Alive and Kicking

Holy Cow, have I been out of the bloggers' circle for some time. It's been almost 1½ months since I last graced this medium. But, fear naught, for though there has been little told of our doings, much has been doing in the interrim...but alas, little has been done. I mean to say that many house-restoration projects have been initiated, but none of them have actually been completed, thus explaining my scarceness. I had hoped to post "finished" projects, rather than "just started" ones, but I suppose I need to get over that hang-up already.

So, although this is just a check-in, I shall outline the entries that I have in the works and assure you all that they shall be posted in short time, whether I have finished the job yet or not.

First up: Front Door (8) Mini-Window Replacement/Upgrade
After I broke a window just before we moved in, I vowed to upgrade the plain glass with a beveled glass. I have since replaced the broken one, so now we have one fancy window out of 8.

Next up: Back Door Replacement/Upgrade
Our back door was rather flimsy, with the half-panel window of thin plexiglass (not very secure) even flimsier. While Roxana was out in the garden with our 3 yo Michaela, our indoor-only cat bolted the door shut while throwing a fit about wanting to go out too, thereby locking my wife & daughter out of the house. She had to break this pithy faux window to get back inside. I therefore chose to replace the whole door rather than just replace the window, since we intended on doing that anyways (but much later than immediately). I have the hinges and deadbolt mortised in and secure, but have yet to do the knob and finish-coat the wood.

And then: Front Porch Light Upgrade
Tired of the bathroom fixture light on our sexy porch (with a view of the SF Bay), we purchased a fitting new one from Hubbardton Forge (Ooooo! I love their fixtures!!!). Well, after I installed the light (in the dark, mind you), we realized how awful the porch ceiling looked. Beforehand, it was the light that we noticed as the eyesore, now with our beautiful light, the bead-board ceiling looks hiddeous, as though we had not noticed it there before. It needs a thorough scraping/stripping and a new finish.

And currently: Window Coverings!
This, we are still trying to figure out. Neither Roxana nor I are particularly fond of curtains, but neither do we favor the akward bulkiness of blinds, either in the window cavity which would block some of the window, or over the trim, while all of our trims/rails are tied together so seamlessly and look quite sharp uninterrupted. But something needs to be done ASAP as our 4'x9' uncovered front window makes us feel like we are starring in our own reality program, we feel so exposed. So, after much ado, we are opting for some form of Shori panels (for light but privacy day-wise) along with curtains (for privacy night-wise). In the meantime, we have been using childrens' puzzle foam mats which looks quite silly, imho.

And more in the coming month:
- finally finishing the flooring!
- prepping and texturing the living/dining walls and a painting
- hardware upgrade on the living/dining built-ins

So, stay tuned and I will be keeping this site up-to-date again.