Day 61 & 62

OK, you are sparred pictures of my work! They showed up to work!

We have had a lot of rain in the last 2 days. However they were able to pour the cement for the sono tubes which support the porch. They did that yesterday. Then the rains came!

Today they worked on cutting the wood for the porch and constructing the steps. Because there is a 15 degree angle, cutting the wood at the correct angle is a challenge. The steps and porch floor are made of mahogany. It is a beautiful red-brown color. I was only able to take pictures of the beginning of the work as it was pouring rain later on. I'll get a better picture of the beautiful mahogany wood tomorrow.

Punky and Josh assessing the angle cut!








Gary, Punky, and Josh working on the front steps.


The back steps are begun. We would like to have these steps come down onto a patio but that will be another project at some other time!

Day 59 & 60

The 60th day has come and gone! The contractor originally said he could do this in 60 days. I think we are a little behind! Weather and waiting on sub contractors has delayed the work. When Mark and his crew are here, things fly! When the electrician finishes his work (yes he's still working!) and the inspections are done, things should move fast again.

The tile for the entryway arrived yesterday. It will be a while before it goes in.

The heating/AC guy is finishing up his work.

None of these things make for great photo shoots!!!

So for your entertainment pleasure, here is a photo of the work I typically sell. The top is rayon chenille and cotton and the hat is an ultra suede brim with a handwoven crazy quilted crown. The brim is embellished with handwoven fabric, beads, buttons, and other adornments.





Model: Julie Nichols
Photographer: Bob Barrett

Day 58

Ok! They're BAAAAAACK! The crew was back today to build the stairs to the garage and to do the framing between the garage stairs and the studio. They were building my little cubby storage space above the garage stairs. It will have a small access door off the stairs to the studio.
Much to my surprise, I came downstairs this morning to discover a man in my kitchen ripping out the slider to the patio. They had started to work on replacing the door to our deck. I hadn't heard him come in. Thank goodness I was fully clothed!!!
We now have a beautiful french door in the seating area of our kitchen which leads out to the deck. It still needs final trim work. I am so happy to see that slider go!

Day 56

Last week, days 51-55 were unproductive. The electrician showed up 2 days and they began to build the porch. They dug the hole and placed the sono tubes for the porch. They leveled the dirt pile around the garage. That was about it! They have been waiting on the cement guy to pour the floor for the garage.
Well, the cement truck showed up today, Day 56, and poured the cement for the garage floor. Yeah! Something is happening! I was beginning to feel construction withdrawal!


Now we have a nice clean smooth floor in the garage. Hopefully they will be able to complete the stair framing so that we can have the inspections done. But, oh, wait! The electrician has to finish his work. Then we can get all the inspections done at once.


What a nice smooth floor!
Meanwhile, items are arriving. The stainless steel double sink for the utility room arrived today. The t-handles for the drawers arrived last week. They are really cool! Some of the lights have been purchased and some are on order. The floor tile should come in next week. Most of the decisions have been made except paint color, I think and HOPE!

Days 46 - 50

Well, once again it's been a slow week at the Jones' construction site. The contractor did tell me it would slow down. I didn't think it would be this slow for this long! But(!) I think something is going to happen this week as mounds and mounds of dirt have been delivered this weekend! They should be doing the ground leveling around the garage on Monday.


The electrician should be back to finish his work. So far we have the beginnings of the wiring and the placement of switches and plugs.





This was a tax free weekend in Massachusetts. All purchases under $2500 are tax free. We took advantage of that to purchase the floor tile, some lights, and the garage doors. We were able to save quite a bit. That was a nice gift. At least something isn't more expensive!!!!
The floor tile for the entryway that we picked is a porcelain tile. It is a light beige color with variations from light to dark. It has a sandy beachy look to it. Any guesses on what paint color we may use in the entryway? (Clue -think "beachy", Nantucket colors)

Weekend Review

Day 43-45 did not bring a lot of progress. The electrician has been here and is beginning to do his work. We are still trying to work out the lighting fixtures. I picked out the drawers for the storage area and ordered them from Home Depot. They are plain white but will have these really cool long European T bar handles. That's about all that happened this week.



A friend of mine sent my this wonderful Triangular Loom so I could experiment with weaving on it. The loom is about 6 1/2 feet long on the hypotenuse (ok, remember geometry class in high school!) and sits on an easel type frame. The shawl is made of Lopi wool yarn and a pretty variegated and metallic ribbon. This is so unlike my typical work that it is fun to see what I can do with it. For the weavers out there, the warp and weft are woven at the same time. When you finish warping, you also finish weaving the shawl! Pretty cool!
That wraps up the weekend report. Here's hoping there is more action this coming week.

Day 41 & 42

Things have slowed up on the construction front. The painter has been here to paint the exterior trim. Today was very hot so it couldn't have been much fun.

The electrician was here to discuss the lighting proposal. He is supposed to come tomorrow to rough in the electrical work. Tomorrow is going to be hotter than today. I'm not sure how much work he will be able to do. Even the ocean breeze is hot!!

