Detours off Britta Blvd

As of yesterday, it has officially been 4 years since I owned my house...wow! Time flies, and I've done a lot of improvements in just 4 years, but that will be a separate post in January when I plan for next year's projects... :)

This Sunday December 13th will be the 4th anniversary of walking into Brittahytta as owner for the first time, so why not celebrate with a Holiday Happy Hour? I'm expecting around 50 people anytime after 5pm, so hopefully we'll all have a lot of festive fun!

I'm sure I'll be running around crazily at the last minute as usual for any of my parties, but I'm in a fairly decent prep position at the moment:

outside decorations done except for front door wreath
inside decorations almost done - just final touches left
4 dozen sandbakkels are made, a little more dough left to make maybe 1 dozen more
14 dozen intricate sugar cookie snowflakes baked, need to decorate
chocolate covered toffee made
double-batch of fudge made to cut into squares
10 dozen krumkake made - took 6 hrs standing at the stove - ugh!
pepperkakor (gingerbread) dough chilled in fridge - should make 5 dozen tonight I hope

( The party menu (subject to change) )

This is the first holiday party I've hosted that has NOT been after performing in a concert...what a concept! ;)

Here are the garden updates I promised!

( new flowerbeds along the Final Pathway )


From stepping stones in gravel with giant can of dirt, to plumbago, black-eyed Susans, purple verbena & a "Halloween" dahlia along the newest brick pathway...notice the ugly green plastic garbage can is now GONE! hooray!


( tiny pumpkin patch so far )


Pumpkin seedlings, from planting to today...still growing!


( tomato & chili harvest )



Lots of tomatoes already, including some more citrus flavor zebra heirloom tomatoes, already 4 good-sized Anaheim chilis, enough for two delicious batches of fresh homemade salsa so far!


( abundant grape harvest! )


Already 3 big bowls of grapes harvested, with still bunches as large as your head hanging on the vine! Nice shade with the new cushions too...

Obviously I was concentrating more this year on hardscaping with finishing the brick, then doing my kitchen remodel instead of tending my plants this spring & early summer...my poor geraniums haven't been deadheaded since the winter I'm afraid! But it is very nice to enjoy a pretty garden even without constant maintenance...look what it used to be when I moved in compared to now! :)



We'll get to enjoy the garden again tonight with another Cinema Brittahytta evening...the usual suspects will be watching The Usual Suspects... ;)

The kitchen passed final inspection from the city this past Friday, so the major remodel is really ALL DONE!!! It's the largest investment I have made in my house since purchasing it, not just financially but so much personal time & effort, and I am very proud of the results! :)

The kitchen has been pretty much finished & definitely usable since July 18th, but I had to finish inspection details like sealing around the new ducting, labeling the electrical panel with all the new circuits, and buying a temporary fluorescent light (shh don't tell), plus the pantry door glass, then planning, purchasing & installing the pantry shelving, so all that is now finally done...hooray! I've already had a major 4th of July party, 4 movie nights & one work BBQ since the countertops & plumbing were done on July 3rd, so the new kitchen is definitely getting a good workout!

I am already reaping the benefits of my design, research & planning. I love that I can have a weeknight movie night, throw DIRTY serving dishes in the dishwasher, set for a delayed start while I'm taking my shower before bed, then have actual CLEAN dishes by morning, even gooey jam jars or baked brie plates! I have lost count of how many times I've already used my drop-leaf counter for prep work, and even moving lots of party supplies from garage storage into the pantry, there is still room for more! My cabinets aren't totally crammed full either, and I haven't even started putting anything in the toekick drawers, so it's very nice to have more space. The microwave is at eye-level inside the cabinet between the stove & fridge, which I love, and the dishwasher is so nicely hidden behind a matching panel that my housecleaners didn't know where it was. :) The travertine stone tile was definitely a worthy splurge since it is gorgeous without being overwhelming, and my copper sink really does make me smile every time I do dishes!

