Doors and Paint

Well, we lost an entire week last week somehow.  I think my contractor was occupied elsewhere.  But he's here today and tomorrow installing new doors and trim.  Friday the painters come.  Then we do tile floor in the bathroom and then fixtures.  But I'm getting ahead of myself.

I'm most eager to get a washer and dryer installed.  Tired of hauling my laundry to my son and daughter-in-law's house.  But realistically, that's two weeks away. 

When the doors are in, I think I'll take some pictures.

The word of the week is "fatigue."  In addition to the construction and mess, I've been tending my daughter's diabetic cat for the past week; administering insulin shots twice a day.  She's an easy cat to care for except for the shots.  And except for the fact I have to keep her in the TV room as there is no way to keep her out of the basement if I let her run loose.  And that is most unadvisable with the sheetrock dust on everything.  It's worked out okay, but I'll be glad to do one more feeding, one more shot, and then turn her back over to her family tonight.

 And, of course, with the warm temperatures outdoors, I've started some of the annual yard prep for spring.  Even with the inevitable body aches and pains, it was just wonderful to spend time working in the warm sunshine.

Looking forward to normal.

Sheet rock is up

The inspection went well.  There are a few things related to venting the water heater and fresh air supply to the furnace which will both be fixed tomorrow with minimal cost.  Everything else is great and work has stepped up.  Two new windows are in.  That means every window in the house has now been replaced with energy saving windows.  The big hole in the floor has new cement.  Dry wall went up today and the rooms have all taken shape.  The bathroom does look tiny, but everything really looks good.  I had a strange feeling looking at it -- like it's not really my house, or like I'm making some mistakes with all these changes.   I know it will be okay.  It's just that "somebody moved my cheese" feeling.  My house will be better and beautiful.

Now the pressure is on me to finally decide on paint colors, carpet, bathroom fixtures, fireplace rock and mantel.  I've been working on it and it will all come together this weekend.  Then finishing starts next week with paint and doors.  (yay!) 

I have construction fatigue, but the very visible changes today have raised my hopes and some energy is returning.

Feature Creep

In the software development world it's called "feature creep," the tendency to keep adding things the end user thinks they'd like on top of the original specification.  It adds cost.  It adds time.  And at some point you have to ask the question: Is this essential or would it just be nice?

I'm finding this is also the case in a big remodel like this.  Only the questions also sometimes relate to meeting building codes and if a change makes the house more sellable.  In fact, anything that I would eventually have to do to sell the house is getting done now so I can enjoy the benefit of that upgrade.  But there are esthetics to consider as well.

We'll be going over the budget today and looking at the items that have added unexpected cost as well as the items I am considering upgrading from the original plan.  The meeting will help me decide whether we do a pretty marble and glass shower or we install a pre-fab fiberglass one.  I already opted for new garage doors so we could close up the gaps in the garage ceiling.  And against the red color in the washer and dryer - silly to pay extra for red unless you're going to really really enjoy it.  I can't really say I will.  However, the shower does make a difference to me.  I will weigh the cost difference and decide.  But it also depends on how much more the unexpected plumbing issues are going to run me.  After hearing that number, I may just want to economize.

Yesterday, the gas fireplace insert was installed.  It feels like progress even though there's still a hole in the floor of the laundry room and there's wood, sawdust, equipment and debris everywhere.  We are tentatively looking to have the inspection next Wednesday.  There is one issue that may trip us up there.  I won't worry about it for now.  I am selecting fixtures and buying lighting, towel racks, etc.  And the washer and dryer.  This is the fun part.

I'm going to have a niche above the fireplace and I want to find something really lovely to display there.

Update - reconfiguring plumbing

I think these posts are helpful to me in keeping track of what was happening at what date.  So I thought this would be a good time to write an update of remodeling progress.  There is much chaos and much going on in the basement right now.  The garage remains nearly finished, but will get new doors a little later.  Since there will be some sheet rock work involved to close the openings where the garage door opener cable runs, I told the contractor it would be perfectly okay to wait and do that work when they were doing other sheet rock in the basement, just to make it more convenient for them.  The doors will come after that.

The demolition on Friday was slightly unnerving.  Jackhammer in the basement for several hours as they broke up the floor to gain access to plumbing pipes.  They encountered (as they always do) some issues with the pipes, and had to go a little farther than they expected.  But it does give me some peace of mind that we were able to head off some problems by taking care of those issues now.  By the end of the day the hole was filled in with dirt, and after some additional plumbing work, a new cement floor will be poured.

