Sometimes a garden requires heavy equipment

Our garden and orchard, both of which we had planned out before we closed on this house, have been languishing under a huge swath of concrete. Today I finally got the bobcat rented and bounced around smash smash smashing it all up.


Let me just say this is possibly the best $400 I've ever spent. Last year I spent most of the summer breaking out two sections of the driveway "Medieval Style" with a big lever and a big hammer. Last fall we got a quote of $3600 to remove the other 60ft and then waffled when the economy tanked. This machine did the work in 5ish hours. Not only was it easy and quick, this thing is like being on a rollercoaster with a 50cal wrecker bar on the front. Completely awesome! I was a little sad when I ran out of driveway.

On the other pile though, we now have a metric buttload of concrete chunks to get rid of. The craigslist ad is up, but I think it could take all summer to get people to take it.

Landscape April 2009 Progress

Before:

If February 2009, we had this pile of dirt delivered. You may recall that the truck got stuck.

From 2009 Landscape

... and, we got some rock delivered.

From 2009 Landscape

After:

Well, a lot can happen in three months, and it's not because the weather has cooperated.

The rock pile now looks a bit smaller.

From 2009 Landscape

The dirt pile isn't so much a pile anymore. The idea for this bridge came to me as I was building out the landscape stage.

From 2009 Landscape

As you can see here, I'm using a lot of the rock to build up retaining walls. Pretty nice considering just two years ago you couldn't iron this space any flatter.

From 2009 Landscape

And for a top down view. This is a picture of the landscape taken from the upstairs window.

From 2009 Landscape

... and a lot more to come! Happy spring.

Workshop Shelves

This is a small side project and involves recycled materials. You may recall that a month ago I built a wood rack which was the beginning of a larger wood workshop re-org project. The wood rack is complete, loaded up, and has proven to be a tremendous tool to help organize the space. Next up, shelving.

The shelving is 12' long, and approximately 22 inches deep. The bottom two rows of shelves we designed to fit storage crates, so they're a bit taller. The upper three shelves will be slightly shorter, and will be designed as "project cubbyholes" to store all the bits and bobs associated with different projects, or that's the idea anyhow.

The framing is made up of 2x4 & 2x3 stick lumber, some of which was salvaged from other projects. For the shelf surfaces, I'm using remnant pieces of oak flooring. Because the flooring is tung and groove, I'm able to use a lot of shorter pieces to stitch the shelves together and build a strong surface

Having a well organized shop is critical. We often have three or more projects going simultaneously, and things can quickly become disheveled. The new shelving should help to keep the work surfaces clear of stuff

Next up after this project, I'll be completing the wall that separates the wood workshop from the clean studio space. I'll be installing a pair of salvaged french-doors as windows to allow some transparency between the two spaces and cross ventilation. Stay tuned!

From House Project Photos

Shelves aren't quite complete in this photo. Still have to install two more upper shelf surfaces.

Building Central Park

When I put the landscape plan on paper in late 07, I assigned each area of focus a name, and the area right in the center of the backyard is "Central Park". Central Park is one of the main focuses over the next few months as we lay the bones.

Inspiration and resources are critical to putting together a plan. One of my favorite resources is the Sukiya Living: The Journal of Japanese Gardening. This magazine is published once every three months and is filled with traditional Japanese truisms.

The Central Park area is "loosely" based on this garden staging concept:

From 2009 Landscape

...and when I say loosely, I mean loosely. This is the particular image I used to get the creative ideas rolling. I particularly like the way the layout conveys the idea of a hill/mountainside. Also, I'm going for a deconstructed rock wall border, because it feels more natural. Nature doesn't tend to stack rocks in perfect walls.

The next step is to turn this...

From 2009 Landscape

...into a picturesque landscape. Now, if I could just get the weather to cooperate!

Dirt Delivery FAIL!

Two steps forward, three steps back.

In an attempt to stay on target with our 2009 landscaping plan, we had the first delivery of 15 cubic yards of soil dropped. The good news is that the soil is here. The bad news is that the truck that delivered the soil was also still here. For a bit, we thought it might be a permanent fixture in the yard.

If you've read about past projects on this blog, you're aware that our house is built on a wetland. Things tend to get wet and stay extremely wet throughout the entire winter and spring. Our property is primarily clay and combined with a high water table, it makes for a real challenge. That combined with a really heavy truck led to the front-end of the truck sinking in the yard. Looks like I've got a bit more work cut out for me to fix this mess. Enjoy the photos.

From 2009 Landscape

From 2009 Landscape

From 2009 Landscape

Stay tuned for the rock delivery next week. No, we will not be having this truck drop in the backyard!

