Thistle Warriors and a Weedy Garden Quilt

Although the house is built and has electricity, there is no internet or cable hookup yet. We decided that we will wait on that and concentrate on getting other things done first.  Weeding the thistles for one.

Thistle and No Bee

I warned the Thistle Warrior (Herr) that he would have to fight the Bees.  They love the thistles.  In fact, we thought some were impaled and dead after a long time of no motion.  Then suddenly they would buzz off as if awaken from a drunken stupor!  I love thistle flowers, but they can get out of hand.  They were in the middle of my native plant meadow of Pacific Coast irises, rush, grasses, etc.

Drunken Bee in Our Thistle Field

The passive solar idea of this house has surprised us.  It remains around 66 degrees indoors.  Outside it can range from 37 to 80 degrees.  The wood stove is effective to getting the house up to 74 degrees.  Turning on the fans in the cupola pushes the warm air that rise back down.  And if that doesn't do it, we have wool sweaters, felted slippers and blankets.  A nice comfy quilt will work, too.

 

The last quilt I made was about 20 years ago.  At least, one that was all hand-quilted.  My life then was very hectic and my attention span very short. It took a while to finish. There is one thing about working in clay---it will teach you patience. Most days. Now I can think about a project, the timing and process with full knowledge I will not tire of it if not completed in a day.

When there is no distractions--no laptops, no phone, no television, no studio---there is time for details.  Time for thoughts to unwind and thread carefully. I also had hands with nothing to do.  The simplest thing I could do was hand sew.  It was then I decided to make another quilt---MoMo's Weedy Garden Quilt.  All I needed was paper, scissors, pins and a needle, thread and bits of fabric.

Texture, pattern and color. 

My mind's eye trinity.

And about 350 of these little hexies will do it.

Less than the number of weeds I pulled.

Be Brave, We are Thistle Warriors after all! 

Berries and Berra

breakfast of wild blackberries

Phil Rizzuto – “Hey Yogi I think we’re lost.”

Yogi Berra – “Ya, but we’re making great time!”

salal berries with nibbled on leaves (deer)

“You can observe a lot just by watchin’.”
Yogi Berra

red huckleberries

It is wild berry picking time on the coast.  A little early this year.  Probably because we have had very little fog this summer.  Black huckleberries are just starting to ripen and are plentiful.  We thought we'd lose a lot of wild berry bushes with all the construction going on.  But we have beautiful berries this year.  Red and black huckleberries, salal, blackberries and a small bit of salmon berries earlier and big. plump mountain blueberries. 

“You got to be very careful if you don’t know where you’re going, because you might not get there.”

Yogi Berra

I am not sure if I will continue this blog now that the house is built.  We still have a few things to do in the interior.  So far, the passive solar and thick walls have help insulate us against the cool, summer nights.  And I thought the concrete floor would be cold and hard against my bare feet.  It isn't.  People are surprised that there is no heater, no gas.  We have a very efficient wood stove and one cold evening we built a fire.  The house warmed quickly.  We get instant hot water for our showers.  And the layout of the house suits us.  It is simple, warm and open.  I see the trees all around.  We have little furniture, no t.v. and no internet.  We don't feel lost.  We finally got here.

Making, Building, Finishing

"We are searching for some kind of harmony between two intangibles: a form which we have not yet designed and a context which we cannot properly describe."

 Christopher Alexander

We knew this little house was done when the arch was cut across the doorway beam. It was a finishing touch and elegant statement.  Quirky me saw it as an eyebrow over the moon's eye. 

candle lantern converted into a ceiling light for the guest room

I love this lamp shade from West Elm.  It reminds me of making paper lanterns.

 

 The schoolhouse lamps are larger than they appear in this photo.  From below they look like little moons.  We had these made up with GU24 sockets for energy efficiency. 

 

 

I was concerned that with all the construction and clearing that the wild Pacific Coast irises would not bloom this year.  I was relieved to see them blooming every where.  Even under debris.  

 

"Sometimes I long so much to do landscape, just as one would go for a long walk to refresh oneself, and in all of nature, in trees for instance, I see expression and a soul.”—Vincent van Gogh

bamboo forest  in the foothills

This is a bamboo forest planted in the Hakone Gardens outside of Saratoga, California. Located in the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains, you can almost miss the entrance, a steep narrow road going up into the morning fog.  I love how this area is just bamboo. You can smell its sweet and grassy scent.  And the rustling of the long, thin leaves!  Sometimes it sounds like tinkling, clinking glass.  Maybe it is all that silica in its structure.  This forest is young.  The bamboo is not as large as I have seen elsewhere.  Still I love how wild it looks and rejuvenating it feels.
 

