Posts from April 2012
Small Cool: VOTE NOW!
…as in, RIGHT NOW!
We were thrilled to learn this morning that we won in the “small” category! Voting for the finals was supposed to open at midnight and last through Wednesday afternoon, but it seems like they’ve changed things up a bit and polls are officially open for a single-day vote only! (Revision: looks like they changed it back so the contest closes as originally posted on May 2nd (3:00 EST).) Besides the pure glory of victory and Bailey’s happiness, there are a lot of reasons why winning this contest money would be a huge deal for us right now and so we’d really appreciate your vote this one last time (note: even if you voted in the prelims, you can now vote again in the finals!).
Thanks guys, fingers crossed.
an open letter from bailey
Hey guys, Bailey here.
I’ve been meaning to do a blog post for a while now, but these giant paws of mine make it really tough to type. Fortunately, I somehow managed to convince my small-pawed brother Felix to help me out (even though I did I push open the bathroom door and eat all of his breakfast this morning).
So here’s the deal, I’ve never really told my side of this remodel story. Sure, I may look like a young pup, but I’ve been around during this whole crazy ride…
In fact, I remember the first time they brought me over to the new house (I wasn’t even a year-old yet!). They didn’t trust me to stay in the partially fenced backyard, so they tied me up to that nasty teal gate. Let’s be honest, I probably could have dragged the whole thing down the block if I’d have thought about it. Even though the yard needed a lot of help, I was pumped about all that space for me to run around in.
For the first month or so and before we actually moved in, Mom and Dad used to bring me over to the house in the evenings. They still didn’t trust me to stay away from the walls they were painting and so out came the leash. It’s kinda embarrassing being tied up in your own home, y’know?
After we got all settled in, it was time for me to get to work. Here’s dad and me fixing the old work truck we bought from a farm dog up north.
But let’s be honest, after a while I grew tired of all the work. (What? I’m a golden!) Some nights I’d hide in the shop and hope no one missed me.
On more than one occasion, I’ve also questioned the sanity of my parents (I’m giving Dad “the look”). I suppose at some point though I realized that I would just have to trust that I wouldn’t be stuck in the house forever. And I wasn’t…Dad built a sweet stoop where we sit on nice days and drink beer.
But along with the low points, there have been some great milestones too. That basement project was no barrel of monkeys. I felt bad that Dad spent all that time digging away at the dirt in the crawl space. If I wasn’t so lazy, I could have lent my diggers.
I admit, I haven’t always had the vision that my architect parents have. Mom tried to show me what the view from the future kitchen would be like but for some reason it just wasn’t clicking.
My favorite part of this whole remodel thing is probably all of the car rides to home improvement stores. I especially love Home Depot. Not only is there usually stale popcorn on the floor, but I get all kinds of hugs and belly rubs. Lowes is ok, but I had an accident there one time and have been too ashamed to go back. You never want to be the dog that brings out the “caution wet floor” sign if you know what I mean.
I like to think that I’ve really matured as a DIY dog over the years and by the time we tackled the big interior gut job in ’10, I was ready. Mom and Dad still don’t give me a lot of responsibilities, so I’ve generally taken it upon myself to supervise.
I also supply moral support and encouragement. DIY dogs, this is very important.
And when I’ve got some downtime, I lay in piles of sawdust. What, you haven’t tried this? It’s bliss!
I’m also a fantastic source for comic relief. Hey guys…it’s just a house y’know. Lighten up! Let’s have an insulation par-tay!
And when we’ve all worked a little too hard, I let them know when it’s time to power down for the day.
I know this photo doesn’t bode well for my intelligence, but I’m actually just really respectful of boundaries.
A word of caution to you long-haired canines, remodeling can lead to extreme haircuts if you’re not careful. It felt so strange at first, but it was really quite liberating.
Last summer they took away my backyard access and I thought I was tripping in some kind of M.C. Escher drawing…
…but I soon realized that you were just building me a sweet deck to lounge on.
