My Christmas Vacation / Construction Marathon

I have NEVER been so happy to get back to work in the studio. Before Christmas I was so busy I could get no work done on my barn apartment. I was determined to get moved in by the first of the year. I almost made it. Although it is not near finished....I moved in anyway. And I'm exhausted.

This is before. This is my fire exit door to the outside of the barn. It's tiny old solid wood at just 17" wide found at the Habitat for Humanity Restore.

The kitchenette area and some cabinets that need much love.

A bargain....vanity, sink and faucet for $25. The medicine cabinet for $15, both from Habitat for Humanity. I am still painting them white.

My best score by far was the north windows. They are 6' tall and look out to the pasture and the mountains. These were probably $800 new each and got them both for $100 you guessed it Habitat for Humanity Restore.
If you haven't checked them out, you must. There should be one in your area. There are three in Ar and we don't have nothing here. Not only do you get great bargains the profits go to help others get housing.

I'm thinking of getting a new curtain rod, but somehow the hay string gets seems appropriate.

I don't think you can tell from the photos but the walls are textured. I have been working on getting the sheetrock finished enough for the light texture treatment and then texturing.

 I hate working with sheetrock.... Day after day and it looks like nothing gets done.

Finally the paint. Love the color.

I and getting plastic glue up ceiling tiles here. No more sheetrock dust for me.

Anyway I am glad to get moved in. It has a nice feel to it already and....a flush toilet in the same building you sleep in...what a novel idea!

The best part is the studio feels better too.

Barn Apartment Construction

My housing situation since moving in to assist the elderly parents... well not so good.
First I tryed living in the main house but discovered the three, yes 3 TVs running 24/7 was way to much for me. NowI live in the tepee in the summer and it's awesome. But the winters in the studio....

I built a studio in part of an old greenhouse. It's a pretty good space but no running water and no clothes closet, plus to live in too ... not really big enough.

After building the barn last year my plan was to build a small aptartment in there. I went to my freind Diana at DK Berg Designs. She is a fabulous space planner and since the space is only 12 x 24' I needed every inch to count.

The plan was to start at the beginning of November. Even though this is the busiest time of year in my business it is the best time for the horses to not be using the barn.

After visiting the Habitat for Humanity Restores around Arkansas and finding some great deals on windows, doors and an adorable bathroom vanity I was ready to get started.

I called James and the crew that built the barn. The guys like lots of construction workers these days are very glad to have the work. As with the barn they are just doing the basics and I will do all the finish work.

Most of the framing lumber came from a local sawmill. It was a great price but to get it takes a trailer and digging through the stacks to get to the wood that I needed.
The insulation for the walls I bought at 1/2 price because of ripped bags at the local home store.

The septic system was put together from two 55 gallon drums and these great online instructions.

It's a good thing I did all this to save money because everthing else went over budget, mostly from my miscalculations and all the extra stuff I didn't know I needed. The shower stalll alone costs a whopping $500, twice as much as I figured. But I like it.

     The guys will be finished by next week. There will still be plenty more for me to do.