However . . .

I had been told there was no room for a shower in our little powder room; that it would have just a sink and toilet.  But in shopping for washers and dryers and having determined I am definitely getting front load, I learned you can STACK all front load washer/dryers.  By doing so, I free up enough space to put in the smallest size shower.  So this morning I've been on the phone with the contractor who is talking to the plumber and we are quickly discussing plan B.  I had been fretting all weekend about what a mistake it would be not to do a shower if it was possible.  Now it's looking like it is and we will do it.

In other areas, the fireplace is getting attention.  I've had to make decisions on rock, mantle, hearth, and the niche we are planning for above the mantle.  Tomorrow the gas insert will be installed.  I'm very excited about that and think the fireplace is going to be absolutely wonderful.

Progress also continues in reconfiguring doors and closets and doing some additional framing and sheetrock.  The new electrical panel (breaker box) is installed as are the canned lights in the family room.  There's a little more wiring to be done.

In all, it's dirty and quite a mess right now and causes me sleeplessness from just the sense of so much chaos and so many people working in the basement.  I'm so accustomed to being alone and having such quiet in my house.  So I'm feeling fatigued and a little stressed all the time.  But things are definitely moving along and the dirtiest work is behind us.  And I feel better knowing a good decision was made today.

Demolition

Sometimes as you are peeling back the layers of your house, you end up also peeling back layers of your life.  And often it's not pretty to look at.  In either case.  I know a little sheet rock and paint is going to fix up the one.  I don't know what the other is going to take.

Memorabilia

I listened to an interview on NPR last week with Joan Didion on her book, "Blue Nights," on the death of her daughter.  (Here's a link to another interview, I couldn't find the NPR interview.)  I felt terribly sad listening to her flat, mournful voice as she spoke and read from her book.  Something she said impacted me deeply.  She was going through her apartment looking at all the drawers and closets full of things she had saved over the lifetime of this daughter.  As she pulled out pictures, school uniforms, objects, she thought about how these things were intended to remind her of those special moments.  But what they really reminded her of was her failure to appreciate the moment as those things were happening.

This is in my mind right now as I get down to the last phase of clearing out in my house.  If you've followed my blog at all, you're probably thinking, "Is that woman still clearing out after all these years?!"  Well, there was a lot of stuff!  And now with the basement project underway, I'm basically down to what remains in boxes, closets, and drawers.  Almost all falling under the broad category of memorabilia.  Tons of photographs, slides, videos.  Report cards, drawings, essays.  Souvenirs.  My late-ex's old CD collection and one more foot locker full of his papers and letters.

I have looked at this task so many times unable to think how to begin to keep or throw out.  But now I think I understand.  I need to keep a few very special things that have specific joyful memories for me and for my children.  Anything that holds a negative thought must go--anything that holds a feeling of failure to appreciate the moment, anything that just makes me sad.  I must pare it down because I will pass these things along to my children when I die and they are already accumulating stuff of their own just like this.  No need to bog them down with a lifetime of mostly meaningless items.

That's not to say the task will be easy.  Far from it.   But as I've learned from the clearing out I've accomplished so far, once gone, you never miss it.  You really don't.

So as the remodel in the basement proceeds, I still have my work cut out for me.  And I intend to finish it once and for all in the coming months. 

Garage Update

Mostly done, and just wonderful.  It's an incredible change.  Still remaining to do is to close the holes in the celing where the old door opener track runs and then install new doors.  What a dirty job it has been.  And how clean, white and bright it is now.  The garage is large, so I have been able to move everything back in and arrange my shelves in the finished part  My contractor even fixed up my shelves, bracing up the sagging shelves and fastening everything securely to the wall. 

I have to admit some emotional feelings today as I organized things.  Tearing down all the old craziness contrived by my husband and putting up clean white walls is hugely symbolic to me.  I had goosebumps all day while working out there.  I love the space and I can now make it my own.  The ghosts have been exorcised.

On to the basement.  Oh what a job lies ahead.  We are adding a powder room in what is now the utility/laundry room.  No room for a shower, so I have given up on that.  A new electrical panel as all the new wiring has outgrown the old box.  A beautiful new gas fireplace.  Upgraded heating, lighting, electrical, new carpet.  Demolition has already begun.  Tomorrow my son will help me move out the last remaining items from the bedroom to the garage where now much space has been opened up.  And then things will get wild and noisy.  And when it's finished, new furniture, new washer and dryer (desperately needed) -- maybe in shiny red!

