La Cage Aux Moumings

"The Wall" just seemed too obvious!

This is the slatted wall that separates the bedroom from the living room. The two openings will be fitted with plywood boxes for storage or display purposes, and the BluDot Couchoid will sit in front of it. The slatted wall recalls the interior of a barn or other outbuilding, and will create a "lantern" effect when lights are on in the bedroom. It contributes to the openness, which will help with heat circulation, and to make the space feel larger. These slats match the wood that will cover the ceiling, hopefully in the next few days!

Here's the view from the bedroom side. The framing on this side will remain exposed, but the manner in which the slats were beveled will allow storage boxes to be hung on the wall, and moved around as the need (or whim) dictates. You may be wondering if this arrangement will compromise the privacy in our bedroom. Not if you don't look!
This view looks in the bedroom door, and shows how the slats continue around the corner to define the bedroom "box". Cool.

Ladies and Gentlemen, the Yum Yum Farm House

While there is obviously still some work to be done, these photos give a pretty good sense of the finished home. Imagine our delight as we crested the hill and saw the painted house for the first time!

A Breath of Fresh Air

This will be a one-photo post so you can zoom in. These little circular things allow air to move across the underside of the roof, to prevent condensation. This is a somewhat more complex method than what is usually employed in home building. Earlier posts showed gray styrofoam channels attached to the underside of the roof, but above the insulation. These vents are the openings that allow the air to flow through those channels, and keep the roof dry, and mold-free. This is the same thing as the vented soffits on most (perhaps your) houses. Look underneath your roof overhang, and you'll notice that the panels underneath have small openings. Those are a different version of what you see depicted here. We can all breathe easier now.

In Living Color

This is the first part of the Yum Yum Farm house to receive its finish color. This barn red has been applied to the north side, or the main entrance. I suppose this is the "front" of the house, because it's where we enter. But the south side feels kind of "front" like too. Whatever.

It's suddenly become very chilly in Iowa, as it often does at this time of year. It is, fortunately, still warm enough to apply paint, once the frost goes away, and the air temperature warms up a bit. The forecast calls for warmer weather the next few days, so we should be fine. You'll notice in the photo below wires for the porch light, door bell, speakers, and electrical outlet. For cryin' out loud, this porch is better equipped than any room in our current quarters!

This isn't the greatest picture, but it's as close as we could get to the main floor bathroom, which had its tiling completed today. The grout was just finished, so we couldn't walk into the room. Around the corner to the left is white tile surrounding the Zuma tub. The dark tile will be a dramatic background to the various materials that will be used in this room, including a safety glass shower wall, corrugated galvanized steel as a shower surround, and the rugged old sink you've seen in previous posts. There's even some wood in there somewhere!
Here's that lovely old bathtub from Ohio, in its permanent (almost) location. This pedestal tub will delight our guests in the downstairs bathroom, and we'll enjoy it too! We've found some gorgeous reproductions of hardware (faucets, shower head, curtain ring) that will complement this very nicely. It was necessary to move this in before all of the basement doors were hung, as it's a rather bulky fixture. While much work still needs to be done in the lower level bathroom, it can all be accomplished by moving the tub around a bit before it settles into its permanent home.

Lines

This is cool. This is essentially the finished house, without the paint. All of these different lines would probably make an interesting study in perspective in an art class. The vertical lines under the porch will be painted barn red, and the horizontal cedar siding to the left will receive a stain called "Oracle Sun". I wonder who came up with that name.

Still to come are the porch lights, and the concealed speakers.

We've Got Gas!

