Thursday, December 31, 2009

Last week of 2009

Cold weather and rain again this week. We even saw snowflakes in our back yard! More forms have been constructed, but I didn't get any new pictures.

We're thinking about colors and finishes. I had my eye on a simple Delta faucet for the master bath, but the lowest price I could find was near $200. So, when I came across these sink and faucet sets on Amazon, I thought I would give them a try. For $145 a set, they include the faucet, sink, and all of the hardware. I wasn't expecting a lot because of the price. But, when they arrived, they are much bigger than I expected and they are beautiful!

We got 2 of these for the Master Bath:


And, one of these for the powder room:

The bowls and faucets appear to be of excellent quality, so I ordered another for the downstairs bath:


I'm thinking of buying a sewing machine for draperies and pillows. I haven't sewn in years, but drapes are super expensive and it is hard to get them in fabrics that are natural and won't give off VOCs. I found a website that describes how to remove VOCs by soaking fabrics in baking soda and/or Borax and rinsing them in vinegar: http://organicclothing.blogs.com/my_weblog/2007/02/removing_odors_.html.

Guess that's all for today.


Sunday, December 20, 2009

Rain Slowdowns

We have had a couple of rains and it takes a long time for the soil to dry out. So, this week, progress was slow. The concrete will be poured in three stages, with the lower one first. The plumbing has been roughed in for the lower slab.

The driveway also got a load of fill so we can walk down in from the road now.


We were fortunate while walking around to hear and see this little guy (photo from http://www.laspilitas.com/California_birds/Kinglets/Ruby_crowned_kinglet.html).

We don't expect that a lot will happen until the holidays are over, but now that we can more easily walk onto the site, we will probably be spending some time there. With the area cleared, we can plan for the landscaping and future pool. 

Monday, December 14, 2009

First Two Weeks

A lot has happened and it is exciting to see the lot take shape!

First, the trees and shrubs that would be in the way were removed. The picture makes it look much flatter than it really is. You can see three lines and changes in color, they indicate sharp drop-offs in elevation. This shot is looking west from the street.

















Next, the equipment came in, sorry we don't have any pictures of that. Don's plan made the best use of the land with the least amount of excavation. This picture shows the driveway looking south, toward the area where the garage will be.

 And this one is looking north, up toward the road.



Now, a step further down the hill, an area has been leveled for the slab that supports the entry and part of the living room. Then a drop and the area for the billiard room and lower deck.


And, finally, we believe these are the forms for the piers that will support the west end.

You can get a better idea of the size from this one. He is standing somewhere near the east wall of the billiard room.

And, with some of the trees gone, we can get a better idea of the view. The other basin of the lake, to the south west, is quite visible now, even from the lower level.

Friday, December 4, 2009

Walking the Lot

On Tuesday, we met Pedro and Alex, the foundation contractor and his assistant. With Don they started marking important spots on the lot, in spite of the threat of rain. At about 11:30, when we arrived, it was already drizzling, so we didn't get any pictures. They showed us where the front porch, deck, and garage will be. They were troopers because it was pouring by the time we left!

They had already marked trees that would have to come down. The front porch will be very near one of the trees we want to save. It has three trunks, one of which leans toward the house and would be too close to the roof, so we decided to remove it.

Trees on our second lot will probably have to be removed to clear the view, but Don suggested waiting until the framing goes up so that we can stand at floor level and see what will really be in the way.

We're out of town for a few days, and can't wait to the see the progress when we return. Some are predicting a really wet winter and we're hoping it doesn't slow the project down.