I'm still working on the webcam stop-motion movies of the riveting remodeling action, so those will come later, but for now please notice the bonus features, then enjoy the before & after of 5 months of work!


copper sink under custom archway with travertine stone tile backsplash


drop-leaf gateleg counter - matching $6 pair of spindles hide the hinge and decorate the other side to match


wall cabinet endcaps hide key storage or magnetic dry-erase boards -
dishwasher is behind matching panel with fancy handle


pretty pantry storage & shelving, before filling with stuff -
straight on view from dining area (no before pic from this view)


kitchen from main hallway - before & after


kitchen from patio - before & after

Oh, yes, and both kitties are finally getting used to the new flooring everywhere. Instead of running in place like cartoons or sliding around corners crashing into walls, they have now figured out when to stop so they can finish sliding where they really want to go. Pretty funny to watch them chasing & sliding into each other! Ebony also only waited one day before climbing up above the cabinets, but now she has to slink under the ceiling beams like a snake to get anywhere...heehee...

All the kitchen photos are in the Brittahytta gallery, with the new ones from the last update starting at page 38...

Next up will be some garden updates with pretty flowerbeds around my new brick pathways, pumpkins growing, and even a bountiful grape harvest this year...then it will be full speed ahead on Halloween plans, including new Eerie Elegance project podcasts! I've already sold 75 books just in July & August so far!

Current Mood: accomplished

This was the whirlwind week for the new kitchen! All the painting was finished by Sunday evening, Monday I cut all the baseboards & door trim & painted them, Tuesday I installed those, went to see Spamalot, then came back & installed my magnetic door stops...unfortunately Tuesday afternoon my cabinet guy called & said he needed an extra day, so Thursday was crazy since the electrician & plumber couldn't do anything until enough cabinets were installed....

( Thursday was crazy... )

( Friday was also crazy... )


before & after


before & after

Of course even more photos are in the Brittahytta gallery, starting at page 35...

Since the electrician needs to come back anyway for a couple hours to finish the ceiling light & labeling my panel, the cabinet guy will also be back for hopefully the last time, both on Friday as I work from home...then I plan to start my backsplash tiling on Saturday, seal the stone before grouting Sunday, grout on Monday, the final sealer Tuesday, all while unpacking properly into my new kitchen...we shall see!

Lots done in a week!

Friday - passed all rough inspections, then finished living room flooring!

Saturday - finished hallway - since going backwards & fitting into such a small space took FIVE HOURS...argh! But ALL the flooring is DONE!

Sunday - Handyman Charles helped me with drywalling the pantry from 10am-4pm - thanks Charles!!!

Monday - break for Cinema Brittahytta - Galaxy Quest

Tuesday - 6 hours after work, cut & anchored rest of drywall

Wednesday- 5 hours after work, replaced leaky dishwasher valve, spackled all of kitchen patches with entire gallon of spackle!

Thursday - 4 hours after work, spackled all of pantry, including texture, another entire gallon used!




Even more photos are in the Brittahytta gallery, starting at page 32...


Tonight is a break for Margarita Friday, tomorrow I return 2 extra full sheets of drywall & buy my special order travertine tile...then caulking at the ceiling then PAINT this weekend! Cabinets should arrive either Tuesday or Wednesday, then the following day will be final electrical plus plumbing, housecleaning on Friday, then 4th of July Fireworks & Fun party on Saturday, whether the kitchen is actually complete or not!

Here we go! Hooray for kitchen updates! :D Click on each topic to read more details...

( pantry walls framed, door frame complete, all ready for rough inspection )



( rough electrical complete, all new wiring in kitchen, ready for inspection )



( new ductwork should be ready for rough inspection )



( new flooring almost finished! )



( backsplash tile selected! )



Even more photos are in the Brittahytta gallery, starting at page 27...

Now that friends have helped me move the piano & TV to the new floor, I hope to finish the rest of the living room flooring tonight. My city inspections are scheduled for tomorrow...sure hope I pass so I can continue with drywall! Wish me luck!