While it's not much to look at, this addition is very significant. The black circular thing in the middle of the photo is the lp (liquid petroleum, or propane) connection to the house. Lp gas will be used for the furnace and the cooktop. Our water heater is electric, in anticipation of the addition of a wind turbine in a few years. This type of fuel is common in rural locations where natural gas lines are not present. We will also utilize a small, efficient Lopi wood burning stove, set atop a one piece limestone hearth cut from the historic quarry at Stone City, Iowa. For those of you familiar with landscaping materials, Stone City is adjacent to Amamosa, hence, "Anamosa" stone. Stone cut from this quarry was used as the skin of the new(ish) Disney theatre in southern California, and many other significant buildings around the continent. So we figured it would be ok for our house.
One drawback of lp gas is that it requires a storage apparatus, which needs to be located in a conspicuous location so it can be refilled. But hey, wouldn't it be fun to decorate it? We've considered a few options, including a Yellow Submarine, camouflage, a "Have a Nice Day" smiley face, Extra Strength Tylenol, and probably others that escape me at the moment. Guess what? That's right...we'd love to hear your ideas! How about trying that "comment" link, and let us know what you think? We're not sure if we can even paint it, since we're renting it, but we'd love to hear your ideas! Maybe a Yum Yum Farm logo?

Oh Cedar!

We put this picture first so you can click on and enlarge it. This is the cedar lap siding being applied to the kitchen "bump out" on the northeast corner of the Yum Yum Farm house. If you zoom in you'll notice that the siding is precisely mitered at the corner, rather than having a trim piece to finish it off. This takes great care and precision, and yields a really cool horizontal wrap around effect. The framers (Jensen-Sedlacek, from Parnell--you remember, the suburb of North English and Williamsburg) are carefully completing this work. The portion of the dining porch below the windows will be covered in the same manner. Go ahead and zoom in, and you'll see faint red lines on the Tyvek above the cedar. Our craftsmen have carefully measured and snapped chalk lines for each and every board for precise placement. We're not worthy!

Bienvenido a la casa de Yum Yum! Here's the long awaited front door, a lovely maple surrounded by side and top glass "lights". This is a Dutch door, or as I call it, a Mr. Ed door. Notice the seam across its midsection. This is one of those 2-section doors that will allow us to open the top while the bottom remains closed, so Mr. Ed can stick his head in and report on the goings-on-about-the-farm. Another mix of modern and traditional!

Southern Accents

The influence of the Yum Yum Farm House has spread far and wide, as evidenced by this structure at the wonderful Museum of Appalachia, in Norris, Tennessee. But seriously, this is a good example of how the house mimics a traditional shape found on farmsteads throughout the country. What were we doing in eastern Tennessee, you ask? Well, thanks for asking! Joanna's aunt Wanda, who resides in nearby Clinton, Tennessee, many years ago came into possession of three pieces of furniture that originally belonged to her (Joanna's) great grandparents. Turns out aunt Wanda and uncle Bob are moving, and didn't have a good spot for the lovely old pieces. So, Yum Yum Farmers to the rescue! Not only did we have a wonderful visit with Wanda, Bob, and Joanna's cousin Paige (remember the earlier post: "This House is Soooo Rad!"), but we now have a comfy chair, rocker, and loveseat with more than a century of history in the family! You'll see them in future posts. We can't wait for our beloved hosts to visit us and the heirloom furnishings in the Yum Yum Farm house, which is now in its final stages of construction.

How could I forget? Watching cautiously as the furniture is removed from the house is the newest member of the family, Barney. The entirety of our family has a weakness for felines, and we are honored to celebrate his arrival! Since the kitties in our family don't travel very well, this is probably the closest he'll get to a visit to the Yum Yum Farm. Welcome to the family Barney!

Break on Through...

Interior work continues on the Yum Yum Farm house, including the Doors (you get the reference in the title now?) in the lower level. Note the light cast on the center door. Is it a flash? Is it a candle? No! It's a light bulb, operated by a light switch--another step forward! These maple doors are what you will see throughout the house, on both levels. To orient you (or orientate, if you prefer), this photo is taken from the end of the central hall in the basement, looking north. The center door leads to the stairs, and the door to the laundry/dressing room is just beyond to the right. On this side of the door are two others. The one on the left is the mechanical room, and on the right, the guest room. Right now, the guests that have been enjoying the lovely downstairs accommodations have been of the eight-legged variety, and, like the bull snake in an earlier post, capable of devouring a grown man in a single gulp!

