Remember our original space plan? Well, as these months have been a-draggin’, we’ve been a-thinkin’. We initially wanted to build this:
photo: Western Interiors
Now we’ve fallen in love with this:
Yeah. I know. Our yard. We love the straw bales. We love the warmth and the smell. We love that we can circle ‘um up for a bonfire or set them aside for a big play with the puppies (and one day, kiddies). We love that we can set ‘um up in rows for our future movie nights. We can shove a few together and nap or read in the sun or shade. The flexible layout works in ways that the built-in just doesn’t, and when we’re trying to maximize the space, that’s key. The bales are much more comfortable than a stucco-n-cushion situation. On top of us just liking this idea better, it also costs a lot less and is a much easier project to bring forth. Win win win.
I can go to some French, Ethiopian, Tibetan, Ukrainian, etc. stores for some fabulous textiles to throw on top of the bales, sew into pillows, and wrap around us on chilly nights, mixing in a bit of Global Folk with the Country.
You’ll also notice that we’ve decided to project movies onto an already existing wall. It’ll need to be extended and smooth stuccoed, but it’s a much more efficient plan that the fabric-and-telescoping-pole scenario that was my initial idea.
Check it out:
You might notice that I’ve got “spiral stairs from Master” and “French doors from kitchen” on the new plan. This is because – big change – we’ve decided to add a second floor to the Main House. Yeah – I told you it was big. Instead turning the garage into a two story Guest House/Studios with three rooms and a bathroom, we are going with a one story, one room and full bath Guest House/Studio. The second floor of the Main House will have a nice, large (relatively large) Master Suite and two more bedrooms.
This new plan will expand the living space from the current 796 square feet to approximately 1900, and will be much more likely to get permitted. A big thank you to Michael and the team at White Castle Construction (the folks who bolted our house to the foundation) for the amazing work. They bolt a single story home as if it were a three story home. That means if an earthquake ever hit, our bolting is designed to keep three stories of house from collapsing into wreckage. It’s years of experience that lead to that kind of intuitive policy making.
Although it’s taken so long to get to this point, I’m really happy about it. We’ve had time to really think about the best way to use this space. I’m sure that we’ll have more plan changes as we go, but because we’re learning along the way. I’ve loved sharing this process with you :)