EDIT 6/19/09: I just passed rough inspection for everything, and I don't need any other inspections until the final, so I can mud the drywall as soon as I put it up...woohoo! Happy Friday!

Current Mood: accomplished

Back in January I posted what house projects I completed in 2008, plus what I had planned for 2009. I've gotten a lot done already with 2009 not quite half over yet, including the most ambitious project on my list that is well underway!

( Brittahytta home & garden improvements for 2009 already completed )


( still to-do for 2009 )


( ...and last but by no means least...(fanfare please!)...the kitchen remodel is well underway, hopefully all finished before 4th of July! :D )




kitchen color story = raw copper sink, EcoTop samples (Pecan is the winner), Tuscan Bronze faucet, IKEA "antique effect" flooring

So, now you can see why I've been so busy the past few months! When not at work or doing all the other stuff I've already posted, I've been either revising layout drawings, researching & purchasing, packing up my kitchen or bashing tile off my floor! I also was wary of posting too early in case I might jinx something...the cabinet order was one of the last details to get in place for sure, but now that's in process, I feel much better that everything is underway!

The last major detail is choosing castley stone(like) backsplash tile, but since I can't install that until after the cabinets & counter are in anyway, I have a little time to go shopping. I have a general idea in my head of what I'd like (think the flagstone pattern from my Halloween walls, but more tan than gray), but haven't investigated local tile stores. I also haven't found any knobs or pulls I like enough, but at my request Richard is making me fingerpull cabinet doors & drawers, so I won't have to install knobs or pulls anyway. My parents' kitchen doesn't have hardware, and I might like the cleaner look.

From my estimates, since I don't always know what the price would be if I paid labor for what I've been doing by myself so far, I will probably get a $35K kitchen including new hallway & living room flooring for about $25K that was secured last year when our company stock was nice & high, so sure glad I sold options when I did...still not any low-budget kitchen & I could have cut more corners to be cheaper, but I think the value I'm getting is definitely worth it!

Biggest splurge = gorgeous copper farmhouse sink...almost as expensive as the fridge(!), but smiling every time I do dishes will be as worth it as the expensive teal custom paint job is every time I smile when I see the Briata, even 5 years later... :)

Best deal (so far?) = found the matching finish dishwasher air gap for $20 online but won on eBay new in box for $0.99 + $4 shipping...woohoo!

Happy Friday everyone!

Current Mood: excited

Almost three years later, I am finally finished with brick at Brittahytta! :D The whole time I was pounding this pathway this past weekend, I kept singing "The Final Pathway" to the tune of The Final Countdown! heehee...

December 2005 - boring concrete pathways from sidewalk to front porch & back side yard, no back patio, no pathway across front yard, only stepping stones from porch to side gate
March 2006 - started bashing concrete along back side yard - took until February 2007 to finish!
September 2006 - back brick patio & original pathway across back yard
March 2008 - brick stepping stones with vegetable garden along back side yard
September 2008 - pathway across front yard
February 2009 - front porch paved in split bricks
March 2009 - after bashing concrete out, front pathway from sidewalk to front door,
May 2009 - final pathway from porch to side gate, meeting original pathway across back yard!

I'm sure you've seen enough brick by now to spare you too many step by step photos! Not only do I have plenty of dry bricklaying experience during the past three years, but this pathway was easier since that stretch had been white gravel over black plastic with no irrigation since before I moved in, so the ground was flat & compacted already, and at the perfect depth to match the paved porch, so no digging required until meeting the original pathway under the side gate. This was about 10 hours work from unloading 200 bricks from the truck onto the porch & scooting gravel to the end of laying brick, since all I had to do was scoot the gravel out of the way in the correct shape, lay down weedblocker fabric & sand, and start pounding bricks...


From stepping stones to coming full circle meeting the original brick pathway at the side gate, Britthytta is now surrounded with brick that matches the front chimney!

