Posts from October 2009
fall
During the last several months we have been keenly aware of the changing seasons. Until this past week though, it was like a ticking clock pushing us to get things wrapped up. Now that we’re done, it’s time to finally celebrate what is arguably the best season of the year! It’s also the first time that we’ve bought pumpkins since we’ve lived here. Maybe we just couldn’t bring ourselves to combine orange and the old, faded teal color together.
Oh, ok…our motivation this year was not only to be festive, but also to take advantage of blue-orange color theory.
It didn’t take long for Bailey to realize that “his” pumpkin was also a toy. We had to take it away when he started chewing on the stem.
video: porch transformation
Throughout our exterior project, we took photos from the same spot at the edge of the street, with the idea that we would eventually put together a little video of the transformation process. Maybe it would be better with a sweet soundtrack, but at only 35 seconds we decided to go with a vintage, silent movie style. The first frame is from when we bought the house, to illustrate the official “before”. The second frame starts in March, with the final one taken just a few days ago.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dppPiyYHuwQ]
the long awaited before & after…
Drumroll please…as of today, we are DONE with the exterior! After a productive three day weekend, we finished the painting, installed and stained the shingles and trim, and put up the new gutters and down spouts. Good thing too…as it’s supposed to start raining tonight and continue for the next week or so (and since we’re in Seattle, it may not be sunny again till April)! There are still a few small things to do and of course we should finish the inside of the porch at some point, but there is also a definite sense of relief today! Afterall, we did start this project in March. March, people.
Check out the exterior page to see how we got from “before” to “after”.
The official “before” and “after”…September of ’06 to October of ’09.
We even had time this evening to clean up and mow the jungle that our yard had become! Ugh…I guess there is still some teal left.
New cedar shingles after one coat of Sikkens stain. We’ll try to get another coat or two up if we get a dry weekend and it’s not too cold.
Kyle and Dustin spent most of Saturday and Sunday installing the cedar shingles.
We had to pull the temporary stair away to install the shingles which also meant that Bailey was at a loss on how to get back in the house.
you know you’re in the depths of remodeling when…
I came across this top ten list the other day on the blog Baltimore Rowhouse. There are a few items that I could definitely relate to, like #10 and #7. So here’s our own take on remodeling (inspired mainly by our current project):
#10 you vacuum your house with a shop vac
#9 you currently have blankets and towels as makeshift doors or window coverings
#8 you know exactly what time it gets dark on weeknights
#7 you have a list of home improvement & hardware stores and their hours on your fridge
#6 you have paint brushes in your freezer
#5 you eat dinner at IKEA, and you enjoy it.
#4 you play fetch with your dog using wood shims
#3 you organize your receipts by “remodel” and “other”. The “remodel” stack is bigger.
#2 you know Home Depot better than the employees (ok, that one’s too easy)
#1 friends and family keep tabs on you via your house blog
Any other good ones we’re forgetting?
a little here, a little there
If it seems like we didn’t get as much done this weekend it may be because, between the two of us, we went to Home Depot four times, Lowes twice, a trip to the Environmental Home Center, and a jaunt over to Issaquah for a Craigslist find (a used staple gun to install the shingles).
So here’s what we did accomplish – Kyle focused on putting up the rest of the building paper, installing the basement door, painting the slats at the stoop, spray painting the various mechanical/electrical accoutrements, and installing new hose bibs. I focused on insulating and installing a vapor barrier in the old back porch and new mudroom in addition to masking and priming the trim at the new back door and window. Most importantly though, we finally removed the.last.of.the.TEAL!! 1965…it was nice knowing you.
This week we finish installing the base trim followed by the routine spackle, sand, caulk, prime and paint. This weekend, weather permitting, it’s shingle time!
The makeshift painting center. I might be on a first name basis with the employees at Seattle Paint Supply.
Bailey investigates the view from the new “future kitchen” window.
For the furnace exhaust, sub-panel junction box and gas meter (on the other side of the house), we picked a color that would most closely match the cedar shingles. Spray paint, what a concept!
The LAST PIECE OF TEAL…the old basement door.
New basement door…we’ll probably end up painting it the blue gray color.
Thanks to another sunny weekend, we were able to paint the slats at the stoop. Kyle used a small roller to apply the paint and then back brushed them so the texture would match the rest of the house.
Our insulation strategy has been piecemeal, adding insulation as we redo each room. We’ve been using recycled denim insulation which we LOVE. Not only is it produced from reclaimed denim from the factory floor, but it doesn’t pose the health concerns fiberglass insulation does. Especially important in old houses where framing is likely not a solid 16″ OR 24″ on center, cotton insulation is much easier to cut and handle. That is, of course, if you have this handy insulation saw! We picked it up at Ecohaus (a.k.a. Environmental Home Center) when we bought the insulation. Though a bit intimidating, it works much better than a utility knife or scissors.
A cozy new blanket for our old porch. We’ll add 6 mil vapor barrier and then leave it as is till next spring when it will become part of the new kitchen!
