The first picture was taken just before demo started. The windows were cased in cheap MDF (read- sawdust and glue) Victorianish trim. I know why most developers use the stuff:
1. it's cheap.
2. It has *some* character.
3. They're lazy.
Those little square corner rosettes mean you don't have to know how to, ahem, cut corners. But if you're ever in a house built after 1900 and see those rosettes, 99% chance they're not original to the house. And if you're within 10 miles of a home depot, 99% chance they're not wood.
As soon as I knew the window wall was going to be coming out, I knew I was going to change the casing but also knew I wanted the windows to mimic a window in the living room. That window is framed like a door with the casing going all the way to the floor and 3 raised panels under the stool. I actually thought we might find evidence that there used to be panels under the windows but we didn't. The only windows that have panels are in the front half of the house... on both the first and second floor. The window that's in our closet (on the second floor) used to be part of a room that extended to the front of the house, hence the paneling. So instead I asked our carpenter to create new panels that came as close as possible to matching the originals. The moulding is slightly different but I may be the only one who ever notices.
The big change from my original idea are the sides of the window jambs. After seeing the depth of the windows in the master bedroom and being instantly reminded of windows I'd seen all over the east coast in historic buildings, I knew I wanted something slightly different downstairs. It's an old European technique that's meant to allow more light into a room called splaying.
But try explaining window splay to someone who's never done it. Good times. Though they're not *exactly* what I had in my mind, (I would have rather not had the window stool extend past the casing) I'm in LOVE with the overall look.
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