Full photos of The Final Pathway start on page 51 of the garden gallery...


P.S. This isn't even the big news yet...stay tuned!

Current Mood: accomplished

When I moved in over 3 years ago, my house had no walkway across the back or front, only covered back patio space, and a boring straight concrete walkway to the front porch. Brainstorming led to my mom's idea of brick pathways around the house since my brick chimney is so prominent on the front of my house. I've always liked the charm of brick, so that idea developed into a back pathway from my gate opening into a nice open brick patio that was done in 2006, in 2006 & 2007 cracking out concrete to make room for brick stepping stones & vegetable garden along the side yard finally in early 2008, moving lawn sprinklers in the summer to add the front pathway across the house last fall (that I guess I never blogged because of book & Halloween craziness)...

...and now finally the boring straight concrete is replaced with a charming curving brick pathway!



( This was a major effort, since this time was ALL by myself! For details click here to keep reading... )

concrete haulaway = free
labor = free (exhausting though!)
weedblocker fabric = $5 (didn't use the whole roll so really less)
brick = leftovers from previous purchases + $35
8 bags sand = $32

...so for only $72 cost I have a brand new pathway, but that's not quite fair since I knew I would be doing this project eventually, so it was really prepurchased by buying 3 full 520-brick pallets, two for the back patio, and another one last year for the front pathway (since I was paying a delivery charge for new doors anyway), then saving the leftovers stacked out of the way by my garbage cans. I definitely saved labor cost by doing it all myself, and I can always be proud when showing off my new pathway! :)

I can't tell you how much better I like my front yard now! Still plenty of details to tackle, like filling in with good planting soil along the new path in spots, but it looks so much better now! I still have about 25 ft left from the porch to the gate to meet the first pathway, then I will have pretty brick surrounding my entire house...yay! :)

Current Location: Brittahytta
Current Mood: accomplished

Last year was the first year my dad was retired, and my mom wanted to go to Stitches West, so the plan was for both of them to come stay at my house, I would take some vacation days, and my dad & I would build the two gates I asked for as Christmas presents while my mom was at the conference. This worked well enough last year that Stitches Project Weekend has become an annual tradition. This year my mom even brought a friend for the conference, so I had 3 guests for Mardi Gras, then only a couple days later, another 3 guests, so I'm glad my guest room & office have gotten good use!

When I make my wish list of projects to do, it is truly a wish list of things I want done eventually, but usually a stretch goal I don't expect to complete, so I prioritize, plan out what we think we can do in the time we have vs. daylight hours, and see what we can do. We actually got EVERYTHING done on my list this time...wow! Thanks Dad! :)

To read details about each project, click the links.


Day One (only afternoon/evening):

( site survey & shopping )

( leaky sprinkler valve )

( new kitchen light )


Ugly old kitchen track light before...now prettier & brighter new kitchen light!



Day Two:

( proper drainage from 3 downspouts )


Drain ditch in process


( paving front porch to go with new brick pathway )


Voila! Front porch before I moved in & now! So much more charm than the pebbly concrete before!




Spillover Day Three (morning only):

( hallway linen closet doors closing properly )


Linen closet doors with new hinges that match my hallway doorknobs...and should I repaint the fronts but leave the insides of the doors the "painted desert" effect as house history? ;)


( restabilize pipe organ )


( old kitchen light installed on wall switch in garage )


Track light from kitchen now illuminating the garage


( new fridge water supply valve in kitchen )


new water pipe extension through garage wall...and the valve moved inside ready for a new fridge!


( stabilize screened patio structure to be ready for outdoor patio carpeting )


so...

leaky sprinkler valve = $13
new kitchen light = $175
proper drainage from 3 downspouts = $60
paving front porch to go with new brick pathway = $144
hallway linen closet doors closing properly = $25
restabilize pipe organ = $0
old kitchen light installed on wall switch in garage = $4
new fridge water supply valve in kitchen = $35
stabilize screened patio structure = $0

...project weekend with Dad = priceless! :)


P.S. I did get the living room, dining area & hallway all painted with a "wheatland beige" base coat then a hand-rubbed "wam oats" topcoat all in January! Those photos are here if you'd like to see...

