Finishing the remodeled bar room

Laura and I have been remodeling a lot of different areas of our home and this has provided us with opportunities to divest ourselves of many things that have been squirreled away and forgotten in remote closets and storage areas.  This down-sizing will continue as we work toward completing our latest remodel project: the BAR.

Yup, we've made a bar from the combined areas of a fourth bedroom/sun room.  That area had been almost lost to storage of "stuff" and we have reclaimed it for a more entertaining use.  The walls have been cleaned of wallpaper and repainted and the window trim has been repainted.  The exterior door has been replaced, as has the flooring with new vinyl.

I still have to build the actual bar, but the plans have been settled and we are working towards an old west style with some modern flavor; including the use of ice and electric lights.  I have been collecting posters and things that will add to the ambiance to enhance the atmosphere.  It will definitely be a fun place and we hope to add a dart board and maybe a pinball machine, someday.

I found this really interesting article online this week about another person who is going lean and getting rid of stuff in his life.  I encourage anyone to re-evaluate the hold some of your possessions have on you and look at getting rid of some your stuff.  I find that the best part is getting rid of so much stuff that had been clogging the space.  It's so open and light and usable now.  This is going to be great!

made a bathroom

I have almost completed the remodeling job on the second bathroom in our current home.  This project has been the toughest yet, considering that we have installed all new windows, laminate flooring, and completed the remodeling of the master-bathroom.  The second bathroom included moving the toilet and adding a shower-only, instead of a bath shower combination, to the room.  I have to stud in a short wall for the new shower and completely change all the plumbing.  It has been a fantastic education in construction and is preparing me for building our Tiny House, planned for this summer.  I still have another project to complete because we want to convert our existing sun room into a bar.  That should be easy compared to the bathroom redo's.  The big part of the bar should be replacing the carpeting with vinyl flooring and then building the bar itself.

Unplugged...wow

I feel like I should apologize for being absent for a few days.  I have really enjoyed the time spent with family but I am amazed how many of my fellow bloggers have unplugged themselves from their blogs and simply laid off.  I guess it shouldn't really surprise me but I am surprised.  It would seem that many find it appropriate to take some time off during the holidays and concentrate on family and friends so I don't feel so bad about not being here.

Hey, maybe y'all have been unplugged also, so we really didn't miss each other all that much.  Maybe everyone just focused on the important things like family and just let the Internet go to hell on it's own.  I doubt that...most probably it's just me and my inexperience as a blogger.  Most everyone else already knew that the blog traffic would be down anyway so they just used the slow spot for fun times at home.

Pretty cool in any case.  I'm glad to be back and looking forward in anxious anticipation of the new year and the ever changing landscape of Tiny Houses.

Speaking of Tiny Houses, I spent some time with a good friend, Tim, to find out that I am not restricted by the 120 square foot building restriction that constrains most enthusiasts of the Tiny House Movement.  Tim would know because he is one of the building inspectors here in Central Kentucky.  I availed myself of his handbooks and manuals and stuff to review the local as well as national building codes to make this determination.  We spent the best part of an hour discussing the nuances of the code to determine what restrictions apply when building on my own land and how I can proceed with our plans while maintaining a quality building that adheres to code.  I am pretty excited about this news.  This means that Laura and I have some new design questions to discuss.

Hey, I gotta get otta' here.  Thanks for stopping by.  Let's get out there and make it a great day!

No real progress

I have been patiently waiting for my unofficial-supplier to provide me with more pallets as building materials without any results.  It would seem that I may need to shop elsewhere.  However, I believe that this lull in productivity may be attributed to the seasonal respite that afflicts many service industry operations.  So, I will practice patience while I review my options.

Gypsy Wagon on Tiny House Blog

George over at Paleotool Wordpress Blog has presented this finished product reflecting months of loving labor on his Gypsy Wagon as reported on the Tiny House Blog hosted by Kent Griswold.  George has been working on his Vardo Wagon and has completed this mini RV dream Tiny House that really captures the spirit of the Tiny House movement.  I've lifted this picture from George's web blog.

