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November 19

Well Its been a long time since the last update. Things are moving along and Mum will be moving in on December 3. I'll post a few more images soon.

 
View from the roof.
 

November 27

We're using the living room (we have for a while actually) in spite of the fact there is no flooring, window jams hand rails or trim. The fireplace works and so does the lighting, its a great space

 

December 28

We're in the new living room for Xmas

  fireplace
With carpet scraps and no window trim Cheryl is already using the master bedroom addition.
 
Mum is settling in to her suite. Here she is working on her latest tapestry after a day in the garden. Turkey stock simmering on the stove and filling the whole house with the smell of Christmas.
 

Annie and I got on our hands and knees and finished the studio floor with a soy-based non toxic concrete stain from Arizona. The result is really good.

 
We've got the walls painted in the studio bathroom, we'll have to repaint the ceiling.

 

Here's a close-up. Cheryl came up with a technique using a translucent glaze and I scratched in the texture with an old broom head.
 
Here's a view looking back into the old living room space. Maggie doesn't like the Christmas cards on her ledge.
 

January 22 - 2008

Well we're moved into the studio and set up crudely. Eastbay is still working on window trim and jams.

 
STORAGE SPACE!!!!!
 
The bathroom is fully functional. We just need to touch-up the ceiling and paint the door.
 

March 29 th 2008

Well we're nearly there for any of you still checking this site. We're hoping to have final sign-off from Saanich next week. Ian has completed the brackets for the studio entrance. They are beautifully crafted form solid wood - and now I'm going to paint them!

  studio door
Once through the door you're greeted with a reception counter sporting a swanky marble top.
 
To the other side is the meeting area featuring pearlescent gold glazed walls.
 
The linking hallway to the back side of the studio. Our "zen shelf" remains a painted chunk of plywood while we try to find a really funky slab of recycled lumber.
 

All the trim is finished in the studio. The guys from Easrbay went the extra mile and did a superb job. That header is one continuous piece of edge grain Douglas Fir. The desks are just the old ones that were built in to the old studio with 2 x 4 legs.

 
Upstairs the trim and painting is complete. Cheryl's wrist is now well healed and it was great to have her back behind a brush.
 
The fireplace still needs its tile surround but is fully functional and continually enjoyed. The floor is just painted plywood.
 
The view through the old living room.
 
A view from the upper garden.
 
A very wide angle shot from the driveway.
 
As seen from the road.
 
After hauling around the old chunks of granite that were on the property from 1914 for years, they now are hopefully in there final resting place. The cracked round stepping stone sits on the manhole cover of our underground storm water management system.
 

Using the blasted rock that we kept on site to terrace the front garden, we created three levels that were filled by slinging in 30 yards of top-quality new soil.