Look at this lovely old farm building. This is a great example of the Yum Yum Farm house's traditional look, rendered in modern materials. The board and batten siding is Hardie Panel, a cement siding that has been applied to resemble old barn boards. These will be painted barn red to complete the traditional look, but will hold the paint better than wood. The nice big window up in the haymow is one of those amazing H Windows, featured in a number of earlier posts. This window allows light to enter the loft office space, and opens like an awning to let the hot summer air escape, and seals more tightly the stronger winter's northwesterly winds blow.

A Warm Outer Layer

The Yum Yum Farm house is getting its skin applied this week, just in time for some cooler temperatures to arrive. The siding is James Hardie's Hardie Panel; a cement fiber board. When all is finished, this will resemble a traditional board and batten barn siding, painted barn red. Exceptions are the dining porch, and the kitchen "bump out", which will be finished in horizontal cedar siding. Long lasting materials means less time with paint brushes in our hands.
And here's another look at the architect's rendering, now that completion is drawing near. Despite the fact that John is from Seattle, he neglected to include all the rainfall that has visited the Yum Yum Farm this year in this drawing.

In The Sweet, Sweet Summertime...

As a chilly October night descends over eastern Iowa, I thought I'd share some fond remembrances of the Summer of Yum, that have made this process so enjoyable for us. One of the happiest visitors to Yum Yum Farm was our beloved neighbor, Piper. Piper lives with her human companions Richard and Rachel on the other side of our duplex (which they have named La Casa d'Amore). Piper spends a lot of time in the gardens behind our house, so she felt right at home here, in the future Yum Yum Farm kitchen garden. She is in a thick growth of medium red clover, a legume we planted to fix nitrogen in the soil. This has since been tilled in and planted with buckwheat, which was also tilled in and replaced with Austrian winter peas. These were soil building hints from our Amish friends. We'll see how it works next summer. Richard, Rachel, and Piper are wonderful people (or beings!) who are dear friends, and we will miss them very much when we move to the country. Piper seems to have a clear preference for the new garden, however, and will certainly insist on regular outings to visit her friends on the farm!

This lovely piece of pottery enjoying a sunny day is our downstairs bathroom sink. Since we chose not to include a utility sink in our laundry room, we wanted the bathroom sink to be more utilitarian than the typical small sink formed into the vanity countertop, so we found this design, which is actually a small kitchen sink. This will sit atop a pedestal that is being fabricated to resemble the larger unit in the main bathroom. Chicago Faucets will mount on the wall behind this sink, and should still be working many years from now as the pages of this blog turn yellow and brittle.
We were so impressed by this UFO as it hovered over our backyard, that we decided to adopt it as our pendant light over the dining porch table! Soon, this lovely fixture will be spreading a pleasant light over the dining table, but its flat profile will only minimally obstruct the view out the windows to the south. And, it's pretty cool looking! This is Louis Poulsen's PH 4/3 pendant, if you're curious.

A Natural Beauty

The floor on the main level is now complete, and while this photo may not provide the most expansive view, it is quite clear, and if you click on it, it will expand allowing you to see the wood in greater detail. Just do it! This is taken from the west end of the dining porch, looking north into the bedroom. The salvaged floor covers the living room, dining porch, bedroom, and alcove between bedroom and bathroom. We are thrilled with the appearance of this material. It is at once rustic, elegant, old, and new, but mostly, just beautiful. Thanks to Bob and Dave K. (good to see you after 20 years, Dave!) of Gray's Hardwood Flooring for their care and craftsmanship.

Here's another view, looking west from the living room into the bedroom. The framed wall you see between living room and bedroom will be covered by wood slats with small reveals that will allow light to filter through, creating a type of "lantern" effect. The slats will be cut in such a way that plywood boxes can be hung from them, for storage and displays. The method of attachment will allow us to move them around according to our wants and needs, or just leave them where they are.
This picture shows our sample piece of flooring, with the finish applied. We will be using a product called Osmo (you're welcome, Osmo staff), which soaks into the wood, rather than creating a clear coat on top of it. I'm not going to waste too much time talking about specifics of the finish, because I really don't know much about it. It sure looks pretty though! The floor as depicted in these photos has been milled, but has not received its final sanding, or, obviously, its finish. It will be covered for a while, as other work progresses inside. There will be much activity over the next several weeks, as cabinets, trimwork, outlets, switches, plumbing fixtures, tile, lights, appliances, etc. will be installed. I hope blogger can keep up with us!

