Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Post Agave

We've been in Dallas for over two years now. We love being here (and our house) but miss Austin. The last time we were at Agave it looked like people were settling in. I hope things are going well out there.

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Storytelling

Gather round children. It's story telling time. No silly, I'm not talking about the half-truths and downright lies that come from those people. I'm talking about the story of a little house that has been under construction for about as long as The Winchester House. Alright, it doesn't have doors to nowhere or halls that end at dead-ends (not that we've noticed anyway), but it has taken a long time to get to this point. Unfortunately, not the end point.

So, the story goes that we had a "punch walk" through the house a few weeks ago (I know it's not new news but we've been busy). Contrary to how the phrase sounds, it did not entail punching anyone, although we've entertained that notion on several occasions. Nor does it indicate a leisurely stroll through a perfectly built-out house with a flimsy Dixie cup of lukewarm Kool-Aid (which I, for one, would've been hesitant to drink).

We were hoping that this "punch walk" would reveal to us that the house was almost finished. Well, not quite. The house has been locked up so we couldn't check it out before this time, unless we looked through the windows (see pictures below). Plus, those people made it clear that they didn't want anybody poking around until we were granted access to the house. Whatever.

For those of you who've never had the joy of a "punch walk," it entails walking through the home in a limited amount of time with a roll of blue painters tape and trying to identify all of the things that were done incorrectly, not at all, or need to be repaired (hereinafter referred to as "addressed"). During this walk, you place pieces of tape on everything that needs to be addressed. We used a lot of tape.

Many of the things that needed to be addressed had to do with dents, dings, and holes in the drywall, as well as cabinets that had paint on them or were scratched up. Several things still needed to be installed - the range, microwave, dishwasher, doors, etc. Some of the lights weren't working. Joe The Builder was also busy pointing out items that needed to be addressed. All in all, a useful exercise. Whether everything gets corrected to our satisfaction remains to be seen. One can hope a new tide has turned, right?

Below are some pictures (not the most recent) that we've taken over the last couple of months. The cement block walls will be covered in stucco and painted to match the house. The architect's rendering calls for a wood "screen" to be on top of the stucco wall closest to the house. It also calls for a matching gate to go in that area, effectively creating a courtyard-type of enclosure. We've been told that the only option for that is the basket weave fencing that's being used throughout the neighborhood. We chose to pass on that and not have the screen or gate installed. We can have something more architecturally appropriate installed later.







Tuesday, June 05, 2007

Hardscape

We really like the idea of having something like this for the courtyard area of the Fab house. The trees would help hide the house next door when looking into the courtyard from the living room.











Oh, and a cool pond like this one.

Shopping Therapy

We've been buying furniture like crazy lately.

For the living room, we got a couple of these




















to go on each side of this


















and a couple of these great chairs from West Elm










We also picked up a sweet chocolate (pun intended) brown leather sofa, recliner, and ottoman for the t.v. room. They go very well with the "t.v. stand" pictured below.

I think we're going to get this (in a taller version) this weekend.

Maebeaux | no roo for you

Merlin | i spy

Monday, May 21, 2007

Retro, you know?

If you like great mid-century modern furniture, then check out Century Modern. We picked up this sweet buffet to serve as a stand for the plasma. The picture doesn't do it justice. It's a very beautiful piece that's actually darker than the photo shows. The two doors on the far sides swing out, but the middle one drops down. Perfect for hiding all the electronics.









We also got a great "surfboard" style wood coffee table and three-tier side table. Well worth the drive to the Big D (and an overnight stay in Hotel Zsa Zsa or The Belmont).

Catching Up

Yeah yeah, I know. It's been a while. We really needed to step away for a bit. Those of you who have been in this as long as we have understand what I mean.

I'm happy to say that we now have paint on the outside and drywall on the inside. Hooray! (Let me crack open a Shiner)

Here are some pictures taken before the drywall was installed.














Sunday, March 18, 2007

Law for Dummies

Specific Peformance
n. The performance of a contract as specified in its terms.

Wednesday, February 14, 2007

Funky 50's house














I love interesting 50's architecture.

Tuesday, February 13, 2007

Evolution of Intelligent Design

We have stucco! And they've finally installed the roof support column at the front of the garage. Still waiting on our recently added window to be installed, though.

We took a few pictures but work was being done around the house so we didn't venture very close.

Pictures will be posted soon.