Reclaimed wood, claimed kitten.

We've known what we wanted for hardwood flooring forever, we just didn't know how we were going to get it in our budget! 

What we wanted:

- wide planks

- reclaimed

- lots of colour variation/patina

- affordable

What we're getting:

- wide planks but varying widths

- 100+ year old hemlock reclaimed from Southern Ontario barns

- lots of colour/variation

- affordable!

- 1 free kitten

Meet Samantha, our newest family member. Named by the girls, in case it wasn't obvious!

We are quite pleased with ourselves for finding the exact flooring we wanted, and within budget. Even if it means now having a cat! 

There are a ton of reclaimed hardwood flooring options out there. But you're paying at least $10-15/square foot, plus install, plus finishing. When you're putting hardwood throughout almost your ENTIRE house, that's steep!

Once I realized the cost of reclaimed floors, I started looking for barns being demolish or barns that are on the verge of falling over to source the wood myself. I was willing to do whatever I had to do to get them. Thankfully we came across a man who demolishes barns and sells the lumber at a reasonable cost. Waaaay easier than tearing down someone's barn and carting it home in the Jetta! 

Once he gathers enough barn boards in decent condition, he'll take them to a mill to be denailed and planed flat and to equal thickness. After that they get sent to another man to be kiln dried and tongue and grooved, turning it into flooring. 

Kiln drying removes excess moisture, and BUGS!!

We will have our own installer install the floor at this point. Because the planks will be wide, they'll need to be glued and nailed down. Some planks will be over 10" wide and they could have a tendency to cup with humidity, which is the reason for using both nails and glue. 

When it first goes down it will still be fairly rough looking. We want a rustic look, but we also want the age and patina to be visible. We'll be hiring someone to do a very light sanding and finishing. We don't want to stain the floor because we like the natural look of aged lumber so we're going to go for an oil finish. 

It is kind of risky picking flooring without actually being able to see what the finish product will be... But it's worth the risk if you ask me!

I'll be sure to keep you posted on the many steps it's going take to get the perfect floor!  I'm hoping to be able to see our cabinets in production sometime in the next couple of weeks too.

I love seeing how everything is made! 

Timbers & Tile!

IHola! We took a little Christmas vacation from the blog... And we also didn't have a lot of action going on at the house to really blog about. Until this week that is!

All of our rough-ins for electrical, plumbing and HVAC are done. Woohoo!

It's hard to really see what's going on when it's pictures of a bunch of studs (but Jake wasn't in any of those pics? Kidding, kidding!)

One thing you can definitely see as soon as you pull up to the house is the timber frame front porch!

I'm in love!! They will be working on the back timbers this week... I can't even tell you how excited I am to see them up. 

We also picked all of our tile for the floors and tub and shower surrounds over the holidays. I'll try my best to explain what we're doing. 

The main bath is going to have 7" hexagon tiles in white. 

We love the retro look of hexagon floors, but thought the giant version might be kind of cool. 

The tub in this bathroom is going to have white 4"x16" subway style tiles laid in a brick pattern. 

We wanted to do a border, but nothing flashy because we (ok I) have some big plans for this little space. So we decided to sandwich one row of tiles with white 1" square tiles... Confused yet? 

We made a big decision for the flooring in the ensuite bathroom this week... We are going to continue the hardwood flooring from the bedroom right into the bathroom. Hardwood in the bathroom? Yes, you read that right. We researched it, and we're willing to give it a shot. We've promised each other that we're going to be diligent at wiping up water and running the fan. 

So that just leaves the tile in our shower. Again we decided on the same white 4"x16" brick pattern. But this time we're going to do 1 row (about 6' or 7' off the ground) in gray, and we're going to sandwich the gray tiles with black 1" tiles. 

Here's a rough (really rough!) idea of what I'm talking about.

I think it will be a nice touch and hopefully simple enough that we won't get sick of it too quickly! I'm not sure if you remember that there's a 16"x16" alcove in the shower wall for shampoo and stuff? We're going to use the white 1" tiles in there as well. 

I'm hoping we made good, smart decisions. It was a bit of a challenge concentrating and imagining how everything would look with 2 crazy kids running around. I have learned not to give my  kids hot chocolate and expect them to sit calmly while I picked "boring old tile".