Garage

The contractor started with the garage on Wednesday (Feb 1).  Did the demolition and now has studs in place and wiring, starting insulation.  Since the garage takes up nearly half of the lower part of my house, I'm trying to make it warmer in order to keep the living space above it warmer too.  We've added some insulation around the heating ductwork that runs along the ceiling of the garage.  We're not actually heating the garage but just trying to keep it warmer than the outdoors.  It looks like I'll probably replace the garage doors in order to solve the problem of the hole previously cut into the ceiling to accommodate a garage door opener.  The new doors will be insulated all around.  There will be a new opener for one door to replace the broken one.  Then sheet rock on remaining two walls, white paint, and lighting fixtures.  Mostly simple stuff.

My girlfriends wonder why I would spend any money on the garage.  "It's just a garage!" they say.  But when you talk to men, it's an important space.  It will make the house more appealing to buyers who might want workspace, and a good wall for hanging things.

I'm loving the progress.

Dining Chair Seat Recovering

Just finished a project that took much longer than I thought it would - putting new fabric on my dining room chairs.  Of course, every step was harder and took longer than I had expected.  But I'm happy with the results.

Six pretty chairs all finished!

Ugly old chairs.

 

UPDATE:  I've had many visitors to this post and decided I should post some succinct steps for recovering chairs.  
1. Remove chair seats from frame. They are probably screwed on at the bottom; you'll need power tools for this.  Number each seat and frame as you will want to put the same frame and seat together at the end.
2. Pull out all staples holding existing fabric on.  I used a hammer to tap a screwdriver positioned at the staple to get under and pry it up. I used pliers to pull out the loosened staples.  This is the most time-consuming step of the process.
3. Use the old fabric to make a pattern for the new seats. Draw the pattern on paper and cut it out.
4. You will need fabric, firm batting and a good dense foam.  The foam provides softness and the batting provides firmness.  Use the pattern you made to cut the fabric (be sure to consider direction and placement of any design in the fabric before cutting).  Cut the foam to the shape of the chair seat. Trace around the seat with a marker and cut out the foam. Cut the batting an inch or two larger all around than the foam (I just laid the foam on the batting and eyeballed it--it's not rocket science).
5. Assemble fabric, right side down, batting, foam and the chair seat.
6. Using a good staple gun, staple the fabric at the center of each of the four sides first, pulling it snugly tight but not mashing down the foam too much.  You may have to experiment with staple sizes. I used 1/8" staples.
7. Staple near each corner, pulling fabric snug as before.  Staple halfway between the middle and corner staple on all sides, also pulling snug as you go. Fabric should be secure enough now, you will need to do little pulling as you staple.  Use plenty of staples to finish going around the seat, perhaps an inch apart.
8.  Do corners last. Back corners are hidden by the chair frame, so not much fussing is needed with them.  For the front corners. try to pull the fabric snugly and smoothly to make a nice rounded corner.  It should have no pleats showing from the top.  Staple securely with several staples. This is the hardest part to get right.
9. Reattach seat to frame with screws.  Match up the same seats and frames you marked in step 1.

Sounds easy, but it is actually quite time-consuming.  But the result is worthwhile.

Here's a recap of my experience.

1.  I decided to first rip off one seat cover and make a pattern from the old fabric.  Getting the screws out to remove the seat was hard and I was puzzled that most of the chairs had only three screws instead of four.  Pulling out the staples was also tough.  I had to pry with a screwdriver and pull with pliers.  Took almost half an hour for one chair.  I didn't do the next five chairs until a week later, and I did find some efficiencies and got the time down to about 10 minutes per chair.  With the fabric off, drew a pattern on brown paper.

2.  I was going to buy new fabric, but then I remembered I had, stuck away in a drawer, some pieces of the fabric left over from when I had my couch recovered - about 20 years ago!  I pulled it out, it looked great.  In fact, holding it up next to my couch, I couldn't believe how little the couch has faded in that time.  Problem:  The were not big enough pieces to lay out all six chairs.  Solution A; Buy new fabric.  Solution B: Piece together from existing. I opted for Solution B figuring the only thing I lose is time if it doesn't work.  I cut six rectangles 17" wide by 23" long for the center pieces, and then 12 rectangles.  6" wide by 23" long.  Stitched them together creating a piece big enough for my pattern (had to learn to use my new sewing machine, which delayed me about an hour or so). I didn't worry about matching with the busy pattern on this fabric and I figured the seams would be nearly invisible on the chairs.  I was right.  Cut out six pieces.

