Stage Three

The stairs to the second floor had been done for months but so far the upper floor had been serving mostly as storage space for the rest of Emma's inherited furniture. Now it was time to make those rooms fit for the treasures she had placed in them. The upstairs hall might as well be first. It was a pleasant sunny area and Emma had decided to use it as her office. She was able to do a lot of her work from home using various computer graphic programs. She would be spending a lot of hours in this room so she wanted it to be bright and cheerful. She used a grass green moire fabric on the dado with a bright floral patterned wallpaper above with a wide carved molding painted white separating them. She stained the hardwood floor in a rosier tone than she had used downstairs. A boldly striped rug centered the area, providing contrast to the floral pattern on the walls. She refinished various pieces of her old furniture in the same shade as she had painted the stair rail.

View from head of stairs. There is a bookcase tucked into the space to the right of the desk at the end of the stairwell.


View from bathroom doorway

Finally it was time to do the bedroom. She had already refinished Grandmother's wonderful old bentwood sleigh bed and the matching armoire and nightstand. Now she needed to create a setting worthy of it and at the same time tranquil and conducive to rest. She decided to use the burlap again but in a shade of pale yellow-green. She complemented it with a moss green carpet rather than leaving the wood floor bare. On two of the room's outer walls she painted murals giving the illusion of balconies opening onto a Tuscan countryside. More seating pieces from Pier One were finished to match the mahogany of the bed and the cushions covered in a yellow floral print. She celebrated finishing this room by allowing Ellery to spend the night. And not in her guest room either.

View from bedroom door


View from Southeast corner


View from Northwest corner

Upstairs bathroom was next. Most of the basic construction for it and the installation of fixtures had already been done earlier. Only finishing was needed. She had found a lovely vintage tub for it but the shower was strictly modern with two acrylic 'glass' walls providing plenty of light yet keeping the water from going everywhere. And the shower was spacious enough for two. She used blue 'marble' tile on the floor and the same shade on the countertop. Walls were done in blue and white stripes. Forget-me-nots on cabinet doors and mirror provided a sweetly feminine touch.

View from doorway


View from shower

Only one room left now. Emma was an architect by trade but an artist by passion. She didn't just do graphic design or watercolor renderings of the buildings she designed. She worked in oils and acrylics on canvases of all sizes. Some of her paintings she displayed in her home but most were stacked against the walls of her studio, the last room on this floor. She left the floors of this room unfinished except for sanding the rough spots and sealing them, just as she had done in the parlor. No need to do a lot to floors that got paint-spattered. The walls she painted a creamy ivory above with a thickly textured taupe cloth below, with railings stained in wood tone. An old sofa provided a place to relax or for a model to sit. Marbletopped cabinets provided plenty of storage for her paints and other supplies with a sink for easy cleaning up. An alcove behind the bathroom provided space for a guest bed. As well as her paintings an assortment of the crockery that she liked to include in paintings was scattered about the room.

View from doorway


View from sofa


View from alcove


Second floor aeriel view


Not much to do in the cellar. The area was small, divided into two separate rooms with a narrow hall between them. The first time there was a heavy rain after she bought the place she found out why the cellar floor was gravel rather than something more solid. There were a couple of inches of water in the cellar. It drained away quickly but it worried her. When she had talked to the plumbers about it they had recommended leaving the floor gravel, just putting concrete pads under anything that she didn't want to get wet. She had followed their advice and found that the cellar had a pretty even temperature year round, just like a cave. So she put her treadmill down here in the room near the stairs and could work out without working up a huge sweat. she put up a wall mounted TV to keep her occupied while she walked. This area was also perfect for a budding wine collection and a freezer. As soon as the house was finished she planned to start a garden and put up her own food just as her grandmother had done. In the further room was her laundry area, the furnace and hot water heater and plenty of shelving for storing canned goods and other garden produce. She left the walls in the natural rock.

Exercise area


Laundry and storage


Basement aeriel view