Everything Old Is New Again!

Imagine our delight when we stepped inside to see the first part of the salvaged wood floor installed. One of our challenges in maintaining this construction blog is to convey the richness of the materials, location, and landscape through digital means. So if it's not clear in the photos, you'll have to trust us that this flooring is really gorgeous! I'll let the photos speak for themselves...

Making the Grade

Bob from Iowa City Excavating rides into the sunset while doing the finish grading around the Yum Yum Farm house. By the way, typing "Yum Yum Farm" is really awkward. Try it. Anyway, the dirt (or "spoil") from the original excavation has been sitting around, growing weeds, and providing king of the mountain competition facilities since the construction commenced in May. Bob has used the spoil, some of which is topsoil, to backfill against the foundation, level the drive, create a grade on which the garage/barn will eventually be constructed, and to make a flat area outside the basement walkout for our outdoor enjoyment. He has also expanded the drive next to the main entrance, as you can see in the foreground, to facilitate vehicle turnaround.

Here's that future garage site. This is just off the northeast corner of the house, and will probably not have a garage on it for a while. These building ideas take shape slowly in our minds, and go through several incarnations before we settle on something. Any ideas? Here's a look at the grading work behind the house. Bob had the very good idea to use some of the spoil to create a larger flat area directly behind the house, which sounded very useful to us. Our guest room will be located just inside the basement doors, so a nice level backyard will allow vehicles to pull up right next to the basement to unload luggage and guests. It could also be a great surface for more gardens, a badminton court, picnic table, or just a nice place to kick back and enjoy the bull snakes!

A Shining Example

Go ahead, click on this picture. The chimney just over the peak of the roof will give you a little wink! This photographic miracle was accomplished by accidentally being in the right place at the right time. Kind of like the house--last night, the tornado sirens went off rather unexpectedly, and the super duper triple ultra pinpoint 24 hour doppler radar indicated a tornado to the southwest of Yum Yum Farm, heading toward it. While there apparently was a brief touchdown to the west, and some strong wind and rain, damage was minimal, and the location below escaped with only a lawn chair blown off the deck. We got nervous when the storm tracking software zoomed in so close that we could actually discern our little gravel road, so we didn't know for sure what we'd discover today. So, either the Yum Yum Farm house is incredibly sturdy, or the rotation didn't touch down around it. Nevertheless, the newly completed standing seam roof kept it dry. Nice work, Leon!

Here's a view of the shiny roof from the southwest (or the tornado's point of view). If you're ever flying in to Cedar Rapids from the south or south west, there's a good chance this will be visible. So have fun picking out this shiny-roofed building from every other shiny roof on every farm you fly over! Something about this view makes me want to put a pond right off the back of the house, and a ladder up to the peak of the roof. Yum Yum Water Slide!
This is the last part of the roof to be attached. The overhang above the east deck will keep weather off of the sliding door to the living room, and the kitchen window, and will conceal outdoor speakers. It also unifies the kitchen "bump-out" with the plane of the rest of the house.

Work will be accelerating now, with painting, floors, cabinet installations, piles of clothes, junk mail, and dirty dishes soon to follow!

On This Harvest Moon

The Harvest Moon, as you know, is the full moon that occurs closest to the painting of the Yum Yum Farm House interior, which commences next week. In some cultures, however, it is the full moon that occurs closest to the autumnal equinox. Whatever.

This picture was taken from the east deck on a beautiful September night.