There's not a whole lot going on at the house this week. Once our back porch timbers are up we'll be having our framing inspection (again) and hopefully pass so we can start insulation and drywall. Siding, soffits and fascia will start going up on January 5th. 

Thanks for checking back in... We'll have an update on our hardwood flooring this week! 

Shake it Off

I stay up too late
Got too much in my brain
That's what people say mmhmmm
That's what people say mmhmmm

Baby I'm just gonna stain my shakes, shakes, shakes... 

We had all of our cedar shakes delivered this week. We wanted to stain/seal them before they were installed and we needed to do that somewhere warm... Our house it is!

The shakes will be going in those two peaks. We decided on are real cedar mounted onto plywood panels. This gives us the look of cedar (we struggled to find a decent faux cedar shake we liked) but makes installation a breeze. Or so we've been told!

We love the colour variation in cedar so we wanted to find a transparent stain that wouldn't cover this up. We also have pine timbers going up on the porches and a sienna colour pressure treated deck. Try finding a stain that coordinates the three of those!

We initially found a stain called Taupe by Cabot. In the brochure it looked great! It was a great match between the brown pressure treated lumber and the cedar shakes. Until we got it home... It's taupe. I'm sure it would be fine for the deck and timbers, but I didn't want to chance ruining the cedar colour on the shakes. 

So back we went looking for a different stain. This time we decided on Red Cedar by Behr. I love it! It's semi-transparent, so the variation shows, and it has a more brown than red tint. 

Here it is going on... I was sold on the first swipe!

This kitchen table has seen more projects! It's the table I grew up with... For the longest time Carla's French homework could be seen etched into it as well as the spot where she set a cloth covered in nail polish remover :)

So a little stain won't hurt it!

Doesn't it look good?! Now we just have 200 or so square feet to stain tomorrow and we're ready to go!

This week could have gone a little smoother...

This week at the house had it's ups... And quite a few downs. I should have made notes so I wouldn't forget any of them! 

Ask my dad how many times I called him crying! :)

Where should we start? How about Monday?!

Monday went fairly well. We locked down our new mason and quickly ran out to order all of our stone. We needed it by Wednesday because that's when the mason could start. The stone was in stock AND we could have it delivered by Wednesday. Sweet! That's an up.

The framers were working away trying to finish everything up for our framing inspection that was scheduled for Wednesday. 

The roofers also started on Monday! 

Tuesday:

Framers were at the house working, the main guy was sick, so not a lot got done. All the windows were in except the one that hasn't come yet and the one that needed to be fixed. Although I noticed that the master bedroom windows were in the wrong places... Despite my window labeling, so they needed to come out and be switched. 

Someone also hit the door frame of our patio door with a hammer...

It was an accident but if it wasn't so cold it never would have shattered this way. I've been told it can be "capped", whatever that means!

We also met with our plumbing/electrical/HVAC company Tuesday as well. We went through and showed them where we wanted everything as far as plumbing and lighting/outlets. 

Roofers were still working away, even with frost/ice on the roof. 

Wednesday:

Pre-inspection: Masons started, yay!! Framers were getting a lot done in anticipation of the afternoon framing inspection. 

Post-Inspection: 

What?!! Moving the windows AND changing the cathedral ceiling porches to flat?! I don't think so!!

This is when frantic, crying phone call # 37 to my dad happened. Along with an email to our timber designer (who had our timber drawings reviewed and stamped by an engineer). He seems to think it's just a misunderstanding... Let's hope so!! 

Needless to say, we failed our framing inspection. They also won't pass it until the timbers are completely installed. But the timber guy won't make them until he knows we don't actually need collar ties. Awesome. Our timber guy is also booked solid until the week of Christmas. So looks like our insulation and drywall will be waiting. 

 

Thursday: 

Plumber and electricians start with the rough-ins. Yay!

Our fireplace was delivered. Yay! But it doesn't fit in the opening. Boo. 

It's 4" too wide for the opening. Easy solution, just make the opening bigger. Except it's not that easy... There is honestly not enough room between the windows, not to mention the entire back porch is supported by this wall. Annnnd now we're sending the fireplace back and getting a new, smaller one. One plus is it's about $500 cheaper. Yay!

