Stairway project - Part 2, hardwood goes in

I'm happy to report, the stair rail and hardwood components are now in place! And boy are they gorgeous.

And here we have on the left, installer extraordinaire Ken. It was an absolute pleasure to have him around to banter with and watch him work his magic. And then there's head slappin' owner John. I know John, I can relate. I'm sorry it's over so soon too. As they say in paradise... "Wish you were here!"

And no project goes unturned without Vic's friendly influence. I owe ya some gas in that ride of yours, my friend!

 

So, back in  December 2008, we were at this stage. The hardwood components needed some tough love.

First, I gave the pieces a slight beating to remove the perfectness.

Many a night was spent staining and varnishing the pieces. I gave them two coats of stain to deepen the tone and between 4-6 coats of varnish until you could no longer feel the woodgrain with light sanding in between coats. This was a long and labourous task but well worth it. The end result is gorgeous.

Next, came the spindles. Not desiring what the stores carried, because I was after a more industrial feel, I fabricated my own out of 5/8" steel rods trimmed to size on Dan's chop saw. Then a grinder was used to knock off the sharp edges.

The exsisting steps were then notched out to allow for the stair edging placements. ALOT of work!

Here, Ken drills the holes for my custom fabricated spindles. I had to add that part in because I'm so spittin' proud that I had a part in this project!

MY spindles get installed! Weeeeeee!!!!!! Oh and they turned out exactly as I imagined. Abit of rust, black and steel shine through. The warmth of the wood against the cold steel is a very cool illusion.

The incredible handrail goes in next. Ken braces things up for a flawless install. Having been without handrails for nearly 2 years, I can't tell you how much I adore these simplistic things most would  take for granted. I don't think I ever will.

Gasp....gorgeous!!!!

Such beautiful edges!

This was one very tricky corner to cut. Ken is my newest hero.

And this is where things stand today. Incredible! All that's left is the carpet running down the center and they are done! Once the carpet is installed, I'll do a before and after on this project.

This was the last major thing left on the house to complete! I honestly think I'm dreaming here.

It's been great having the guys over to make some noise again. I so appreciate this beautiful newest addition. Just more stories and memories to add to the ever growing list around here. Thanks again, all!

Stairway project - Part 1, the spindles

I am estatic to report, the stairway project is commencing!

Meet Ken, stairway installer extraordinaire. And he isn't allowed out of 'rustic metal spindle' jail until he's done. Ah, just kidding Ken. You can go home to eat and stuff.

And you know those spindles I just mentioned? I fabricated them. Simply because, the look I wanted wasn't available in stores anywhere. I wanted rustic metal steel rods to tie in with the rest of the metal influences I have going on. So that step came first.

So off I went to my favorite local workshop. (Dan's place) He showed me what to do and left the room. For the most part anyway. Care to see what transpired?

How do you like THOSE fireworks? I had the MOST fun ever on that day. Not only cutting my own steel rods, but filming it too, as a tutorial for my decorating blog. So, here's the noisy version of the building of the spindles. Welcome to my favorite kind of playground. EVER. :) Thanks Dan!!

To view the film in You Tube, simply select the logo on the far lower right.

Next, stair case woodwork, by Ken! Stay tuned!

NEW trim colour goes on!

Well now, with this gorgeous black metal roof intact, it was high time to do some trim work! Here's a peek at the new colour. Black coffee!



Here's a few before's. Yikes.

Yup. The burgundy had to go. The current cranberry trim made the rest of the house look pink.

Ahhhh.... the paint looks just like the hot fudge served up at Dairy Queen. If your paint looks good enough to eat, how can one go wrong?!?

The more paint that went on, the calmer and richer the house slowly appeared. Cool!

Yes. I think this is going to work out very nicely!

And a special thanks goes out to our kitty cat, Teddy Bear. She was my main inspiration. Weird? Perhaps, but she was perfect. She is the most amazing blackish brown colour EVER. You know what they say about you can't go wrong using the colours of nature. Thanks kitten!

I can't wait to do the front door this wonderfully rich warm colour! All the doors! Will do the trim around the door, windows and garage door something different. Some kind of in between colour of the main part of the house and the trim. This is where it gets tricky. The house colour has rose undertones and I don't want the new shade anywhere near pink. Wish me luck!

