|
Lyda lays out a jigsaw puzzle of stones.
Stone work is as much art as it is work. |
Laying it out on the floor helped us plan the
space
before forging ahead and putting up stones |
|
Bob drills holes in the log to enable
mounting the mantle to the wall |
We thought it would be neat to make the
mantle from one of the logs used to build the cabin.. |
|
As Bob was applying the stones in this
area they fell down 4 times. He was seriously
considering hiring a stonemason at this point. |
But ... with perseverance and a long day's work
the last stone was finally put into place. Again the
moisture content of the mortar made all the difference. |
|
 I
The next step was to brush away some mortar
to deepen the grooves between the rocks.
|
It is important to wash the face of the stones
before the mortar sets in order to help remove
the gray residue which would mute the color. |
Even washing the stones still does not
remove all of the residue .
|
The final step was to apply muratic acid
to the face of the stones. This brings out
the color and cuts the rest of the mortar residue. |
|
 |
After two long hard
days of work
The stone wall is complete.The next step will be
to build the
hearth. But that will have to wait for
another trip. There wasn't enough
time to complete that part during
a short weekend trip to the mountains. |