Roofers were finishing up after needing 13 more bundles of shingles that Jake had to drive an hour + to get. 

Framers were framing the basement and correcting any deficiencies from the inspection. 

One issue with the inspection was with a roof truss (all that girder talk in my text from the framer, Steve). What happened was the truss was delivered and it was 2" too tall. So they had to cut it down and repair it. But because it was different than the original plan from the roof truss engineer, it needed to be re-engineered. The fix that the engineer recommended was impossible to do because there wasn't any space to do it. By this point, the roof was shingled, and they were talking about taking trusses down... Oh boy. 

Friday:

Roof is done. Woohoo!

Plumber was finishing rough-ins.

Electrician was working away.

Framers were raising the two front windows to eliminate the need for cutting the top layer of stone all the way around and finishing framing the basement. 

Masons were working on the back of the house. 

Timber guy came by to take measurements and assess the situation. 

Jake bought a stain colour for the timbers that looks nothing like the colour in the brochure. Ugh. 

Roof was leaking in one spot. We figured it might not be an actual leak considering it hasn't rained or snowed since the roof has been on. But there was water dripping from the roof onto the floor in the kitchen. 

For now, we're assuming that it's from that frosty day earlier in the week and the water was coming from under the shingles. Fingers crossed!!

We also blew multiple breakers at our neighbour's house this week. We've been using their hydro until we get our own... We're going to have to get them something REALLY nice as a thank you!

So hear's hoping next week goes a little smoother!

Getting stoned... You had to know that one was coming!

It's true, it's true. The last 2 days have been spent getting stoned. Obviously I'm talking about the house!

We actually changed masons last minute which made us a little nervous, but those nerves are gone now that we can see the stone on the house!  The mason we had previously hired works alone, and would take 4 weeks to finish the stone. This time of year, we couldn't afford to take that long, so we hired a local guy from Lucan who was happy to postpone his other jobs to work close to home. Best part is, it's him and 2 others which means he'll be done in less than 2 weeks! Since the weather is hovering around zero, they need to tarp the house and use heat to keep the mortar from freezing. Another reason we need the job done faster... 2 weeks of heat will end up costing about $700-800. Yikes! 

We are still waiting for our arched kitchen window which I'm told will be here on December 12th. I had no idea this window would be such a pain. It's going to be beautiful, but had I known it was such a specialty item, I would have compromised!

I guess the complicated part of this window is having the 2 parts open as an arch. Hopefully all the deer I'll see out this window will be worth it! 

One of our great room windows had some damage to the bottom jamb, so we've been waiting all week for someone to come fix it. 

Of course they show up once our framers are gone... So now it will have to wait until the 12th too. 

Oh well... It wasn't the worst thing that happened at the house this week! More on that later. 

We've got shingles!

Don't worry, not the infectious rash... Just the roof!

The roofers started shingling on Monday and they'll likely be finished by the end of today. Hooray!  They have been really good and we are quite impressed by them. Super nice guys who are getting the job done well and on time. 

The house looks great. Everything seems to be coming along quickly now. Framers are finishing, which is good because the house inspector is coming today!

Our mason has everything set up ready to go. The stone arrived this morning. 

Drywaller came out to measure today too. 

Plumbing, HVAC and electrical walk through was yesterday to make sure we're all on the same page before they start. 

Jake and I even did a bit of work ourselves! We had to insulate, vapour barrier and hang a sheet of plywood in the mechanical room for our hydro panel.

We just happened to take my car today, and the dog... Which wasn't the best idea since we had to go buy insulation.  

This was the only spot left for me!

I was laughing in the beginning. But then I started to feel trapped and panicky! Who knew I had confined space issues?!

All the more reason for me to NEED a truck! The want is now officially a need. :)

It's Closing Time!

Our house is almost closed in, finally! We are about a week and a half behind my initial schedule. Not too bad considering the blizzards and hurricane force winds we've had this month and rain the month before that! 

Our framers (who I HIGHLY recommend!) came back to work on our house this weekend to try to make up for lost time. They worked last weekend too!