“Looking good guys! Oh…little to the left…there you go!”
So why this blog post and why now? As you can see, I’ve been through a lot these last 5 1/2 years and it’s time for a little Bailey pampering. But I don’t have a job or any money, so I’m relying on you guys to help me out. Here’s the deal – if my parents win this contest thing they’ve entered, I get a new yard. With real plants…that I can pee on! You’ve seen what I’ve had to work with and it isn’t pretty. Seriously, every morning I go out and smell the winter daphne because it’s the only plant in the yard. To make matters worse, this morning Mom and Dad made fun of me when I came in because I had tiny pink flowers on my back (so humiliating!).
Also, I don’t want to ruin the surprise but I think they’re turning the TV room into a bedroom for me. Last weekend they installed this weird elevated dog bed. I’m not sure how to get in and out of it just yet, but seeing as how I’ve never had my own bed I guess I don’t know what to expect. But still, I know we’re going to need some more cash to pimp out my room. And I don’t know why, but there seems to be some kind of deadline attached to getting all this stuff done.
Felix and I have been keeping tabs on the vote count and the gap between 1st and 2nd place in our category is shrinking quickly. I’m not that good at math, but Felix says he’s worried. So that’s why I’m asking you, Bailey lovers of the world, to click over to that Cool Small contest thing and show me your support. In return, I will send you a virtual nuzzle. And when you see pictures of me rolling around in a giant pile of fresh compost, you’ll know that you had a small part in making that dream a reality.
Love, Bailey (and Felix, cat typist extraordinaire)
zerbebe nursery: crib + colors + consignment
[Psst! Thanks to many of you, our house is currently the top pick in the “small” category in Apartment Therapy’s Small Cool contest! There’s still a week left to vote and then the top entries from each size category move on for a chance to win $5k!! If you want to “favorite” us, just click here.]
It’s been a while since we did a nursery post, but that’s only because there hasn’t been much to write about. Until now…
Boom! Ok, it’s just a crib and some color samples but it’s progress nonetheless.
I’ve been mulling over all the amazing comments you guys left on our nursery design post last month (seriously, I think it was one of the most commented posts ever) and fine tuning my thinking about what the space should be. We’re still on board with the second scheme (the darker walls, vintage dresser, glider and blond crib), but with a few adjustments. First of all, we decided to get the IKEA Gulliver crib instead of the Oeuf. After hearing so many positive comments about the Gulliver, we knew it was the right choice for us.
So with the bedding already on hand (an organic Naturepedic mattress and Aden + Anais crib sheet that were gifts from my dad and stepmom), I couldn’t resist the urge to go ahead and put it all together. The crib was actually really easy to assemble, taking me no more than 34 minutes. Seriously, I probably spent more time removing the safety stickers on the top rails. (Hint: they come off way easier if you wet them with a hot washcloth first.) So far, I’m really impressed with the quality of construction and finish. In the realm of IKEA, this is one of the better products I’ve seen.
Now, on to paint colors. I was first inspired to go dark by this image from the Oeuf website (and have since pinned a few other dark-walled nurseries). Maybe it’s not the most conventional color, but I like it. To me, it’s more cozy than brooding. Also, because the nursery reads more like an alcove off the living room, having the darker color against our otherwise all-white walls will help add some much-needed depth and texture to the house.
Oh, and I’m sure it will make baby Zerbey feel like she’s back in the ol’ womb and want to sleep for long stretches of time. (This is sound logic right?)
So with a direction in mind I grabbed a stack of paint chip contenders and then narrowed my favorites down to these 5. (Ok, they probably all look the same to you but I did my best to show the colors as accurately as possible…just think dark blue-gray). On Friday I picked up some pint-size testers from our local Benjamin Moore store so I could do larger-scale mock-ups. (This wall will eventually be covered by the wardrobe, so I’m not worried about any potential inconsistencies in texture, etc.)
