loft meets new england farmhouse-before and after downstairs

so i’m still adding this post and the downstairs isn’t all done, but its taken me 3 months to get these up, so better some than none.

essentially when i took down all the walls i decided not to put any back up again….and have the upstairs work as the private space, and downstairs as more public space.   the passive solar design actually works (more about that later in the heat section)  – I get so much solar gain from the giant south facing window, i don’t need the heat on if it is sunny and the house maintains at 68.

before and after closet

master bath before and after

So there is still some touch up work to do  and more art to hang … but … here she blows.

the location of the bathroom was a bedroom, i blew threw the wall to my bedroom and created walkin closet and bathroom. the downstairs bathroom is now the kitchen and 3/4 bathroom (well soon to be).

downstairs bathroom before it got demo’d

guest room before it became a bathroom

and you wonder why i tap restore twice a week

before and after bedroom

this post is a work in progress … but was dying to get some pictures up.  more details to follow ….

Quadra light fixture from Y Lighting

Joe Wardwell

Integrity Casement windows by Marvin

Biasi radiator with radiant heat design by Rob at Northeast Radiant Technology

is it wrong to love a kitchen sink and cabinet this much?

I realize I’ve been quiet lately in blogland and need to post a ton more pictures, but had to get these up out of sheer excitement.  This is a joyous time — the first floor is almost done and the fellas came to install the sink and cabinet yesterday.   It is so so beautiful I could cry.   The sink I designed and had made at Stonecraft they also made the counters (but I scored them used at ReStore) and had them cut and fit to match the sink.  The frame and drawers and secret back well, I designed with Nate Deyesso.  The frame is steel and the drawers and backsplash are Kirei board from Maine Green Building Supply.  Faucet is a Moen from FW Webb.

another room painted, another floor done

This pine is newer than the barn board that is now in the master bedroom.  It was my old bedroom floor, but I took it up and flipped it over (it had a hideous brown stain on it).   I hand sanded this as well – which was a major pain in the ass.   It took about 5 times as long as bedroom which is twice the size.  And I’m not as happy about the imperfections because they aren’t as old.  However, the Osmo looks great and in general the floor kicks ass.  We leveled it out, and it beats that god awful pergo that was there before any day.

sweeeet bedroom floors

So I finally got the master bedroom painted and the barn board I ripped up from the loft of the barn to make the floors (hand) sanded and treated with Osmo Polyx Oil from FW Horch.

Love love love the oil.   It’s a nice matte finish that goes well with the irregularities of the old wood.  I applied it with a cheap brush and then rubbed it in with an old t-shirt.  I’m so pleased to almost have a bedroom!

Sheetrock farm, pt 2: andrew shows tom the ropes and i make pictures

In our excitement at the sheetrock farm last week, Andrew and I loaded up 10′ sheets instead of 8′.  (Well we watched the front loader, load.)  So I got to tag along again to pick up a ton (literally, we figured out 40 sheets ways about a ton) of 8′ pieces.   I also got to photograph with my real camera and real film – I am so thankful to the Restore for the great loot and for getting me excited about making pictures again.

sanding sanding sanding

Not only did Moira give me the best birthday present (a whole day of her work crew to come on over to my house) she also joined team sand sheet rock for an afternoon. I am so close to finishing the upstairs I can taste it….

she’s cunning, ain’t she

I dashed home from work to meet Levi the plumber and we installed the toilet and tub upstairs. This is very exciting because a) it means I can finish demo downstairs; b) it means I have a clean bathroom; c) it means my tub actually works and kicks ass (just got done with a long soak). More detailed posts to come but had show off the wonder of a real bathroom….well almost real, sink & faucet still on order. Because I agonized over purchases, for those of you in the market, the toilet is a Toto Aquia dual flush from FW Webb in South Portland and tub is from Wilbur’s antiques in Greene, a pain to paint but worth the cunningness.

Fieldtrip with Restore: holy sheetrock farm

I was in ReStore not too long ago and Andrew tipped me off to a sheetrock windfall–something like 5, 000 sheets he would be getting soon from a place in Auburn that was donating it to Restore before they recycled it. So he invited me along to photograph, or maybe I invited myself along to photograph, and of course to get the first pick of the lot.

It was definitely one of the most insane places I have ever been…a pretty close second to the salt mine factory in Isreal. I can’t wait to go back with the real camera and some real film. I was a little over excited both to be on such a cool adventure and to enjoy making pictures again. Couldn’t help myself with a few movies too!

Get your self down to Restore and stock up.

measuring didn’t really seem to help much

however, sheetrock is a sign of progress…..I totally surprised the delivery guy from Hammond, buy helping him unload the first 35 pieces (2 at a time!). Little did he know I was numb enough to lug the sheetrock upstairs and hang it by myself. Thankfully I stopped that nonsense and did my best to be patient until help arrived.

It was a tuff day getting things to look normal in a room/house that has absolutely nothing level or square, but I think Chicky and I did a pretty good job in the master bathroom even if we only cut 1 in 10 sheets right the first time. And the first coat of mud is on! Thanks to Seamus at Rosemont Market for pairing lovely bottles of wine with sheetrock install.

blown in cellulose insulation is sexy

Now that everything is ruffed in and the plumbing inspector FINALLY approved the stink pipe, the fellas from Ace Insulation came and blew in the cellulose upstairs. Gerard (the delightful owner) sealed up the cracks with a foam spray, then they put up plastic (that kinda looks like that heavy duty packaging tape) and made a super duper air tight seal – so tight the plastic was like a drum when you touched it, then they blew in the cellulose. It’s a recycled product from wood pulp (newspaper?) and is totally non toxic, too. They also used denim to seal up the tricky spots.

I decided to rip out all the plaster and lathe and sketchy sketchy rock wool insulation that was previously blown in (see demo pictures) so I could get the tightest seal possible. All that demo is not necessary, they can blow from the outside, but it since I was ripping everything apart to re-wire and re-plumb, it seemed like the more effective thing to do.

And it is one of the few “green” products that doesn’t make you fall off your chair with cost. It was only a little over $3, 000 for the entire house (about 1000 sq ft).

if 1/4″ cedar plywood wasn’t $65/sheet i would order a lot more of it

I found Maine Coast Lumber in my research on sustainable plywoods. I ordered 6 sheets of 1/4″ aromatic cedar to line the master bedroom closet – sight unseen (not how i usually like to do things). Another fantastic design moment when I unwrapped it at home and found it to be more beautiful than I ever imagined. It should be for $65 a sheet. And when I went to pick it up, my little heart skipped a beat, as I have never seen a lumber yard so organized in my life.