Current Location: Brittahytta
Current Mood: accomplished

I'm still recovering from my latest illness, but I decided to take stock of last year's home improvements and organize my thoughts for this year. I thought I didn't get much done on my house last year, but now it looks like I did after all! In rough chronological order...

( Brittahytta home & garden improvements in 2008 )

( Brittahytta home & garden improvements for 2009 )

( farther future because timing will be tricky, plus not all kitchen decisions made yet anyway )

Speaking of the kitchen, one part I am struggling on is the sink. I hate stainless steel, and I want warm colors in my kitchen, not a white enamel sink that will stand out as too bright against all my warm tans & beiges. I cannot find any enamel sink darker than "biscuit" which is still too light. I found a gorgeous natural stone travertine farmhouse sink with a carved apron, but I am worried a bit about the cleaning care. I have seen some custom-painted fireclay sinks, but none in designs I like enough. Why can't someone just paint a fireclay sink to look like stone? Or why can't they let ME paint one myself, then fire it for me? heh...If anyone comes across any sinks you think I might like, please let me know!

Once I find a sink I think I might be close, but the timing is tricky, since I have to have half my house unusable for quite awhile, since the flooring can't be done until the existing kitchen is dismantled, and as you know I have party schedules to work around... ;) Unless I have decisions finalized by Mardi Gras to be able to start work, which is only a month away, I won't be able to start until after next Mardi Gras. At least the summer parties I can work around having no kitchen since the parties are out back or on the patio, I have a fridge out there already, I do have a sink in the garage and can move appliances like the microwave to the patio too.

...and speaking of Mardi Gras, I have to get an invitation out, since the party is now only one month away!

Current Location: at work
Current Mood: accomplished

Trying to catch up starting back in mid-July...whew!

( The Police, take 2 )




( Chris Isaak )


( Alaska cruise coming soon... )


( Birthday Cinema Brittahytta )


Birthday Cinema Brittahytta


( new dining table )


New Dining Table


( more house projects )


Movie Screen Grape Trellis and Custom Window Box - thanks, Dad!


( garden harvest )




Saw The Wrath of Khan at midnight movies on Saturday...wow, the print was absolutely atrocious, with red starfields instead of black, awful pops & scratches, and even off track a couple times so that the line was in the middle with heads at the bottom...but the saving grace was the opening trivia contest where I won a poster for the new Trek movie coming out in May! Woohoo! Just too bad it's the Kirk poster, not Spock... ;)


Next up is Yosemite, leaving Thursday, hopefully hiking to the Halfdome summit on Friday with mrmouse, recovering with local hikes on Saturday, then coming home Sunday. I barely got the single campsite in March with the most stressful Saturday morning at 7am I've had in a long time! I tried this trip 2 years ago, getting an even better campsite in North Pines on the valley floor then, but an old friend scheduled his wedding the same exact weekend and I couldn't get another campsite date, so I had to pay the cancellation fee last time. hp_jenorama and her husband are also coming but won't be tackling the 12-hour Halfdome hike past two waterfalls and including cables along the rock towards the summit. This will be my first serious hiking since Scotland in 2005, and I haven't even been tent-camping since Scotland 1997, so I have been so looking forward to it! Even if the wildfires make the view hazy, that's no different than our view at the summit of Ben Nevis in 2005. ;) Wish us luck!

Current Location: at work

I was able to get enough people for a Tuesday night Cinema Brittahytta & potluck BBQ, so about 11 of us had eaten, chatted with cocktails & cider, started the firepit, and gotten comfy in our chairs & blankets, voting on a smaller scale picture this time to try out Sheila's vintage portable movie screen, and the side gate was still open since people had been coming in that way. We were about 45 minutes into The Producers (Lane/Broderick movie) not even 10pm yet, when we saw lights bobbing...

