Family Room Floor Is Going In!!!!

I have to admit, there were times when I wondered if this day would ever come.

Sample window seat is in

Well it's not exactly what I had envisioned, I guess I was thinking more of a polished effect with more color shading....this is a little more rustic.......

But it looks great with the fireplace & I'd say they got the color just right.

Family Room Floor

Now with the fireplace almost done & what has been up until now "the work & storage room" just about empty, except for the hearth & window seat work (in progress), we can actually see the floor. The self leveler has been applied to half of it....we may be tiling soon!!!!!

Staining the window seat

Nasty ugly looking mess isn't it???

Our first trial with one window seat to see how it comes out.... Mandy applied a layer of grout then wiped it off, let it dry, then a layer of stain, (and I freaked out 'cause it's this yellowish-orangey brown when it's wet!) let it dry, then clean it with Simple Green, then you clean it again with ammonia & water, then shop vac it off, then let it dry again. If your not happy with the color you start the process all over again.....Which we did.....We'll see how it turns out.....

Power Outage

Slight delay of game on those window seats.....power was out today, so Tom & Mandy had to find other projects to do. What a wonderful surprise when I walked out front and saw the teak chairs assembled! We bought these the summer we moved into the new house & I wouldn't let Tom put them together-I wanted to save them for the new porch. Each summer we've been here he offers to put them together & I told him there was no way those were going to be on the porch with that white tyvek, and black tar paper covered porch!
I mean really.......do you remember what that porch looked like until last summer????
Wouldn't we have looked cute sitting there in our rockers????

So by the time it was finished last summer, well, early fall,
it was too late to put them together.
But they sure look beautiful now.....

Even Eva thought so!!!!

Clean up

OK-time for Tom & Mandy to get to work cleaning up this mess
so they can start on the window seats.

Last Stone!

WOW! The last stone went in, the lights work & the fireplace looks awesome!

That's a damn beautiful fireplace!

Missing Tom!

Tom had a meeting to go to & Mandy was none too happy to be the one stuck out in the miserable weather cutting the stones to fit......almost done though.

Miserable Construction Witch!

Just when you think you're getting ahead, the miserable construction witch (and no it's not me this time!) comes & kicks you in the butt!!

We had a cold day with driving rain & wind gusting to 40 mph. That wind coming up river drove that rain under the siding somewhere. We now have water damage on the old water damage. We as yet have still been unable to determine where the leaks in the family room & dining rooms are. Tom is thinking the only way to determine where this new leak came in from is to take the siding off that section of the house. So it would be the upper half of this section...

Too Bad, So Sad :(

It didn't take long to turn the attic upside down again...
He had to tear down the fiberglass insulation & 2x4's to redo the insulation above the furnace room. I know it'll get cleaned up again 'cause I'll do it.
But damn is it frustrating, if I could figure a way to lock the door so the crap doesn't get tracked thru the house I'd do it in a heartbeat & just say the heck with it till the house is done! :(

Installing the mantle

The mantle is being installed!
Make sure it's centered????
Of course they checked-I was standing there taking pics!
They both had tape measures in hand, level at the ready.....

looks just beautiful!

Tom's famous lines

After looking at the colors on the sample piece of mantle, we decided not to stain the wood. The sealer alone brought out the color & natural grain in the black walnut. In the pic on the left you can see the difference between the sealed & unsealed area, the one on the R is done. Look at that grain!

On the 20th, during that snow storm, they really needed more light since the sky was so grey; Mandy had taken a spot light & shone it on the front of the fireplace while she was working.
Wow did that really illuminate the stone work. A light bulb went off in our collective heads (no pun intended),wouldn't it look great to have lights focused on the fireplace???
(Don't you wonder sometimes if Mandy comes up with these ideas so she'll work here until Eva graduates from high school????)
Mandy, of course goes home & now Tom & I are left discussing it. The pressure is on....we need to decide now. This is not a decision I can make now.You all know I need visuals, what kind of light, where will it shine, how bright, yada, yada, yada.
Then come Tom's famous lines:
#1 It's cheaper to do it now than later. OR
#2 Decide now, once it's up you can't go back & change it.
He used them both!
The next thing I know, Tom & I are out shopping. I did have a general idea of what I wanted but finding it is another whole story. I won't bore you with the shopping details, suffice to say Tom is exhausted & I have decided on the lights I want. Hey-Mandy started it!
We'll have lights installed in both columns, recessed in the stone & wired up on a dimmer (well, why not? it's cheaper to do it now than later!).
After trying to drill out the hole in the stone for the light and the first stone cracked,Tom figured better to try & drill multiple holes & just tap the circle out. Worked beautiful! Mandy checked the fit on the column, light fixture fits like a glove.