Soooooooooooooooo, in light of the fact that I have no interesting pictures of the construction, I thought I would entertain you with pictures of my latest work.


These are scarves made out of Tencel. Tencel has the feel and drape of silk but the care of cotton or rayon. These scarves are very different from my chenille scarf line. For those of you who are weavers on the blog, the pattern is an 8S point twill variation. I finally figured out how to use Fiber Works PCW!!!!!! I'm not hooked on pattern weaves but I do plan on designing more.














The fringe has been twisted tightly.






All pictures where taken in the studio construction site. It seemed like the perfect place to photograph them.

Close up picture of the pattern.

Day 31-Day 40

We're back from vacation! The construction progressed without too many problems. The wrong doors were sent but they were replaced within 3 days. Amazing how an order that took 3 weeks originally can only take 3 days when it's their mistake!

We drove home to discover that the windows and doors were in and the cedar siding was done. Almost all of the interior framing is done. Only the steps to the garage needs to be completed.



















The plumber, "the butcher, the baker" ( oh no that's a nursery rhyme!), the heating guy have all made their mark. Notice the silver duct work for the heating and AC and the copper piping for the utility sinks.


















Not much work has been done the last few days. I think we are waiting for the electrician to do his thing. What is it with electricians? They always keep you waiting! Sorry Charlie! (Are we still friends?)

The demolition on the coat closet in the former entry/kitchen area was done while we were gone so we wouldn't need to live with the mess. This closet will become a kitchen pantry closet and the coat closet will be moved to the new entryway. I never seem to have enough kitchen closet storage. Those pot and pan and can good gremlins keep multiplying!



We had a wonderful time on vacation visiting my Mom, our son Chris to celebrate his 26th birthday, and many friends. I wish we could have seen more of our friends but there was only so much time. You all are welcome to stop by and visit us in Plymouth. But wait until the construction is done!


My Mom in Ocean City


My son in Washington, DC. Boy was it hot that day! And we walked everywhere!

Day 30

The roof shingles are on. Now when it rains it won't leak!
They worked on the cedar siding. It looks so fresh and new compared to the existing house. I've been told that they can be power washed and brought back to the lighter color. Anyway, it looks so nice next to the white trim board.


Check out my office area. The studs are in place. It is on the South side of the studio. There will be long yarn shelves on the studio side of those studs.


The studs are also in place for my utility/dye room and the entryway closet.


I'll be taking a short break from writing on the blog. I'll post again after July 25. Until then, enjoy your summer. I'll be watching the view from "the studio window".

Day 28 & 29

I haven't had time to take any pictures the last few days. There has been progress even though we have had some rain in the last 2 days. They are close to finishing the roof shingles and have started to do the cedar shakes. The fascia board is almost done. The windows should be in any day. We are waiting for them to be delivered.

I'll try to post pictures tomorrow.

Day 27

Gee Whiz! We go away for a few hours and they have the roof to the entryway back on, the skylights in, and they started roofing the studio! These guys don't mess around! Things are moving quickly again. It's a little scary!!!!

Day 26

Construction took a few steps backward today. The roof line and door to the studio height needed to be changed. They had to remove the roof from the entryway and raise the roof 10 inches in order to have the head room to the studio that is needed for code. Much to my surprise, they did it in one day. Can you see a difference? The cathedral look is a little more dramatic! And of course, we definitely want drama!

We've had to make a few adjustments in the original plan.



They also started putting the furring strips on the ceiling in the studio.
Things should be back on track now. The "head honcho" is back from vacation and the pace seems to be picking up.
Just as a side note, we were delighted to discover that we have raspberry bushes in our back yard!!! And they taste wonderful!!! If you visit, you can pick some. Beware, though, you may need to climb into the bushes to reach the ones in back. But it is worth it!

Day 23,24,25

Well, its been a quiet and slow week at the Jones' building site! Due to rain, the holiday, and the "head honcho" being on vacation, not as much progress was made. We also have a few glitches concerning roof lines and steps that need to be addressed. Some changes will have to be made.

They have started to put the fascia board on. For those of you who know little about construction that is the white face board that runs along the edges and under the eaves.





There may be a slight delay until the changes get made and then hopefully things will progress on schedule again.
Hope everyone had a Happy 4th of July. We sat near "The Rock" along the waterfront in Plymouth and watched the fireworks. They were spectacular!

Day 22

Yesterday was a short work day. However they did accomplish putting the rafters on for the roof over the connector/entryway. This was not an easy task as it makes a 15 degree angle turn. This roof line is salt box style, a typical New England style.
Once that was done they all left for an early start to the 4th of July Holiday! I think they deserved it!!

Blue Skies over the studio!!!!!!
There is a tradition of lighting bonfires and setting off fireworks all along the beach on July 3rd. Since we live near the beach we were able to go down to the beach and see the light show. It was a fun "star spangled" event! It was so neat to see all those bonfires going and the fireworks went steady for at least 1 1/2 hours. It reminded me of all the bonfires in Sweden and Norway for mid-summer. Tonight there will be fireworks in Plymouth. We'll see how that compares!
Hope everyone is having a Happy and Safe 4th of July! Peace!