DONNNEEEEEE!!!!!                                      

The backyard cottage is officially completed, and I am very happy with how it has turned out.  What a journey it has been...almost four years of planning, etc. to make it happen.  I will just get to the good stuff...images of all the things!

Above:  When you first enter the space, you see the kitchen.
    

Above:  The counter tops are made of teak that I got at Second Use along with some used copper roofing that I scrubbed.  You can still see the stain of tar on the copper, but I think that gives it character and it isn't toxic.

Above:  The tile behind the sink is from Bedrock Industries over near Nicholson Ave.  The tile is made of used beer/wine bottles.

Above:  A view from the ladder showing the teak countertops along with shelves made from my cherry tree.

Above:  More cherry wood shelving.

Above:  The small woodstove to the left of kitchen.

Above: The sconces and mini split above and to the left of the woodstove.

Above:  A view from below the shelf above the bay window.  You can see the texture and shape of the old cherry tree wood.  I'm so glad I had it milled and used it in the project.

                           Above:  Remember that crusty old door I found walking around the neighborhood with a buddy?                                         

Above:  Well, here it is!  The stained-glass piece is not quite ready but getting there.  You can also see some more cherry wood shelves to the right. 

Above:  You can really see that texture in the cherry wood.  I'm so happy with the Woodsmiths and how they approached the project.

Above:  The bathroom.  I found the old prison lavatory sink on Ebay.  I kept the bathroom pretty industrial as it is such a utilitarian space in this house.

Above:  More of the cherry tree shelving for extra storage.  My tree wasn't wide enough, so the Woodsmiths had to purchase and add some cherry wood to get that width.

Above:  I was able to use some plexiglass I found at Second Use for the shower divider.

Above:  Tile from Tile for Less and faucet from Home Depot.

Above:  This tile has been a big hit and even though I hunted and hunted for tile stores in Seattle (many didn't make it through the pandemic) I ended up purchasing this on...Amazon.

Above:  So, I was inspired by my Nordic roots (my DNA says I have a bunch of Norwegian) when choosing the design of the structure and decided to take that inspiration inside.  Yes, that is a sea serpent head and tail looking down into the space (Jormungandr).  

Above:  The Woodsmiths, Dan and Mollie, had never done anything like this before and I am so proud of what they accomplished.  The serpent is entirely made of the cherry tree wood...love that!  Dan did the head, and Mollie did the tail and now Dan's son has requested a dragon of his own...he named the serpent, George.  

Above:  View from the loft space looking out toward the living room.

Above:  View of the loft facing the south wall.  The worm wood was found at Second Use along with the teak flooring.  Love that place!  On the exterior of that wall is the Screech Owl box.  Hoping it attracts and owl but probably squirrels or crows and I'm okay with that...nature if fun!

Above:  This is a special image as it shows wood from our old neighbor, Reverand Buckley.  When she died her family sold the house and a contractor purchased it.  Thankfully, he did not tear it down and lifted it creating a daylight basement unit.  During his remodel there was quite a bit of wood torn out of the old house and put in a pile for the dump.  I snagged a number of cladding boards as I know they are made of fir that is over 100 years old.  The Woodsmiths were absolutely okay working with this wood even though the other side is covered in a green lead paint!  They cleaned the exposed wood side with soap and water and left the leaded side alone.  They did seal both sides with a clear coat to keep the lead trapped and to protect the exposed side.  That dark rich color is the color of the fir, no stain.  I am really pleased to have a bit of the old neighborhood in the space, and I think about my old neighbor when I look at it.

That is it - I'm done!  It was a group effort.  My contractor saved me a bunch of money getting various bids and so I was able to create some dynamic aspects that I hope my future tenant finds enjoyable.  My architect nailed the design, and the rest of the team taught me a lot.  I'm proud to say the amount of waste building out the space was minimal and even though I almost lost my mind a couple of times I genuinely enjoyed the experience.  If I can do this anyone can!

Thank you for reading my blog!   

 

      

 

                                                                            HOLY SMOKES!

You may be wondering if my DADU project has been completed...it has...sorta!  I passed all of my inspections back in January (done with the city) and have been in a holding pattern while waiting for an artist to build shelves, a ladder and a railing for my loft space (not required by the city but I still want one.)  My first artist (my friends dad) ended up not working out (he did the woodwork for the Ballard pub, Skal: Skål Beer Hall) as he is super busy.  But I did find another guy, Dan with Innovative Finish ( INNOVATIVE FINISH, LLC).  He has done work with/for Tenpenny Studios (they inspired my wormwood wall: Ten Penny Studio) whom I wanted to be my original architects, but they were just too expensive for my budget.  

So, for context, let us remember the past with regards to the lumber to be used for shelves, ladder and railing for loft.  Tree slide show!

Housemate hugging tree

Tree taken down

Tree being milled

Tree drying on side of house 2020-2025

Tree in the workshop.

Windy top/bottom will be used as a shelf above the living room bay window.  Dan, his team and I all like how organic it looks.

Arc top/bottom will be cut and turned into shelves for the kitchen.

Tree drying after being planed.

     There it stands!  It takes time but I am patient and believe it will be worth it once it is complete, and my tenant is moved in (he is very excited).  Thank you for your interest and support! 

 

UPDATE!  UPDATE!

It's hard to believe I haven't posted since April.  It has been busy times for the backyard cottage.

