Hiraeth Restorations, LLC

08/21/2026

Uncovering a historic stone wall. If you look closely you can see windows and putlogs appear.

08/18/2026

Almost done! Well, not really. Should have the rest of the stucco down tomorrow. Then begins the slow, tedious, and delicate work of cleaning each individual stone, clearing each mortar joint, and repointing with lime and sand. Looking forward to seeing how it turns out!

07/31/2026

Mysteries in Stone

07/30/2026

Sometimes, I find a few spare moments to write. It's one of the more pleasant tasks I get to perform. Far more pleasant than the quarter ton of stucco I get to shovel off the truck as soon as I finish this post. C'est la vie!

Changing Masonry

07/30/2026

Uncovering a “lost” 18th Century Window

07/23/2026

Looks like we found a “ghost”! Outline of an 18th Century window sealed up and forgotten under some pretty nasty stucco. The stucco was bad. The “stonework” built into the old window opening is poorly executed to say the least. All in all, an interest day’s work.

07/15/2026

Timbers all in and it feels like a real house again. Just a couple of small pieces and a splice or two and it’ll be in fine shape.

07/13/2026

06/22/2026

Swinging an axe for nine hours straight isn’t much fun but definitely worth it. Just one more timber to work up tomorrow, get tags on the trailer, and off to Virginia with these fellows!

05/27/2026

It’s been an exceptionally wet spring, slowing progress on all exterior work. A quick visit to Salem to check on the condition of the pointing work done last fall confirmed that the mortar mixes used in the restoration performed beautifully despite everything the winter threw at it. I can now come in next month and finish pointing the final two walls. The original Portland mortar(first photo) was a primary culprit in the deterioration of these almost three hundred year old bricks. The lime mortar and brick dust mix I used to reconstruct some of the badly damaged bricks was based on ancient Roman texts and performed beautifully. After a few years, these patches will blend in with the originally material as it absorbs carbon from the atmosphere.
Thrilled to see the results and can’t wait to get back to this project and the springhouse when this damned weather cooperates!