( Read more... )

After our little "intermission" we finished the movie, a bit later than usual so people left about midnight. We had a fun evening, and it seems weeknights are better for most people for movie nights, so I think that will be the Cinema Brittahytta plan for this summer. :)

Current Location: at work

Various projects small & large have been completed recently for my house. I'm still behind on writing up the little things I did before the Clue party that were mostly furniture, artwork & accessories, but I'll catch up with the more recent projects right now.


( Kitty-inspired bug protection ;) )

Foam pieces cut to fit and painted to match, then in place on the patio



( New Skylight Shades )

Living room and kitchen skylight shades installed by me



( New Front Screen Door )


New Retractable Front Screen Door


( New French Doors )

Old Sliding Door vs. New French Doors


French Doors completely open...ah, what wonderful party flow space this will be! :)



( New Window Trim )

Side window before & after trim


Living room window before & after trim


Front window before & after trim


Ready for my window box! Backyard window before moving in, now after trim added



Fear not...more projects will appear here for your reading pleasure as I have the time & motivation to document them... :)

Current Location: at work

My garden has been loving the spring weather. The calla lilies bloomed so well I kept taking them to work with lilac, pink breath of heaven and the first roses, including my new JFK rose I planted just this year. I even had one lone dutch iris bloom out front! I'm very happy that my tomatoes like my skinny walkway spot along the fence. I had worried there might not be enough sun there for them when I planted them in March, but they have more than quadrupled in size and have many blooms already, so hopefully eventually there will be actual fruit once it's staying at more than 60F overnight. :)

Tomatoes from March to May


Speaking of fruit, the quince are growing, no plums so I think that's an every two year tree, I'm already working on cutting my first 5 gallons of loquats for jam with plenty more on the tree, and the feijoa just started blooming. My grapes on the arbor bench have really loved the extreme record heat last week...in only 2 days between tending the vines by wrapping them into the arbor, I had two feet of growth on almost every trailer! I even have baby grape berries all over my vine, so I should have flame seedless grapes by harvest time! One of my Concord grapes I bought last year died, and the other is coming back, but it's too young still for fruit. Next year perhaps?


Loquats and grapes around the back patio

I have also started digging out sod in the front yard for a brick pathway across from the driveway to the main front path, since my plan is for brick pathways in the front to match up at the gate where the brick path starts in the back. I'm waiting until next February to crack out the front concrete path so I can get rid of the scrap for free during the city spring cleaning, but this path across will be useful until then. Since I don't have quite enough leftover brick from the backyard, I'm buying a whole pallet of 595 bricks to be delivered soon. 300 of those will be for the cross path, then leftovers will be used for the main path eventually, with supplements to be added at that time of course.

I saw Angel's Trumpet plants with their giant hanging blooms in Jamaica a couple years ago, then saw one in my neighborhood and even the Pacific Northwest, so it does grow here, but I never saw it for sale...until Saturday! So I wouldn't keel over in the heat, let alone shock the plants, I waited until the sun went down Sunday, then dug out one pink breath of heaven bush, moved it over, then planted the Angel's Trumpet in its place. $25 is the most I've spent on a single plant, but I think it'll be worth it. It already has buds drooping, so hopefully soon I will have pretty creamy white fragrant trumpet blooms underneath my Brittahytta sign!


Brittahytta front garden



If you really like garden photos and want to see more, there are a ton more in my garden album, with the updates starting on page 25.

Happy Spring!

Finally my side yard has been transformed from a solid concrete pathway to a side vegetable & herb garden, with brick stepping stones, and a new gate to hide the garbage cans!

( A long road to a short pathway... )

Side yard when I moved in, now after 2 years of gradual work!


