Choosing the right color to paint the house

Published by teknobear on August 18, 2008 in Painting, Remodeling and House. 2 Comments

I’m so confused about trying to choose the right paint colors for the outside of the house.

We want to go with colors that are right for the house and right for us.  Can’t be anything too garish as that’s not us (with the exception of my outfit from time-to-time) and it needs to be something that fits the style of the house.

 I’ve been reading all sorts of stuff online, and in books I have.  Still nothing much in the way of inspiration, except for keeping the body of the house much the same color.  Can’t DO IT!  Can we?

The big problem is that our neighbors pretty much have all their homes nicely painted.  It’s great for the neighborhood, but NOW what do we have left to choose from?  We can’t duplicate the color pallet they have used.  Sigh.

Ideas we want to incorporate:

  • Body needs to be from a nuetral / natural color pallet.
  • Gables and window trim should go well with body color
  • Corbels / rafter braces should be highlighted to display them properly.
  • Windows should match the Corbels.

Bad Color!!!Last weekend (8/10/08) we went to the annual SF Arts & Crafts event and took a workshop on Color in the Arts & Crafts style.  We hoped that would hlep with choosing something that’s pleasing to us, the house and the neighbors.  Unfortunately the colors we got from the workshop just don’t work.   To the right is a sample of what they look like on the house - I painted an area with color pallet.  This was supposed to be something with a light grey for the body, a deep charcoal color for the window trim, and a rust red for the windows.  The Korbels would be the same color of the windows.

Here’s some photos of the house with potential colors applied using the CBN Selector program that was chosen without the help of a designer.

Color Scheme 1 - Body - burnt almond; Gable and Window trim - Craftsman Cream; Corbels - Craftsman Brown; Windows - Cinnamon Cherry

Front Elevation - Color Scheme 1      Patio Side with Color Scheme #1

CS #2 - too close to # 1.

Color Scheme #3:  Body - Burnt Almond; Gable & window trim - Craftsman Cream; Corbels and Windows - Rookwood Red

Front with CS - #2     CS - #2

Anyone with any ideas please post a comment.  Sigh.

Contact from Previous Owner!

Published by teknobear on August 17, 2008 in History and House. 0 Comments

At the beginning of August I sent a letter to Mr. and Mrs. Richter, one of the former owners of house.  In the letter I asked about info regarding the design and construction of the house. 

Well yesterday, after we got back from the Fairfield Tomato Festival, there was a response from Mr. Richter waiting for us in the mailbox.  In his response letter he explains about the original layout of the kitchen, and a few other odd things we discovered. 

He’s said to feel free to contact him with any additional questions, I plan on doing so.  What fun social archaeology is.

Tomatoes! Eggplant, and Pears - summer fun

Published by teknobear on August 16, 2008 in Garden and House. 0 Comments

So we’re finally getting some interesting stuff from the garden.  YEAH!

First Harvest — ?On Sunday Salli and I picked some tomatoes and a few other veggies.  We’re still getting lots of squash, cucumbers and some good peppers.  After our hard work in the garden, we had to have a cocktail to revive ourselves on the front porch.  Neighbor Jean came over and enjoyed some with us.  We fixed a Hard Lemonade, and Margaritas (per Chris’ request).

Tomato - TomahtoThis week I picked four ripe tomatoes!!  I know that doesn’t sound like something great, but after weeks, no MONTHS of looking at green tomatoes I’m ready for a nice tomato sammich!  We’ve been getting the small tomatoes for a while, but sadly those usually don’t make it into the house.  YUM.

Seckel PearsI have to say I’m most proude of the pears we’re getting.  They are small things, but OH OH so lovely.  Seckel Pears were also known as “sugar pears” because they are so darn sweet.  To me they represent the absolutely perfect fruit package.  Beautiful to look at, lovely to smell, and above all, wonderfully exhilarating to eat and enjoy.  It’s a shame this site can’t offer scratch and sniff - these smell wonderful.  The only sad part about it all is the color of them embody the Autumnal splendor.

Guess we’re getting close, seems only yesterday that Salli and I were roto-tilling the garden.