This is the view out the other side of the house within minutes of the last photo. In fact, if you were sitting at our dining room table, if it were in the house, you could look out the east window to see the Yum Yum Moon, and out the west window to see this lovely sunset. This is a particularly pretty time of year, as far as views from the dining porch are concerned, because the sun is setting due west of that part of the house.
This is likely to be the last view of the house we'll have looking like this. The drywall is complete, sanded, and ready for the finish surface to be attached or applied. The sloped ceiling pictured here will be painted black, then covered with strips of maple plywood in a staggered pattern, with narrow reveals that will create the illusion of depth behind the pretty wood. This is recalling narrow openings you would see from an interior view of a barn roof, realized with more modern materials. The west wall, with the window, will have a light texture, and a finish color that is attractive, and allows the different materials to make their statements without detracting from them.
Here's a fun little trick we played with the camera, and some of the finish materials we'll be using. From top to bottom; a piece of Sheetrock, a strip of scrap wood, and a sample of our floor. The Sheetrock is painted with the wall color, the scrap with the trim color, and the floor is the floor. These were placed against a piece of wall, then we zoomed in to get a sense of how this color combination would work with the salvaged wood floor. This photo is a bit dark, but can give a sense of the process. In case you're interested, in natural daylight, we were very happy with the colors. While they may look a little plain here, remember, they are a part of a pallette, that includes salvaged flooring of vertical grain douglas fir, maple plywood, Anamosa limestone, FinnForm, stainless steel, and the various colors of the furniture, and the landscape that is visible through the ample glass space. Next week's posts should show better views of this.

Everything But the Kitchen Sink

Dan at Heartland Custom Woodworking has just about finished all of our cabinetry, and it's gorgeous! His craftsmanship and the level of finish is top notch, and we couldn't be happier with the results. Kudos also go to John DeForest who designed these beautiful cabinets. Thanks team! In the picture below, you'll find the following: at the bottom or front of the photo is the kitchen island, which will include storage space, the cooktop and ventilation system, and a small counter eating area. On top of it is the media cart, which will hold A/V equipment, and be located in the living room (or bedroom, since it has wheels!). The tall unit at the back will be on the north wall of the kitchen, with the refrigerator placed to the left. The large opening just to the right of the tall, thin cabinet will contain the two ovens. I put this picture first so you can expand it to examine the detail (for some reason, only the first picture on each post expands. If you want to see any pictures expanded, let us know in the "comment" section, and we'll place that picture in its own post. If you ask really nicely. Note the detail in the cabinet doors. Dan took care to match the grain of the wood on adjacent pieces, with such skill that the entire unit appears to have been cut from one piece of wood. The red on the side of the A/V cart is the red FinnForm, that you saw in an earlier post. If you were paying attention.

This is part of the desk/bookshelf that will enclose the loft on the east and south sides. What you see here will constitute the south "wall" of the loft, with space on top for office machines, etc., and below for books, files, nieces and nephews playing hide and seek, cats...
Here's the front view of the cooktop island. We've chosen to forgo handles and, instead, use cutouts that will never loosen, break, attack our funny bones, or simply look outdated (thanks John!). There is also a certain playful quality in these cabinets, which, we feel, reinforces our requirement that the Yum Yum Farm house be fun! Once again, note the continuity of the wood grain on the face of the island.

2007: An Architectural Odyssey

This is the south elevation of the beautiful John Deere World Headquarters in Moline, Illinois. It's about an hour or so east of the Yum Yum Farm, and during our visit with our amazing architect, we wanted to see at least one of the Upper Midwest's architectural masterpieces. The Deere headquarters certainly did not disappoint! Designed by Eero Saarinen in 1959 (or so), this steel and glass structure sits in a beautiful wooded area, full of oaks and, of course, deer. The deer, we discovered, are not actors, but were so impressed with Saarinen's design that they decided to make the surrounding woodland their home. Sadly, the architect did not live to see this building completed. He died in 1961, 3 years prior to its opening. You may recognize him via his other buildings, which included the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, and the TWA terminal at John F. Kennedy International Airport in Jamaica, Queens, New York.

This photo of an office on an upper floor shows the interplay between the rigid geometry of Saarinen's building, and the gentle dance being performed outside by the colors and forms of trees, sky, water and sun. The extensive use of glass in the structure brings the outside in throughout the entire building (think Ludwig Mies Van der Rohe, or Phillip Johnson), creating a very pleasant work environment and adding a lightness to a very sturdy structure. Those lucky enough to work in this building are conspicuously proud of it, and their company's commitment to maintaining it in a manner true to its original design is impressive and laudible. Guess what color our tractor is going to be?
"I don't know, I think it would look great in green and yellow. Rust is so...1961." Here's that amazing architect I mentioned earlier, John DeForest (right), visiting with our tour guide, who generously gave his time to show us around this beautiful facility. This was the first building cloaked in Corten steel, which, if I remember correctly from eavesdropping on the conversation pictured, is steel, coated with nickel, and coated with steel. The outer steel rusts, but creates a type of protective coating over the other layers. Or something like that. This process has given the building a patina that blends in well with the surroundings in any season.

