Strawbale construction diary

Spring...

2009-04-02T09:36:00.000-07:00

Almond trees are in flower and, below, Esme learns to garden. This morning she is discovering radishes!

2009-02-04T08:51:00.000-08:00

Six pairs of inexpensive french doors have really worked against our otherwise high r-value strawbale walls. New thermal drapery panels can be opened now to let in sunlight then closed at night to keep that heat in. We hung the curtains on a wire cable for a cleaner look and to save money.

The panels were on sale from JC Penny. A 'wall' of panels, plus hanging hardware, for two pair of french doors, totaled 100 dollars.

pruning the orchard...

2009-01-18T19:38:00.000-08:00

After a good solid week of fog, Sunday cleared up and we spent the day in the sun. Here Christie prunes the fruit trees 'old school'.

frozen abayence ...

2009-01-18T07:20:00.000-08:00

The freezing fog thins long enough to reveal Mt. Mcloughin to the East. For the most part, we lay low, shuffle papers, and eagerly await the Spring. And on days when the sun has come out, we've planted more fruit and nut trees: almonds, pears and peaches. As far as the house is concerned, the county signed off on our final inspection last week.

Stranded...

2008-12-22T11:11:00.001-08:00

Stranded in PDX. Hopefully the roads will clear tomorrow. Meanwhile, wine tasting at 5 in the lobby. Basketball at the hotel bar at 6. Could get used to this...

snow!

2008-12-15T13:13:00.001-08:00

sliding doors...

2008-12-15T07:16:00.000-08:00

It took enough time, but the sliding doors are finally up on the bedrooms. Sometime this winter we hope to get the book shelves and the built in bench at the end of the hallway completed.

the piano test...

2008-12-04T08:55:00.000-08:00

It was tight, but we managed to maneuver a stand up piano down the hall, around the corner, and through the opening to the spare bedroom - which will probably henceforth be known as the piano graveyard.

trees...

2008-11-21T15:27:00.000-08:00

More progress planting trees. Limber pines and Mexican Redbud on the mound in front of the house. On the back corner off the living room, Aspens and a larger Scotch Pine. The green coming up is a low growing clover we seeded earlier in the month.

sunlight...

2008-11-18T19:53:00.001-08:00

During the summer months, it's almost too dark in this space. Now, well into Autumn, the lower sun angle sends sunlight deep into the living room.

Fun with Esme...

2008-10-30T18:43:00.001-07:00

Having fun with Esme. Her new bouncer harness hangs off the beams so that we can move her around from living room to dining room to kitchen. Her 'high chair' simply clamps onto the edge of a table or, in this case, our kitchen island. The great thing is how portable it is. Great for dining out.

wood stove...

2008-10-04T20:40:00.000-07:00

Photo showing a trial run of the wood burning stove.

Unfortunately, that beam is right where the stove pipe needed to go - necessitating the use of various stove pipe elbows and double wall insulated stove pipes, to thread things up between the beam and the wall.

Porch decking

2008-09-21T21:22:00.001-07:00

After some deliberation we opted for the simplicity of a western red cedar deck. Nothing fancy here, just 2x6s running across the joists. The deck rim joists were clad in the same metal we used on the roof, facia and the gutters, before we backfilled.

japanese pagoda trees

2008-08-26T07:25:00.000-07:00

All the excavated dirt has finally been backfilled around the house. New trees include a crepe myrtle, a Chinese Pistache, and two larger Japanese pagoda trees. Eventually they should provide a nice dappled shade around the entry.

2008-08-08T19:57:00.000-07:00

The addition of Esmé has shifted priorities from house construction. However, lately some small progress has been made. Modest ceiling fans have been purchased and installed. And, thanks go to Bob and Grandpa for pitching in and installing pantry shelving. It is difficult to overstate how much this helped has us out.

messy courtyard

2008-07-19T17:41:00.000-07:00

Grading work commences in the courtyard. Decomposed granite dug from our pond fills the arcade. We'll tamp the hell out of it before adding sand and laying down bricks.

All these poor plants get moved from A to B to C...Currently we're staging them inside the courtyard until grading around the perimeter of the house.

clerestory windows

2008-07-13T11:03:00.001-07:00

Clerestory windows open and close, letting warm air escape at the end of the day and pulling in cool air through windows lower to the ground.

outside / inside

2008-07-08T17:08:00.000-07:00

No A.C. here...just lots of insulation and wide, shading roof overhangs.

sunrise

2008-07-02T21:05:00.001-07:00

Sunrise filtered through smoke makes for nice art on our entry hallway wall.

Other photos show our hallway book shelves (minus the ultimate built-in book shelves, but providing space for cd shelves at the moment).

The tree is one of many sitting in pots around the courtyard (and around the entire house) waiting to be put into the ground.

smoke

2008-07-01T06:11:00.001-07:00

Smoke from Northern California wildfires. At first glance, I thought this sunset was actually not the sun, but the moon.

Esmé

2008-06-02T19:57:00.000-07:00

The newly born Esmé Haysel Ann Mackison...

- yellow

2008-05-23T10:43:00.001-07:00

Photographs showing the 'finish' stucco coat. The color is a mix of yellow with some added sienna pigment worked into the surface. It should become a little less intense as it drys over the summer.

getting ready...

2008-05-20T06:33:00.000-07:00

The three bedrooms, the kitchen, plus one bathroom are more-or-less done at this point. The plasterers are set to apply the color coat on the exterior this week as well.

Outside, temperatures soared to 100 degrees over the weekend. The much ballyhooed strawbale walls lived up to their reputation as the temperatures inside nudged only a few degrees higher to around 74 degrees.

misc. photos.

2008-05-12T07:05:00.000-07:00

Photos from two recent outings. First, Christie and myself at the Oregon coast. I don't think the picture does justice to exactly how windy is was that afternoon. Second, visiting our Friends Becky and John in Bend, Oregon. Photos show Christie and Beckey, and Christie with sisters Ame and Stacey.

Below, photographs showing the pendant lights hanging off a beam above our (yet to be assembled) dining room table. Also, a large crepe myrtle we transplanted into the courtyard.

No furniture? -- no problem...

2008-04-19T08:40:00.000-07:00

After nearly 3 years inhabiting a rickety fifth-wheel Fleetwood trailer, a lack of appropriate house-scale furniture is not really a problem for us. (Note the old pear crate used as a night stand.) After all, when the wind blows our house no longer lists and shakes.