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Thursday, July 4, 2013

Picture Rail - Upstairs Hallway


I painted the upstairs hallway caramel--didn't like it.
 
Then I painted it light green--didn't like it.
 
Then I painted it brown--the color of a paper sack.  I like it.
It is the same color as our office downstairs.
The color is Barely Brown (eggshell finish) by Valspar. 
 
I mentioned in another post that my husbad Jon (pictured) found picture rail in the attic.  He brought it down, sanded and repainted it black.  Here are some photos of Jon installing the picture rail.
 
 
This view is looking north, towards the front of the house.  In the background you can see the Juliet balcony.  A couple of weeks ago Jon replaced the floor of the Juliet balcony and installed new tongue and groove ceiling on the front porch.  I'll follow up with photos/story about that in my next post.
 
What Happens Next in the Upstairs Hallway:
 
I have 4 land patents that I matted and framed in black, ready to put on this long 28ft. upstairs hallway.  The land patents are from the 1850's, when Peter Gurholt Christianson applied for the land where our house sits, and surrounding farm land he cleared.  The first land patent describes the land where our house was built 40 years later in 1893.

Also, I have a number of graduation photos and certificates from the Wrolstad and Quien families matted and framed in black to hang in the hallway. Here are some photos of those items--taken while I was painting the hallway--auditioning wall colors. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
***
Great luck--I looked up St. Olaf's College website, searched for Class of 1906 and I'll be damned I found photograph of our previous owner's daughter Ragnhild Bertine Quien with her girlfriend Minnie Gullickson in the library at St. Olaf's.  I can't believe what incredible luck I have.  Sometimes, its as if another hand is guiding me to find people, places, and things having to do with our old house.
 
Standing left is Ragnhild Bertine Quien, St. Olaf's College, 1906
 
Detail of Ragnhild Quien (left) and her friend Minnie Gullickson (right).
 
 
Middle Left is our Ragnhild Bertine Quien, St. Olaf's Class of 1906
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

7 comments:

  1. The picture rail looks great. I really like that you painted it black. Definitely makes it pop out.

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  2. Your husband is so talented.I admire your work to restore your beautiful home. Love the idea of hanging the land patents! Your own history gallery.

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  3. Beautiful hallway! I love the patents and pictures! Especially the picture in the library!

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  4. The hallway looks great, and how fortunate that the original picture rail was stored, rather than discarded. Incidentally, I like the carpentry detail at the bottom of your hallway door frames.

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  5. I quite like the black picture rail as an accent. The hallway is looking great!

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  6. Lookin' good. So good to have a husband that can do everything! Lucky to find the original picture rail. Your decorating talent is amazing. And you seen to find just the right things to decorate with. Keep up the good work. ...but as I recall, you retired. But did you really retire or just change jobs!!!

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  7. What a lovely find, those old school photos! You really do have a talent for discovering thinks connected to your home.
    The hallway does look great, such a lovely job you're doing.

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