Kyle and I both have a favorite, but what do you guys think? [Click to enlarge.] Again, I’m sure it’s difficult to see the subtle differences on a computer screen, so if you pick by most awesome name I’ll understand. The plan is to stew on it this week and then pick something so I can get to painting (ugh) next weekend.
In terms of baby stuff, we’ve been making some good progress. Now, I’m not exactly a seasoned pro when it comes to baby loot but I have done a good deal of research and listening. My approach may not be perfect, but so far it seems to be working. Going into this whole baby thing, I knew I wanted to focus on the things we really needed or that would make our lives easier. I also wanted to place an emphasis on products and items that were well-made and could be used again (for us or someone else). Oh, and I didn’t want to spend a lot of money.
My first step was just to do a crap load of research. I read blogs, looked at checklists, talked to friends and even ventured to almost every baby store in the greater Seattle area. During that time, I set up a universal online registry as a brain dump of sorts. (I quickly realized that there would be no way I could register at one or even three stores, so universal was the way to go.) Over the period of a month or so I added and deleted things from the list and then sent it to a few other new moms for vetting.
Once I felt like I finally had my brain fully wrapped around the subject, I moved on to the next step – consignment sales. There are several shops around town, but I quickly discovered that the big events are where it’s at. (Honestly, I rarely buy used clothes for myself but I’m 100% behind the philosophy when it comes to baby and kid stuff.) Armed with a good mental list of what I needed, on two occasions now I’ve worked my way through throngs of people to find most of the items you see above. (I’ve also gotten a handful of thoughtful e-mails from local readers alerting me to specific Craigslist deals or popular message boards – I had no idea there were so many great networks for parents out there!) My favorite is when I find a slightly used version of a registry item for about 1/10th of the price. In a small way, I feel like I’ve beat The System.
In addition to the mattress and bedding (and lots of books!), we’ve also received a few amazing handmade gifts so far. Like this baby quilt that my mom made:
It’s feminine, but not too girly and in true 21st-century style, it even has its own QR code (that lists the date it was made). My stepdad (a bit of an engineer nerd, but in the best way!) has been into creating and using QR codes lately and when he couldn’t convince my mom to quilt a QR code out of fabric pieces, they opted for this printed version instead.
My sister also knitted this adorable cardigan and hat. I love it. Living in Seattle, I see a lot of cardigans in our little girl’s future.
And that’s what’s going on in zerbebe land. I’m still stalking Craigslist for a used dresser, but no sweet deals yet. Actually, I’ve seen very few mid-century options in general. Am I looking in the wrong place? Is there some local antique store hoarding 1960’s dressers that I don’t know about? Help me interwebs!
landscape plan!
We did it. After nearly 6 years of rocking a minimalist (err, brutalist?) yard, we finally bit the bullet and hired a landscape architect. But before we show you what he came up with, let’s get everyone up to speed on the traumatic history of our yard. It all started in ’06, when we became the proud new owners of some diseased shrubs and dead grass:
Poor little sad house.
Even though our house has received a major facelift since then, our yard has not:
But those days are numbered because BAM! Look at what’s in store! [Click to enlarge]
True, we had every intention of landscaping at least the front yard last summer, but that whole foundation drainage project took a wee bit longer than expected and we simply ran out of time. Not this year though; we have a baby deadline (apparently it’s a million times harder to get stuff done after that happens) and we’re tired of the constant weedapalooza. So we hired our friend Mark, who is a landscape architect at The Watershed Company, to put together a planting plan that we could use as a template of sorts to make our landscaping dreams come true. Although we had a general design in our heads (you may remember this site plan that we shared with you last summer), we mostly needed help with the actual plant selection and layout. Fortunately, after an on-site consultation a few weeks ago (where we talked about our basic goals and ideas), Mark came up with something that really filled in all of the missing pieces while also making some great modifications and suggestions in the process.