 

Black bamboo costs more than regular bamboo even locally harvested.  Tim used every last bit.  He used the pieces to build the gates.  The ladder lifts up to sit into the wall.  I doubt we will do that.  It looks nice out into the space.

living area

We were starting to get used to the tub in the living area.  It has sat there since November.  The light is wonderful streaming in this south facing window, too.  Across from it is the wood stove.  A tub, wood stove and a view of the redwoods.  Hmmm.  Alas, there is no plumbing in this room.  So it had to go in here:

This photo makes the bathroom seem even smaller.  The window is to one side so I can reach it.  If it was in the middle I would have to stand in the tub to open the window.  I am short.  Not little.  Just short.  This way the practical me can reach all around and clean the floor.  The lime plaster on the wall is the palest of blue.  Sometimes it reflects back the green of the trees so the wall takes on a very light celedon. 

my duck feet on clay plaster floor

The concrete floor in both baths have a layer of lime plaster.  It is durable and has a wonderful satin feel.  The charcoal color provides a rich contrast against the wood and white tub.  I was thinking of painting outside of the tub, but now loving the clean, pristine whiteness.  This is much to the relief of Herr R. 

on right is the sink

three things: change out white pipe, light switch plates and find the right  mirror

two patches on floor are samples of floor treatments

 

This photo makes the sink look so small.  It isn't.  It's a Kohler Vox. It is deeper than it looks, too.  There's a few more details---accessories!

EcoSmart tankless water heater

Although I rather take photos of the pretty things, Herr R takes photos of the practical things.  Which is the point of this small, passive solar house.  We have no propane tanks, no gas heaters.  This is an instant, tankless water heater system.  It is connected to a solar panel on the roof, but also uses on the grid electricity to heat the water. We may live in a mini-banana belt, but it is still get coastal fog. There's a timer and a way to switch to the solar heater.  This is also the laundry closet.  We have HE compact washer/dryer to install.  Herr R is very excited about the efficiency and other gadgets.  Tim picked a pale lilac for the clay paint.  It is very pretty. 

Black bamboo-Hakone Japanese Tea Garden

Turkey Tails and Bamboo Rails

 

While the kitchen counter was getting installed, I went to check on the pump house.  There were new turkey tails on some of the recently exposed rotting logs.   A thick carpet of redwood and pine needles, springy beneath my feet, kept me from having a steady hand taking sharp photos.  But I tried!  It was good to get outside and breath in the sweet air. I stayed outside as the adhesive for the counter had a strong odor. This was the first time I felt a little ill inside the house.  It is a testament to all the natural products used from cotton insulation to clay paint and earth plasters.  There is little out-gassing.  We opened up all the windows, the breezeway doors and soon the smell dissipated.  The counter does looks great.  

Kitchen is nearly done.  The round globe light was the only GU-24 light we could find.  It looks like we dotted an I.  It is a cheap ceiling light and not what I intended over the sink.  But somehow, it looks okay.  Kind of quirky.  We will see.  It was easier to put in all GU-24 lights, than to figure out the percentages of energy efficiency required for service areas.  Even though this house is a passive solar home and has natural light streaming in (even on foggy days!) the code is the code.  We didn't want to stress over it.  Keeping to the small, simple and clean.

The photo doesn't really show the beautiful texture of this particular wall. There are bits of grog and little bits of  dark blue earth pigment. It is subtle, but the sunlight moves across it as if a graphite pencil, sketching in shadows and coloring values. 

The railing is up.  The rails are black bamboo and harvested locally.  The bottom rails are the thicker canes, graduating in size upwards. The posts will get some stain and wax.  A loft ladder is in the works and will sit inside the wall.  It will pull out when needed.  And tuck out of the way, when not.  I tried looking for a library ladder, but in the end a custom made ladder was needed.
 

Life goes on.  This redwood partially uprooted many, many years ago.  That "trunk" is actually a branch about 15' in diameter.   There's a cave of sorts underneath. Tim's two sons built a small fort (hobbit hole) using scrap lumber.  It is very cozy and well crafted.  He said he would take it down, but I really love it.  I love the thought of  two boys building it. How they planned and worked.  It looks swept.  There's even a shelf.   How wonderful and fun.  It isn't visible from the house. So it will remain.  A secret place. Beneath a tree.......

