Kitchen Renovation Weeks 4, 5, 6: Drywall, Cabinets and Counter tops!

I've been remiss in posting the last few weeks, because I wasn't too in love with the kitchen and the renovation process.  Frankly, I'm tired of microwave meals, stuff piled in boxes all over my house, and construction equipment everywhere.  It really gets to me on the weekends.  Our usual Friday or Saturday night spent in consists of a few well crafted cocktails made by the Architect and we relax in our living room and listen to some music.  Then we cook some dinner and might dial up a TV show on the DVR.  Boring I know, but we like it.  While there has been some guerrilla style cocktail drinking in the house, it's been done on our futon and drinks are mixed in the bathroom.  Yeah, not so much fun.  So needless to say I'm ready for the end product to get here, and fast.

Week 3 was drywall, taping, mudding, sanding (and sanding) and painting.  Week 4 saw the arrival of cabinets, and more painting (my allergies loved the oil based paints).  Week 5 saw the arrival of counter tops and installation of the cork floor (no pics as it hasn't been completed yet).

Week 6 should see more painting (missing a second coat on one wall), installation of tile, finish prep on the cork floor, installation of light fixtures and appliances.  Wait - that sounds like it might be done?! BTW, I usually post a few quick snaps every couple of days on Instagram.  You can find me at 4squaresperinch.

Ok, now on to the pictures of progress!

Back side of island clad in baltic birch with a clear coat finish.

Cabinets awaiting their paint job.

That's a heck of a lot of drawers!

Painted cabinets and lots of drawers.

Detail where paint meets baltic birch trim.

Painted cabinets awaiting their counter tops.

Freshly painted beam in the same paint as cabinets.

A little pop of orange.

Ooooh shiny shiny counter tops...

The fly over bar also gets some orange love.

Renovating a Kitchen!

After living in our house for about 5 years, we are finally renovating our kitchen.  This will be the Architect's first realized design and hopefully will lead to more side projects.  Over the next 6 weeks or so I'll be updating on our progress.  Hopefully this process will be more of a HGTV-type experience rather than "Renovation Nightmares."  Above are the "before" pictures.  The renovation will remove all the walls you see in the upper right and bottom two photos.  The kitchen will also double in size, allowing us to utilize some dead space for the new dining area.  I'm not looking forward to living on microwave meals and sandwiches for the next 6 weeks; but I know the finished project is going to be outstanding.  Apartment Therapy here we come!!!

The Barthel Residence up for sale

When the Architect and I were looking for our MCM we happened upon this enclave of homes on Capri Court. This house was designed by local Dallas architect John E. Barthel as a home for himself and has been the sole owner of the home.

If I could sell my house tomorrow, I would definitely be putting in a bid for this house. This house is in original mint condition and a perfect party house. It is on the market for $425,000.00, which is a bit high for the area and what Dallas County Appraisal District has valued the home at ($239,770). But give the uniqueness of the house and all the original details, there may be a few folks who might be willing to pay a bit more but maybe not that much.

Local MCM real estate expert Ed Murchison is the listing agent. You can contact him here.

See more pictures of the Barthel Residence here.

Image credit: midcenturymoderndallashomes.com

Alexander Calder and Contemporary Art: Form, Balance, Joy

The weekend was the opening for Alexander Calder and Contemporary Art: Form, Balance, Joy at the Nasher Sculpture Center. The exhibit combines 30 of Calder's works with the works of 7 contemporary artists influence by his work.

Exhibition on view through March 6, 2011.

Image from www.nashersculpturecenter.org

Do you know your MCM?

Test your MCM design knowledge here at the TLC mid century design quiz.

Hat tip to How About Orange where I saw the quiz.

Ju-Nel Home for Sale

This Ju-Nel home was on the White Rock Home Tour a few years ago. It can be yours for $355,000.00. The best part of this house is the outdoor spaces and wide expanses of glass. It is 3 bed, 2 bath in 1887 sq ft.

Check out more pictures and contact the realtor, Mark Milikan here.

Image from ebby.com.

Put this on your calendar: Alexander Weekend in Palm Springs

If you love MCMs you need to put this on your calendar: March 25-27, 2011 is Alexander Weekend in Palm Springs, CA. This is a celebration of the William Krisel tract homes that are all over Palm Springs. Alexander homes are very similar to the more well known Eichler tract homes.

More info here. H/t to Lushpad.

