The Paletta (formerly McNichol) Mansion
Ground Floor

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

The Livingroom Fireplace

Here you see the livingroom fireplace as it was before painting and restoration.
The photo below shows the centerpiece as it was before someone broke into the mansion and stole it.
What a pity that someone would destroy the integrity of such a lovely piece of history.

After the construction work began, the plaster ceiling and carved trim were repaired and the room painted.
It was lovely just in its initial stages of paint, but then my neighbour Mary asked me and another neighbour, Heather,
if we would like to do a little detail painting in the room to bring back some of its former glory.

Here you see the detail on the face of the fireplace painted in white semi-gloss.
As I painted I realized not one of the designs in the carved clusters were alike. Each was different making it truly unique.

Heather started first on the ceiling detail and did a wonderful job and I asked to do the fireplace,
although I had no idea what I was doing. I had never used watery paint before and it took a lot of fidgeting,
but I finally got it to look like a light gold patina.
I'm pretty pleased with the results and fortunately so was Mary.

I was orginally supposed to work on it with another lady, but for reasons unknown
she didn't show up in the time I was doing the job. I knew after that first section
I hoped she wouldn't show up because I suddenly wanted it all to myself.

Here is the finished product.

The inset piece and outer hearth are of black marble. I did a little research on the internet
and discovered a way to clean the paint splotches and rust stains from paint cans off of it.
Then I rubbed a little black shoe polish into it, to put the colour back in the areas where
the rust removed it, and after letting it sit for a while gave it a nice hand rubbed shine.
I did the same with the fireplaces in the diningroom and the conservatory (sunroom).
All the fireplaces in the house were converted to gas, so they not only look lovely,
but will help to heat the house more efficiently.
The original light fixtures were
restored and replaced when the floors were redone or replaced over a period of several weeks.
I couldn't wait until it was all put back together. It was fun watching the old place come back
to life slowly. Now it is all done and it is a magnificent showcase and something the city
can be very proud of. I know those of us who helped feel fortunate to have been a part of it.
I've grown quite attached to this old house. They say there is a ghost that has been seen several times.
She was one of the daughters of the family who owned it. Coincidentally her name was Dorothy too.
When the floors were all done I started work on some hand-painted wallpaper restoration.
That was another sort of challenge, but I looked forward to it immensely. I painted trim on signs
and counted the days until I could get back to the mansion.

Return to HOME page.

Website by Dorothy     Copyright © in Canada 1997