Incredible Print Show

Hi,

Thank you so so so so so much for all your shouts of "hooray!" and "awesome!" to Matt's building project. It's so amazing to know that you appreciate this labor of love and it encourages him more than you know, so thank you for that. :) I'll hopefully have another "home tour" in a couple days to show you.

Today I want to share a little of the framing process for the four pieces I made for the Incredible Print Show. It opens at artstream this Friday with a reception on Saturday! Yay!! It has an amazing group of artists involved and whom I would love to meet in person.

{Photos taken when the framing was in progress.}
I took the pieces to a local frame shop to mat, with archival mats and materials. The woman who did the matting, her boyfriend works for/with my husband. And my husband made the frames using reclaimed maple from tongue and groove flooring.

Me adding the dust cover to the back of the work.

Here's what the back looks like. I always use a glass with a uv coating to protect the art and add that sticker so the future buyer will know.

And here are the four framed pieces I'll have in the show. Oh, I added a IPS button in the sidebar of my blog too for direct access to a whole host of prints!

I'll be back soon,
H

933 Delaware

So are you ready for a little tour of the house my husband poured his all into over the past year? It has been such an interesting time, full of changes in and around this project. I have seen Matt expand his knowledge, skills, and what he is able to accomplish. I told him now that I've seen this project come to fruition it raises the bar on my expectations for our own house reno! Yet I know our house will not be like this. My head is not completely in the clouds.

It is amazing how construction can affect individuals and their families in all sorts of ways. I have to say it made me a little emotional here near the end. On Saturday morning before the open house began, Matt left to complete finishing touches before guests arrived. For some reason, realizing that we were at "this point", the end of the project, I just broke down in tears. I'm not sure how to explain it but perhaps it was a realization that "we were here".

And the open house itself was great. It was fun to watch him talk excitedly to people about all the points of the building. It has materials in it that will never be in any other structure. It has heart and soul too, not just of Matt but of all the people who worked on it over the past year. We enjoyed sharing it with our friends who have been such a support.

Without further ado, let's look at a few photos...

This shows the north view of the house with the original brick structure, contemporary middle portion with bent wood rain screen made from reclaimed douglas fir and stucco back portion. The two car garage in the back has a rubber membrane with wire trellis system for honeysuckle vines. The house went from just over 500 sq. ft. to 2100 sq. ft.

All the cabinetry and doors are custom made by Matt and crew. Cabinets are walnut and birch with maple butcher block, stainless steel and concrete countertops.

In these photos you can see Matt's business partner and long-time friend Eric Jay. We're so glad he and his family moved here from Telluride last summer to be part of the company. Eric is an architect and has had a hand in all parts of the building process since the construction began. My husband designed and built the house with his company struct/restruct for caterer Robert Krause, however it is on the market. They worked on site for ten months.

Tempered glass hatch door to wine cellar in original house's stone basement. photo by Rachel Saldana

I love the details in the downstairs bath. Root ball walnut vanity, engine turned metal backsplash, burly elm mirror frame. photo by Rachel Saldana

Open house guests watching the automatic door slide open. We were really pleased with the response and number of attendees. I was also thankful to our friends that were able to visit.

A view from the outside patio through the overhead opening door into the house.
The stairs are made of reclaimed douglas fir and handrail is made of reclaimed walnut with custom made metal connectors and posts. Local metalsmith, Jonah Seibel made the metal parts. {I can't locate a website for him right now}

I think I will show you the upstairs, more of the outside and garage and other details in another post. In the meantime, if you're interested in seeing where this house began and a little process click here.

This week in addition to sharing more about this project, I have two shows to share with you too.

See you soon,
H

OPEN HOUSE


click on image to view larger

Hi everyone,

Thanks for your curiosity and enthusiasm about the project my husband designed and has been building with his long-time friend and now business partner, Eric Jay. I'm rather proud of them.

We are having an open house this weekend and if you live in/near Lawrence, we would of course be honored for you to drop by. I hope to take lots of photos this weekend of the finished product and share some of the details which make this home truly one of a kind. But to give you a little taste, here are some of it's features}

3 Bedrooms / 2 Baths / 2100 sq. ft.
Ext. Materials: Original & New Brick, Reclaimed Fir Siding, Stucco, EPDM, Standing Seam Metal, Recycled Stone from Site
Roof: Standing Seam Metal, EPDM
Interior Materials: Reclaimed Fir Beams, Tigerwood Trim, Raw & Stainless Steel, Brick
Floors: Original Oak, Stained Concrete, Reclaimed Pine, Recycled Slate
Doors & Cabinets: Reclaimed Walnut Frames w/ Birch panels, Mulberry (Entry)
Countertops: Maple Butcher-block, Concrete, Stainless Steel
Amenities: Lutron Lighting System w/ Tech Lighting, Wine Storage in Basement, Radiant Heat in Concrete Floors, Wired for Sound, Whirlpool Tub in Master Bath, Stainless Steel Appliances, Tiled Showers, Landscaped

This, in addition to the fact that it has been the heart and soul of my husband's labor for the past year, are why I wish the house were ours. Well I suppose in a way it is, even though we won't be living it.

I probably won't see you again until after the weekend. I hope you have a great one!
H

a few thoughts

A photo sketch for a personal spring/summer project I'm thinking about.

This morning I woke up, walked outside and looked up at the sky. The moon was still hanging, half-bright, and surrounded by clouds dusted with pink. The air smelled slightly moist and I imagined for a moment I was at the ocean. I am so wanting M. and I to be able to take a vacation. {It's been nearly seven years {our honeymoon} when we took time away, that wasn't to go visit one of our families.} It doesn't help when I get emails about travel deals to Oahu or Cancun or something like that. Does not help. Anyway.

Since I've been posting at habit this month, not only have I been enjoying reading what the others are sharing and the community, but also how it encourages me to recognize specific, special moments from my days. So much so, that even once my turn is complete, I would like to continue this exercise on my own, privately.

This weekend is going to be mega busy, but I think it will be good. Next week I plan to share with you the project my husband has been working on, a house he designed and with his small team of craftsmen, has been building for almost a year. It. is. amazing. {I'm not biased.}

What is in store for your weekend?
H