CUTTING CURVES

    So many cracked window panes in need of replacement.....

I set up a work station and gathered my tools to tackle a job of which I am a bit leery.  I have not cut curves in glass for several years and have never cut pieces as large as what must be done for these quarter round windows.

The window required cleaning first. 

 Paint clouded the glass but the remaining undamaged panes were

 readily cleaned with acetone and a rag.

The old glaze practically fell out on its own with a minimal amount of scraping.

Cleaned and primed it was time to cut.

With more luck than skill I got the curve on the first attempt.  (Heavy sigh of relief.)

The window joins the others that have been repaired,

 awaiting priming, glazing and 2 topcoats of paint.

WINDOW SOLUTION

      Many may recall that there are a few diamond-pane windows in this house.   What you do not know is what we have done in attempts to restore the damaged pair in the dining room.  Only 1/2 of the original window remains. 

 

We have looked into having half made to match the one which remains (close to $1000 for an 

18" x 36").  We considered having the entire window duplicated in modern materials of aluminum and double-paned glass (again at least $1000 and it would have the modern between the glass grids...not to my liking).  We have searched salvage shops in the area and on the internet to find a suitable  replacement.   This is where we have found some success.

A single window of the same era and close to the size we are looking to fill

Unfortunately in the shipping it was greatly damaged

   It is time now to make this newly acquired window work.

Adding approximately 1.25 inches on all sides makes it a snug fit into our opening

Bondo  comes to the rescue again,  filling gaps and making the extensions appear to be part of the original window.  Removing the broken glass, cutting new diamond panes and pointing the glass makes the window ready for the painters to paint.

I will install the window this weekend.  Removing the plywood from the window opening will allow the light to come into the dining room from the west.  Check back to see how it looks!

" I'M AMPHIBIOUS "

Quote from Charles Shackleford (basketball player for NC State in the 80's) :

 “Left hand, right hand, it doesn't matter. I'm amphibious."

   Though I am pronouncedly right handed, I have been working on becoming "amphibious" myself lately.  There are times when being a lefty would come in handy.  Driving screws in a close space and glazing certain angles in my windows are recent occasions of when I have needed to be ambidextrous.  
My father is a south-paw and I continue to work on it because I know I can get better.  Surely some of his "leftiness" is in my DNA somewhere.

LET THE GLAZING BEGIN

Before

After

NEW JOB + NEW TOOL = NEW SKILL

And by the transitive property.....happy me!

.....Am I remembering my elementary school math correctly?

My new heat gun  to be used in removal of 100 year old glaze. 

 

BOYS LIKE GIRLS WHO HAVE SKILLS

From the outside, most all of the windows look like this.  Yikes!  While we will replace all of the double-hung windows with newer energy efficient windows.  The unique windows and doors are part of the overall charm of this Hawthorne house and, therefore, I will learn a new skill and restore them. 

2 OUT OF 3 CLOSETS

This house has but 3 closets.  Two out of the 3 closets have beautiful diamond-paned casement windows.

Despite their disrepair, they are quite pretty and can be rejuvenated with new glazing and paint.  It seems a shame that they remain hidden in the back of closets.  For these reasons, we have decided to move the library wall 12 inches and the bathroom wall and interior window 6 inches.

Pre demo : Wall and interior window in the 1/2 bath

The wall separating the library and the 1/2 bath was removed due to rot to the floor joists (see April 2011).

 The joists and floor were replaced  2 months ago using rough cut 2 x 10s and plywood.  Moving the walls slightly will give us a niche for a desk and we'll turn the space under the back stairs into a closet.  In rebuilding the walls we used current day lumber.

The soon-to-be-more-beautiful window (I have begun the mammoth re-glazing project) is now exposed and letting in the afternoon light.