Inconvenient- yes, but worth it!

Oh dear, I am falling behind in my posts!  But to catch you all up....  The "spectacular shell" is becoming even more so with the clapboards extending around the house now.  There is only one small area left to do but that is waiting until we tear out the old kitchen to make the library (it will get 2 new windows).  I don't even recognize the house as my own. The design is really apparent now with the merge of the old and new structures bridged so cleverly with a depth that brings the eye front to back.  Friends keep complaining of neck pains as the crank their heads around as they drive by.

The angles and depth are really apparent now

In the last few weeks the reclaimed southern yellow pine flooring has been installed in the new kitchen.  It is really beautiful with all the different colors.  Last week the floors were finished with many coats of tung oil.  It leaves a wonderful luster to the floors and deepens the color.  But with anything good it was a rather inconvenient process since it stinks to high heaven and each coat needed time to sink in and dry between coats.  The new addition was off limits for an entire week and all dogs had to go out and around the house on leases again.  Guess what- it rained a lot last week...

I stuck my iPhone through the window from the outside to see the floors- coat #2

Each coat of tung oil adds a new depth to the wood

This was after the last coat which was a more matt finish (I think)

So much texture to these floors.

This inconvenience will be nothing when it comes to finishing the floors in the old dining room that will be opened up to the kitchen and become the new landing for the modern staircase to the second floor.  Stairs that can be negotiated with baskets, furniture, dogs and people of all ages I hope!  Anyway, the challenge will be where we can all be while that happens.  We may be "roughing it" in the barn and going up and down a ladder into the new bedroom for a few days.  What ever it takes- I'm game for it!  All part of the adventure ride we are on.

The day of the first tung oil coat was the day that our good friends Cathy and Robbie came down for an evening out for Robbie's birthday.  They hadn't seen the house since the addition went on so it was sad that we couldn't take them into the new kitchen but we peered through the windows.  We tried our best to have some cocktails and cheese somewhere in the house.  Cathy and I sat in the new closets (only place to sit) and had wine only to find that Dave and Robbie had taken the cheese plate with them into the barn.  Just like men not to tell their wives where they've gone!  We did finally figure out that they were not coming upstairs.

New party central in the barn. 

Dave was dressed in his foul weather gear to bring the new hens into the coop.  Cathy and Robbie were nice enough to pick up our 6 new pullets from MA and drive them down to us.  They arrived just in time for the skies to open up.

The Gloucester chicken guy????

2 of the new girls making themselves at home
3 Rhode Island Reds and 3 Golden Comets

The new hens are named after Spanish wines (the 3 Spanish reds- Malbec, Rioja and Tempranillo) and the Golden comets of course named after comets. 

Last week Bob and the little purple digger showed up again.  There was a lot of dirt being moved all over the place.  Before I could figure out a what was going on Bob had made a great terraced stone retaining wall.  Dave wants to plant pachysandra there but I think that is too boring.  How about this year planting a little kitchen garden there?  Lettuce, herbs, a few tomatoes.  Let's face it the rest of the yard is going to be a wreck for quite a while.....

Bob made a wonderful terraced wall

New grass seed for dogs and chickens to scratch around- any point to this?

One day this big nifty stone showed up.  A little trimming of the back to make it flush with the foundation and viola a back step!

Wonderful stone for back step- Love it!

The septic is being installed this week.  Tomorrow the inspector is coming and then they can cover it all up and start working on the driveway.

Little purple digger and his friend

New septic- how many people do they think live here?

Looks like a runway for excretia..... OK that's weird

Big Saturday night.....

You know the motto- "life is good".  Tonight I may restate that as "Life is- well awkward".  Dave is busy in his new workshop making his work bench. 

Dave's dream workshop!

Think of all the projects.....

Nice work Dave!

However, I am not sure what to do.  My studio is not set up yet, the kitchen is such a disaster I can't really cook much of anything.  I really don't feel like doing any dishes- but really, who thinks Saturday nights are for doing dishes?  There is no place to be these days..... there is no place to sit.  My favorite new spot to sit is on the threshold for the new outside door.  I've spent a lot of time there lately just looking.  The living room is a new state of chaos as we can't put the room back together quite yet since the casings and sills have not gone on the new windows.  Going out to dinner isn't really an option when we have so much to buy for the house.  A nice dinner out or... a light for the bathroom?  When I got home from work tonight I sat in the new bedroom for a while looking at paint chips and wishing that we could be spending time in there.  Then I wandered outside to visit the chickens and Cranberry for a while.  I stood in the new kitchen and enjoyed what would be my new view from the windows and really liked the new perspective on life.  I ogled the new flooring and imagined what it would look like when it was installed.  But, really is that Saturday night stuff?   The lull in something to do on a Saturday night is temporary and I look at all that is going on and picture what life will be soon but tonight.... well, I'm bored!

View from kitchen windows towards hill

View from where sink will be- sorry about the blurr....

My Saturday date while Dave works in the work shop.....

New reclaimed Southern Heart Pine- my brother says looks like bacon...
It does!

Remember the days when Saturday night meant big plans? Saturday nights in college meant keg parties and mayhem, Saturday nights after graduation I lived in Boston and met friends out on Newbury Street.  In graduate school Saturdays again meant more gatherings and eventual trips to Nantucket to see Dave and really more mayhem... those were the days.  Not too long ago I remember having dinner parties and friends over to hang out..... who wants to come over now and stand in the kitchen listening to Prairie Home Companion while eating a salad?  Nobody!  This will all change soon enough but for now when we are not invited for an activity outside of the home- it's awkward.  I look at the clock- 9 pm.  Hell, I can probably go to bed now.....