Off topic post, but I just had to say this...

Ok, I was reading around the internet today and found something that I believe is important, and a little funny.  So, I decided that I would deviate from the topic of Tiny Houses to share something that is personal as well as important to me.  I own a gun.

Dan Phillips, builder and philosopher on consumerism

I found this video posted over th The Tiny Life blog as I was so captivated by this speaker that I had to share it with you.  This is a little long but well worth the time.  Dan Phillips have leads us on a tour of a number of Tiny Houses he has built while relating his ideals about recycling and reusing materials that others consider scrape or waste.  This goes along pretty well with the Story of Stuff you see listed just to the right on the opening page of this blog.

Building a Composting Toilet

Derek Diedricksen is an inventor and author of Relaxshax blog, discussing a topic that is very personal to all of us.  Derek has been world famous for his You Tube videos like the one in the second half of this post.  "Deek" has a real good time creating and sharing both projects and his videos on You Tube that most of us would never consider.  I have seen a number of his videos and each one will leave you smiling if not laughing out loud.  You can more of Derek's adventures on You Tube by searching for videos relating to Tiny Yellow House.

It has started snowing!

Well, it was bound to happen sooner or later and actually I am glad that it waited until December 1st.  Now I can officially join in the coming holiday festivities with gusto!  I just can't get into the spirit of Christmas before Thanksgiving and I actively resent Christmas Carols and decorations before then.  It just seems wrong somehow.  Maybe because it feels like you're insulting the memory and intention of Thanksgiving.  Call me crazy, lots of people do so you'd be in good company, but I just gotta wait until after Thanksgiving before I can feel Christmasy.

The arrival of winter weather will put a serious cramp in the plans of many people who don't like the cold or being outside.

Designing: Two doors, or not two doors?

Laura and I have been discussing the idea of having two doors in our cabin/Tiny House.  This design issue presents a large number of questions that must be answered before the first board is laid down.  I like the idea of having two access points but I am even more enamored by the idea of having two exits.  I have been thinking a lot about this design issue for a few weeks and I keep turning it over and over in my head because of a number of issues.

The obvious problems became crystal clear to me as I was reading a blog posted by a fellow minimalist and blogger, Ryo Chijiiwa of Laptop and a Rifle.  I have been reading Ryo for some time and was reading some of his older posts when I came across a July 16th, 2010 post relating the details of a very harrowing experience that focus the light of attention like a laser beam on this issue.

Micro Hydro-Power Bucket

Yup, I have another post for today because this is simply too cool to let it go without showing you guys!  This project is a little expensive but you can build a back up power source for about $400.

I found this news on The Tiny Life blog where Ryan Mitchell has been sharing some really great stuff. Ryan lifted it from the Vancouver Hack Space and this video is just under three minutes but it looks pretty good.  Special thanks to Ryan and those people at the VHS.

As a side note, Ryan also has some great design ideas posted that enable someone to use all the space in your Tiny House.  Pretty creative.  I especially like the idea for the location of a tub, if'n I was going to have a tub that is.  Check it out!

Thanks again for stopping by.  Let's get out there and make it a great day!

Big Problems!

Well, I've uncovered a couple of problems for Tiny Houses proposed within the state of Kentucky.

First, the Kentucky Building Code, Ninth Edition, 2007, Revised March 2010, includes prescribed Occupant Load:

...the occupant load shall not be less than that

number determined by dividing the floor area

under consideration by the occupant as set forth in

Table 1004.1.1.

Windows

I went to pick up the free windows offered by a friend and found that I may not be able to use them.  Sadly, the casement was not included and I am not secure enough in my woodworking skills to be able to rebuild the window case/frame.  I bet that windows could prove to be one of the most expensive parts of a Tiny House.  I intend to investigate this more this morning but I would welcome any comments about this problem because I am still feeling afraid of these windows but also wishing that I could use them.  They include the wood frames around the panes as well as the spring loaded aluminum side tracks as the opening/closing mechanism.

