Hewn and Hammered

RSS Feed Homepage

Articles: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7

ask an expert: caring for hardwood floors
2008-01-11 00:00:00
The Cleveland Plain Dealer's always-useful Ask an Expert column dealt this past week with something we all need to be concerned about but often overlook: caring for our hardwood floors. Q: I have a beautiful 1925 Craftsman bungalow. The house...
More About: Pert , Floors

some things are beyond our control
2008-01-08 00:00:00
A few beautiful old homes here in Sacramento were damaged or, in one case, totally destroyed by falling trees and other debris in this first of the three storms scheduled to hit us before Sunday evening. Most of these photographs...
More About: Things , Control

for sale: restored Knoxville shingle bungalow, $289,000
2008-01-08 00:00:00
Knoxville is a great town with some really terrific old neighborhoods, and for the most part, citizens who delight in historic preservation and are trying consistently to keep chains, strip-malls, big boxes and other detritus out of historic districts full...
More About: For Sale , Sale , Knoxville

Crow House named to National Register of Historic Places
2008-01-02 19:57:00
American ceramicist and painter Henry Varnum Poor's Rockland NY home - known semi-affectionately as "crow house," after the birds that harassed Poor during the construction of the structure - has been added to the NRHP. Oddly, the town that hosts it - Clarkstown NY - either refused or was unable to purchase it themselves, so a neighbor (either richer or more interested in historic preservation), the town of Ramapo, is in the process of buying it from current owner Arthur Wagner. Wagner bought it a year ago from Peter Poor, son of the artist, for $1.15 million; let's hope he didn't feel a need to make a profit off the public by selling it at a huge mark-up. The brick home includes some interesting Tudor and castle-like features, including archways, circular stairways, exposed beams, and plenty of hand-crafted furniture made specifically for the site. According to visitors, the hand-made ceramic doorknobs, tiled windowsills and other stone and ceramic inlays are especially attract...
More About: House , National , Places , Crow , Historic

Bernard Maybeck projects: a map
2008-01-01 00:00:00
In the spirit of last May's Greene & Greene map, I've made a map of most of Bernard Maybeck's projects. Right now, I have his projects in California and the midwest; soon I'll add those in the Pacific Northwest and...
More About: Projects

photography bits & pieces
2007-12-29 00:00:00
To fill a few minutes while I'm off recovering from the holidays: a gorgeous bungalow photographed by Eric Rudd - digital (raw), 10 second exposure our friend Hustler of Culture toured Frank Lloyd Wright's Hollyhock house pretty light fixtures in...
More About: Photography , Pieces , Bits

South Buffalo's "bungalow belt"
2007-12-28 00:00:00
After reading our recent note on a modest but pretty bungalow going for a half-million dollars in Sacramento, reader Jean Emery sends us this article from Buffalo Rising on that town's own "bungalow belt." Read the complete article on their...
More About: Belt , South

Martha Stewart's Arts & Crafts Christmas dinner
2007-12-24 13:00:00
Reader Bob Sindelar of Sindelar & O'Brien Antique and Design imagines the following bit of holiday humor: Martha Stewart's planner for a very special Arts & Crafts Christmas dinner...DAY I: Build pavilion for the dinner -- something in a bungalow motif. Use native woods. Strive for a Greene & Greene look. (Use original hardware from the collection if time gets too short to hammer my own.) Quarter-saw white oak from the stand I felled last year. Build manger. Use through-tenons and pegged construction, adding corbels to the underside (Joseph may have been a carpenter, but he was no Gustave Stickley!). Fume and set aside. DAY 2: Shear sheep. Card and spin wool. Weave. Fashion into swaddling clothes.Phone Dale at the Boathouse. Book time at furnace. Pick up Lino at airport. Blow life-size glass putti. (Use gold foil inclusions; the silver looked tacky in that eight-foot, sand-cast sleigh Bertil and I did last year!) Swaddle. Place in manger. DAY 3: Pluck goose. Fashi...
More About: Dinner

remodeling: getting the most for your dollar
2007-12-23 00:00:00
Reader and regular contributor Joel McDonald - a real estate professional who frequently writes on issues important to those considering buying, remodeling or restoring an older home - submits the following: Most people, faced with the prospect of having to...
More About: Dollar , Remodeling

Sears kit homes in Minneapolis
2007-12-19 00:00:00
Kim Palmer had a good article on Sears kit homes in the Star Tribute earlier this month. Read the entire article on the Star Tribute site. When Paul Kirkman first laid eyes on the house he bought last year, he...
More About: Homes , Minneapolis

Blackstar Construction Group
2007-12-18 00:00:00
Santa Barbara-based Blackstar Construction Group (probably not named after my favorite Radiohead song) is a general contractor specializing in Mission / Craftsman woodwork, interior architecture and detailing. While their website does show off some very appealing jobs, many more of...

stuff I like: bell & turn plate, 1891 patent
2007-12-15 00:00:00
For the bargain price of $275, this antique doorbell set can be yours. One in stock, available from Rejuvenation Hardware in Portland, Oregon; $22 shipping to the rest of the US. I saw several similar in Nova Scotia where they...
More About: Stuff , Bell , Patent , Turn

last-minute gift shopping on Amazon
2007-12-14 00:00:00
I prefer to buy all the holiday gifts for my friends and family from local businesses and craftspeople, but it's not always possible: many recipients live far away, or need something very specific. And sometimes the online price, even with...
More About: Shopping , Amazon , Gift , Minute

