A House In A Field
The story of a house. In a field. And how it gets there.
“I HATE Pottery Barn.”
And that’s the email that kicked off Day “T-21.” All caps emotion with just a whiff of hysteria.
Here’s the short version :
On September 29th, we ordered this excellent looking light along with a couple of mirrors from Pottery Barn :
The mirrors were in-stock, but the lights were backordered until October 6th. No worries. We didn’t really need them until the middle of October anyway. And the “special” price versus the “regular” price was worth a few laughs.
With finish work underway, John asked us to do an inventory over the weekend and make sure everything was on-site. (Apparently WE NOW HAVE A DEADLINE.) In the process noticed that the Pottery Barn lights weren’t there.
Odd.
Checked the Pottery Barn on-line account and the shipping date has magically moved to the end of October 24th. Called Customer Service and find out that the date is wrong. It’s now actually NOVEMBER 27th.
NOVEMBER 27th.
No notice. No nice call or email saying “we’re sorry we’re late.” Zip. Nothing. Nada. And if you check the Pottery Barn site today, you’ll see nothing about the backorder date. It’s just a teeny little surprise that they’re saving for a rainy day.
The best part? They sent the following a few hours later :
Just two more glasses of wine and we’ll be ready to share some feedback with Brittany and the rest of the Pottery Barn team.
(And “yes,” we’re aware of the irony and whats his name’s job. We’re choosing to ignore it.)
Screen porch.
With 22 days remaining, the site was rockin’ today. Floor sanders, tilers, electricians, generator guys (a story for another day) cabinet guys, contractors, contractor’s nephews — you name it.
But this might have been the highlight. One of our favorite parts of Flying Point Road and we’ve had this on the plan for Dash Landing since Day #1.
Because a porch without screens in Maine is a space you’ll never use.
If Parker read the blog more often, this would be the name of our road…
Remember all that hullabaloo about taking seven tries with the Town of Freeport to get an “acceptable” road name? Tried everything under the sun. Historical names. Made up names. Even the names of ski waxes.
We should have just called our friend Parker.
This sign is near our driveway and — through some bad typography choices — implies that the hill might be a little “less than smart.” And in Parker’s words, it would have made an awesome name for our project and all that has accompanied it during the last 18 months.
“Slow Crested Hill Farm”
“We’re floored by the floor.” — A GoPro Production
Last day of floor installation. Sanding and sealing starts on Monday.
Looking from the corner of the dining area. Living room straight ahead. Kitchen to the right.
Corner of the first floor bedroom. Office through the door.
Random shot of a well worn nail gun.
Somebody got a haircut.
Matt from the you-should-really-check-them-out Wolfes Neck Farm came over yesterday and bush-hogged the field.
One or two of you will remember that this was the very first thing that we did after we bought the property. It always looks great and ensures that the field actually stays a “field.” (You’d be surprised how fast an open space here in Maine will fill in — blackberries, followed by poplar, followed by pine trees. Next thing you know you’re living in a forest…)
And for those of you wondering why we don’t hay the field — there’s not enough grass here to make it worthwhile. The field looks great from a distance, but it’s really a mix of ivy, wild blueberries, scrub weeds and whatnot. Maybe someday, but we’ve got a long ways to go…
Mailbox.
Bobby K. is going to take a deep sigh when he sees the “ham handedness” of this shot, but there’s no doubt —- things are happening with 26 days to go….
“Soft shoes only or booties — NO MORE GRAVEL IN THE HOUSE!”
Hello all.
Things are winding down at Dash Landing. This is my attempt at sorting out the order of work for the next few weeks. Please review and let me know of any issues, and I will keep you informed of the status .
Week of Oct. 14
- The painters will be spraying again today, (tues.) and the flooring crew will be installing the first floor from wednesday to friday. Anyone wishing to work there during the floor install is welcome to do so, but not at the expense of flooring efficiency (hallway, etc).
- I will get the MBR countertops in place so that the tile backsplash can go forward.
- The kitchen window trim will be installed for the same purpose.
Week of Oct 21
- Floor sanding and sealing for at least mon/tues., and possible wednesday.
- Probably begin stair rails and balusters and complete the following week.
- Assemble screen porch. Install FP mantle. Full access to house for everyone , but from this point on — soft shoes only or booties —no more gravel in the house!
- Start up geothermal system this week, after the floors are sealed (tuesday or wednesday likely)
Week of Oct 28
- Complete door hardware.
- Deliver and install appliances
- Deliver and install Island and top.
- Deliver and install rolling doors in pantry
- Deliver and install plumbing fixtures
- Continue painting and touch up as needed.
- Complete all cabinetry doors and drawers and install hardware.
- Complete stairs and rails
- Install misc. towel bars and mirrors
Week of Nov 4th
- Cleaning and punch list
- Security, label E panel, Painting touch up if necessary.
- Demonstrate to clients systems operations, primarily heat and ac, and provide any and all warranty info .
Thanks for your attention. Call me with any problems
John
“The place where optimism flourishes most is the lunatic asylum” – Havelock Ellis
Trying to grow grass. In October. In Maine.
The post in which we discuss crown molding.
“Meh.”
We know it makes some folks swoon, but we’ve never quite understood the hullabaloo around crown molding. Flying Point Road doesn’t have it. We inherited a roomful in the Medford house, but certainly didn’t add any during the (re)construction projects.
Rationally, it doesn’t quite fit into our immature simple highly-refined design aesthetic. Perhaps more realistically, it also doesn’t match up with what’s his name’s cheapness around all things without a Nikon label. And apparently those inside corners are a bear to “cope” or something to that effect. (We have a sneaking suspicion that the “highly refined design aesthetic” is actually about “things that are easy for him to build vs. things that aren’t“)
But Rob convinced us that Dash Landing needed a touch of crown molding. And he came up with an incredibly simple version, just a basic 1×4 overlaid with a piece of stock lumberyard molding.
It’s now installed in a couple of downstairs rooms and across the cabinets.
And it’s making us a little light-headed…
Across the nickel gap wall in the bedroom and around the corner over the bookcase before painting.
Living room wall and pantry.
Office cabinets.
Painted on top of the nickle gap wall in the bedroom.
A House In A Field 