Working on details...internal workings of our home

On Wednesday, December 29, Hans and I met with Dennis Johnston, our construction project manager and with the electrician, Terry.  We did a walk-through with the electrician determining where to put electrical outlets, light switches, overhead lights, vanity lights, outside lights, outside electrical outlets, etc.  Thank goodness Hans and I had done our homework and knew what we wanted and where we wanted everything.

Hans and Dennis did a walk-through of the plumbing lines and fireplaces.  Our fireplaces have been set in, with the flues set and fresh air intake pipes.  We discussed the stone that will go on the fireplace, setting the mantles that Hans has been creating and what are our next steps.

The drywall was being delivered on Wednesday, as we are getting our first deep snow and freeze, and it may be harder to get deliveries for the next week or so.

The foundation outside has been readied for the stucco.  Black tar paper and chicken wire are up and Hans and I have selected our stucco color.

We also were able to share our future home with dear friends Dan and Mary Lou Nichols.  This was our chance to show off our dream to friends who have been with us for over 25 years dreaming this with us.

See the pictures of our internal workings:

Plumbing in master bath

Toilet "hole"

Shower in master bath

Double sided fireplace...looking from master bedroom

Fireplace from living room

Fresh air intake going into fireplace

Fireplace in downstairs living room

Wire on the outside basement walls ready for stucco

Outside wall ready for stucco

Looking at front of house with porch and ready for stucco

One Is Done

Many of you know we cut two trees in half to be used as mantles for the home. We posted several pictures of Hans cutting and stripping the first one. Well, that mantle is done. This one is going in our bedroom and here are a few photographs of it before taking it up on the hill.

Each mantle is made of one half of an aspen tree that was part of the landscape before we started clearing the land to make room for the house. Each was rough cut by a chain saw and then stripped of the bark. The first of three to go into the home has been sanded and finished with a clear urethane finish. The markings and flaws are natural and contribute to the character of the mantle. The first finished mantle will be over the fireplace in our bedroom.

Some of the character markings on the end of the mantle really come out when finished. All markings are natural without any enhancement or addition of stains.

The support posts are purely decorative and have no function other than to add character to the overall look of the mantle.

Nice, huh!

The sister half of the one pictured is in the process of being sanded and will be mounted to the great room fireplace then one of the remaining halves of the second tree will go into the basement.

A true work in progress involves a lot of measuring, leveling and cutting followed by a whole lot more of sanding than one would want to do unless you really love getting dirty.

Once finished, this project will be one to talk about for years to come.

Door and windows in!

Christmas Eve, December 24, 2010:

Hans and I, along with the 4 dogs, went to see the progress made on our future home.  Glad to say we have windows and doors (all except one).  It's getting "buttoned down" for a cold winter.

3 french doors (all sliding doors) are beautiful and we are thrilled at the look they provide each room.   The sliding doors give us a better fit for the cabin winds and they don't rattle with the wind.  Our builder suggested them and we are glad we went with his suggestion.

The plumber has been there and we have lines run for showers, toilets, washer/dryer, sinks, etc.  Lots of internal things being done.

Our porch is beautiful.  We love the logs that give it the finished look and the porch sure makes the house look much larger.

Take a look at our pictures from today.  It was about 36 degrees, sunny and quite warm.  Hard to imagine that it is Christmas Eve...but the weather outside is wonderful...not frightful at all:  (Can you believe the blue sky?)

We have windows, doors and a porch

Our porch and windows

Our back door--metal and green!

Looking down the porch towards the back of the house

Inside the master bedroom--fireplace flues all lined up ready
to be installed 

Windows on the top eaves.  The wood paneling for the top has
been delivered ready for installation

Porch looking out at the front of the house

Front of the house with windows and doors!

Hans standing on our new porch alongside the "Mother Tree"!

Looking at the overall house with the porch

Visiting with the Cabinet Man

On Monday, December 21, I met with Michael York, the "Cabinet Man".  I spent two hours with him finalizing all the cabinet details, approving all new appliances, picked out counter tops, and finalized all the kitchen details.

I changed my mind (I know this is a surprise) about the wood the cabinets and vanities will be made out of.  I had originally selected beech, but changed my mind to hickory...it has more character and looks more like what I want.  I selected the door style "Shaker"  ..this is a square look.

