinny chair appears to be very uncomfortable -- but maybe after a few glasses of wine the chair becomes comfy enough. LOL
    - Lori K.
    P.S. And the pitcher from the antique store in Corrales, New Mexico could be called an amphora. I think the name 'amphora' is traditionally used for both one and two handled vessels even though technically the jars should have two handles (and be Greek or Roman) to be a proper amphora.

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  7. Thanks for your comments, Lori. I do seem to spend a lot of time refinishing or at least retouching almost everything I use in my miniature houses! I've been doing the same thing with the living room furniture (next blog post) and will probably carry the habit on up to the bedrooms. I appreciate the information about the amphora from New Mexico - I knew there was a word floating around in my mind, but I couldn't retrieve it. Amphora! Yes! Even though it doesn't have the requisite two handles, it just LOOKS like an amphora. Thank you!

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  8. Hello Marjorie,
    I love your courage in tackling furniture transformations, it always causes me much grief. The results are fantastic! you really make the pieces look realistic and make everything work with your fabulous house. Well done!
    Big hug
    Giac

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    1. Hello, Giac - How nice to see a comment from you! Thanks for stopping by my blog; I almost missed your post and am so glad that I checked back. I do seem to have a hard time using furniture and accessory pieces without changing them in some way! But I enjoy the process of the "makeovers" - fun for me.
      Marjorie

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I'd love to hear your comments!