CMR Update 4-4-11: Progression and Postponement

It's early April.  Stuff is getting done.  Some of that "stuff" is delaying us some more - - but it's one of those, getting-it-done-right-takes-longer scenarios.  Stainpocalypse 2011 requires some serious taping off of entire walls and rooms - so they need to hurry up and get stuff done so that they can morph the whole house in to something akin to the containment room in "Outbreak."  Jorge the super stainer will then come and do his magic to make sure all is done correctly.  Apparently he is the virtuoso of all things honey oak.  I can only dream.

On the good news front - - the house is really starting to look like a house... 

Before we left for Disney we had a summit to discuss what to do with the exterior of the skylights.  All of the creative team was in attendance:

Our Creative Team:  Foreman Luke, GC Paul, and the Architects John and Geoff

They set the lights in a temporary bays and we noodled inside the plastic tent that protected all our house innards from the week of crazy rain.  It was overcast, but the greenhouse effect made it about 7,000 degrees inside the courtyard tent.  We tried to make our decisions quickly!

Skylights placed temporarily.  You should've seen them hoisting that center
one up from the lower level.  It weighs alot!

They did some finish work inside while the rain made outside work impossible:

The finish work on the beams between the skylights.  For this picture, the lights weren't in yet.

A view of the skylight bays from across the rumpus room looking in to the pool room.

Then, while we were away in Disney wrestling with our rainy weather, the sky miraculously cleared here in the Bay Area and - - - yessirree!!  We got exterior paint!!!  It's still not completely finished, but we are pleased as punch with the color.  It's similar to the old color, but brighter and shinier!

The front!

Part of the rear!

And now I am too lazy to correct the sequence of photos - - - but here are some shots of our first views of the library cabinetry.  It's going to be such a GREAT room!  It's still being pieced together like a massive jigsaw puzzle.  I stopped by yesterday again for a meeting with GC Paul (without my camera) and it's already changed so much.  The corner desks were in and the pieces were now flush with the walls.

The lower level is now almost entirely painted.  They paint all the walls and then in the last moment, come back and do all the touch up work.  We also used this color in our London house.  It's called Stone white - - but as you can see it's really a nice warm greeny color.  It is more than perfect to hang art on!  The wall to the right will be covered with large birch squares (a mid-century take on "panelling" that isn't oak or knotty pine).  We saw the samples and (fingers crossed) if it turns out that way - - it's gonna be so good!  What you see on the walls in the rumpus room and the pool room is the grid system that they use to hang it.  They just bring in the panels and "snap" them in to place. 

Rumpus room color and wall grid

Pool room wall grid

And now it's time for out with the old lights and in with the new lights!!  It's weird that coming in and finding lighting fixtures excited us so much - - but it did.  It's fun seeing the stuff you selected get installed.  We were a little nervous about some - - but in the end, we like them all.  Howard the Electrician put a couple in the wrong place - - but this is an easy change...

 

Out with the old....

New hallway scones to take the place of the weirdly placed overhead
 fixtures that were there before.  Note to original builder
 - - you can't hang ceiling lights on a sloped ceiling...

The fixtures are new, the globes were reused.  This is in the laundry room.
The globes can't be see very well in this photo, but they are true mid-century gems.

These are the fixtures that will be in the pool room and the wii room.
 Right now this one in is George the Younger's room.

These are the BIG Globes that will be in each of the boys' rooms.
    An updated look on a traditional mid-century globe.

We also made progress on the stairs.  The the little "train track" in the middle on the wood?  The stainless steel railings will fit perfectly in there.  Or so they say....

 

The kitchen is now mostly put back together - - and we are already trying to figure out the timing (i.e. when we will have the moola) to get the one that we really really want.  For now, I can say with a high degree of happiness that AT LEAST IT ISN'T PINK any more!!

 

Evidence of forward movement in Stain Wars 2011?  New Stain samples for the downstairs!!

Birch on the left.  Oak on the Right.  Fingers crossed.....and waiting for Jorge!!

And in bathroom news - - the cap pieces for the pony wall arrived from Heath and so we are 100% tiled.  The big glass wall to separate the shower is on order, the medicine cabinets are here - - and all the sink and fixtures are sitting in boxes ready for installation!

Most importantly - - we spied this in the garage on Sunday....

The potty!!!

And finally - - the first buds on our wee apple tree.  Spring is here and the move is now scheduled for April 27th!  Ready for three weeks of GO GO GO!!!!