steel cable bond beam

This house was built without a bond beam and the foundation is river rock, yet it has stood over 200 years. Our north wall of the house was leaning about 4 to 6 inches away from the house. We built a buttress out of 500 adobe blocks, but also reinforced it with a steel cable "bond beam". We used old tractor graders and cut them in half and sandwhiched the wall between them. The corner piece was welded and made. Hope that'll hold it! No more wall falling over dreams, like the south facing wall did.

Old Roofing Fence

I made this fence out of cedar posts and old roofing tin.  I put some little flowers in it to help the wind to travel through.  Hopefully they won't blow away, but we've had some strong storms and it is still there.  I was afraid it was going to look like a prison or army barracks, arching them really helped.

kitchen and living room floors

Our of the first four rooms we tackled we decided to made three of them concrete.  This made it posible to have radiant heat.  Plus, the wood floors were pretty ruff.  Most of them were laying on 'muertos', flat boards layed on top of a once adobe floor.  We found lots of marbles and rats nests.  We returned the marbles to the man who as a child shot them down a hole in the floor, he was happy to get them back after all these years.  We did that demolition the winter of 2005 and it was cold.  We worked most all days all hours and ate lots of green chile pizza.  Before the concrete we layed insulation, tubing, and then the rebar.  Richard Gonzales and sons poured the floor for us and did a great job, they have been friends ever since.

The Music Room

This is the first room we stepped into, it took some effort getting past the boarded up door with a crow bar.  The first thing I said once we got in was, "this is the music room".  Mostly I was thinking that because it was big, 20 feet long and 14 feet wide.  After we learned more about the house we found out that the man who wrote the New Mexico state song, "Asi es Nuevo Mexico" Amadeo Lucero  lived here.  One day his son was visiting and told us that this room was indeed his fathers music room.  We busted out one small window and put up a big 12 X 12 lentel and put in a double window to get better morning light.  The ceiling was old tongue and grove, which still hasn't been washed five years later.  My Mother gave us an old french door that belonged to the old Baker Ranch house in Tuolumne, CA.  We put new glass and took off all the paint.   After the old plaster was chipped off we used the soil from the yard to plaster, the final coat I added some very fine sand and clay I purchased from the pottery store, plus a bit of mica.  I sanded about three layers of paint off the wood floors, my thumb was numb for about a week.  First we used a big rented sander for a day and then for another 4 days I sanded with a circular sander.  The floor boards were pretty warped and have 1/8 inch gaps between them, but the wood looks nice.  The music room was fixed up first, which is where we slept for the past five years and the past three years with my son too.  My sister gave us her piano and the drum kit went up in it's permanent spot this summer.  Also, this room is where the fold out futon is for guests.  This last winter we put in a new Jotul wood stove which was nice, the old one was so smokey and made me nervous to leave when a fire was going.

Dad's rock wall

This wall is not part of our big adobe but is too incredible not to mention.  My father Dave Marston built this wall on his property in Northern California.  Without the help of my folks much of the work on our house would not have happened.  They are true pioneer mountain people and can/will do just about anything.  This wall is a testimony to that and an inspiration to us.  The wall he built will be standing long after the house has decomposed.

The Portal

The house wraps around in 'J' shape and so we have this little protected courtyard.  The water damage all around the house was a big problem.  My husband and our good friend Preacher built a beautiful portal we used 8x8 lumber for posts and Preach scorped them creating a nice texture on the wood.  He used a coopers knife that is a 'U' shaped knife that is used for peeling logs.  Every board had to be measured separately since the house is in every way uneven and unlevel.  From one end to another there is a 2 feet difference. It was a good thing we completed the job when we did because the week we finished Dixon had more rain at on time then it had in 80 years.  The arroyos were flooded which meant several roads were blocked too.  At the time we couldn't afford to roof it, so we picked up some old roofing that a friend gave us and used the old flooring for the running boards.  Later on we got the whole house including the portal re-roofed with new roofing and gutters, so we then bought ruff cut lumber to do solid running boards underneath and were able to put down roofing paper etc..

Harvest Table

When the ceiling/roof fell in we salvaged the old ceiling joist and had a friend build this table.  Our house had vigas (round logs) originally holding up the ceiling with a flat roof, as did most of the old adobes.  In 1947 the vigas were taken out and a pitched roof or territorial roof was put on with tin roofing.  I put many coats of linseed oil on the table, now it's ready for dancing on!

Eventually we will make some benches.... chairs are too expensive.

home made paints

I have made several different home made paints.  Our living room is a lime/clay paint over earth plaster.  In another room I made a wheat paste/clay paint.  Here is are a bunch of recipes that I have collected from lots of different sources on the web, magazines, and word of mouth.

