A few years ago, we pre-modeled the (tiny) second bedroom upstairs into an office. I had bookshelves all along the walls and I built a desk into the closet to make use of the space. I say pre-modeled only because it was never really meant to stay that way, it was just something to tide us over for a few years until we got around to doing it properly.

I really was pleased with the idea of being able to use the closet space for something like the desk, but when it came time to actually do the remodel I had to make a change. That arrangement always put Jennifer and I in close proximity, which would never be a bad thing, but it also meant we had a pretty limited amount of desk space. That fact coupled with the thought that we wanted to make space for Brady meant we needed to rethink the desk scenario.

We ended up with a “U” shaped desk, for three, on the walls opposite the closet. That left little room for the bookshelves that are so dear to me. I had some wall-mounted ones but that just made the space feel even smaller. I decided on something completely different.

The bookshelves had to be in the closet, non-negotiable. I really didn’t want to have the open shelves gaping out at me lamenting a lack of orderliness and I quickly realized orienting the shelves perpendicular to the closet opening would triple the linear shelf length. Bonus points for being able to pretty up the exterior of the shelves.

We wound up with the picture leading into the article. Four rolling bookshelves, two double-sided, two double depth. They ride on casters straight in and out, but may be pulled completely out and wheeled around the room, if you were so inclined.

Here’s a look at each of the sections pulled out:

The above two sections are the double-sided shelves holding normal sized books, both hard- and paperback.

The bookcase on the far left side holds all of our board and card games.

The last bookcase holds the boxed photos, art books, and office supplies. In this view you can see the back side of the bookcase showing that it is full-depth.

This final shot is the closet area with all of the bookcases stowed fully. They all have the same twelve-inch cabinet pulls and the vinyl tree and bird graphics came from here.

The best part of these bookcases? I LOVE them. In a totally “still in the closet” kind of way.

No related posts.

We’ve been without door handles on our French doors, in the shop, for about 8 months now. I kept thinking that I would find something funky and fun to put up but never did.

Angela floated out the idea of doing something with license plates so after a few false starts this is what I came up with.

I formed the plate over a section of 1″ steel pipe creating the grab area. I then knocked out a quick and dirty press brake using some scrap wood and C-clamps to flatten the mounting area back the other direction.

I was able to do all of the forming with a 3 pound hammer and a small ball pein. I think it turned out great, you?

Related posts:

1. Another door installed
2. Rolling Door Milestone

The only thing now is that I have about 250 sq. ft. of flooring left. Anyone need a small amount of recycled gym flooring? Please? =)

Saturday afternoon I picked up a gallon of oil-based polyurethane. I wasn’t sure that was going to be enough but one gallon was plenty for a single coat. I laid it on with 1/4″ nap roller, a long handle, and a normal paint tray. I made slow passes about 4 feet wide doing the overlapping W-pattern I remember fondly from years of vacuum detail in the Lisowski house.

I am very happy with the results, what do you think?

Related posts:

1. Finished Exterior
2. Laying Hardwood Flooring
3. Interesting Flooring Ideas

I did manage to remember to take pictures this time around.

That shot is from the side door facing the bathroom. Just barely off the right side of the frame is the wall/finish line. So close, but so three hours of work away.

That’s a view from the french doors facing the main entrance, the bathroom is immediately to the right.

And that picture should tie the whole thing together visually. Check out how you can see no fewer than 3 hammers in that last picture. This building business is crazy stuff.

Related posts:

1. Interesting Flooring Ideas
2. Building Log #4.7e
3. Gym Flooring

I suppose I should be heartened that, at that rate, it would take another ten to eleven hours to finish. Too bad we both know that there is no way in hell it will go that fast.

I’ll try to get some pics up once there is more than a 3 foot wide stripe of it done.

Related posts:

1. Laying Hardwood Flooring
2. Rain, rain, get the hell out!
3. Interesting Flooring Ideas

Hiring a plumber is certainly expensive, from what I hear, I never hired one, but for all the bullshit and headaches it’s probably worth it.  I had all sorts of special circumstances with this latest build.  There was the “on-demand” water heater, inaccessible blow-off drain, faucet inlet lines and ridiculous installation points…you name it.

I finally got everything I needed, took back what I didn’t, etc. by the fourth trip to Home Depot.  And that was after I felt I had made a meticulous plan.

I started on Saturday somewhere around noon.  There was nothing in the bath area except paint.  Sunday around 6pm this was the result:

Here’s a final glamour-shot of the baby hot water heater:

Related posts:

1. What a Difference a Day Makes
2. Planning the Building
3. Gym Flooring

I sheeted the walls with OSB for aesthetic reasons but also for practical purposes. I sanded off all the architectural markings and sealed it with a single coat of tung oil just to get a little shine.

It’s great since the light catches and shines at crazy angles and I can still use it in a very utilitarian way. Pick a spot, nail, screw, or bolt something on, no need to worry about finding a stud or other impracticalities.

The current workspace is about 250 sq. ft. but I would estimate that we’re only able to use about 1/2 of that for framing. We still have our hobby stuff in there as well (not like we’ve even seen any of that stuff in a year or more).

I have 3 sewing machines and all of my fabric, webbing, and leather tools in there. Jen has her kiln and pottery wheel and all of the supplies that go with that. then more space is occupied by the closets, which are nice, but still eat into our available area.

Speaking of the closets, that’s one of them in the above picture. The other is in the opposite corner. I really love how it turned out when I applied the corrugated metal to them like that. Kind of a tropical/modern feel, if that’s even possible.

Here’s a view from the doorway:

If I dared show a view of what it looks like now it would leave even the most hardcore cluttlerbug in fits.

Related posts:

1. Closet Bookshelves

That’s not to say that the exterior is completely done, because it is not. There will be cement-based clapboards going on the lower section and a batten-board treatment on the upper section. Obviously, paint and gutters will need to be added as well.

Here are a few shots of how she looks as of about an hour ago:

From Building

From Building

Also slated for the exterior is an aluminum ramp and landing like they have on the newer school portables. I am still in the process of sourcing that particular item. I have found several resellers all using the same stock images online so I know there has to be at least one tier above all of these places.

I need to find some outdoor lighting to place on either side of the rolling doors also. Going to be tough I think to find something in the modern/industrial/contemporary vein that won’t cause another ka-ching spasm in my wallet.

Related posts:

1. Finished Exterior
2. Let me see that again
3. Workshop Update

I orginally had siding, colors, and textures attached to the model but had to peel them off to make a few changes to the model. I plan on putting them back on soon so that we can pick colors for paint and such without having to rely on guesswork to decide if it would look good.

Without further ado, here is the initial planning model:

Stay tuned for additional model details and comparison real life photos.

Related posts:

1. Building Log #4.7e
2. Finished Exterior
3. Panel Painting

From Building

There’s JJ on the scaffold caulking all of the nail holes and joints. They were able to get all six windows, siding, and soffit installed.

I was able to get an artsy action shot of George and Joel setting the windows. Nothing but asses and elbows, hard work all around.

From Building

I’ll leave off with a shot of the interior, as viewed from the main door.

From Building

I’m going to try and get the Sketchup files embedded here in the next post so we can see what the finished product is supposed to look like.

Related posts:

1. Let me see that again
2. Rain, rain, get the hell out!
3. Inspected by #9