Oh, and my gnome finally has his own home at Brittahytta! I had made the gnome door in 2006, but putting it out front was risky since it kept getting moved so I'd find it across the flowerbed, so I moved him inside. Nathania had given me the perfect-sized gnome figure for my birthday, so I had been waiting until my path was completed before setting up house for him. Now that there is irrigation around the tulip tree, I plan to transplant some baby tears to give him more landscaping, and hopefully the wooly thyme & golden thyme will grow over time. (haha) The irrigation line should relax in a bit so I can bury it without it popping right up again, then he'll have a better front yard.


Brittahytta is "truly" a Scandinavian house now, complete with gnome family living in the yard. :)

Boy am I tired! I can barely grip anything my hands are so sore, and my legs & back are aching from crouching so much, but at least I have my nice new herb & vegetable garden with pretty bricks to go with my brick patio...and all done by myself! :)

Current Location: Brittahytta
Current Mood: accomplished

What a long week! I wanted to post Sunday night or Monday morning with project success, but work has been so busy, then the evenings as well with rehearsals & such that this is my first chance, on Friday night...whew!

My parents were at my house for a long weekend for my mom to attend Stitches West, so I took two days off work so my dad & I could work on projects...

( Two New Gates! )

Front side gate - before & after


Side walkway - before & after


Side walkway - before & after



( Other minor projects )

Freshly-barked Brittahytta


I can't tell you how nice my yard smells with the fresh bark & the nice redwood gates! :) If I get my act together enough this weekend, I might finally be able to set my brick stepping stones in the side yard so I can fill in around them, then PLANT things!

Current Location: Brittahytta
Current Mood: accomplished

Finally the right cabinet arrived! My parents drove over to attend our concert at Chateau Julien winery on Sunday, so on Saturday my dad & I installed the new brushed nickel faucet on the granite countertop after getting the CatGenie into the new vanity cabinet. Since the cabinet is 3" deeper plus about 4" taller, it is much more comfortable for me, and I even have more counterspace since the sink itself is also smaller...which the kittens also like, making it a bit difficult to get ready in the mornings with both of them wandering around playing with running water, batting the curling iron and sitting in the sink! The cabinet has only been modified slightly, with cutouts to accommodate the underneath power outlet, plus a slot just big enough for the cables to reach the water intake and the toilet. Luckily the only modifications to the drain trap were to shorten it towards the wall, so the CatGenie scooper doesn't hit, plus there's still as much room as Kylie had to use the litter bowl, so I think it'll be fine when the kittens grow up. I have the left door removed for now, since the kittens aren't big enough to pull the door open, but when they're big enough, I'm sure I'll be able to teach them how to open it by themselves. Kylie was smart enough to figure that out on her own, which is what gave me the idea of the cabinet-hidden litter box in the first place!

Master Bathroom Before:


Master Bathroom Today:


...and showing how the litter box fits inside, plus full inspection complete!



...and speaking of the inspectors, there are indeed even more kitten photos starting here!

Current Location: at work
Current Mood: accomplished

Let's see...it's been a long time since any Brittahytta remodeling updates...

Before Halloween I did spackle the drywall in the living room that replaced the fake & real wood paneling I removed, but it still has not been painted. The holiday season was filled with parties and decorating instead of home improvement projects. I did find some cool shelves for my bedroom just before Christmas, but I still am figuring out what to put on them for sure. Also, I had never properly screwed the wooden cover back into the wall after the plumbing incident last January since I wanted to eventually find a real access panel, so I finally got around to finding one that would fit - had to purchase online vs. local - so no more "clunk clunk" of Kylie trying to get past the loose wood panel into the plumbing hole! I had to pry out a couple extra wood spacers and add drywall to resize the hole enough to fit the panel mount. The wall paint isn't completely white, and I've only primed the panel so far, but since it's under the table you don't really notice, so that will wait until after the walls are done being covered with fake stone this summer & Halloween anyway. ;) I also just acquired a Scandinavian-style post box to replace my sad old & crooked mailbox, and it's nice that the color ties in with my Brittahytta house sign from Lincoln Sign Company! :)

( However, the project with the most impact is the hall bathroom... )

Here are some before & after photos of the hall bathroom...as in before I moved in!