Remember that remark about bringing the outside in? Well, they literally did it here in the west addition, constructed in 1978. Architect Kevin Roche, who took over the original project after Saarinen's passing, created this addition which honors the original, and then some! While admiring this atrium, our tour guide noted the boulders, where they keep the spare key to the building. Just kidding.

A Hot Tin Roof

Perhaps one of our more adventurous cats will find him or herself on this hot tin roof someday, but for now, we're just happy to see it! By the way, did you know Tom Williams (you may know him as "Tennessee") attended the University of Iowa. It's true!

Leon and crew made great progress today, and anticipate finishing attaching the standing seam metal roof to the Yum Yum Farm house tomorrow, save for some trim pieces. This type of roof is a more expensive option than the more common asphalt shingles, but judging from all the old standing seam roofs on old houses in Iowa City, it should have a very long lifespan. It also works very well aesthetically, which you will see when the siding is attached to the house. We are asked frequently if this will be noisy in the rain. While this is definitely the case in pole buildings with metal roofing attached to steel purlins, ours is attached over a thick plywood substrate, which is over a thick layer of insulation, which will be enclosed by drywall, and finished with maple plywood. Don't think we'll be hearing many raindrops.

Here is an excellent view (if I do say so myself) of the method by which the standing seam roof is attached to the building. I think it speaks for itself. Nevertheless, I'll keep commenting. The manner by which the panels interlock and conceal the seams makes a very durable and long lasting seal. It will not require maintenance for a very long time, and should not require replacement in our lifetimes. Unless there are some very significant medical breakthroughs.

A Great Cover Up

We've been cautioned throughout the entire building process that when the drywall goes up, the house will feel smaller. Au contraire! (I think that's how it's spelled) The Yum Yum Farm house feels bigger to us, and we think it has to do with the various spaces being partially obscured, but still apparent enough to know they're there. When we were able to see the entire building, it felt spacious, but we could see everything. Now the spaces are defined, and you need to move around to see them, and when you do, you find yourself having a very different perspective. This is a view from just inside the front door, looking to the southeast. We're not sure if the steel structure on the left is permanent, or not. Plenty of room for our music collection, I suppose.

This photo is taken from the point of view of the kitchen sink. Do you suppose a kitchen sink could actually have a point of view? If it does, we hope it enjoys its perspective on the living room and loft areas. The loft will soon be encircled by a built in desk and bookshelves, which will be the office area. The sloped ceiling area is to be finished with maple plywood, in a beautiful pattern which will speak for itself in an upcoming post. The remaining un-drywalled area is the bedroom, which will have its own special wall treatment, also to appear in an upcoming post. The suspense is killing you, isn't it?

Shelter From the Storm

One of the most dramatic elements of the Yum Yum Farm is the view of the sky. Since it sits at a high point in the area, there is a dramatic view of all things celestial. On clear nights, the Milky Way looks close enough to touch, and deer scatter when Orion the Hunter comes into view. This evening a warm front and a cold front were doing an energetic dance over the farm, but fortunately, it fizzled out into a cool breeze. Certainly, it's obvious that we are gushing about this project, but when we get to experience the interaction between the land and the heavens, it's truly transcendent. It makes us feel like giants and atoms at the same time!

Now we're really having fun! This is where the Modern part of the Yum Yum Farm house is becoming apparent. This picture is taken from the kitchen, looking west and up toward the loft, and the small storage area to the north of the loft. Soon, the ceiling will be finished with beautiful maple plywood, with slight reveals reminiscent of a barn roof. We anticipate drywall to be finished tomorrow (except for taping), with the standing seam metal roof being installed concurrently. This is getting so exciting, we need to get the blood pressure monitor out!