An old kitchen stove gets a makeover.. and a crate of wood to boot!

Recently I acquired an old, hand-made, metal kitchen stove. And although I liked the 'minimalist approach' of the artist who designed and made it, I thought the stove could use an extra 'bite'.

It's not meant for the attic project, by the way, I did it 'just for fun', and I'm sure I'll use it for something else in due time! So here's how it looked like:

This image: the original stove.

And this is what it ended looking like, after the magic was done:

This image: the stove after the 'makeover'.

Quite a difference, right? So what did I do? Well, there is actually nothing on this stove that remained untouched. For starters, I made the whole thing 'rusty' and worn out, just the way I like them! Then I added a 'steel' hob to the top, to make it look more realistic.

I also added four 'discs' to represent heaters, althought this is a very old school stove, fuelled by wood, not gas or electricity!

Then the main oven door got some attention too in the shape of a nice, long metal handle. Same for the smallest door, which I guess was a compartment for coal, or wood, or both... No idea, but for sure the little door looks very cute now with its handle!

Then a lion head was added to each side of the stove for decoration purposes. Remember that this is an ancient kitchen stove, probably used by Napoleon (who can tell..?), so it should have this type of embellishments to make it more 'archaic'.

This image: lion head on the left side.

This image: lion head on the right side.

 Below are some additional images showing the level of 'rust' of the stove...

This image: the back of the stove wasn't forgotten!

Finally, it was time to give the old lady a companion, for which I took a crate and weathered the heck out of it, to match the stove's appearance. I also added so extra details, including a label,  and stuffed it with real wood from the forests of Romania, courtesy of my friend Adela, who by now has become something of my official Romanian wood dealer!

So here are two pictures of the kitchen stove 2.0, together with his side kick the wooden crate. In all, it was a very successful weekend project, I should say! 

 Thanks for visiting and be well!!!


© José Pereira Torrejón. All rights reserved. No part of the content of this blog may be distributed, published or reproduced without prior authorization from the author.

Jane's attic, update X: A coal kit for the stove.

As I continue working on a stove for Jane's attic, I just finished a coal kit and shovel to go with it.

The original kit was made out of 'lifeless' shiny plastic, with a load of 'coal' looking pretty much the same. Too boring an unrealistic to my taste! Hence I decided to breathe some life into it by giving it a typical "Rusty José" makeover.  

The shovel looks as if it has had a long, working life.

To give it that extra touch, I also added real coal to the kit, and even weathered that! I think it looks beautiful with its irregular surfaces, making it resemble a load of rough diamonds.

Real coal was added to the model.

Then I also built a platform for the stove, using stone slabs of different sizes, framed by wooden lats. Of course the platform itself was weathered too, as was the metal grill and the wall behind it. The coal kit is sitting on it now, but it will have to make way as soon as the stove is ready to claim its throne!

 

Of course, as the work of the damned is never complete, so you can expect some alteration to it as the project progresses. But that constant 'itching' for improvement is what makes it grow.

Thanks for visiting and be well!

© José Pereira Torrejón. All rights reserved. No part of the content of this blog may be distributed, published or reproduced without prior authorization from the author.

Jane's attic, intermezzo to update VIII: reflecting on the attic door.

A door both opens and closes, shutting out or welcoming, depending on which side of it you are. It's a natural thing, something one does not normally think about, but, in life, every action has its consequences....

© José Pereira Torrejón. All rights reserved. No part of the content of this blog may be distributed, published or reproduced without prior authorization from the author.

Jane's attic, intermezzo to update VII: a welcome arrival.

The pram rolled softly into the attic as if pushed by the wind, or an invisible hand. There, standing in the shadows of this secluded micro-universe, was the Old Lady, waiting.

© José Pereira Torrejón. All rights reserved. No part of the content of this blog may be distributed, published or reproduced without prior authorization from the author.

Jane's attic, update IX: boarded up window.

Jane's attic has a boarded up window. To that end, I took a regular window, and took it apart.  Then boarded it up with individual wooden boards which I painted and weathered one by one. 

A broken glass replaced the original, and was weathered to make it look dirty. All I need to do now is to add some more details like spiderwebs and so forth, to give it that extra realistic feel. But that will happen only when the window is installed and secured in place, i.e. after the outside walls have been covered with plaster.

Thanks for visiting, see you next time!

© José Pereira Torrejón. All rights reserved. No part of the content of this blog may be distributed, published or reproduced without prior authorization from the author.

Jane's attic, update VIII: the door gets its fittings.

Today I spent a considerable amount of time giving the attic door its fittings, a task easier said than done! 

This image: on the left the original fitting, on the right the same fitting after weathering.

First I decided to 'weather' them, to give them an old, rusty look.  Then of course I needed to drill tiny holes in the door for the doorknob and the minuscule nails that hold the fittings in place, naturally on both sides of the door.

I still need to figure out if I'm going to make an elongated hole on the side, to give the suggestion of a working door. However, I'll need to do this extremely carefully, as any mistake may destroy the door beyond repair...

What I did do, is give the door a real keyhole, meaning a hole that you can actually look through, just like in a real door! I think this adds an element of authenticity to the whole, as well as a 'mysterious' dimension.

This image: light shining through the keyhole.

Thanks for visiting, and see you next time!

© José Pereira Torrejón. All rights reserved. No part of the content of this blog may be distributed, published or reproduced without prior authorization from the author.

Jane's attic, update VII: the arrival of a very special pram.

Yesterday saw the arrival of a beautiful, aged pram, which I'm sure will look absolutely great in Jane's attic! Here are some pictures taken as I played around with it a bit. 

The pram is quite old and weathered, which makes it perfect for its purpose! It is made of metal, and upholstered in black leather, and measures about 10 x 9 cm, or 4 x 3,5 inches. Its frills are loose here and there, its undercarriage is rusty, and the leather looks battered by time. In sum: perfect! I couldn't be more happy with it! Thank you so much, Rebecca, for helping me acquire this magnificent item!

© José Pereira Torrejón. All rights reserved. No part of the content of this blog may be distributed, published or reproduced without prior authorization from the author.

Jane's attic, update VI: working on the walls.

Today I've also been working on a couple of walls here, and, like the panelling, I think they turned out pretty nice.

The walls with the green wallpaper have another (yellow ocker) wallpaper underneath, covering the entire surface of the walls. I've done that to enable me to pull out pieces of it at places, allowing the wallpaper underneath to shine through. So, even when only a small portion of the wallpaper underneath is seen, I still know it's there...

This was it for today, thanks for visiting and see you next time!

 
© José Pereira Torrejón. All rights reserved. No part of the content of this blog may be distributed, published or reproduced without prior authorization from the author.

Jane's attic, update V: new panelling.

The panelling for the staircase room is all done now, although it still needs installing and aging. Again, pretty happy with the result!

Jane's attic, update IV: working on the panelling.

Wanted a wooden wall panelling... Didn't have it, so I made it myself!