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!

Family Blog?

I'm still waiting for the last panel to the shower enclosure that I broke last week and it should arrive any minute/day.  I double checked all the caulk lines and everything else is ready for installation of the final panel.  Hey, it's not like I'm standing at the front door, wrapped in a towel, waiting for the UPS man!

My sister texted me yesterday with a great idea.  She was thinking about starting a family blog that would enable each of us to post news about our lives, post stories from our youth-growing up together, and maybe share recipes and other fun stuff.  I'm pretty psyched about this because this would be a perfect use of blogging, in my opinion.  It is unclear if she would make this a public blog or "by invitation-private" blog.  This will be fun.

Tempered explosion

On Saturday last, as I put the last screw into the frame of the shower stall, I twisted the screw hoping to drive it flush to the metal frame.  Instead, I succeeded in driving the last screw into the corner of the tempered glass panel behind the metal frame and that was when the glass panel exploded into a million bits.

In that last frozen minute, while the sparkly diamonds of glass were still suspended in the air, all I could think about was, "I didn't just do that!?"  Glass in my hair, glass in my shoes, and all over the floor-shower-hallway...what a mess.  After sweeping up the mess and vacuuming everything to be sure I had every piece of glass, I found the phone number for customer service.

I called them today and was informed that the replacement panel will be shipped from mid-Ohio in seven to ten days.  So we wait,...I had already pressure tested the plumbing and everything is set.  As soon as the panel arrives, the bathroom will be complete.  Boy, do I feel like a big fat dope.  Just one little turn of a screw and everything changed...

Last pieces of the puzzle

I have procured the remaining hardware and fasteners for completing the installation of the new shower as the remaining parts of our remodeled bathroom.  These little shopping trips can add up fast, even with a list of materials, for just a few screws, etc.  It was educational to visit Lowe's to actually see the shower enclosure assembled, since it's been almost three months since we selected and ordered the fixture.  Seeing the final product makes it easier to complete the installation when you know what the final product is supposed to look like.  I should be able to have the base installed this evening and set the shower walls tomorrow evening.   That leaves the shower doors to hang.  That will take the remainder of this week because it's a little touchy to get them straight and true.

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.

Major changes in the air

Yup, spring is comin' and I'm excited.  The grip of winter has been broken and the green grass is just around the corner despite the 23' morning we enjoyed today.  The frost was heavy on the windows of the truck as I came out with the dogs to start the motor to defrost that icy mess.  I know that it's still February and I know that we have another month of cold temperatures that will be infringing on our summer hobbies but I'm tired of winter so I am officially declaring that it's almost over.

Reduce, reuse, and recycle

I am an HUGE fan of this saying and have been working hard to keep it active in my life.  I have also been working to reduce my stuff as well as my carbon footprint and anything else in my life that I can effectively reduce.  So, when I read a post from my bloggy friend, Rachel, over at her Minimalist Mom blog about closing here Facebook account, I had to stop and reflect on that idea.

Design phase re-designed

I've been searching the Internet for interesting things relating to Tiny House design and I've not seen anything significant and new to include here.  I know that the Internet is vast in scope and resource so the problem must be with me.  However, Laura and I have begun talking about re-designing our design.  What I mean to say is that since we are not restricted by the 120 square foot rule, the sky's the limit.  Of course, we wouldn't want to just go crazy because then all we would be doing is trading one monstrosity for another.  Remembering why we started this project...

Pretty Excited about the Interstate bicycling system

I was reading on EarthEasy today and found this news bite about an Interstate Bicycling System that is being pursued by enthusiasts of bicycling  and adventure cycling.  Now, before you start to think that I'm a tree-hugger or that I have gone all environmental on you, let me set you straight: I have always thought to do what I could to conserve our natural resources.  There, if that makes be a environmental bunny lover tree-hugger, so be it!  So when I read about this idea of being able to bicycle around the entire country, I freaked!  This could be so very cool!

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.

The leftovers are gone

Thanksgiving has gone into the record books and the turkey hangovers are distant memories.  Most of the leftovers ended up in the cook pot for a fantastic turkey vegetable soup that warmed us all weekend as we ran in and out of the house working on winterizing projects.  We needed the extra boost received from the hot soup because Saturday's weather was less than friendly for being outside.

Big Blow

Stanford, Kentucky recorded record wind speeds at 58mph last night as a sustained low pressure cell stirred up trouble for most of Central Kentucky yesterday and last night.  We had porch furniture flipped over when I arrived home from work and the welcome mat was in the front yard.  Our wind chimes were singing a staccato tune that was almost unintelligible.  All this adds up to some frightening news for the Dollar General Store employees in Stanford where the record wind speeds tore a large section of roofing loose at about 5:00 pm. (Video)

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.

Fantastic new Tiny House under construction

in Northern Minnesota.  Y'all should take some time to read about the big dreams of Kyle Hart.  Kyle has started a blog at Big dreams of a Little House that I'm following that will document the progress that he and his dad are making on the construction of his Tiny House.  There are some pretty cool pictures of the work they are doing as well as some pretty well thought out research for materials and heating options.  Keep up the good work Kyle!

Oh ya...

The clouds have cleared and it's gonna be a beautiful day.  I was able to ride my motorbike to work this morning and all is right with the world.  I should be able to finish stripping the last three pallets that I have in stock for disassembly and I'll be looking to my supplier for acquiring some more as soon as possible.

Great news about finding a construction part I was looking for to help with the foundation of the cabin.  I was reading another blog yesterday from Country Plans and found a reference to post & beam foundations that I first discovered at Coyote Cottage.  The part that I have been searching for is called an Elevated Post Base manufactured by Simpson and it allows you to incorporate a post & beam foundation that may include an adjustable leveling feature.  This may not seem like much but it sounds quite functional to me and I am pretty excited about this little idea.  This will allow us to create a solid foundation without the expense and equipment required to dig footers or mix concrete in an area where there is no power or water and we don't want to disturb the natural surroundings for this project.  I found the EPB44T at Lowe's in our area but you can find these things at other suppliers.  I borrowed the image below from the web site County Plans.

Little things like this can make building a deck or Tiny House quite a bit easier by minimizing the labor involved in foundation work.  Pretty cool idea, really.

Ultimately, I hope to use our cabin as a proof of concept build for a mobile Tiny House that we will put on an 18 foot trailer.

Hey, the sun is shinning and it's gonna be a great day.  Let's get out there and enjoy!