I doubt there will be many more DIY house projects between now and July 21st for obvious reasons of a giant party in process! I still hope to get AC installed & the insulation going, but I still don't have leads from the contractor yet...so we'll see what happens!

Current Location: at work

I've been so busy, plus it's been a matter of choosing what to say, since so many things have been going on...but when two or more people ask "you haven't blogged in awhile, are you ok?" I guess it's time for at least a little catchup! :)

I guess my last post was about Robin's lame ER bills. A few generous people contributed, so Robin has $376.36 waiting in her new PayPal account to be used to chip away at a tiny bit of that horrendous bill. Donations can still be accepted of course if you feel so inclined. The odd number is because to accept credit/debit cards, people had to send to my account which took out fees, so whatever was left after fees went from my account to Robin's as PayPal cash...little did I know it'd be such a hassle!

We had a Choral Project concert up in Santa Rosa on March 25th that went very well, with complete strangers coming up to us raving about how much they enjoyed the concert...which is always nice to hear! We actually sold out our CD stock that we brought to that concert, so that was amazing! Should have brought more I guess! We're also doing pretty darn well at iTunes sales so far, which is really cool to hear...I'm still amazed that my solo on Mary's Little Boy Child ended up on the preview clip! :-o

My garden is doing well. I did get irrigation for the new concrete patio installed, just some mini-half-circle sprayers, but some of the baby tears inbetwen the pavers got crunchy before then, so I'll probably have to dig up some more from the volunteer bumper crop on the north side of my house. My roses started going to town while I wasn't noticing (hooray for pruning properly in December AND planting red onions between as organic insect control!), so Sunday morning I already deadheaded a bunch of blooms! I also pruned my lilac tree since so many branches were crossing, so I have two giant lilac bouquets in the house now!

Solar might not be the project for 2007, since Nanosolar is an up & coming new technology that should be 10% of the cost of standard PV panels, which sounds worth waiting for. I had an appointment with a friend of a friend "green" contractor last week, who recommended improving the efficiency of my house for the major expense vs. solar right now, especially with Nanosolar already constructing their first plant in San Jose for production in 2007, so he's getting me leads for new HVAC (including roof-mounted AC and replacement furnace), new polyurethane foam roof (R24 insulation! attic fiberglass gets max of something like R14 only if properly installed, and I have no attic option anyway), and blowing insulation into my exterior walls by punching small holes in the stucco. Unfortunately my gas supply line is too small for a tankless water heater, so my existing functional water heater will probably stay as-is for this year, since it actually fits in my utility closet, and with a new furnace space inside there might be an issue to solve later!

As an excuse for getting some college friends together I haven't seen in awhile, plus I've discovered some more recently-acquired friends are also fans, I had Mystery Science Theatre March Madness, which was a Saturday afternoon BBQ plus two MST3K movies, Hobgoblins (ARGH! SOOO painful!) and the infamous Mitchell! It was a lot of fun, and the majority opinion was to have another one soon...so it'll just be a matter of fitting it into my hectic schedule!

Speaking of hectic schedules, yes, inbetween concerts and dates (! - yes, still going well with Patrick! :D ), I'm already working on the Big Bash, aka Final Festivities, aka Year 7 at Hogwarts for July 21st. Copious supplies have been ordered and/or received, decorations are in the works, my costume is designed, but there is so much to do! I'm putting extra pressure on myself since I'm considering this to be my last chance to do some of the ideas I've had since 2000 but ran out of time for the previous parties...like the edible Hogwarts gingerbread castle centerpiece, edible Mandrake Seedlings, edible bugs for Potions, Sugar Quills, Ice Mice, Polyjuice Potion, etc, etc, plus it's a new location with this house, so I have to figure out the most logical party setup, which will include a new Marauder's Map too...I hope I can do it all!

Current Location: at work