Renovation Update: The Moore House
It’s been a while since I’ve shared a construction update on our home in Arizona. It doesn’t seem like much, but we have seen some significant changes since I last posted. The exterior of the house is nearly complete. It has a new roof and trim around all windows and doors.
The siding is a story for another day, but it was still in great shape. Removing it would be costly, so we found some matching siding to fill the gables where the original timber planks were and any pieces along the sides that needed to be replaced. After that, the whole house got a fresh coat of paint.
This month, we made another road trip to Arizona to take a few things, check on the house, and do a little work. Our to-do list was a bit shorter this trip, focusing mainly on the doors. During the home’s last renovation in the 1960s, a couple of hollow-core doors were added, which we replaced with new doors. They’re not exact matches to the original doors, but they’ll work. We also brought a new back door for the house, which we’ll install later.
Back to the doors. One of my favorite projects (and the bain of my husband’s existence). I’ve shared how I restored the door hardware (here and here), but what did we do with the actual doors? This summer, we hired a young man to do the tedious job of stripping and sanding all the 100 years of paint from the doors. The result? They weren’t in good enough condition to stain and leave as natural wood. But we did have a much smoother surface for a fresh coat of paint.
We didn’t have time to complete the doors entirely, but we did have time to prime both sides, give them another light sanding and scraping, and hang them back up.
So about that… we should have labeled the doors. But we didn’t, and it was a bit of a puzzle to figure out where they went back into the house. And on top of that, what hardware sets went with each door? A little bit of shuffling, looking back at photos from our last trip, and we figured it out.
After we hung the first door—we had used the original screws—I realized my OCD would not be happy. I stepped back and said, “I want new screws.” It turns out it was a much easier process for my husband and me to reapply all the hardware. Mixed metals? While there are a lot of mixed metals throughout the house, I’m pretty sure I’ll be adding a dab of brass metallic paint to all the new screws.
While most of the exterior is done, I did give a little attention to the front door. It was a sad shade of white—long overdue for a fresh coat of paint. So, that’s what she got! I used Sherwin Williams Tricorn Black. One of my go-to shades. Now the question is, what should I do about the porch posts? Leave them green or paint them black as well? I think I know the answer, but I’m curious about what you think.
Siding: SW Windswept Cliff, Trim: SW Alabaster
SW Tricorn Black
Let’s not forget how it started.