The perfect faucet

Like any kitchen remodel you pour over pictures from magazines, planning books and your lists of priorities. Doing a "Craftsman" kitchen is no different. This kitchen is not historically accurate for many reasons, for one, its been stripped of the original kitchen cabinets. The first farm sink and it's built in wall mount faucet is only memorialized by the squirrely plumbing that goes up the wall turns around and comes back down again. This leaves me free to build it again with all the mod cons I want in a gourmet kitchen as long as I tie the style back into the rest of the house.

When you see a kitchen on the cover of Style 1900 or This Old House and it has THE most gorgeous faucet your heart skips a beat and you think "I'm going to have on of those". Then you shop around for awhile online and realize that there is no way your going to get a second mortgage in this economy and that faucet pretty much requires that type of investment.

The next best thing, or possibly the better choice, is rebuilding an old faucet that works for the craftsman aesthetic. Since I plan to add a second "prep" sink to my kitchen I need a pair. Knowing that Chicago brand faucets, having been manufactured for the last 100 yrs, are not only very well made but appropriate for a 1924 house, and every part is still available.

I found this great arching goosneck cutie first. And decided it would be perfect.


Then I found it's mate for the prep sink.


After long deliberation Boe and I then chose to go with no chrome in the kitchen at all. All my cabinet hardware is antique solid brass, the vent hood is copper, and most of my cookware is copper. So I started searching for the right faucets in brass. Not just any brass either old brass with a patina to match the cabinet hardware.
Eventually I found them.


I have the deck mount faucet disassembled for rebuilding


Rebuilding one of these is pretty simple compared to rebuilding a carburetor for a late 70's two stroke motorcycle you need to get to work on Monday. However it can still be a bit confusing if your not confident and organized. The two main valves are for sale at most major plumbing supply stores. I doubt Lowe's or Home Depot employees would know what one was if you asked, however Lowe's is officially capable of ordering the parts. It will likely be easier to find a real plumbing supply store. Chicago brand is often used in commercial ie. restaurant or hospital settings so they are probably readily available.

Simply unscrew the handles and escutcheons and replace the whole deal. Unfortunately at $35 each valve it was double what I paid for the faucet. Finding and replacing the rest of the washers and O rings in the faucet took me a bit of hunting through various hardware stores but ran me a whopping 69¢ for the lot at Tacoma Screw.

If you do go this route just be careful to get a faucet that is complete, finding parts other than washers may be impossible. Other brands are rebuildable as well such as American Standard. I have no idea where to locate new valves for them though.

Sign of the Crab sells many fixtures that are cast from the original Chicago faucet molds. I have heard at least one plumber tell me their valves are not as good as the real Chicago ones. They can probably be swapped out fot the real ones though.

Good luck and remember to take deep breaths and count to 10 before smashing anything.

p.s. It is usually best to turn off the water supply before disassembling any part of the faucet.

2009 Landscape Plan...

Over the past several weeks, I've begun putting together a landscape plan for the 2009 season. Last year was a productive year, but this year it gets a little more complicated. In 2009, I need to install the framing so that in 2010 and beyond, I can layer on the finishing touches.

In 2007 when we purchased the house, I put together a rough landscape plan, and that effort has paid off. Working from the plan, I've been able to keep track of what's done, what needs to be done, and how everything ties together as a whole. The big project last year was the pond and pathing, which is now mostly complete.

This year we'll be installing the remaining irrigation water lines, hauling in approximately 30 cubic yards of dirt, bringing in additional basalt rock to begin forming the main landscaping areas, clearing the existing driveway of brick piles etc., removing approximately 1300 square feet of the existing driveway to make room for an orchard, and then installing the brick patio areas for the outdoor kitchen and dining areas. According to my project plan, we should be able to get all that done between February and June.

Knowing the appropriate order to bring in materials to frame in the structure is very important. Example: last weekend I finished installing the water lines for the drip irrigation system and had to tear out the paths I built in a couple of locations. Had I installed all the irrigation lines earlier in the plan, I would have simplified the process. That's okay, because as a first time homeowner, this is all relatively new.

I'm pretty excited to see the 2009 year unfold. I'm excited to finally get to lay the bones for Central Park, which is the largest landscaping area directly in the middle of our back yard. I have finalized a rough design for this area, which includes Japanese gardening principles, with a twist of Northwest design, focusing primarily on Pacific Northwest Washington native plants. To top it off, I'll be throwing in a small rain-garden/wetland, which will act as a water collector and land-based filtration system. I'll elaborate on that more in a subsequent blog entry. I'm also excited about ripping out 1300 square feet of our driveway, and unveiling the soil underneath. With this area, I'll be building a vegetable garden, a kitchen dining room, and a small berry/fruit orchard.

We've got our work cut out for us, but I'm confident it'll be a productive Spring and Summer. What's not complete by the end of June will have to wait till 2010, and that's just fine. July through August of this year is reserved for painting the house, and doing other major house projects, such as pulling the popcorn ceiling out of the living room.

Until next time, happy dreaming!