July 9, 2007

We FINALLY have some activity on the porch! The concrete guys came and dug the ditch for the footing on Saturday. It's 1' x 18"--it's basically a moat around the house, but the water is almost dried up. We were kind-of surprised that the distance from the house to the ditch seemed smaller than we thought it would; the porch will be a little over 11' and that seemed big when we were getting started. We measured again, and then measured the front porch and discovered that it's only 9', so I guess it just looks small now. Hopefully the guys will be back today to start on the concrete forms.

This picture is from over a week ago. One of my unfinished projects was that one side of the kitchen had lights above the cabinets, but the other one didn't.  The right corner goes up higher, so I had to drill the sides and top to pull the rope lights through the wood. I used jute and a twisted wire hanger to thread it through because there's no access from the cabinet below. It seems pretty simple, but it was tedious, hot, and nerve-wracking to sit up there on that little 12" ledge--I'm so glad to finally be finished with that project.

We  received bids for painting the exterior (yikes!), and the higher bid was almost twice as much as the first. Even though it's painful and crazy that painting can cost that much, I think we're going with the higher bid. I've seen both of their work, and I really think the extra money will be worth it in the long run--I've heard too many horror stories about people that have had to repaint after a year or two because the painters cut corners.

I've been trying to finish editing pictures from a beautiful wedding I photographed in June. Digital is amazing in so many ways, but with so many images, the editing can be overwhelming. If I was still doing photography full time, I would have already attended a workshop on improving workflow--and I probably will at some point, but since I'm just shooting when I have time, I'm still editing images one at a time. Time is the key word...

You can click on an image to see a little photo-summary of the wedding day.

July 29, 2007

I know I've been MIA. I wish I could say I've been on a long vacation, but I've been working and just haven't had/made time to post. I did get to take a break from some of my normal work to take pictures and write an article about my friends' (the Glasco family) farmhouse renovation. I'll post more about it later, but it was a fun change for me.

Progress is slow on the house, but at least things are moving. The house is now in the process of being prepped for paint. I'm trying to focus on the end result and not freak out about the paint chips that are everywhere. There appear to be only two layers of paint on the house, which seems crazy for a 130-year-old structure. I guess it was either scraped and prepped really well at one time, or it went unpainted long enough at some point (like the depression) that most of the paint eventually wore off. My sister has an old home, and the guys they bought it from told her that was pretty common in the 1930s.

July 30, 2007

This isn't my normal subject matter, but LIVE magazine needed a shot of these colorful boots, so I went for it. I wish the boots were mine!

July 31, 2007

The painters were here early this morning, and the house is really looking naked. They still don't have a sign in the yard, but now it's obvious that it's being prepped instead of just looking shabby. For the first time all summer (I think), we have a forecast without a 40+ percent chance of rain, so that is in our favor.

Below are the paint samples I'm deciding between. It was hard to choose the main color-range, but I want a neutral color that won't clash or blend in with anything I decide to plant in the gardens. I want the house to show off the gardens, and the gardens to show off the house, and a warm gold/wheat will be a perfect palette.

I think I'm leaning toward the second one from the left. Unfortunately, Harper is very color-blind, so he's no help. The trim will be white, the inside of the windows will be black, and the porch ceilings will be aqua/sky blue. The original brick was red (and still is around most of the house), but at some point the front brick was replaced with the gold/orange brick. I'm going to paint the bricks red, but I don't want them to look like painted bricks, so I'm going to thin the paint so the highs and lows still show. I'm going to try to keep the mortar gray.

The chicks are over a month old now, so they are in the awkward adolescent stage. This buff cochin is going to be beautiful--I just hope she really is a hen. I have four now, and they are so personable (I know that sounds weird to say about chickens, but they are). I can't wait till they're old enough to roam the yard with the others.

Later... July 31, 2007

After a good workout with the hammer and crowbar, Harper knocked the awning off the back "porch". The new porch roof will be higher, so we didn't need an awning under it. He also removed the gutters from the front of the house. We'll have new ones installed after the new roof goes up.

The grass has been slow to cover the irrigation scars in the backyard. It will probably be next spring before it looks normal. But the flower bed has really taken off; I can't believe it was just dug a few months ago.