RECENT WORK ON OUR PLACE IN MISSOURI

Started by mark_chenail, May 18, 2006, 04:34:13 PM

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mark_chenail

A couple of people have asked to see some pictures of the recent work we did on our place in Missouri.  Those of you who have been following this saga, know that we started this house 6 years ago with a tiny 8x14 shed and each year we go down and add  more rooms.  We now have about 1500 sqft.  The last time we were there was a year ago last Christmas when we nearly froze to death. While we were there, we hired some local carpenters to do some work. Well Long story short, for many reasons, the work wasnt finished and the carpenters never did send us pictures of what was accomplished. So this trip we went down with no idea what we might find.  :rolleyes:
We were pleasantly surprised.  The carpenters had misread the plans..how I dont know but they did and instead of framing short pony walls on the second floor to give us two small loft bedrooms under the roof, they put up full sized walls and we got two large airy bedrooms we hadnt planned on. Unfortunately they didnt get a roof on all of it.  There was a little water damage, but nothing serious and a ton of leaves in the house.  Jason, Levi and I managed to shovel it all out, reassess our plan and went to work.  We were only there a week but we did manage to get a roof on it and most of it tight to the weather.  We would have accomplished more, but of course it rained 4 days out of the 7 we were there, which made roof work a bit slick and scarey.
Most of these pics are of construction in progress, but the last pic gives you some idea of what the house will look like when done, if you can imagine siding and windows and trim.  The two little tower structures are actually chimney shafts and will be faced above the cornice line with stone or slate.
The chimney shafts are huge but they help to support the roof ridge and provide space for all the fireplaces and metal chimneys and lots of little closets and cubbie hole storage spaces.  

Remember this is a work in progress and rather unconventional "organic" plan.
Jason says that means nothing is quite square or even, but I say its rustic and makes it look like it was built over long period of time.  And we are both adherents of the first law of self-building:

THE TRIM WILL HIDE IT.



THIS IS THE STAIR TOWER. YOU CAN SEE HOW BIG THE WINDOWS ARE AND HOW WE FRAMED THE ROOF. THE WINDOWS ARE SLAVAGED DOUBLE CASEMENTS THAT ARE 5'X5'.  I GOT 12 SETS OF THEM CHEAP AND HAVE USED THEM IN VARIOUS WAYS ALL OVER THE HOUSE.



THIS IS THE UPSTAIRS STAIR HALL WITH ITS BIG VIEW OUT TO THE COURTYARD. THERE IS ONE BEDROOM ON THE RIGHT AND ANOTHER BEHIND THE  CAMERA. LOTS OF TEMPORARY BRACING HERE.



ANOTHER SHOT UPSTAIRS. YOU CAN SEE HOW BIG AND AIRY THE BEDROOMS WILL BE.



THATS THE WINDOW IN THE SMALLER UPSTAIRS BEDROOM. ANOTHER NICE VIEW OVER THE PORCH ROOF TO THE WOODS BEYOND.



THE SAME WINDOW FROM OUTSIDE SHOWING THE END OF THE HOUSE. YOU CAN SEE ONE OF THE CHIMNEY TOWERS ON THE RIGHT.  THATS A FUTURE SCREEN PORCH ON THE FIRST FLOOR AND ONE OF THE WINDOWS IN THE LIVING ROOM TO THE LEFT.  TO THE FAR LEFT IS THE OLDER PART OF THE HOUSE THAT WE BUILT TWO YEARS AGO.



A LONGSHOT FROM THE ROAD SHOWS YOU THE GENERAL SHAPE OF THE HOUSE.



ANOTHER LONGSHOT FROM THE ROAD. THIS IS PRETTY MUCH HOW WE LEFT IT.  NEXT STEP SIDING AND WINDOWS.



JASON AND LEVI ON THE LAST DAY, RESTING FROM THEIR LABORS.

Our next trip we want to get the siding up and the windows in and get it wired and insulated for the winter.  We will probably then hire someone to come do the drywall.  We also want to add on a sort of carport with an attached library/studio on the right hand end of the front view.  We have most of the lumber for it on site, so its just a question of digging the holes and getting a few bodies to come and help before snow flies in November.
Hope you like the pics and if you have any questions feel free to ask.

Jimmy_Cason

#1
Wow, That place is gonna be huge!
It is amazing that it evolved from a shed.
When do you guys get to go back?
Thanks for the pics. It helps us guys that wont follow the directions and only look at picture!


mark_chenail

#2
Yes Jimmy, it has just sorta grown.  It has 6 bedrooms all of them big enough for double beds or bunks plus theres a big raised seating platform in the living room and there will be a big window seat in the library/studio which we hope to build in the fall.  Plenty of room for guests and family.  BUT it did start from an 8x12 garden shed.  The original intent was for a smaller house and footprint, but when we discovered after the first addition that we werent permitted to build under the power line, we had to reorient the plan and radically change it. And the wheelchair necessitates larger spaces too.  When we finish, we will probably have about 3000 sq.ft under roof but that will include 3 large open loggias and porches and a good sized studio  and an oversized bathroom to accommodate the wheelchair.  With 12 acres to play with, I saw no reason not to spread out a bit. We are at 2150 sq.ft now give or take and the running cost is still under 25k.

Heres a couple of drawings of the whole house as planned done on 3-D Design by Broderbund.



VIEW FROM THE ROAD. THE ONLY PARTS NOT BUILT ARE THE LOGGIA AND LIBRARY/STUDIO ON THE FAR RIGHT AND THE BATHROOM TOWER WAY AT THE BACK.



SITE PLAN



OVERHEAD VIEW OF WHOLE HOUSE, TAKEN ABOVE THE INTERIOR COURTYARD. THE ROAD IS AT THE TOP LEFT OF THE PAGE.