Welcome to our Restoration Journal - The restoration of the Bell House, so called because, although not the original owners, the Bell Family lived in this house from 1921 until 1998! Follow our trials and tribulations as we seek to clean up, modernize, and make it beautiful - without losing its character. Questions? Email us at johanne@fromtimespast.com . Your feedback is appreciated.

ONE YEAR. That’s how long it took my husband Ted and me to find our C1913 Four Square two – story house. Small lots, wet basements and over-renovations were the norm. Our search led us back to within five blocks of Ted’s original family home. A historic neighborhood, “The Highlands” features towering elm trees that have grown to form graceful green arches over many of the streets. Large heritage homes with inviting front verandas and lace adorned windows sit next to stucco faced homes of 30’s, 40’s, and 50’s vintage.

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Our house is amazingly intact. Original, unpainted millwork, double French doors into the spacious living room, and original plate rails in the dining room are all made of fir. Maple floors throughout both levels and period light fixtures with original plaster medallions caused this old house lover’s heart to flutter. All this originality came with a catch: an original 1913 kitchen.

The focal point of the kitchen was the wall mounted farmhouse style kitchen sink – complete with exposed plumbing. The white porcelain coating had worn off years before and the cast iron base was badly corroded. To the right of the sink, and set into an alcove that was probably a cold room at one time (there is no insulation at all), was the room’s only storage and work area – the bake center.

The space consisted of “U” shaped counters. The center of the U was covered with steel but the two end counters were made of solid fir which were badly stained and gouged. Below were shallow drawers and original tin lined flour and sugar bins. Above, two tall cupboards flanked a double hung window overlooking the back yard. It was easy to imagine the lady of the house rolling pie dough on the cool steel surface while keeping an eye on the children outside.

The alcove would stay but we badly needed a workspace and a lot more storage. A complete kitchen renovation was out of the range of our budget at this time so what was required was a temporary kitchen that would be functional, look reasonably attractive, and work with the existing elements. In other words, we had to “make do”.

After much research and eventual rejection of new cabinetry as an option we decided to build our own. Stock cabinets did not come in the odd sizes we needed and their very “newness” would make the cupboards in the bake center look decidedly shabby. Armed with my designs we approached our friend Jim to help and the day after our possession of the house we began our work.

The cupboards were built using only basic tools: circular saw, jigsaw, miter saw, electric drill and hand tools. (My old portable table saw gasped its last breath on the second cut in our project.) We used ¾” birch plywood for the cases and installed doors made of bead board paneling faced with flat 1¾”x ½” molding. We attached crown molding to the top of the cabinets that matched closely to the original millwork of the doors and windows.

We erected cabinets over the sink, the fridge and the stove and built a small bookcase to house cookbooks and visually connect the new cabinetry to old. My favorite cupboard is the one that was built to take advantage of a small unused space next to a second window. It measures 12”x 20”x 84” and it stores almost all our space-hogging electric appliances.

A new “sink and a half” was installed exactly where the old had been located. The condition of the original sink was such that it could not be saved. The cast iron had been eaten right through. This was the only glitch in the project – we had purchased a double sink and realized only too late that there was not enough space for it. Extra labor for the plumber to come back and install the smaller sink set our budget back an additional $200.

New countertops in a greyed amber and teal blue color scheme were installed over the new cabinets as well as the damaged fir counters in the baking center. The effect causes the eye to flow freely from one space to another and blurs the edge between new and old.

Removing the sink created damage to the walls. We spread new plaster in an effort to smooth out the worse bumps and craters but it quickly became clear that using subway tiles as a back splash was out of the question. Retro Art to the rescue!

Made of a flexible plastic in designs that replicate the look of old tin, Retro Art is available in 2x4’ panels. Using basic tools such as ruler, pencil, scissors, and construction adhesive, we were able to install the entire area behind the sink and oven in about 1 ½ hours. Another bonus: it was half of the cost of subway tiles, not to mention the additional cost and/or effort of labor!

I used Benjamin Moore’s “ Almond Brittle 316-3” in latex to paint the walls, and dry brushed this color over the Retro Art panels in order to create a mid-tone between the wall color and the white cabinetry. The color works beautifully with the maple hardwood floors.

1940’s Roseville Pottery in amber, green and blue, lace valances and stained glass panels add color and interest.

Our budget came slightly under $2,200 – much less than a kitchen renovation. Although intended to be temporary, this kitchen now functions well. All in all, I really don’t think I am going to mind having to “make do”.

Written By Johanne Yakula

Sources: From Times Past Antique Furniture and Accessories

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