As usual, things take longer than first thought. The bricklaying has finished some time ago but a lot more work has been done on the steps themselves. They have been realigned and cracks filled. Re-pointing of the brickwork has been very awkward due to the position of the majority of bricks, the downward slope and vegetation. A very large fern had to be dug up and its roots cleared out of the bricks. This did not do my back any good and Yvonne provided extra help to finish off the pointing in places that needed the most bending! An angle grinder was purchased and this used to cut up some of the old sandstone blocks to repair the bottom step – this is still ongoing.
The dado wallpaper is still being touched up with paint, it is surprising the number of times it has been checked and still find areas that have not been covered. Paint could have been slapped on quite freely but then much of the embossed relief would have been lost due to the thickness of paint.
As the fireplace is being used again it was also time to upgrade some of its accessories, as they were looking a bit worse for wear, with the use of some black enamel.
Some more work has been done at the top of the stairs and another part of one of the roof joists has been stripped. There is still a lot of work to be done up here, especially how to stabilise the old lathe and plaster walls.
Leaf clearing has taken a while especially as there are 6 deciduous trees over 30 ft high out the back and 4 in the front. It has been suggested that they are left but it is nice to look at the lawn.
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