Trees are sanctuaries. Whoever knows how to speak to them, whoever knows how to listen to them, can learn the truth. They do not preach learning and precepts, they preach, undeterred by particulars, the ancient law of life.   ~Hermann Hesse


 

Doors and Salvaged Windows

“...so I wait for you like a lonely house
till you will see me again and live in me.
Till then my windows ache.” Pablo Neruda

salvaged doors and windows yard

We went to nearby Albion to look for an old window.  We have six salvaged windows in the interior to let light into the bedrooms.  Our shower looked a bit dark so I asked Tim if we could put in a small, rectangular window in the interior wall. The sink and mirror is on the other side.  If you stand at the sink you can peek into the shower or vice versa.  Herr, at first, thought it should be frosted.  Huh?  As if I would sneak a peek? So clearly, he needed some disillusionment. I wanted an old window with clear glass.  I looked all over at Urban Ore and Omega Salvage in Berkeley, but all were too big.  Surprise! Tim found one nearby, in the coastal town of Albion.  Perfect in its imperfections.  We loved it.  It even had lavender paint painted over its once turquoise frame.

  

 the outside facing is lavender, the inside is painted white

Well, Herr broke the glass when he was trying to photograph it.  He felt so bad that we immediately drove up to Albion to see if they had another.  We were in luck as there was only one more in that size. We got it and returned to the house.  Then we started thinking how easily the glass shattered.  Not so good for a shower.  Herr took the glass bits out of the first window. It is now at the glass shop getting tempered glass. It was a good thing after all the window fell and the glass broke.  I think the house was telling us something.  

 

a small kitchen makes one think about function, utility and paring down to essentials

Now to decide on the wall color in the kitchen area.  The cabinets are in and I forgot to pick out hardware.  We have no upper cabinets on the window side as we plan to put up shelves for our daily dishes.  I don't know what's with all the outlets, but apparently it's code.  Tim put up 3 plaster swatches.  They are all too dark. And I think it needs a bit more ohhhh. It even seems like the house is saying, "No dull clouds, no drabby fog---make it thunderous!  Have an adventure in purple gray of driftwood and wet sand."  I say okay, lighten up the swatches and the house will say AHHH!

 

Finally. We went around and around about the front door. The door's framing was on hold until the plaster color was done. It was too pale and blah.  Then just yellow. Tim wasn't happy with the color.  I wasn't happy. Definitely the house wasn't showing a happy face.  So finally I asked if he could just do a wash of green pigment with a bit of blue on top and ta-dah---there was the color and texture we were looking for........

just the right green and now the door frame is next

From the road it appears more mossy green. Up close more verdigris with chalky straw streaks.  It has depth and hidden character now.  It gives this passive solar house a voice. Enough to say:

Happy New Year!

Trees, Stars, House and Me

Not just beautiful, though--

the stars are like the trees in the forest, alive and breathing. And they're watching me.

 

~Haruki Murakami from Kafka on the Shore

 

The fans are up and look like stars to me!  They look small in this photo, but they are big!  They will push down the warm air (if it ever even gets a little warm on the coast.)  During the winter the sun will mainly shine through these windows. This area is what they call "banana belt" and that means we get a little more sun.  Or a little less fog than other parts of the coast.

This redwood tree supports one corner of the cupola.  The cupola is done in a pale purplish white.  During the day it looks nearly chalky white, but later in the day it takes on the blush of sunset.

And the custom made doors finally got here from Washington! It was good to see them installed.  It took a while, but worth it in many ways.  It is hard to see, but these doors open out a little more.  They are protected by two walls and a gable.  The "meadow area"  has Bishop pines and alders saplings now.  In 2004, the area was clear and level.  Even the small redwood to the far right is now about 20' taller. Over eight years, nature reclaimed and healed this clearing with native plants of the area.

Nature reclaims quickly if left alone. 

The lesson which life constantly repeats is to 'look under your feet.'

You are always nearer to the divine and the true sources of your power than you think.

The lure of the distant and the difficult is deceptive.

The great opportunity is where you are.

Do not despise your own place and hour.

Every place is under the stars.

Every place is the center of the world. 

John Burroughs from Studies in Nature and Literature