Basic Flour Paint  Flour paint is among the simplest and most versatile of all homemade paints. It can be applied to most interior surfaces, and the proportions don’t have to be as exact as for other kinds of paint. You can use many types of grain flour as the binder, but wheat flour is the most common choice.

Flour paint typically uses clay as the filler, but any combination of finely ground inert materials, such as chalk, mica, marble, limestone or silica will work. If you want a textured surface, use more coarsely screened materials. Just make sure you’ll still be able to apply the finished product with a brush!

Flour paint is too thick for use with a roller, and it tends to be hard on brushes. Choose inexpensive brushes with natural bristles — nothing fancy — and stock up. When first applying flour paint, the brush marks will be evident. To remove the marks, wait until the paint has begun to dry and smooth over with a damp sponge or clean, damp brush. Going over the surface again when the paint has become leathery will also help reveal the mica or other filler.

Yields 1 1/2 quarts 

1 cup flour
5 1/2 cups cold water
1 cup screened clay filler (clay can be purchased in a wide variety of colors)
1/2 cup additional powder filler, such as mica

   Mix flour with 2 cups cold water, whisking to remove lumps.  Bring 11/2 cups water to boil, and then add the flour water from Step 1.Turn heat to low, stirring until thick paste develops. Remove from heat.  Dilute the paste with 2 cups water, a little at a time.  In a separate work bowl, combine clay with powder filler.  Add filler mixture to diluted flour paste until desired consistency is achieved.

Oil paint is suitable for exterior surfaces, and you can clean oil-painted surfaces regularly without damaging the paint. (You’ll need to use a solvent to clean brushes and equipment.) Oil paints can take a long time to dry — some will never completely harden — but this property gives the paint the advantage of remaining elastic as surfaces naturally swell and shrink.

Natural oil paints typically are made with linseed oil and a natural solvent, such as pure turpentine or citrus thinner. Choose raw linseed oil or linseed stand oil, which has been heated to a high temperature, making it more durable. (Avoid boiled linseed oil, which can contain a variety of ingredients that speed drying time, but may be hazardous to your health.)

When painting bare wood, the finished surface will look much better if you wet the wood with warm water and sand it before painting. Priming helps seal wood against moisture and creates a better bond with the finish. This is especially important if the paint is intended to cover the wood’s grain.

Basic Oil Primer Your surface will be ready for paint about 48 hours after the primer has dried. It is difficult to provide precise recipes for oil paints, because pigments absorb oil to varying degrees. Pour several tablespoons of linseed oil in a bowl and add pigment, a little at a time, until a doughy paste forms. Then you can add more oil just until the mixture flows. Next, add solvent until the paint reaches your desired consistency. Pour the finished mixture through a strainer to remove lumps.

1 pint linseed oil- 1 pint natural solvent (mineral spirits or citrasovl) Apply a thin coat along the wood grain.  Remove excess with a cloth.  Apply a second coat after first is completely dry (48 hours between coats)

Basic Oil Glaze -An oil glaze can serve many purposes. Sometimes you will want to put a glaze over flour or milk paints to increase water resistance. Oil glazes also make nice wood stains, with or without added color.  Oil Glaze Recipe (yield 2 cups)  1 tsp pigment- 1 tsp powdered chalk- 1 cup linseed oil- 2/3 cup natural solvent Dissolve 1 tsp pigment and 1 tsp powdered chalk in 1/2 cup linseed oil.  Stir in remaining 1/2 cup linseed oil.

Milk Paint  1 cup powdered nonfat milk, 1 cup water, powdered pigment.  Mix milk powder and water.   Add natural paint pigments to color, if desired.  Too much pigment will lessen the durability of the paint.  Dries a glossy finish.  After the paint has dried 3-4 hours you may top coat with varnish, oil finish, pure tung oil, lacquer, or wax.

 Casein Paint with Lime  Yields about 1 quart 

1 gallon nonfat milk
2 1/2 ounces “Type S” lime (dry powder available at hardware stores)
2 1/2 cups water
Natural earth pigment (more or less depending on desired color)
6 cups filler (usually whiting)  In order to become an adhesive binder, casein must be combined with an alkali such as lime. (You can use borax instead, but lime-casein paint is much more water resistant.)  Leave milk in a warm place for a few days to curdle. Then pour through a colander lined with cheesecloth. You should have about 2 cups of curds. The whey can be composted.  Mix curds and lime powder in a blender. Add a little water if the mixture isn’t blending well. Strain to remove any lumps.  Add water to the binder immediately after it is prepared.  Dampen and crush pigments. Add them to the mixture a little at a time until desired color intensity is achieved. Stir in filler.