A little lesson in history

Published by teknobear on August 4, 2008 in House. 0 Comments

So Chris and I went to the library last week and did a little digging into the archives of the city directories.  Katie turned me on to these as a source of information about who used to live in your house. 

 I’ve found out a good bit the former owners of the house.  I’m documenting it on a new History page that will get updated as I get updated. 

It looks like we’re the 5th owners of the house.   The house was built by Dr. Milton E Arner (a dentist) and his wife Roberta.  This could be the reason for the odd chair I saw when the bank cleaned out the house.  I’ll cover more on the history page.

Sustainable Gardening

Published by teknobear on July 29, 2008 in House. 0 Comments

So in researching some of the methods of sustainable gardening, I ran across a really great site - Path to Freedom.   These folks are doing what I’d love to do.  Living off their land and having plenty left over to sell. 

 They have some good information on their site as well.  I’ll be adding their blog to the blog roll here on the CDK Blog.  Be sure to check it out.

Vegetable Garden

Published by teknobear on July 20, 2008 in Garden. 1 Comment

This year, as in years past, Chris and I decided (ok more a me thing) to put in a vegetable garden.  In years past at the house on Amador we’ve had a big garden (for a city, not for a country house).   That was always fun. 

Salli and I tilling the gardenThis year, after talking to our lovely neighbor Salli, we decided to go in together for the garden.  She didn’t have space in her bungalow garden for a new tomato & pepper patch.  Her previous spots had played out.  So we set out planning what we would do.

After looking at the way the Sun hit the backyard, we decided to put the Garden on the east side of the back garden.   This gives it full sun (’cept for Salli Gives Upvery late evening)and was in an area basically unused.  So, the weekend after the party, we decided to rent a rototiller from a local rental shop and bust up some earth. 

Funny thing was, that both Salli and I weren’t men enough for the thing at first.  At one point I almost went through the fence on the Monterey street side of the property.  That would not have been funny.

Just after barely missing the fenceAfter completing the tilling of the earth, we planted veggies.  I had bought some, and started some from seed.  Salli had gotten her favorite as well.  All told, we put down

  • 30 tomatoes
  • a 12 ft row of basil
  • 4 hills of early crookneck squash
  • 6 Eggplants (5 florida hibrid and 1 Ichiban)
  • 6 Okra plants (hey - I’m southern)
  • 12 Bell Pepper (mostly green, but some red and yellow too)
  • 15 other pepper plants (mix of hot and sweet)
  • 4 Cucumber vines
  • 1 Cantalope
  • 3 pumpkins
  • 4.5 rows of corn (Oaxcan Green, Old Hickory Hominy, Strawberry, Indian, and sweet hybrid)

So we planted it the second weekend of May, and I spent the next two weekends hooking it all up to drip irrigation.  I’m not a fan of broadcast watering - all you do is water weeds and plants.  

Summer Sunshine in a GlassAlso, I’m introducing a new continuing feature, the Casa de Kitty 2008 Garden Log.  This will be a place where I’ll document what Chris and I are doing in the gardens around the house.  Also this will have lots of pictures and related information about our garden.

So after it all - Salli and I enjoyed a nice glass of lemonade made from Casa de Kitty lemon tree.

New neighbors and community involvement

Published by teknobear on July 13, 2008 in Community. 3 Comments

So Chris and I are so excited about some changes in our neighborhood.  A few months back I began getting comments on this blog from a lovely young lady here in the Vallejo (Kate)!  How nice her comments were and that she was local!

 Well in talking to her we found out she and her husband Nathan were looking for a place in our area.  Now they’ve closed on a house three doors down!  WooHOO - some young blood and some MORE cool neighbors. 

 Welcome -  Welcome -  Welcome -  Welcome - Katie and Nathan!

 In other news - I was recently appointed to the City of Vallejo’s Beautification Advisory Commission.  I’m a commissioner!  Chris has jokingly called me the “Commish”; but I don’t want that to stick - though I think Michael Chiklis is rather hot.

At our recent commission meeting I was elected to be the chairperson of the Community Outreach committee.  This committee is the one responsible for working with and coordinating for the city on programs like anti-litter, blight, graffiti, and other programs designed to enhance the community buy-in on keeping the city beautiful.  Damn - now that I write all that I think I’ve been duped.

