Floor two

phc_030
Originally uploaded by japunto.

There's sort of a floor up on floor two now. James (the architect) and I went up there and looked around; we have a cool view of the San Gabriel mountains, and surprisingly little view of our neighbors' yards. The rooftops and trees do a nice job of it.

In our meeting with James and J.D. yesterday we talked about the following:
Windows and doors. They've gotten a quote on Fleetwood clear anodized aluminum ones that are very stylish and have high quality hardware. We think that's going to be most important on the sliding doors and pocket doors. They're going to look into Milgard for the windows (they also offer modern looking aluminum ones) to see if that'll drop the price.

Wood flooring. They've got a good supplier who deals in reclaimed wood. I envision a guy traveling the country, buying old barns, and then sending the wood back here to L.A. The wood is old growth and ecologically friendly at the same time.

Fence. We're going to redo the fence in front to match the one I designed for the side. It is a kind of modernist take on the picket fence. I'll post some renders soon.

Staircase skeleton

phc_stairs01
Originally uploaded by japunto.

I never knew this was how stairs are made. The framer did loads of measuring and cutting to create these spiney-looking guys.

Overhang

This is the overhang of the master bedroom.

I looked at the schedule and the rough framing was slated for thirty days. It's only been ten days so far. Will it really take another twenty to finish that? I don't think so, but it's important to remember that I have no idea what I'm talking about.

Welded post

That is the post what bears the weight.

Framing panorama

Here is a 360 degree cylindrical panorama of the framing. Click and drag the image to spin around. If this doesn't work for you, grab the QuickTime software for your browser here.

Framing is great

Boy, framing really makes it seem real. We can actually walk around inside future rooms. Yay, framing!

One downside to framing is that it's a manly, violent artform that can lead to a baseball-sized hole being punched through the wall over your toddler's bed.

Wood drop

We just got this wood dropped off this morning. They'll start laying out the framing today. The big beams are made from some sort of compressed wood; this is the state-of-the art in beam technology. Much stronger than ordinary wood beams, and they smell like the future.

Concrete grooves

In this cruddy, low-contrast photo I took, you can imagine you see little grooves they cut into the concrete. These delineate the different rooms of the addition.
In reply to a question posted in the comments, the mistake with the slab cost about a week of time. No real worries, since they are still about two weeks ahead of schedule.

Ctrl+z

phc_cut
Originally uploaded by japunto.

The giant saw is gone. The jackhammer is in.

Slab shape

Oops. The slab wasn't supposed to be a rectangle. The approximate area I've outlined in red shouldn't be there. It's apparently not too difficult to correct with a giant saw or something. But a little disturbing when you're the homeowner, nonetheless.

Slab

This is the slab. It is currently setting for a week before the framing begins. We very carefully selected a mix-in color for it (Messa Buff, ooh!) that happens to perfectly match the dirt. Great.