Now I know what you’re probably thinking, “of all the projects you’ve tackled yourself, you decide to hire someone to help with plants??” Although we pride ourselves in our DIY approach, keep in mind that architectural design and construction are our territory. Plants are not. Although we could take the time to do the necessary research on species, proper spacing and location, we knew that just wasn’t going to happen. It’s too big of a project and we firmly believe in hiring talented folks to help out when in over your head (just like you it’s a good idea for people to hire an architect).
This is a first pass, so we’ll definitely be making a few tweaks here and there before we bust out a shovel. (Remember all of those pavers that we salvaged from our demo project last summer?) We also realize that this project will be a lot of work (and $$), so the plan is to tackle the front yard and backyard planting boxes this year, while saving the remainder for later. Depending on costs, we may also scale back on the quantity of plants, allowing us to fill in over time.
Finally, If you’re like us and don’t have a mental image bank of all plant types, get ready for your mind to be blown with a cornucopia of vegetative goodness! Along with the draft planting plan, Mark also sent us a booklet of all the plants that he’s listed. For your viewing pleasure, I took the liberty of making the montage below. As you’ll see, it’s a combination of mostly drought-tolerant and Pacific Northwest-friendly trees, shrubs, grasses, perennials, groundcover, and herbs. Don’t worry, we won’t be using every species listed, many of them were just presented as different choices for a single area. In fact, we showed the plan to our plant-savvy neighbor tonight and she gave us some great insight into the options she liked best.
Color! Life! Excitement!
So what do you guys think? We have complete trust in our landscape architect, but this is very much new territory for Kyle and I so we’d love to hear your constructive thoughts or suggestions.
Yay plants!
1940 census
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you probably heard that the National Archives recently released an online version of the 1940 census. I hadn’t thought much about it until last weekend when my brother pulled up info on the family that lived in the house we grew up in (built in 1919). I love a good research challenge and instantly wanted to know more about chezerbey.
When we bought our house in ’06, we ordered the 1930’s photo above from the Washington archives. Along with the photo we received a fact sheet of sorts listing the basic info on the home. Between that and our neighbors, here’s what we know:
Our house was built in 1910 and the carport was added in 1965. The previous owner was a man in his mid-90’s who had been a car mechanic and had lived there since the early ’80’s (he moved into a nursing home a year prior to us buying the house). Prior to that, we know very little and that’s why it was so interesting to uncover the census info.
After an hour or so of hunting (I started with our basic location and then sifted through 15-20 pages of entries to find our house), BAM! This is what I found (click to enlarge):
In 1940, our house was home to Carl and Elsa Nelson and their two teenage children Albert and Alice. Carl and Elsa came to Seattle from Sweden, but the kids were born in Washington. (Our neighborhood has a rich Scandinavian history so we weren’t surprised by this.) Carl worked as a laborer at a brickyard and Elsa stayed at home. The house was valued at $2,000.
I’ve often assumed that because our house is relatively small, it had always been home to a single person or couple. But now, a family of four! With TEENAGERS!
When the house was built, there was no interior stair that connected the main floor to the basement. In fact, the dog-legged version that we eventually demolished looks to have been added in the 60’s, so it’s unlikely that anyone lived in the basement before that. So how did a family of four survive in a one-bedroom house? Did Albert and Alice sleep in the living room? At any rate, it was reassuring in a sense. If the Nelson family could live small, so can we.
Anyone else dig up info on their pre-1940 home? I’m also curious if the teenagers (who would be in their ’70s) are still alive and living in the area. A quick Google search didn’t yield much and with such common names I didn’t dig too deeply.
[Psst! Speaking of small, we entered chezerbey in Apartment Therapy’s Small Cool 2012 contest. You have through next week to “favorite” us and then the top submissions from each size category move on to final voting where the grand prize is FIVE-THOUSAND DOLLARS! That’s 2.5x chezerbey’s 1940 value!]