 Well - guess I better get my own yard mowed - it’s got high grass due to entertaining the past two weeks.  We just dropped my nieces Chelsea and Megan off at the airport.  They came and visited with us for two weeks after Chris and I spent one hot and humid week in Mississippi visiting my folks.

Party Preparation - Floors and Walls and Patio - Oh My

Published by teknobear on June 17, 2008 in House. 2 Comments

In early May we had a party to celebrate Chris’ getting his green card.  A three-year wait is finally over.  Thank GOD!

To prepare for this momentous occasion, we decided it was time to address several issues that’s been hanging on. 

  • Painting O The Walls - Well some of them.  We decided to put some color up on the walls for the party, and patch / paint the ceilings in the living room.  This was all done before we had the floors refinished - so that the re-finishers could pickup any spills or drips.  We were going to paint the base and crown trim as well, but after having our Electrician put in another outlet in the dining room and looking at the wood that he cut out for it, we’re going to try to strip them.  Just as well - we didn’t have had the time to do so for the party. Northeast corner of the living roomFor the living room we chose a Mustard yellow to go along with the exposed wood trim and floors.  The color is Behr’s Ripe Wheat.   You can see it in the finished photos above.  One thing to note is that the white ceiling shown there used to have cracks all over, and a bad area in the far corner (near the dining room door and window) that I had to patch.  I became quite proficient at fixing the cracks.  Per the advise of a fellow Vallejo-an (Jim Rutherford) I used the angled end of a can opener to make a V-shaped trench along the line of the crack, then I used some short drywall screws to pull the plaster back up to the lath.  This worked for the most part - there were a few areas where the cracks are still visible.  But, as with the floor, it’s not perfect - but authentic.

    Dining Room Paint Job - Photo 3We also painted the dining room prior to the party.  We went with a shade lighter than the living room, again by Behr called Stable Hay — I guess we’re doing a barnyard color theme.   This color combination gives a good flow to the overall color of the two rooms, and doesn’t shock in the transition.  Also by having a lighter color, the room has the perception of being a little brighter.The unfortunate thing about the dining room is that we’re going to have to probably repaint it because we have to take down some ancient wall paper.  In preparing the room for painting I noticed one area over one of the windows into the Conservatory that was bubbled up.   When I pulled off the bubbled wall paper I saw the dreaded black-mold.  Luckily I think it’s pretty much confined to that one wall.   I can say that with some certainty because I’ve pulled the wall paper off near the light switch for the room and didn’t see it there. After looking at the walls in detail, we’ve decided that we should try to get the wall paper off of all them.  Luckily it didn’t take too much paint to prep the room for the party.  As in the living room, I patched the ceiling cracks as well.
  • Hardwood Floors
    Floor Refinishing - Sanding - 1
    Floor Refinishing - Sanding - 2 Floor Refinishing - Staining
    Floor Refinishing - Sanding All Done

    - After getting quotes from 4K to 8K it just wasn’t in the budget to hire it done.  Back when we first bought CDK, I had the silly notion that I could refinish the hardwood floors myself.   In my zeal to get things accomplished, I had started sanding the dining and living rooms, then quickly realized it just wasn’t something I knew enough about to do.  So for the past 11 months we’ve been living with partially sanded floors. – Not Good –Now, thanks to the Tax Man’s refund check for this year, we got two of the rooms refinished in time for the party.   We hired Tony Galicia of Galicia Hardwood Floors to refinish the floors for us.  He came highly recommended by our friend Ryan and Rebecca.  They used him for their kitchen floor and it looked beautiful. To the right are some pics of the floor sanding.