FLOORING

I decided to go with a concrete floor as opposed to wood, laminate or whatever.  Wood is lovely and I do enjoy getting used wood from Second Use (my kitchen floors are made of old bowling alley flooring from Lalani Bowling Alley found at Earthwise), but wood can be damaged, renters are assholes, cork flooring is too soft, laminate doesn't rock my world, so concrete won out.  Turns out there are multiple types of concrete for flooring (who knew) and my contractor almost spooked me out of it but...I just had the concrete slab ground down...simple as that!  The concrete grinding team took a day to grind it down and then put down two coats of sealant since concrete is very porous and will absorb spilled coffee, wine or whatever.  I just have to have it resealed about every 5 years - they told me, "The concrete will tell you when it's ready for more sealant."  These guys were hardcore, and I bought them beer when they were finished.    

ABOVE:  The massive machine that is used to grind down and vacuum up the concrete floor.  It has to be plugged into the washer/dryer outlet - it's that heavy duty. 

ABOVE:  This is what the concrete slab looks like when it is all ground and sealed.  I would have loved to install heating coils in the concrete floor so it is nice and warm but that would have been an extra bitch so decided against it. 

BATHROOM

Okay, admittedly not the greatest photo but this is the shower.  My contractor found an awesome tile guy who was anal but not annoying about it.  The space was just wooden studs, insulation, a shower drainpipe and vapor barrier covered in dirt.  He installed the shower backer board, poured concrete around the drain, put in the shower pan...essentially did everything which not all tile installers do.  He would show me his process as he went which was very cool.  I didn't realize the intricacies of what goes into putting together a proper shower.  

ABOVE:  The wall tile I got from Tile for Less and the floor tile I found on Amazon.  I went with 'raven' colored grout.  I was surprised how difficult it was to find a tile store in Seattle.  Most didn't make it through the pandemic.  The shower divider is a piece of plexiglass I found at Second Use...wayyyy cheaper and safer than glass.     

 

ABOVE:  The washer/dryer/hot water heater and prison lavatory sink that took me 20 years to find.

ABOVE:  This is the bathroom door.  Remember those wooden doors I posted about oh so long ago?  This is the one I chose for the bathroom.  The stain glass insert is still to come.

KITCHEN

Sorry guys just now lost the kitchen images so you will have to wait on those.

LIVING ROOM

Whew...this little woodstove was quite a challenge.  In all of my 'tiny house woodstove' research I learned that the majority of tiny woodstoves are actually gas/propane powered.  I have no interest in running a gas line to the back (I am allowed to tap into my pre-existing gas line but not allowed to run a whole new gas line...at least not in Seattle) and was therefore looking for a wood powered stove.  I looked at wood powered stoves that are on sailboats and, although interesting, are way too small.  Did you know sailboats can have woodstoves?!!  The other thing I had to consider was installation and maintenance.  A stove may be cool to look at but not everyone can install everything.  I wasn't comfortable purchasing a strange, cool looking stove from New Jersey but can't find anyone here to install it, especially with all of the codes, etc. in our city.  If this was Alaska, my brothers could install a woodstove and call it done, but not here.  Hell, if this was Snoqualmie, I could install that shit myself and be good.  What I discovered is that there are three woodstove stores in our area, and they will only install stoves purchased at their shop.  So, I wonder who is going to install those woodstoves you can buy at Costco...good luck!  Rich's in Tukwila wanted $15,000 to install, Sutter in Fremont wanted $10,000 and Max Heat wanted $7,000 for the stove AND install.  So, I went with Max...the other two can kiss my ass.  I also learned from the City of Seattle that as long as the stove is in the initial design drawings I submitted for a construction permit, I don't need a separate inspection/permit for it.      

ABOVE:  This is the little woodstove that was such a pain to find and have installed.  It is wrapped in soapstone and really lovely.

LOFT

I really wanted an accent wall in the loft to give it a little extra something.  I found some wormwood at Second Use and asked the finish carpenters to mix it up with the leftover cedar siding and they really came through - I think it looks amazing!

ABOVE:  The wormwood and leftover cedar siding looks great!  They stained it using the same stain as the salvaged bathroom door:  Sherwin Williams Heart Redwood.  The flooring is teak that my contractor found at Second Use.

 

                                            MINI-SPLIT, WOODSTOVE AND INSULATION

ABOVE:  Got the mini-split installed and waiting for inspection.  Apparently, the installers do not install the entire unit until after the drywall/painting go up since those two things tend to damage the mini-split unit.  So, it's not quite complete yet.

ABOVE:  This is an image of the woodstove chimney.  They also do not like to install the complete unit until drywall/painting/flooring are complete as the woodstove usually gets dirty/damaged.  So, again, not quite complete.  Finding a company to install a woodstove in Seattle was a total pain in the ass!  I got 3 bids, two of which were ridiculous.  I think that those two companies just didn't want to do the job because my incredibly steep roof intimidated them so they bid crazy high.  I went with the husband/wife team who were totally comfortable with my install...Max Heat, LLC.  

ABOVE:  As far as insulation goes, did spray foam for the ceiling with batt insulation over the top and the rest batt insulation...except for around the woodstove chimney.  That has to be rockwool.  

The next step is installing the bathroom fan venting, dryer venting and stove venting.  Then after having that inspected, I can install the drywall.  I'm not going to lie; this has been a bit of a bitch.  The siding guys had to remove the siding and reinstall it because they didn't put flashing around the windows, the roofers fucked up on installing the skylights, so they leaked and that was a misogynistic nightmare to deal with!  Not all sub-contractors respect working with women.  After waiting a couple of months for them to fix that I am now having to wait for the insulation guys to come back since they fucked up and put regular insulation around the chimney instead of rockwool.  THEN, Seattle City Light came out to attach my 'service' line and said they couldn't because the electricians fucked up and installed the DADU mast 4 feet from my house mast instead of 2 feet apart.  I told them I passed the 'service' inspection and they said, "You would be surprised what inspectors pass."  I give up.  I am learning to be patient and that just because someone is an 'expert' doesn't really mean they are.  

But it's getting closer to completion which is very exciting!!!