Houseblogs.net
Considering that BHN has essentially become a blog about working on my house, I’ve joined the webring at Houseblogs.net in an effort to expand the audience a bit.
So, here’s a big welcome to any new folks who visit by way of HBN.
Work of Art
Mom said something to me on the phone the other day that really made me feel good. I was talking with her about Jerry’s advice to not get too attached to my house so that I could sell it in a couple years and move up to some thing bigger. I was lamenting the thought of putting all this work into my house and then selling it to someone else, and how all of my design choices have been choices that will probably make selling it difficult anyway (for example: the wrap-around-red-wall). I truly do understand the benefits of the leapfrog method of using your house as an investment vehicle, but I really have no plans to do anything like that. I like stability and moving every few years is insanity. Anyway, as we talked more about what my next plans were and how long it would take to get the house to look what I see in my head, I made a comment about the flooring I want to put in the kitchen and how I don’t want to do what everyone else does (basic oak or walnut laminate/wood flooring). She said something to the effect of, “Well, honey, I know that however long it takes you, whenever you get done with your house, it’s going to be a work of art.”
Wow, huh? Especially when considering the audible gulp I heard that emanated from her throat when she saw my house for the first time last year.
Glass Projects
Realizing that I haven’t cut even my first piece of glass and that the list I’m outlining below could very well be extremely premature, the list below is a running tally of the items I’m planning to make once I get my groove on.
- Hanging light fixture for the stairwell landing
- Light fixture for the top of the stairs
- Light fixture for the downstairs hall
- Light fixture to replace the nasty ceiling fan over the kitchen table
- Light fixture for the Kitchen
- Lighted Street address sign for the front of the house
- Inserts for the kitchen cabinets
- Insert for new entry door
That’s a lot of glass, huh? The more I think about it, the more I’m planning to use mostly clear and textured glass with just a few punches of color here or there. I’m still trying to form an aesthetic in my mind of how I want everything to look like. I want each of the lighting fixtures to relate to each other, so over the next few weeks or months I’ll be working up designs for those. The crown jewel is going to be the hanging piece for the landing. Once I get that one designed, the plans for the others will follow along very quickly.
To some it may seem that I’m putting the cart before the horse, but I’m looking at this the same way I do a technology project. I learn so much better if I have a real “thing” that I’m building on which to apply the knowledge I’m picking up.
Sketching Casa Hartman
I’ve known about Sketchup since well before Google gobbled them up (version 4, maybe?). I’ve never had a real need to use the software, but the interface and apparent ease of use always intrigued me.
Yesterday I dug into it with a little bit of purpose and began to draw a basic version of my house. At first, I found things a bit cumbersome, but I eventually ended up with a drawing technique that seems to work with the way I relate to things spatially. Here’s my first attempt:
I’m not sure about the dimensions… I pretty much guessed at everything. I think it came out well enough. I still have to figure out how to do the railing and then I’m going to try to add the driveway, as well as the existing decks and the retaining walls I’m planning. If I get good enough at drawing with this app, I think I’ll use it to plan the flowerbeds and plants for next spring.
The other thing… once I finish the modeling the rest of the stuff in the yard, I can use this as a means to test paint colors for the house. I have an idea of what I want, but this software will let me prove it out.
Nearly A Week
Man, it’s been almost a week since I’ve posted. I’d apologize, but I’m not really sorry. I’ve been taking an impromptu break from all things Internet (as much as life and my job will allow).
The other thing is, not much has happened in the last week anyway. I did absolutely nothing last weekend, and I’m planning to continue that trend this weekend too. My stained glass stuff arrived last Friday, but I only opened the box Monday night (and discovered a missing item which Delphi is sending out post-haste with all apologies).
I have a couple things rolling around… I need to get my miter saw up and running so I can build that retaining wall beside the deck. That’ll take at least a few hours. The wall itself is probably a one-day project. I need to think about the yard stuff, but I’m leaning towards bagging that project until the spring. Sometime in September–if the weather cools off enough by then–David’s going to help me take down a couple trees.
So, there’s plenty to do, and little motivation to do it at the moment. But that’ll change soon enough.
No Spare Bed
I’ve very nearly given up on my plan of putting a guest bed in the office. I just don’t think there’s enough room, especially considering the work surface I want to put on that side of the room.
The fact is, I do have a nice cot that works perfectly fine for guests like my brothers, Dave, or even my father. If or when Mom comes for an overnight visit without Dad, I’d be okay with putting her in my room and taking the cot myself. I like knowing my office is my office and having a bed in here would somehow take away from that. It’s goofy, I know, but that’s how I feel.
Glass Cutta
I clued my mother in to the stained glass idea and she’s all over it. Before I could even get the words out my mouth, she said, “Oh, honey… you can do inserts for your cabinet doors whenever you redo the kitchen.” I think she likes the idea. This morning, I mentioned my plans to Mike (of deck building fame) and his eyes lit up. “You know,” he said, “I’ve got this pantry door that I’ve always wanted to do something with…” So, it looks like I’ll be doing some work for him and his wife once my skills come up to par.
I spent a fair amount of my day off yesterday surfing the stained glass supply houses, and Delphi seems to be the stained glass world what B&H is to the world of photography. I called up there this afternoon and spoke to an extremely helpful fellow who sold me on the reasonably complete starter kit. Possibly by this weekend I’ll be diving into my first glass project while I attempt to avoid the rest of the summer in the cool confines of my home office/studio.
Stained Glass
Yeah, I know I got rather silly a couple weeks ago when I said I was considering outfitting myself to screen printing just so I could the mailbox done. The truth is, I’ve been thinking on finding a new hobby that could eventually become a serious artistic expression as well as a possible source of income at some point down the road once my skills and body of work matured. In the end, I really think this medium will fit well with my graphic design sensibilities.
After the success of the mailbox, I started planning an address sign for the house itself, and of all the possible forms it could take, I’m really, really, digging the vision I have in my head of a back-lighted stained glass sign.
Last year I pretty much stopped working on the house for the winter so once that lull hits this year, I’m going to begin teaching myself how to do stained glass. The first project will be the address sign, and I’m also really excited by the idea of making an insert my new front door whenever I get around to doing that.
I can see a lot of enjoyment coming from this.
Chairs
I found some chairs and three of them are sitting in my truck right now.
The price was about right and they’re very comfortable. I’m especially pleased that the cushions are small enough that I can carry them in and out of the house without much hassle.
Of course, now that we’re in the midst of 102 degree temperatures, who in their right mind is willing to sit outside?
