Materials: Deconstruct, reuse and recycle
Deconstruct
Older urban homes have an abundance of high quality finishes in them. We do not tear everything out and throw it in a landfill for expedience. We respect respect and honor the character of these homes by carefully deconstructing them first. At 311 Varnum, we removed, cleaned, stored and reused many items including:
> Interior doors
> Door and window and base trim
> Interior door hardware including handles, mortise locks, decorative plates, hinges and keys
> Vintage claw foot tub
> Vintage wall lavatory sink
> Vintage towel rods
> Framing lumber including studs, 2x6, 2x8, 2x10 and larger
> Flooring
> Non vintage lighting
> Dishwasher
Reuse
We believe strongly in reuse...click on each image for details of how the item was reused/repurposed/salvaged/reclaimed at 311 Varnum...
And if the above were not enough...
> Framing: over 99% of the original roof structure is original, as are the floor joists.
> Framing: the 1970 rear porch addition structure was kept in total. Interestingly, it was built of steel.
Recycle
Although we have an eye for reuse, not everything has a new place in a renovation. All other still useful goods were donated to Community Forklift. These materials included:
> Washer, dryer, stove, radiators, furnace, trim, capitals, and lighting fixtures
Other items we gave away to the Petworth community included:
> Lighting, dishwasher, vintage trim and capitals, household items, pictures and frames
The prior owner resurfaced the vintage tile, tub and sink...and we kept them too!
The rear was at one time a typical sleeping porch. In the early 70's the home was expanded and enclosed. Whoever did the enclosure liked steel...this is one of several steel I's supporting the rear and it looks cool with just a coat of polyurethane.
The original exterior windows are still in place, and provide some interest and some light to the interior of the basement.
The original brick exterior is alive and well on the inside of this home...reused as ways to get natural light deep into the interior of the home.
We reuse the original handles and strikes wherever possible...so much more interesting and beautiful than new.
We reuse vintage doors where possible. Many of these doors were damaged or already painted, so they received a coat of paint from us too.
Reclaimed oak flooring was installed in the dining and master bedroom.
Vintage newell posts never go out of style.
With one new support, this railing became as good as new.
Complete with new handles look like a million bucks!
This beautiful parquet floor is original...and gorgeous.
All DC has these low stone walls...we're lucky ours was in such good shape!