Stickley on Craigslist: December 11, 2007
2007-12-12 00:00:00
This is so much easier now that I can collect these listings automatically! As usual, I make no guarantees as to the authenticity of any of these items - be careful (and note that some items described as "Stickley era"...
More About: Craigslist , December , December 11 , Tick

gorgeous 1400 sq ft bungalow in Sacramento: $595k
2007-12-12 00:00:00
Yes, the price is obscene. But the house is gorgeous. Beautifull restored kitchen & bath, great (small) backyard, lots of light and in one of Sacramento 's three nicest neighborhoods, this Curtis Park bungalow can be yours for just a bit...
More About: Gorgeous , Amen , S 14 , Cram

Frank Lloyd Wright house tours in Oak Park
2007-12-12 00:00:00
This Old House 's terrific Hardware Aisle blog is always full of good stuff - tool and material reviews, pointers to new techniques, and last week an article on Frank Lloyd Wright house tours. Read the whole article on their site:...
More About: Tours , Park

Brad Pitt, bungalow aficionado & rebuilder of New Orleans
2007-12-11 00:00:00
Many of you probably know Thomas Heinz, Randell Mackinson & Brad Pitt 's book on the Blacker House and its restoration. It's an interesting read, and the photographs are surprisingly good. Certainly, Pitt's been one of the more visible old-house aficionados...
More About: New Orleans , Orleans

wanted: dining room table
2007-12-07 00:00:00
wanted: Attractive & sturdy Craftsman-style rectangular dining room table with 2 leaves - capable of seating 8 or 10 with the leaves in, 4-6 without - for under $500. Something that will stay sturdy and last at least two generations....
More About: Table , Room , Dining , Wanted , Dini

happy accidents: bird spirit
2007-12-07 00:00:00
Reader Russ Billington writes: I thought you might like this - I took it this morning whilst basking in a rare ray of November sunshine. It might even bring a smile to your members. I call it 'Bird Spirit ', but...
More About: Accidents , Happy

tools for everyone!
2007-12-06 00:00:00
I'm the first to admit that I am not the handiest handyman. However, maybe it's a gender thing, but I love tools. All kinds of tools, gadgets, anything that will enable me to accidentally do more damage to my house...
More About: Tools

real estate listings: MLS to RSS
2007-12-05 00:00:00
So, obviously I've become a bit addicted to Yahoo Pipes. This free tool lets you aggregate, organize, and filter data from an unlimited number of RSS feeds and databases and present it in almost any kind of electronic form you...
More About: Estate , Real Estate , Listings , Real

Stickley on Craigslist part 2 - and more
2007-12-02 00:00:00
I got over a dozen emails from those of you who found our Stickley-on-Craigslist aggregator (a page that lists all the Stickley items for sale in 15 major American cities' Craigslists, filtered for those that include photographs), so I not...
More About: Part , Tick

fine furniture on Etsy.com
2007-11-30 00:00:00
Speaking of buying handmade gifts this holiday season, I took a quick look at Etsy .com, a site which lets all sorts of craftspeople market their wares easily, and found that plenty of talented woodworkers are selling some really nice furniture:...
More About: Furniture , Fine

this month's ebay finds
2007-11-30 00:00:00
Plenty of interesting furniture, metalwork, glass & more on Ebay this month, with more than the usual number of small gift items available: very detailed spindle-sided dollhouse furniture attractive new prairie box chair, from craftsman Dale Martin Guthrie oak sideboard...
More About: Mont

buy handmade this holiday season
2007-11-30 00:00:00
There are plenty of reasons to buy only handmade gifts this holiday season, chief among them that handmade objects have more soul & personality than even the finest machine-made mass-produced goods. Of course, there are also environmental and social reasons:...
More About: Holiday , Season

Jay Curtis: "ArtGlass & Metal" in the Arts & Crafts tradition
2007-11-23 00:00:00
Jay Curtis is a craftsman specializing in etched glass and metal, and his techniques include "water-jet cutting, hand painting, airbrushing, leading, beveling and glue-chipping." His work ranges from the whimsical to the elegant, and much of it is very strongly...
More About: Metal , Tradition , Arts , Crafts , The Arts

finding arts & crafts in unexpected places
2007-11-20 00:00:00
One thing we talk about regularly is finding Arts & Crafts vernacular in what can only be called unexpected places. Sometimes the use might be inappropriate but still well-executed; sometimes neither. Reader Jean Emery wrote to tell us about her...
More About: Places

Mission Hills Development in Northern California
2007-11-16 00:00:00
"Mission Hills Development builds finer homes that are based on the Arts and Crafts movement from the early 1900's. Featured architects are Henry and Charles Greene of Pasadena, CA., circa 1900 to 1920." These are indeed "finer" homes - finer,...
More About: California , Northern California

remodeling causes stress - oh, really?
2007-11-15 00:00:00
This is certainly old news to anyone who has attempted, completed or is mired in the middle of a home remodel - especially if it's your own house, and certainly if you are attempting to live there through the project:...
More About: Stress , Remodeling

minimizing mold in your home
2007-11-14 00:00:00
Dean Dowd runs a blog devoted solely to remodeling issues at Calfinder.com. Calfinder is probably the only one of a class of sites - those that purport to find you a handyman, contractor or skilled craftsperson near you for a...
More About: Home , Mold