Restorers Resources: Where to buy it!

I plan on adding a regular feature to the blog on Restorers Resources since many of my readers are old house owners and in mid restoration of their homes. One of the most frequent emails is where do I find this or that? The hardest part of getting that perfect look is in the details. One of the best resources for Wolf House Wallpapers LLC, based in Mt Vernon Ohio.. They have an exciting line of Period wallpapers that are perfect for Italiante homes with high ceilings. they also offer reporoduction services as well. You can take look at their complete line of papers at http://www.wolffhousewallpapers.com/

Photo courtesy of their website

A Historic Moving Day Weaver House, Granite Falls,MN

Some picture posted by Mary Gillespie to vicarr ,A group I co- moderate dedicated to Victorian architecture, of the Historic Weaver house move today in Granite Falls MN. This home would have been demolished were it not for the efforts of preservationists who saved it. I had mentioned this in an earlier blog about the impending move. It will be sat on its new fourdation on Tuesday. Boy and I thought I had a lot to move

Cottage Home Tour

The Cottage Home neighborhood will host a Home and Garden Tour this Saturday and Sunday, 12 homes and gardens will be featured on the tour. Cottage Home, just east of downtown and west of the Arsenal Tech Campus has enjoyed a rennaisance in recent years. For more information about cottage home please visit www.cottagehome.info

AH SPRING!

I must confess that this is an unusual spring. Normally I am in the middle of major renovations and this year, well.....this house is done! Ive landscaped, touched up, cleaned, staged and basically just sitting around waiting for this @#$%^%@ house to sell! We are not alone, there are millions of homeowners with perfectly good houses priced at bargain prices and NO ONE is buying!

I think there are a couple of reasons, the overall economy one but clearly the media has painted a perception that now is not the time to buy, that prices will go lower. I am not sure that really is the case. Our house at the "crest of the housing boom" could have probably sold for 450K (If I had only rushed and did it half way!) Instead I took my time and did it right. On the market at a very reasonable 295K and its done right and you cant find anything lose on the market for less than 400K.

Its funny though as I get calls from people wanting restoration consulting because that "Restored Charmer" they bought has become a falling apart "Money Pit". I recently did an "evaluation" for a client. They had bought a nice 4 bedroom victorian 525K in one of the best downtown neighborhoods, and now they were having prolems. Tile was falling off ( not properly installed), Circuits were blowing (inadaquate circuit box). Well the list goes on and on and the estimated bill to fix what needed to be done will likely be over 30K. They had an inspection but that inspector missed some basic "design issues". The "restoration contractor" has run water lines on improperly insulated outside walls (you cant do that in Indiana they will freeze in the winter). he didnt use tile backer board, too many outlets on one circuit. basically the guy cut corners. It "looked" great but a more complete inspection would have revealed it was done on the cheap.

Doing things right takes planning, time and money. I have more information on proper planning on my website: http://thevictorianrestorer.googlepages.com/restorationplanning

May is Preservation Month

Just a reminder that May is Historic Preservation Month in Indiana. there are events across the State. Some particular events of interest in the Indianapolis area are:

May 17th :The Restore Indy workshops , if you have an old house that needs work, this workshop is for you. Experts cover topics ranging from masonry and window repair to researching a house's history. The event takes place at the Irvington Presbyterian Church, 55 Johnson Avenue in Indianapolis's historic Irvington neighborhood. Box lunch is provided.

May 24th:Architectural Styles of the Old NorthsideQueen Anne or Italianate? Learn to distinguish between basic architectural styles at a workshop led by Suzanne Stanis, Historic Landmarks Foundation's Director of Heritage Education and Information. Put your knowledge to the test on a guided walking tour through Indianapolis’ Old Northside, one of the city’s premier historic neighborhoods

A complete calendar of events and post may be found at http://www.historiclandmarks.org/tours/pages/calendar.aspx

Vote!!! On historic Preservation?

As you all probably know if you regularly read this blog, I am in Indiana and today is our primary. We all know the candidates positions on things like the war, gas prices and such but what do we know about their historic preservation positions? Clearly with the importance of this Election this is an "Off the Radar" issue but I thought Id just try to see what I could find out. Because it is such a "niche" issue I could find little out on the campaign sites. So I had to look at other resources.

Hillary Clinton: Save America’s Treasures is a program of the White House Millennium Council created in 1997 by the President and First Lady to celebrate the accomplishments of this American century, and to engage every sector of our society in giving "gifts to the future" that convey our rich heritage. Save America’s Treasures is a bipartisan partnership between the U.S. Government and private individuals, corporations, foundations and experts in the fields of architecture and historic preservation. Hillary Clinton was activly involved in the program. According to her Senate voting record she supported preservation issues 100 percent for all years available.

Barak Obama: Co-introduced legislation would designate Illinois' 17 southernmost counties as a National Heritage Area, qualifying the region for Interior Department grants for preservation, education and economic development related to tourism. According to project vote smart, Obama supported historic presrvation issues 100 percent for all years available.

John McCain: Supported efforts in 1999 regarding the National Parks Improvement Act. According to project vote smart John McCain scored a zero rating in 2005 and 2004. He did get a 60 percent rating in 2003.

In the interests of full disclosure I voted for Hillary Clinton in the Indiana Primary today