New Old Front Door

The contractor who is helping me with my bedroom project came to the job with the usual tools and materials.  But he brought something else that first day, too: an old mission oak front door that had failed to sell at his yard sale.  He offered it to me for free.

The door needs some restoration work, but this is just the kind of rewarding, small scale project it will be fun to undertake after my big bedroom project upstairs is finally “put to bed.”

Tags: antique, door, free, restoration, woodwork

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Bedroom Update: In Pictures

My last couple posts have lacked pictures, but I finally took the camera around and captured a few images of the progress up in the bedroom.

This first photo shows the partially-stripped door into the bedroom and the newly relocated doorframe for the closet.  The radiator at the bottom of the image is sitting partially stripped in a kiddie pool waiting for me to finish it up.

In preparation for the spray foam insulation, the roof vents and peak openings have been boarded shut.  The insulation will create a “hot roof” on this side of the house.

With the bedroom closet relocated to the other side of the room near the entry door (see the first photo above) the master bedroom closet has been expanded to absorb all the former closet’s space.  The new, larger master closet will measure about 14′ x 6′, though the ceiling height will be around 6.5′ at the peak.

The upcoming wiring work won’t change the look of these spaces much, but it won’t be long before insulation makes the room look and feel dramatically different.  I’ll also be working on restoring the radiator, windows and doors in the weeks ahead.

Tags: attic, bedroom, Carpentry, Closet

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Bedroom Update: Ready for Wiring

As scheduled, my construction contractor arrived on Monday morning with his assistant to finish up the framing in my bedroom project.  While they relocated a door frame and furred out rafters, I hauled away demolition material and kept my kids out of trouble.

After a few hours, the framing was finished and the room was ready for wiring work.  In the two days since then, I have had a pair of electical estimates and I think I will get at least one estimate more before I commit.  That process shouldn’t take more than a couple more days, so it won’t be long before I can report on the start of wiring.

Reaching this stage of the project (finally!) means I have also made a decision about “the closet that never was” that I mentioned back in April.  Even though you readers– or at least those of you who post comments– preferred the secret room option, I have decided to make the space… a closet.  By making this formerly unused space the new bedroom closet, the master bedroom closet on the other side of the room can be expanded to double its former size.  After living without a closet of any kind in our bedroom for a couple years, a new bigger closet will be a welcome reward for completing this project.

Tags: attic, bedroom, Carpentry

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Getting Back To Reality

Reality.  We can waste a lot of time and energy trying to avoid it, but eventually, unfailingly, reality catches up with us.

So what’s the reality that I’ve been trying to avoid?  Simply this: my upstairs bedroom project will not be finished by the end of the summer if I insist on doing the work myself.

Thanks in large measure to the gentle cajolling of Ms. Bungalow, I finally stopped fighting reality and met yesterday afternoon with a contractor to help with my project.  It was an excellent meeting.  I’ve seen this builder’s work in person– in his own home, no less– and know he shares my preference for making green home improvements while retaining historic character.

Because of the amount of planning and demolition work I’ve already done, this contractor has agreed to work with me on an hourly basis as needed to keep the project moving forward.  I’ll research and hire the additional help I need with insulation and wiring, and I can continue to work on the project myself as my schedule and inclination allow.

This is exactly what I needed.  By serving as my own general contractor and contributing labor (including the significant work I’ve already put in) I am saving some serious money, but I don’t have to give up all my precious summer weekends with my kids in order to ensure my attic is insulated before this winter.

I feel so relieved and energized that I can’t help asking myself why it took so long to take the obvious step of hiring help.  Clearly, I have a gift for avoiding reality.  Therefore, in the spirit of  ”do as I say, not as I do” advice, I offer the following tips for keeping your projects firmly grounded and moving forward:

Tips for Reality-Based Home Projects

• Determine the actual scope of the work to be performed.  This means researching and evaluating your options and then sticking to a plan.  Good planning in the beginning of a project can help minimize distractions later on.
• Consider the resources (time, money, labor) actually available for the project.  It is safe to assume your project will need more time and money than you initially estimate.  Plus, who wouldn’t rather be ahead of schedule and under budget than late and over budget?
• List potential complications and consider alternatives for responding.  You probably can’t account for every possible surprise, but in reality things don’t always go according to plan.  Thinking through how to respond to challenges can help keep minor issues from becomming major delays.
• Set and keep deadlines for milestones and completion.  External deadlines are best, but however you set the dates this should help with staging work and avoiding procrastination.

Tags: attic, bedroom, contractors, Ideas, tips

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Planting a Winning Windowbox

I have made no secret of my disappointing past results with my windowbox flowers. This year, that is all going to change.

My new winning ways began with major soil rehabilitation. I removed half of the windowbox soil and replaced it with a mixture of 2 parts new garden soil, 1 part composted manure, and a healthy dash of Soil Moist water retention additive. This improved soil should have the nutrients the plants need to thrive and do a better job of keeping the plants’ feet wet instead of baking to crisp inside the brick planter in the direct morning sun.

The plants I picked for the windowbox are also proven winners. Sweet potato vine, nasturtiums, and lantana were all recommended by a master gardener friend as plants that not only look great in a windowbox but are also drought- and heat-tolerant. Both the potato vine and nasturtium are trailing forms that should look really great when they get big enough to spill over the side of the planter.

Tags: garden, windowbox

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