It's the Little Details

It's the little details that make the difference. It is also what slows the process of restoration. The number one question that I am asked is "why is it taking so long?" This is a perfect example of why this restoration is taking so long.

Even though we installed the french door last winter we still needed to finish the small details to finally call this project done. Small details such as the key hole escutcheons and door knob rosettes.

This small detail took months because I was unable to find the perfect one or should I say 2 (front and back of door). I could have bought new but they just were not 'right'. The new ones I looked at were plated and light weight which just would not look right. After months of scouring eBay I found a lot of four solid brass oval shaped keyhole escutcheons.

The lock set in the door is for a skeleton key and the lock set works perfectly. I disassembled the lock set last year because I needed to flip the latch over to accommodate the lock set being on the left side instead of the right side. I oiled all the moving parts and reassembled.

So today because the temperature outside was 37 degrees with a wind chill of 15 degrees R decided to finish the door while I continued stripping the paint off the trim in the dining room. First off, R installed the rosettes or escutcheon plates that are between the glass door knobs and the door. I thought I had picked out the correct ones but R called me over to say that either we needed different knobs or different rosettes because these were not matching up well.

So into my boxes and boxes of hardware I went looking for my bags of glass door knobs and rosettes. I found the correct match up and went back to my heat gun and paint chips. An hour later R called me over to look at the final results.Not only do the rosettes and escutcheons look fabulous and correct but the door latches smoothly and perfectly with a distinctive click. No jiggling the knob or rattle or looseness in the door. It was perfect.