The Japanese Mushroom

The original 1900 living room had seen better days; cherry floor, stone walls, and south facing windows gave way to rot, mildew, warped floors and uneven walls. Between the spores and the CO from the nearby furnace it was a place to chill out but not in a good way.

Now, however, it is an elegant Japanesey zendo-flavored guest bedroom-cum-meditation spot fit for a blissful hermit. Shoji screens filter outdoor light to the interior (and boast hidden LED lights too for the evening, along with hidden loudspeakers), grey roundel floor tiles, willow paint, Korean door across the closet (thanks, Sylvia), my rice merchant's ledger from the Kyoto flea market, Zuiko-san's sumi-e, a cohune palm brush from Belize carved by Roy, two closet doors that are wall decorations but fold down to become work surfaces, assorted bamboo things, manila rope, futon, flower vase with zinc silicate designs, and a Buddha ("I don't like this. He's not my god," says Flo).

We made the paper

New York Times, October 1, 2009

The Cupola

HGTV Armchair Designer Audition

Preston thought it would be a good idea to have Philip submit this video to get his own show on HGTV. No results yet but here's a glimpse of the reality that they are missing.

360s

In searching for views of what this place used to look like a year ago we came across Preston's 360 surround photos from Day One (August 2008). See if you can spot any differences.
KITCHEN
DECK
YARD
STUDIO

There are also some pics from before the closing when we had to fix the deck and kitchen cabinets before the bank would agree to let the deal go through (even though the kitchen was to be gutted hours later).

You can see the arrival of the IKEA kitchen in the back of my Range Rover, coming to save the day. Every cabinet on the old kitchen was of a different size, never mind the mold, so could not be fixed.

The Last Bathroom

Out with the rot, beige tile, urine-soaked "drywall", all things white, and the dumpy loo. In with the purple walls, copper vessel sink and faucet, hot Italian porcelain tiles, Moroccan mirror, designer flushing toilet, Singer sewing machine base and marble surface (thanks, Craigslist and Reuse Center!). The skylight is unchanged and illuminates the space splendidly. It sure is elegant and Percy can turn on the water at any time. Phew, no more bathrooms to do.

Drew's room (formerly the shrubbery)

While the sun set rather dramatically I managed to finish the downstairs main room which had a nasty concrete floor, building debris and trees huddled from the winter. The knotty pine walls seem less cabineque now the cayenne paint is in place, the Johnsonite rubber floor tiles cut and artwork and blinds hung. There's plenty of room to swing a cat.