And I wonder why it takes so long????

This seriously is a custom built fireplace! Tom cut out the hole in the mantle for the electrical outlet, then Mandy sanded it down so the conditioner could be applied. She a was scraping up the sawdust from the sanding & I jokingly asked her if she was saving the dust for something. Actually she was; she said the guy that they got the mantle from told them to save the saw dust to fill in the knot holes in the wood-it's obviously a perfect match & will take the stain!

Busy Day.......

Tom & Mandy got quite a lot done today.... the second window seat came out of it's form without a hitch & went right into place! Looks great!
The form for the hearth is ready. It's been sprayed with Pam,

the rebar went in & it was filled in with concrete-now it just needs to cure.
Tom, unfortunately had to be outside cutting more stone, in the snow, we're over 12" so far today & it's still coming down!

But it sure is looking good!
Says the girl who is inside warm & toasty,
not having to play with mud or stones today!

Did I really say we're making progress????
Hard to believe this will be the family room someday....

The Damn Outlet

Tom, knowing me & how I like to decorate, made sure to incorporate electrical outlets into the stone columns. Of which I am very appreciative of.

Apparently someone else is not.

The stoner had some very choice words yesterday as she had to stone around the outlet!

Now mind you, poor Tom had to stand outside to use his tile saw to cut the stone to fit her demanding specifications, in the freezing cold weather, his water freezing between cuts.
Did he once complain???? No.Did he whine because there was no way he was going to use that tile saw in the house??? No.

So today, I notice that there was no complaining about stoning around the other outlet.
"Must be it was a little easier to work around the outlet" I state.
"Oh, I figured out a better system" she says, "I just stoned over it."
OK-I admit, after yesterday, I had to go look just to be sure! Gave Mandy a good laugh.

Did the Pam work?????

The concrete has certainly cured by now &
it's time to see how well the seats are going to come out of the forms.
Did the Pam work?????
It took the three of us to lift it & flip it over on to the work table.

Didn't even have to pry the form off.......
a couple taps of the hammer & it came right off!
Looks like they pulled it off!
You'd think they knew what they were doing!

We set it into place temporarily so Tom & Mandy could use it
to finish stoning around.

After we set it in, Mandy's first comment was"Holy S#%$, it fits!"

(Hello!!!! Didn't they tell me they knew what they were doing????
Why does she sound so surprised???)

Those curved edges look really sharp....
and all the pitting will really give the stain shading!

Mandy determined it was perfect butt size!

Progress for the garage.......

..........................disaster for the attic.
Tom had some time while Mandy wasn't here & decided to move forward on the garage. The stairwell from the garage to the attic had been partially insulated, so the insulation needed to be finished & the dry wall hung. But first the collection of stuff had to have a home.

Then there needed to be a storage area for the 2x6's that will be used for the scaffolding across the stairwell, the insulation, the many, many sheets of drywall, the screws, etc., etc. Lo and behold......isn't there now a considerable amount of visible floor space in the attic since it's been cleaned and organized??? (I did not say usable, I really did not want to share!) If there is a clean area that is a flat surface Tom will find a way to fill it & he did.

The stairwell looks great, bright & neat, still more work needed but it's progress.
The attic on the other hand now needs another cleaning.
Do and Redo is going to be the inscription on my gravestone.

Window Seats & Hearth

It actually feels like we're making progress!!!!

The stoning under what will be the window seat has begun!

And in front of the hearth.........
tile border looks great doesn't it?

Shot looking down from the loft

And under what will be the second window seat .........

8" Screws!

The backer board & wire mesh have been installed to continue stoning under the mantle, which is only temporarily placed so they can determine spacing. In order to make sure the wall is going to hold the stone they need to drive 8" screws thru the backer board & the drywall past the 2x6 studs to the plywood on the other side.

Just need to check & make sure your not going thru (OOPS!) the chimney-
too late-just nicked it.

Mandy is hanging her head out the window
(not in shame, mind you) now to call out directions.

Here's our 8" screws-good thing he has a power screwdriver!

Starting the tile surround

Nice Job! Looks Great!

Window seats are poured........

The window seat forms are done, concrete mixed, the rebar installed in the form, they've done their homework & are sure they know what they're doing.
They have decided on Pam as the release agent......plain canola,
not the butter flavored, or the olive oil.
We'll see how they come out & if they slide right out with the Pam.