This Old House

The Watertown House - 17

Our host arrives on site to find the building's exterior nearly complete: the new paint scheme is on, the copper gutter system is complete, and Tommy and crew have finished the front porch, from copper shingle roof to new front steps. Roger Cook and his crew are putting in a rice-stone front walk and garden path, leading to the formal herb garden at the house's south side. Inside, the big story is the arrival and installation of the kitchen cabinets. We visit the custom shop where they were made. In the front hall, finishes expert John Dee shows us how he is matching the old, stripped oak of the central staircase to the new oak of the wainscot, using different shades of traditional shellac. Upstairs, Joe Ferrante installs a complex pattern of marble tiles in the master shower, while the crew reassemble the scattered pieces of the central balustrade, handrail and newel posts.