Happy Halloween!!!

Hey, it's the weekend and I hope everyone is having a great holiday full of spooky stuff.  We partied last night, in costume, and had a great time.  However, that's the last time that I dress in costume wearing a mask.  Wow!  Was that thing hot.  I took my Batman mask off after about an  house and the inside of it was totally soaked with sweat.  Yuch!

Laura and I hiked out into the back-back field this afternoon to double check the placement of our new cabin so I could get some pictures.  This first one is from our driveway across the field looking at the access to the area.  It's hard to tell, but we will have to carry all of our materials through a gate at the back of the filed shown, just past the horse standing under the tree, and across a ravine.

This next shot shows Laura hiking through the ravine and up the other side.  Before you get to thinking that we're idiots and just making things hard on ourselves, let me say that we plan to use our four-wheeler "Teddy" as much as possible.

This last one is the picture of the spot we have selected for the location of our shed/cabin thingy.  I will be calling the Planning/Zoning department this week to double check that I am allowed to build storage shed in this area of my property.  We are going to proceed with the assumption that if we stay under 120 square feet, that we won't need any permits for our shed.  Also, there will be no "improvements" like water, plumbing, or electricity so we should be OK, but I want to check just to be sure.  Laura's holding her hands out to display the orientation of the 8 X 15 structure and how it will lay out on the land.

I still have a few pallets to strip but I have contracted a bad cold that has really worn me down.  I was going to visit with Silas, my grandson, to share in his first Halloween, but I don't think it's a good place to share my virus with him or his parents so I'll be sitting this one out.  Anyway, this is the spot.  Laura asked if'n we need to mark it with an "X" or something but I'm pretty sure it's not going anywhere.  So, that's the spot.

Thanks for stopping by.  I hope you're planning a safe an scary Halloween.  Let's get out there and make it a great day and a scary night!

Lucky find last week

One of the women I worked with is remodeling her home and I had a chance to speak with her husband about their project.  Turns out that they are working on a major job at their home much like Laura and I have undertaken and they will have lots of cast-offs that I may find interesting; windows and such.  I inquired about the opportunity to preview those items before they were official consigned to the dumpster and they said, "Yah, sure!"  This is really cool because I already know that they have a 32" exterior door that I can claim and put to good use.  I am looking forward to the opportunity to visit their place to look around at some of the windows that they will be replacing.  Turns out they haven't even pulled the old windows from their home yet so I have connected and exactly the right time to help with the removal before it becomes a burden to them.  This makes it a win-win for everyone.  I am feelin' pretty excited about this opportunity.

This morning while reading the Tiny House Blog I came across another blog that has been in existence for some time about the Shed of Reality hosted by Kate Johnson.  I am enthralled by Kate's artist's shed and some of the design ideas that she has incorporated into her artist's studio.  As I read her postings it became apparent that I have been designing our "Get-a-way Cabin" including the construction restrictions that are required of a Tiny House on a trailer.  Specifically, the 13'6" height restriction that is required to clear the bridge and freeway overpasses if you intend to tow your Tiny House on the road.  However, since we have decided to plant our cabin in our field without plans to move it, we are free to make it a little taller and implement some of Kate's ideas on utilizing vertical storage space.  I know this seems like a "duh" thing but I have been thinking of being "mobile" for so long that I had developed tunnel vision in my design considerations.  So, we may be reaching a little higher in the height of our cabin.  We will want to remain under the 120 square foot restriction for our county to avoid the building permit requirements.  This will technically be a storage shed without electricity or water so we are able to minimize the related expenses like permitting and stuff like licensed electricians and plumbers.  Not that there is anything wrong with those guys, because everyone has to make a living and stuff.

So, anyway, onward,...and in our case upward, just a little.  Thanks for stopping by.  Let's get out there and make it a great day!