Next up: finish the trim painting, and we're now discussing getting the stairway completed. The stained and varnished wood is waiting for install day.

More to come very very soon!

A roof is born.

Good mornin' to ya Vic! Most folks are woken up by an alarm clock. But not here. I'm greeted with a friendly team of folks that bang on my house.  Sat Aug 22, 2009. The day the roof will be complete. This is a BIG day.

Wednesday, Vic, Ralph, Jake and Rudy placed the majority of the roofing into place. And stayed well until dark to complete as much as possible.

It was an incredibly warm and humid evening. But the team did not give up. They never cease to amaze me.

If I wasn't so chicken of heights, I would have gone on up there to take better pics. My zoom from across the road was the best I could pull off.

Back to this fine Saturday Aug 22 AM. Rudy and Jake start the lower roof.

Howdy back atcha Zach! Birds, do not be confused. There is indeed a roof party happening today.

Jake and Vic pulling out some Nova-Seal. Premium Roofing Under... bah! Can't read the paper. I was trying to sound real smart for a moment.

BLACK METAL! Isn't it gorgeous?!?!?!?!?!? I love black and I love metal. They go hand in hand. And it resides on my roof!!!!

Thanks Janette, for the light as cloud homemade butterhorns with icing! They accompanied the rest of our lunch. And Bonnie biked over to join us.

It is complete. It's beautiful. And it will keep us safe from the elements and protect our most precious investment to date.

Cody and I have a brand spankin' new roof. A treasured gift from the help of our incredible friends.

Vic, Ralph, Rudy, Ben, Jake, Micah, Pete, Paul, Zach, Janette, and Bonnie, thank you so very very much for offering your gift of time over and over again for the roof project. And to the Yarrow MB church donators and roof sponsors for the materials.

And most importantly, thank-you God. He after all, started the whole thing, didn't He?

The roofing material arrives

 

First thing this fine AM, a big noisy but incredibly welcome truck pulled in. With our roofing!

Vic quickly worked on some strapping while things were gearing up.

 

See that there pile of black on that truck?!? That's black metal! Black plus metal = the most beautiful combo of words ever!

 

It was quite interesting to see how the truck was stabilized on both sides to allow for the weight shift to come.

Isn't that cool how that arm is folded many times over? Can you tell this is a girl reporting live? I do not know what the arm is called, but it was a good invention I must say.

This is where it got a little exciting. Especially when sitting at the window and watching that big box of roofing swing towards you.

Yikes. This is about when I scooted my son and myself outa the house.

Good excuse for another photo op anyway.

 

This is my favorite picture. Look at those clouds on the mountain behind the house. Doesn't it give the picture an intense serious eerie kinda feel? We ARE talking serious roofing after all!

Later in the day, Vic and Jake worked for abit with a shower vent, then Ben showed up later to get things started.

A bigger team comes Wednesday, weather permitting, to get this new toy in place!

Wish for those intense serious eerie clouds to diminish for Wednesday please. My neighbours across the street from me are also working on their roof with half their shingles off. No rain for Wed! Cuz it's Roofing Wednesday in these parts!

Thanks again for today, guys. I cannot WAIT to see my pretty black metal! It'll match my kitchen island you know...

The roofing begins!

While most everything major is completed in the house renovation, that only leaves the roofing. Here we go!

   

Vic starts the gang off with a demo on what a well dressed roofer ought to be wearing in 2009.

 

Pete, Paul, Rudy and Erna completely awestruck or razzing? I'll let you decide...

Wasting no time, Rudy and Paul are up high where only birds ought to be.

Vic and Ben are planning the placement of all the strappings to go down.

Activity around here once more!

 

Pete assists Ben while the strappings are created.

Wonder if I should just get the guys to hang my Christmas lights up early while they're up there... just kidding! Trim painting comes first. KIDDING! (sorda)

Jake showed up today to continue screwing in more strappings to beat the deadline. Roofing materials are slated to be dropped off Tuesday, leaving Wednesday as the big install day. How exciting!!!

Thanks to my very generous and wonderful friends! You can't begin to know what your time and expertise means to me right now. To know our home will be safe from our wet cold winters? Man... just no words.

More updates to follow shortly!