You say you want a Demolition?

I haven’t updated the blog for almost 4 weeks. However, we have been busy with construction, and we are making some definite progress in brining this jewel back to life.

First, we finished the much-needed gardening that had been impending for the past 25 years. We cleared the house of old trees and dead branches and made the house visible again. Here, a picture of the front of the house after we did a minor trim on the oak that lives at the entrance.

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We cut down a couple trees that were doubling as living quarters for a family of rats and obstructed the light coming in through he main gable window. We have been donating all of the wood for people to use as firewood and other woodworking projects.

IMG_4096As soon as we got done with the gardening, we then moved into demolition of the bathrooms and kitchen. It was hard to see the original tile in the bathrooms go, but there was truly no way to salvage it after all the water damage the house had suffered thought its years of deferred maintenance.

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Finally, a picture of the dinning room, with the kitchen as a background, where a new arched entrance is being built to access the new kitchen.

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This is definitely the “raw bones” part of the project, as the plumbing and electrical go into the walls, and we make way for the interior finishing. Some of the windows have already been finished. Stay tuned for more pictures as the weeks roll forward.

Author: Warren Tardif

Rehab Addict

One thought on “You say you want a Demolition?”

  1. This is such a lovely and unusual house. I’m so glad a sensitive person bought it and is restoring it. I hope you took pictures of everything before the demo. I know some people like large kitchens, but I’m in the camp of the the butler’s pantry/kitchen/service porch crowd. I’m familiar with the bulk of Lloyd Wright’s work, but this is one of the mystery houses — few photos seem to exist. I’ve never seen the back — certainly as interesting as the front! It think that brick wall separating the front from the back on the north side of the house was added later. I have a friend that does spectacular period kitchens and bathrooms. Let me know if you are interested.

    Much of Jr’s architecture is flamboyant, but there are some works which are rather plain — these must have been mere jobs to him, or his client’s tastes were at odds with his own. There is another deco Spanish in Glendale that that he did, on Graceland Way, across from the vaguely deco/prairie house that sold recently (very much altered). Another one of the mystery houses. It seems to be in largely original condition, except some windows have been replaced with Home Depot specials. The aerial views on Google makes it look enormous. There are no photos online, but you can definitely tell which one it is — look for the arched entrance to the garage, pink trim, and the striking entrance (seen by gazing up the stairway). You should leave a card for the owner and make friends!

    Keep up the good work.

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