Since I now know what the walls and logs look like, it was easier to pick the kitchen cabinets.  The look will blend into the log walls better and not be so "out there"!  If I had my way, I wouldn't even put up cabinets, as I don't want the logs to be hidden.  However, I was convinced that all kitchens need cabinets to hold stuff!  So, I am pleased with the decisions.  We are using Canyon Creek cabinets.

Appliances are all stainless steel and will look clean and professional!

Hans and I haven't been on the mountain for over ten days, so no new pictures to share with you.  We plan on going up on Christmas Eve.  From what Dennis Johnston, our building project manager, told me on Monday, the doors and windows are in!!!

We'll post more on Friday, after we've visited the site.

Our Porch Has Started...

What a beautiful day on the Klossner mountain.  Blue skies, some wind, but temperatures about 40 degrees.  Each time we visit, and we try to go up at least one day of each weekend, we see a bit more progress on our future home.

Today we are happy to report that our porch has taken some shape.  The support column logs are in place and the framing has begun.  There is a temporary subfloor so the guys can work on getting it attached to the house and work on the roof that will cover the porch.

Our propane tank has been buried.  It looks like a submarine coming up from the deep sea.  We have dubbed it the "SS Klossner".  The nice thing about this is that the only thing we will see is the "lid".  It looks very similar to a sewer lid.  I can certainly landscape around it.

The power lines are being laid from the power box to the house, furnace ducts are being brought in for installation and the internal plumbing has begun.

Hans and I wander through the rooms, as they have been defined, and talk about where we are going to put furniture, what will fit where, and dream our dream.  We gaze out our future window at the beautiful view we are going to be privileged to see each and every day.

We don't do much, as what we want to do we would be foolish to even try until the construction is complete.  Time will soon be here when all the things we want to do become ALL THE THINGS WE NEED TO DO!!!  For now, we have to be content to just watch and view the work of others.

Pictures to share with you...

3-sided porch being added..back yard 

Hans examining the poles

Hans on the north side...where the sun hardly shines

South side of porch from kitchen door

Inside of house looking at windows that are waiting for glass

Underneath the porch.  

Sophie looking up at the porch from the walkout basement door

Looking uphill to the house

Our propane tank...the SS Klossner...1000 gallon propane tank

Viewing the house from the Southside uphill

Update on the Mantles

One mantle is about 80 % complete and it's sister mantle cut from the same log is about 10%. Big difference. Should have one complete in about a week and the second well on it's way. I haven't even started the basement mantle.

Inside the cabin

Hi everyone.  It has been sometime since I've blogged, and there have been a lot of changes on our log home.  Hans and I met with Dennis Johnston, our construction foreman, on Saturday to finalize and sign off on the interior framing.  It was a real treat to go into the home and see actual rooms laid out.  Since I am very visual person it was great to see the definition of the rooms, fireplaces, closets, stairs and get a feel for the actual thing!

Only one minor change in the framing.  They have framed in the master bathroom, and we want to expose one wall to the logs...other than that, we approved it as is.  It is really exciting to start seeing the formation of actual rooms and starting to visualize where our furniture will go, hanging pictures, etc.

Since we approved the framing, this coming week they will start on the "mechanical aspects" of the house: putting in electrical wiring, plumbing, furnace ducts, pipes, etc.  They go on the inside of the walls and can then get closed up.

The 3-sided porch will also start to take shape.  The hand-hewn poles have been delivered and are ready to hold up our new porch, as soon as they get ready to start.

The weather has been chilly, but not horrendous and so far the construction crew has been able to work all except one day!  Good news for us, not so good news for the drought that it could potentially bring.

Sharing some pictures of the inside of our home:

Living Room.  Large square on framing is the living room fireplace
Looking from the kitchen

Cut in the floor for the stairs.  Looking from the kitchen

Stairs, looking at the landing

Sophie standing in kitchen.  Looking from the stairs

Stairs from the family room in the basement

Basement guest room

Basement bathroom

Storage room...food storage, etc., looking from the mechanical room

Under the stairs.  This will remain open...not sure what to do with it 

Basement family room looking at fireplace and outside doors

Sophie and Josie standing in the new living room..upstairs

Dennis, our construction foreman, taking measurements in the kitchen 

Loft storage

from the master bedroom looking into living room.  Large square is the
fireplace that you can see from both sides:  living room and master bedroom