bonjour celine header

8.2.12

behind the walls are hidden gems

renovating

newspaper in the walls

vintage wallpaper

Even though I am not doing any of the fixing up around the house, I am exhausted by the activity going on. I was never fond of living through any kind of renovation and I am even less fond of it during pregnancy. At least all the really dusty things are completed now (demolition and sanding of plaster) and things are only looking better from here.

We did find some really interesting things in the walls during this process. Jin found this newspaper neatly glued inside our walls when channels were cut to do some electrical work. It is dated June 28, 1918 and the headline is about World War I!

Also, this beautiful wallpaper was found when a layer of plaster was peeled back in the room that is to become the nursery! It is a shame we won't be able to keep it, our contractor said it crumbles too easily. I asked him to save a piece for me so that I could remember what was there.

In the meantime, I am just hiding in the one room that we try to keep dust free and patiently wait until I can settle back into the rest of the house!

35 comments:

  1. This is amazing!!!

    What wonderful finds!

    Hope you're feeling better - the full moon is still out..... eeee!

    xoxo

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  2. Wow, the newspaper is incredible.

    We just purchased a new house built in the 1920's and will be moving in March. Some renovations will be needed and perhaps we will also find a few hidden gems!

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  3. magical finds! that wallpaper is beautiful, too.

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  4. truly fascinating what buildings can hide, I am amazed at the newspaper and it's such a shame you can't keep the wallpaper!

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  5. lovely wallpaper indeed! hope the renovations speed along :)

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  6. Wow it's amazing what a person can find in their own home! Love the pattern of that wallpaper! And newspapers from the war? How cool!

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  7. It's like finding a real treasure, how amazing! I love the old wallpaper!

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  8. That newspaper must have been quite a lovely find!

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  9. Wow! I didn't realize your house was that old! (Our neighbourhood feels so new and young to me). I love that wallpaper, what a great photo of it.

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  10. What a great little secret you unveiled. History!

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  11. very pretty, these pictures.

    i don't like renos either. hang in there.

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  12. oh man, I can only imagine how stressful it is, but the end is always worth it! Love these detail shots!

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  13. that is so cool! it's weird to think of newspaper as a building material nowadays, but it was pretty standard then. and that wallpaper is just a gem - you should get a chunk off the wall and frame it, it's so pretty! :)

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  14. Take a photo of the wallpaper and hang it as a print :)

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  15. How dreamy, Lucky you finding all of that. Love the photos too.

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  16. History in your walls. So cool!

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  17. Oh boy, this looks very similar to our place. And I could also forget about the dust soon. Good luck on getting things done quickly and in time for the babe!

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  18. oh man, I don't even know what to say. "Cool" doesn't even cover it!

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  19. Isn't it interesting what went on in our homes before us? That ww1 article thing is amazing!

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  20. how wonderful! love that wallpaper, too bad you couldn't keep it. good luck with the renovations!

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  21. What a cool thing to find hidden treasures in your home. I love how you captured it all.

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  22. Hang in there Celine! I hated living in a reno too (swore I would never do it again) so, I can only imagine how tough it would be during pregnancy. It sounds like you are almost there. It will be lovely for the baby. =) love the wallpaper too.

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  23. love the wallpaper!
    good luck and bon courage!

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  24. I can't get over that newspaper; hidden all these years and now here, revealed to the world. And the wallpaper, lovely too.
    Lilli

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  25. What a magical discovery! And you captured it so well. I hope the renovating is over soon, but those treasures probably made it all worthwhile!

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  26. Wow! So amazing, and special. These photos made me think of Amelie. ;)

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  27. Mi sono trasferita qui. Seguimi se ti va.
    http://www.millefogliedite.com/

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  28. Wow!!! Big WOW! It is like discovering the treasures of my great-grandmothers house! :)

    Cool that you can live in such magical place with soul! :)

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  29. that is awesome! i love that you are finding gems through out the dry wall dust. sending you lots of patience through the rest of your renos!

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  30. That's incredible! And you took such pretty photos of the newspaper pasted in the walls! The wallpaper is fantastic. That's such a fun part of renovating. I've seen some really lovely vintage wallpapers that way. I can't wait to see what that room ends up looking like! It'll be so sweet; just like the rest of your lovely home. xoxox

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  31. that, is pretty awesome!
    xx

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  32. That's so cool! I don't know if it's the same with old newspapers written in English, but the Finnish ones are always fun to read already because of the very formal language that was used back then.

    The house I live in was built in the 50s and half of our doors are sliding doors so if you look up when the doors are open between the walls you can see some old newspapers as well. It's nice to think that this place has had a long history before I was even born.

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  33. that's pretty amazing... a piece of history hidden behind your wall all this time!

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  34. The 2nd photo is really nice F.

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  35. what lovely surprises to stumble upon!

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