For the twenty-ninth year, the Chicago Paint & Coatings Association has sponsored the “Chicago Finest Painted Ladies and her Court Competition”. The contest is held every year to recognize the most outstanding painted work done on Victorian and other “Period” buildings. The competition is open to both contractors and homeowners.
Our project won in the category “Best Color Scheme for the Neighborhood”. The building is an 1889 brick Victorian with extensive metalwork on the cornice and two-story bay window. Part of the restoration work involved the fabrication of around thirty pieces of metal decoration that been lost, corroded or fallen apart (as well as the relocation of five bird nests). The metal had not been painted in over twenty years. So, much scraping was involved in the surface preparation. The project also involved the rebuilding of substantial portions of the front porch and the epoxying of many of the window casing and sills.
As far as the color scheme is concerned, we simply reproduced the existing one, which gave the building a regal look and worked well with surrounding buildings. Such projects often involve substantial color consultation and major changes to the color scheme. In this case, we felt the existing colors worked really well.
Chicago is well endowed with such buildings, where shaped metal was used to decorate and beatify their appearance. As painting and decorating contractors, we are privileged to help preserve them and restore their beauty.