Casein Paint Adjustments

After mixing your paint, test it on a small area of your surface and let it dry completely. If it doesn’t spread easily, add some water. If it dusts, add more binder. If it’s too thin, add more filler. If the color isn’t rich enough, add more crushed pigment.  When making your own paint, it is important to experiment, test, experiment, and test some more. Keep it fun! If you play for a while first, you’re sure to end up with a beautiful combination of rich colors and interesting textures.  For best results, clean all surfaces thoroughly before painting.  Homemade paints contain food ingredients and should be used soon after mixing.   You can refrigerate them, but the binding ability may diminish.

It may be difficult to create exactly the same color over and over again. Try to mix as much paint as you can reasonably use in one work session.  Exercise caution when using linseed oil. Crumpled oil-soaked cloths can spontaneously combust, so be sure to wash all cloths and other materials before disposal.

Exercise caution with all powdered and caustic materials, especially lime. Wear gloves and goggles.

 Interior surfaces:  flour; casein; oil
Exterior surfaces:  oil; flour in mild climates; casein in extremely mild, non-humid climates
Bare wood:  oil; flour; casein
Stone:  flour; casein
Bare drywall:  casein; flour (but not over joint compound)
Wallpaper:  flour; casein
Earthen plaster:  flour; casein
Gypsum plaster:  flour
Masonry (cement, lime, unglazed brick, unpainted earth):  flour; casein; oil
Painted surfaces, sanded:  flour; casein
Surfaces that require frequent cleaning:  oil

the archway

All of our rooms sort of seem like your on a train, no hallways and narrow doors going through. Each of our eight rooms are all about 13 to 14 wide, the length in which folks could get vigas across for the roofs.  The door from the kitchen to the living room was falling apart after we were chipping plaster and discovered that there was a mud smoke hole in the wall.  The adobe was all brittle and black, so this gave us a good reason to just knock it down.  It wasn't a load bearing wall and is single adobe (8-10 inches thick).  I made the corbels myself with my saws all, I wanted them to look like whale tails.  We got some big posts which were knocked down from a twister north of us.  The lintel is western cedar from my grandfathers old work bench.   It was probably milled at the Westside Lumber Company in Tuolumne, CA where he used to work.  After he died my Father asked me what I wanted from Grandpa's old shed, I told him the wood from his bench... he just sighed and said, "figures".  It was quite difficult to take it apart and I drove it back to New mexico tied to the car.  When I sanded it I was amazed that it looked like the Sierra Nevada foothills where I grew up and where it was from.  My husband really wanted a moorish window next the archway, so I built it for him.  It really looks nice with a candle in it.

the boys room mural

I have painted murals for years in the Sierra Nevada of California and in Rhode Island.  I have always had a detailed realistic style for painting.  I decided that the boys room should be simple and left to the imagination, plus faster to paint with little time.  Soft color with silhouettes were perfect.  I painted with small brushes right over the top of the gypsum plaster.  We started with a tree and a owl and will add on later as the furniture finds it's place.  I purchased the paint from a Santa Fe, NM based company, 'Bio Shield'.  It is called Kinder paint and has no VOCs (volatile organic compounds), also this paint was made to be washed off easily.

www.bioshieldpaint.com

Master bedroom

Our bedroom opened up many opportunities to voice it's own opinion to what it wanted to look like when one morning the south wall of it just fell in, taking the roof/ceiling down with it.  The ceiling in this room was the shortest

 ceiling and I had said many times, "wouldn't it be cool if we could make it a cathedral ceiling?".  Well, I don't know if the house was listening to my thought or I the house, but now it was possible.  We did get a small insurance settlement that helped.  I think that the insurance guy felt sorry for us, seeing how hard we had worked on the rest of the house.  Also, he was sentimental about an old adobe being saved.

Sometimes because of moisture, no bond beam, lack of foundation, and not being "tied" in to the other walls causes them to just collapse.  I had also had folks tell me that mice burrowing into the walls making tunnels can weaken a wall.  Good thing that we had built that rock buttress on the southeast corner years earlier or maybe more walls would have fell.  I don't think I'll forget sitting on the portal with my father, husband and son drinking my morning coffee and watching the dust pour out of the doorway and windows for at least 20 minutes.  Good thing my Dad was visiting because he helped brace the beams so we could get under there and start cleaning up.   We filled in a doorway and were able to put a nicho shelf there more easily.

This collapse also made us realize that the wall next to it would probably fall as well, so the roof was braced with post and car jack then the wall was knocked down with backhoe.  

Our Hearth

January 1st, 2005

The first thing we constructed after all the cleanup was our hearth in the living room.

I lathed the adobe wall with chicken wire, using masonry nails so the concrete wouldn't separate from the adobe.  With collected river rock I stacked up the sides.  The base was filled in with pea gravel and a watery mix of concrete with flagstone on top.  Got a good deal on a Lopi liberty wood stove and then had warmth for working in winter.  The photo of the whole family was December 2008.