A Curvaceous Update
The huge curved glass window at the bottom of the tower had a small crack in it when I purchased the house in 2014. It was also obvious that the oak sash holding the glass was badly rotted, so it had to come out. And…in the process…the glass cracked in half. And this image is how things have looked very since.
Today though, after much much much ado, Dr. Doug brought by the new oak sash!
And (drum roll, please) after a huge amount of planing and other adjustments, it fits! Now, new curved glass can at long last be ordered! Doug said that the sash was “the most complicated 4 boards I have ever put together”.
Due to, you know, Doug spent his time in the round receiving room doing all this work, while I spent my time on the second floor, outside, painting. I had asked him to take a bunch of pictures and send them to me so I could do a blog post.
This was his last image:
I gasped. Then laughed.
I texted him right away: “I can tell you’re a straight male.”
He replied: “Huh? What?”
“Because any gay man would’ve moved the damn chair before using an electric planer nearby!”
After Doug left, the chair (and room) were soon clean again.
And, I now have a new curvaceous sash!
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LOVELY!
How did Doug bend thick pieces of oak like that (the top and bottom)?
I installed a two-story curved bay salvaged from a demolished house –four double-hung curved oak sash per story. 13 panes good, one diagonal crack I’ll live (and die) with, two sashes re”glazed” with plexiglass. Admittedly letting down the side, infra dig. etc.–but have to keep the weather out!
When I investigated replacements, glass companies I consulted wanted me to send the sash so that they might build a form to “slump” the new curved glass to fit, very dismissive of my offers to measure. This has been more than ten years ago, but was eye-wateringly expensive then. Do you not fear slips in your chosen glass company’s making the new curved glass to your measurements? And then in transporting the new glass back to Emporia?
Hi, John!
The previous owner of the Cross House, Bob, replaced a number of broken curved glass windows via a company in Kansas City. Each panel was only $100 because they had the right size forms stored away from a century previous! The local bid was $800 per panel!
Bob never had the huge tower window replaced because it was too wide (5-feet) for the furnace of the glass company. In 2014, we found somebody in NW Arkansas who could do but I’ve now lost their number! So, some more research!
I plan to ship the wood sash to whatever company does the glass, and hope to pick it up the finished project in person.
I so get that pix of the chair. Love it, but my first thought too was OMG, those chips on the fabric! I have a husband who spray painted black in the garage without putting down newspaper on the floor… Fussy art director here as you know. Dr Doug is a genius and a good photographer!
Good luck with the rounded glass Ross.
Ross,
One of my housemates is gay. He would not have moved the chair. It’s not just a straight guy thing !
Ha!
It must just be a guy thing!
Well done, Dr. Doug!
Thank goodness for Dr. Doug! You are so lucky to have him and Justin to help you! They both have high standards of workmanship and the skills to back it up! I have high standards but the guy I have to rely on to bring my woodworking visions to life says, “Oh that’s close enough.” while I die a little inside. All hail Dr. Doug!
Yay, an update! Yay for Dr. Doug! But that poor chair…. 😀
Dr. Doug, Dr. Doug ! Just too brilliant to notice anything other than his mind set to fine craftsman skills. Men, gotta love them or who would change the flat tire……quote from Last Tango in Halifax (Masterpiece/Netflix)!
Bravo, Dr. Doug! You have proven your mastery in woodwork again and again. Thank you for the pictures, made us laugh.
Bravo to Bob too.
Hahahaha!! Too funny! Happy curved sash to you, Ross. And a big pat on the back for Dr. Doug’s beautiful work!
I’m actually somewhat surprised the sash itself is Oak. Most houses I’ve seen had pine sashes and frames, stained (or faux-grained) to match the finish millwork, whether it be oak, walnut, fir, etc. My understanding is that the big millwork shops just produced windows in clear-grain old-growth pine. For instance, our last house with oak millwork had pine sashes and frames, and our current house with Birch millwork also has pine windows.
I suppose something like that bay window could have been a custom job for a millwork shop, though, so the architect could be more specific with wood species.
I’m actually interested in what type of glass will be available for the curves sash. Will it be modern glass or will you be able to get a more historic wavy glass?
Your sense of humor makes this blog double the fun! Thanks much!