Very soon we will be able to start sleeping in the new bedroom.  What will stand between the new room and peaceful slumber is the paint color for the walls. But now that I think about it, is there electricity in there yet?  Hum...... anyway, we can now really decide on color since the floor is done and on Friday Harvey gave the wooden ceiling a special whitewash.  It looks great!  The room is beautiful with all the nice light wood and pine flooring.  The decision to whitewash, even though it did take us a long time to decide, was the right one!  Even Dave, who was skeptical, loves it.

White washed ceiling in bedroom

I love the subtle whiteness of the ceiling now!

The old bedroom and bathrooms also got new windows this week.  I have to thank the guys for being so patient starting their work in there until after I left for the day.  I can't tell you how impressed I am with their consideration.  When I got home from work I noticed that they had rehung my "modesty curtain" in the bedroom and also put the bird feeder back up!  We feel so very lucky to have G&S for this project.  Recently I heard about two horror stories about kitchen remodels that went terrible wrong and had to be redone. Counting my blessings!

subtlety of detail.....

The small nuances of design and craftsmanship are what sets G&S apart from other builders.  No this is not an ad for Gulick and Spradlin but rather a comment on how pleased we are with how the house is coming along.  It has been a little shy of a year now since I first sent that e-mail to Peter asking if he would see our little wreck of a house.  We saw the other houses that G&S completed and were of course impressed.  But looking at a finished product really tells you nothing about how it got that way.  Now that our house project is in full swing it has become more and more apparent that this crew not only are great people and fun to work with but absolutely master craftsmen as well! 

The last few weeks were taken up with very ho hum aspects- insulation (did not have it, got to have it), dry wall (yawn) and plaster.  Plaster is at least interesting and really cool to look at.  I'm just glad that my job does not require me to walk on stilts!

Thank you but no-

The walls of the first floor were done with real plaster and not a skim coat like the upstairs.  You can see how much texture there is with the real deal plaster.  You can get real plaster smooth but it takes longer and not as visually interesting. I love the patterns that it makes!

Plaster in new mud room/ entrance

Once the subcontractors were gone the G&S crew returned from their week or so at another project.  It was good to have them back!  The first thing that happened was that the windows got sills and casings.  The downstairs is getting "the treatment"- meaning all the little nice details that G&S are known for.  They used poplar wood around the windows.  This particular casing looked like marbled rye bread.  I was hoping not to have to paint that one but Dave filled in the nail holes and I think it has to be painted now.  Anyway, this window shows off the lovely beaded edge that the casings have. 

They also built all of the sills nice and wide.  I have always wanted wide sills and here they are- just perfect!  How did you all know?  Dave is afraid that each sill will have a coffee mug abandoned on it.  I can't say that that won't happen or at least the upstairs bathroom but I can always try!

The front entrance/mud room is getting a large coat closet.  Now I have to remember to hang up my coat.  Nice to have an actual closet for that!

The pantry is really wonderful.  Dave wants to sleep in there.  I told him I could find the feather bed and make him a nice little nest if he wanted.  Some husbands sleep in the dog house.  Mine may sleep in the pantry.

I love the beams and old window that was moved from the old house (up in the attic) that has the old wavy glass.

The bedroom is really looking like a room now and feels so pleasant and inviting (I would like to start sleeping there).  The attention to small details are apparent everywhere.  There is even a cute little fixture for the ceiling fan to be installed.  We are trying to decide about the finish of the wooden ceiling.  Do we leave it natural with a little oiling or white wash it?  Not sure yet.... Is it too much wood to be left natural?

New wooden ceiling

The angles of the ceiling and the addition of the wood and trim has really for made an interesting room!

It's amazing how the addition of the floor ties the room together.  Even though we did not put the reclaimed pine floor in the bedroom the #3 pine is really lovely.  At first sight my mind thought "oh, small hooked rugs would look great".

With flooring....

#3 Pine flooring

It was decided that the triangular area would need to be finished with wood.  Dave said I was there for that discussion but I could not remember it at all.  I started to panic about my mental state.  Much to my relief, Peter said that I was not. 

Triangle area filled in with wood
Note the closets!!!

The master bath is still in it's primordial state.  The wonderful Water Works Brickworks tiles that we chose will not be coming to live at our house since the time frame was suddenly all off for the project.  Apparently they got really popular and a 6+ week production time.  In an attempt to lessen by disappointment Peter met me at Dal-Tile and helped me to find something else that would be nice.  We found a nice mosaic strip that has a wave pattern and will pick up the colors of the floor.  There will be a complementary subway tile.  I also noticed a mosaic that is very similar to my beloved French tile that I wanted for the downstairs tub area but could not find the field tile to compliment.  So, it was a very worthwhile expedition!  The terra cotta will arrive tomorrow for the bathroom floors. 

Notice the nice bench and shelf to collect all my bottles of stuff!!!
(poor Dave)

Wave mosaic for shower

Flower mosaic  for downstairs with Minna Water Works bath tub

The terra cotta flooring will be 9 x 9 squares and lucky for us was part of an overstocked lot!  I think that the tiles will add the rustic charm to the bathrooms (upstairs and down) that I was hoping for.  A miracle has also happened, the Restoration Hardware vanity will also arrive on April 12th!

Hand made terra cotta with red walnut patina from Pave Tile

Linen closet to be filled with Antique French linens.

This week the outside of the old house was stripped of clapboards and windows starting to be replaced.

Looks kind of neat like this

Old wall paper found in living room