    After the sanding of them floors, we still had to deal with the pet stains.  I tried using various solvents - White Vinegar, Peroxide and bleach.  in the end they were lightened, but not gone.  The worst spots are in the dining room - right in the path to the kitchen door.  Oh well - it’s an old house.  These are character marks - right? 
    Floor Refinishing - 1 - Stains
    The stain we chose was what we dubbed the Galicia Special.  It’s a mixture of stains that Tony mixed up to help hide the stains some more.
    Floor Refinishing - All Done - 1  Floor Refinishing - All Done - 2

  • New Patio - Photo 1New Patio - I think this project is the one that has turned the nicest for us here at the Casa.  Chris and I both are please with how it turned out.   The best thing about it is that we both worked on it and feel it to be something we did together well.   It’s not too big (12 x 12), however it does make for a nice cozy room. It took us about 4 weekends to do the job (not including the 3-4 that I spent planning).  The only thing left to do on the patio is to purchase / make some good cushions.  I won’t go into details here - check out the  New Patio Photo Review Page for details.
  • Electrical Work- We also took this opportunity to have some electrical work done at the Casa.  The ever-so handsome Brandon came by and gave us a new outlet in the dining room, added some to the basement (for Low-voltage lighting transformers), added a light to the outside of the Garage, and installed the fan for the stove hood. After living with the Casa for a while, we found where we had some electrical use issues that we hadn’t thought of when I drew up the plans for the re-wire effort pre-movein.  It never dawned on Chris and I how bothersome NOT having a single outlet on a wall would be in a room.  That was remedied by adding one in the middle of the dining room wall that’s shared with the kitchen. To prepare for the party we also wanted to add some low-voltage outdoor lighting to the patio area and to the back deck.  Brandon professionally isntalled the light-fixtures for the back deck.  Nice little low-voltage numbers from Home Despot.  See it here - Surface Deck Light - however ours is in bronze not black.

Fireplaces Part V

Published by teknobear on May 26, 2008 in Fireplace and House. 1 Comment

Fireplace with gas logs ablazeSo we have the fireplaces gassed and the gas logs in place.  It’s turned out quite nice, and is nice to sit in front of and chill out.   Hopefully they won’t go to total waste now that it’s getting warmer.  Luckily Vallejo gets some cool nights and it makes for a good times to have a small fire, for effect if nothing else.

 Here’s a few pictures of the fireplace in the Library from back around Christmas.

 Fireplace Up Close

Fireplace and Library - view 3

East Side Fence Project Completion - or close enough

Published by teknobear on February 23, 2008 in Fence, Garden and House. 1 Comment

East Side Fence View - #2I never posted the final look at the fence we installed on the east side of our property.  So here it is.

We finished installing all the custom pieces finally in late September.  Cutting down the panels wasn’t as hard as I thought.  The most difficult piece was putting together the blind post to support the last panel at the end of the run.  The back fence of our property was replaced fairly recently.  Due to that I didn’t want to mess that fence up trying to attach this new section.  So I had to put together a post for the middle of one section of that fence.

I cut down a 4×4 pressure treated post into three sections.  I had to fit them into the bottom (partially below grade), middle, and top.  After I had those fit into place, I then used another full length pressure treated 2×4 to tie it all together and shim out to where the new fence panel would stop.  All said I think it turned out OK and made for a solid structure, though not optimal.  Chris helped me attached the panel and get it level and such and then we were done, except for the gate. 

 As I had posted previously we want a special garden gate to make it more than just a utility entrance to our garden.   Well we didn’t have time to build that prior to going to the Craftsman Weekend and wanted the fence to be complete and secure the property for our trip.  So we built a temporary that’s turning into a more than temporary.  However I have bought the select wood (at $400 - ouch) for the gate.  Perhaps with rainy weekends we’re having now I’ll work in the garage to get it built.  More to come on that.

So we were able to go down to So-Cal and enjoy a few days mingling and getting to know other Craftsman enthusiasts without much thought to having security issues back home thanks to the fence and the new uber-security alarm.

When we got back from the Craftsman Weekend we stained the fence using Penofin.  We used the same stain on the deck to bring the two together, called Transparent Redwood.  In staining the fence we also applied stain to the pressure treated posts as well.  This dulled the typical green color and made them more rosy.

After the fence had cured we went to Mid-City Nursery in American Canyon and bought the landscaping plants.   Julie helped us pick out a great selection of plans that were hardy, low water usage, and low maintenance.  We chose Pyrocathia, maroon grass, and a small bush with red leaves.

The next fence project was the west side of the property.  Post coming on that soon.

 Here’s some pics:

East Side Fence - Picture #3 - Japanese Magnolia

East Side Fence - Pic 1 - Closeup of fence with gate and landscaping.