I always appreciate a hard worker and someone who makes an effort. These guys certainly do both. 

On Friday they finished framing the back covered porch and sheeting the roof with plywood. 

I absolutely LOVE this deck! Neither Jake or I are very big sunworshippers so this deck is perfect for us. 

The roof of the deck is currently being held up temporarily until the timbers are installed. Which reminds me, we need to pick out a stain colour! Note to self... 

Our roofers are starting today, and there's even some sun in the weekly forecast to help seal up the shingles. Yay! 

I was really hoping that they wouldn't need to shovel off the roof before shingling, fingers crossed the weather stays as predicted! 

We picked black shingles, or "charcoal" as the manufacturer calls it.

Framers will be finishing wrapping the house and installing windows today. We have the Building Inspector scheduled for Wednesday, so they better be ready!! Our big kitchen window hasn't even arrived yet... I've been told tomorrow. 

Here's a glimpse of our first windows and front door installed! Love them! I'm glad we went with black. Our framer took the picture and sent it to me... I didn't even have to ask! :)

The front door will be black as well. You know what they say, once you go black... You paint all your doors black to match :)

We still need to order our garage doors. The ones we picked don't come in black, so we'll need to paint those as well. We decided that we'll get them in dark brown so it's easier to paint over. We're still debating whether we should paint them before they're installed or wait till after and paint them in the spring. It's going to look so bad until spring if we wait! People driving by will wonder what the heck we're doing! 

I Heart the Heart of Our Home

They say the kitchen is the heart of the home... Well I know where my heart is!  Actually it's kind of a toss up between the kitchen and the floors.  But I guess the floors are also in the kitchen... So the kitchen it is!

We just got the drawings of our kitchen this week... I am thrilled!!  I know I shared a little detail about the kitchen in an earlier post, but here's where it all comes together!

This is the basic floor plan of the kitchen:

My kitchen must haves were an island, and an arched window.  You can thank Houzz for the arched window idea.  

The window faces the back of the house in front of the sink where we've actually already seen deer! It's big, and round and well... I like big windows and I cannot lie.

We have chosen a white, stepped shaker style door for our cabinetry.  We wanted something simple and classic in hopes that it won't become outdated in a few years, as opposed to picking something super trendy.  Here's the door style we chose, but obviously not in our colour choice!

I was so excited to get the drawings of our cabinetry. Now we can order the handles and knobs we picked!  We ordered samples and are really happy with them! 

We've decided to go with 2 different colours. Black for the perimeter cabinetry and brushed nickel for the island. 

These will be for all the perimeter drawers.

And these will be for all of the cupboards. They remind me of the nailheads on leather furniture, love them!

And these are for the island drawers. They are the same as the black ones, just a different colour!

In an earlier post I showed a picture of our island colour, but I'll show you again! It's call Icy Moon Drops and I think it will look great against the white cabinetry and reclaimed floors. 

Our island top will be a variety reclaimed wood species like this one:

Since we are kind of going to be living in the country, I didn't want our house to be too contemporary, so we've added some legs to our island to add some character. 

And lots of drawers!! I have 1 small bank of drawers in my house now so I'm excited to have big ones! And lots of them!

And we added the same legs to our desk on the pantry wall and the open shelving will be reclaimed lumber as well. I can just see all my cute tea cups on display :)

I'm excited to have not 1, but 2 pantries to be able to store all of our jars of PB. 

On the floor plan the fridge is kind of in the center of of the main wall. It was cutting up the counter space, so we moved it to the far side. We're also taking our cabinets right up to the 9' ceilings so there isn't that awkward dust collecting space. I don't own any fake ivy to display so this seemed like the best choice for us! ;)

And my FAVOURITE wall of all... The window!! 

Ignore where I had drawn the handles... They'll actually be in the middle. 

What's missing? Counter tops! 

We've decided to go with laminate counter tops for the perimeter. And we're actually picking the ones I have in my house now. So I know we'll like them!

We would have loved to have gone with a quartz counter top, but we decided to splurge on other parts of the house that can't be upgraded down the road. 

 

As for a backsplash, we don't know what we're doing yet. I want to wait until everything is up to decide. 

So there ya go... The heart of our home!