Here are pieces of fabric on the matching couch.  There's the batting.

Stitching the pieces, twelves straight seams, no problem once I learned how to use my machine.

Now the pattern fit nicely on the pieced-together fabric.

3.  I bought new foam and batting as the old foam in these chairs was close to 30 years old and pretty sad shape.  The fabric store had the batting but no foam.  After some running around, I finally found some perfect size foam sheets at Smith's supermarket. I lay the seat board on the foam and drew around with a marker and then cut out six pieces using my old electric knife.  I took the time later to trim them a little more carefully to the board as I didn't want the foam to overhang the edges, but just the fabric and batting.  I laid a piece of foam on the batting and measured about an inch bigger all around and cut the first piece.  This was my pattern for the next five.

Cut the foam with my old electric knife.  That thing is finally good for something.

4.  Found the staple gun and practiced stapling until I found the right size staples.  Then assembled the pieces for one seat, fabric, batting, foam and board, and stapled the sides, tucked and gathered the corners and stapled them down securely.  I still needed to attach the seat, but I was ready to quit.  To get this far had taken most of my three-day weekend.  I was discouraged and didn't touch the project again for a week.

One seat finished though not yet attached.

5.  Things went better the next round.  I got the five seats off and patiently pulled staples while watching a documentary.  I decided the wood portions of the chairs needed some TLC, so I purchased some wood cleaner and restorative.  It was a warm day and I was able to do this work on the patio (the restorative is flammable).

6.  Finally, in an assembly line, I assembled and stapled the remaining five covers trying to perfect the corners--the toughest part.

7.  When removing the seats, I had carefully numbered each chair and seat so I could match them up again, assuming the screw holes might not be aligned if I switched them around. A power drill made screwing the seats to the chairs again the fastest work of all.

The cost of the project was about $12 for the foam and I think it was $10 for the batting.  The chairs now match my couch (not that I was striving for that), and I know this is good quality, durable fabric--I won't have to do this again for a long time, if ever.  Thank goodness.

Another project - here we go again

Well, I finally called my contractor and had a meeting about the last big remodeling project for my house--the basement and garage.  Business has been slow and he is ready to start almost immediately.  We'll go over his quote and options when he has it together.  And then we start.  I don't plan to blog this day by day as I did the kitchen.  And certainly the disruption will be nothing like the kitchen was.  As I told my contractor, I'm basically getting my house into "ready to sell" condition but then plan to live in it for at least five more years or longer, depending on my ability to take care of it myself. 

I've put this one off for a long time and finally somehow managed to make that phone call this week to set the wheels in motion.  Stay tuned.

Savor Life

That's my only new year's resolution for 2012 -- Savor Life!

It was a good year 2011.  It was my year of metamorphosis, moving into the next phase of life.  As much as anything, it was a mental process but there were measurable milestones that helped me see progress.

My primary goal of better health yielded good results. In December a required health screening for  health insurance showed all tests well within normal. I've gained strength and stamina and lost weight with my exercise program.  I feel so grateful for good health.

My photography, gardening, painting, music, movies, and even cooking (yes, I'm returning to cooking), all call to me when I'm spending those hours working at a computer.  I am so ready to leave the working world behind in just one more year. 

Every day when I wake up, I think, "Oh, good, I got another one."  I've learned to lean into my hardships and deal with them, and to positively relish the joyful times.

And that brings me back to my resolution - Savor Life!  

Happy 2012 to all of us.

My Christmas Card to You

I had hoped to make hand-painted cards for everyone on my list his year, but found it was much more difficult than I had anticipated.  But I managed to make a few following two different themes and experimenting as I went.  Here are a couple of them plus the one with message I posted on Facebook.  I know they aren't the best, but they are what I managed and I felt happy to get these done.  It was fun anyway.

Happy holidays to all!

 Blizzard Bear

 Another Blizzard Bear

 All is calm, all is bright

Total Eclipse of the Moon - December 10, 2011

I am still using the auto settings on my camera or I might have gotten a better shot.  But isn't an eclipse a cool thing?  It gets you thinking about how centuries of people have observed these events, what it has meant, and what science has learned about the moon and its travels -- so far.  And certainly there is more to discover.

Please Come Home For Christmas

A video for the season.