Why less was more and why it should be that way today

The New York Times has a nice article by Jayne Merkel about how houses after World War II were smaller, efficient, and did not necessarily sacrifice style for efficiency. The question she poses, is:

"As we find ourselves in an era of diminishing resources, could “less” become “more” again?"

The answer for me is yes. I live in a 1964 Atomic Ranch. It is 1800 square feet, 2 bedroom, 2 bath. I only have 2 gripes about the house: 1) the closets are not that big and 2) the shower in the master is like taking a bath in a coffin. In reality, if I truly spent a weekend going through my clothes and doing a hardcore edit, I could probably fit all of my clothes into one closet, instead of two. As for the bathroom - well that is going to take a bit more of a renovation, but one that isn't going to change the footprint, just make better use of the space we have.

Making better use of the space you have - I believe that is key to either dealing with the house you have or the one you want to build. I have been in my share of McMansions and contractor build homes. One of the problems that I see time and time again is the poor use of space. Funky angles, curved walls, weird nooks that serve no purpose. Roof lines - don't get The Architect started on roof lines. While the bedrooms in our house may be small compared to "today", they serve their purpose and we have adapted them to serve our needs. The closets for example - Elfa is our best friend. The bedroom now only has a bed, 2 nightstands, a lamp and a mirror. Once we removed the dresser the place felt so much bigger.

In the living room, which is open plan, had a blank wall about 13 feet high. That was dead space, which for about 3 years was occupied by the largest IKEA bookshelf we could find. And it still didn't hold all of our books and CDs. So after saving up some money we found a mill worker, 3LL Designs, who built us this awesome NINE FEET TALL BY FOURTEEN FEET WIDE bookshelf. We were able to take three rooms worth of books and CDs and put them into the bookshelf in the living room. Oh and if we (or a buyer) ever want to put a TV in the living room, it has a removable section where it is already wired for a TV. (If you want your own freakin huge custom designed bookshelf, The Architect is available for commissions)

There are some people who don't want to live in an old house and want to build their own. That is a dream of mine someday. But too often around Dallas, people will go into established neighborhoods, knock down a perfectly good house and erect a monstrosity that is built to the edge of ALL the property lines. See M streets, UP, HP. A 5,000 sqft house on a lot that originally had a 1500 sqft house just looks stupid. Oh and add that there are only 3 people living in the house. Do you really need all that space or are you just trying to say "mine is bigger than yours." Somehow, I think it is the latter. Cheap land + cheap energy + cheap materials is one of the arguments for why we had the McMansion explosion and probably the ultra luxury hi-rise condo explosion in Dallas as well. Seriously, who is going to live in these things? I certainly don't have the million-plus to live in Museum Tower.

Which leads me to another rant, the untapped market of designing modest modern homes for the true middle class in Dallas. Unless you are a person in the know, the average person who likes modern design (which arguably is not an average person by some people's standards) will be hard pressed to find someone who could build a modern home in the 150,000-250,000 range. The architects are out there, believe me. Some people love the style of MCMs and ranches, but want the new shiny benefits of new construction. Urban Reserve, back at its inception, tried to market itself as a community where the modern middle class could reside, but that has been an utter failure in my opinion. Maybe with all the new "austerity measures" people are trying to implement in their lives, that will force people to think about what they really need, which will in turn spur a demand for new breed of housing. The pessimist in me says, "yeah right", but hey it is Sunday I am willing to be optimistic for a few minutes.

Anyways, what I am trying to say through all of this is that you should really read this article. And I should probably lay off the coffee before I start blogging.

White Rock Home Tour - the only thing you should be doing this weekend

I usually give you a few options for the weekend. However, if you read this blog you are likely a lover of mid century modern architecture and furniture. Therefore, the only thing on your to-do list this weekend should be the White Rock Home Tour. There will be 4 MCM homes plus a new-built modern "green" home.

See pictures of the tour homes and where to get tickets here.

Dallas MCM designation in our future?

I am way, way late talking about this, but Unfair Park back in March had a brief item about creating a MCM designation for homes in Dallas. The Landmark Commission has seen an uptick in MCM homeowners wanting designation, the problem is there are no guidelines to designate what homes would come under an MCM designation. Sure, we don't want to include every single run of the mill rancher, but there are definitely MCM homes worth saving. Go to the White Rock Home Tour this weekend and you will see what I am talking about.

Read the full post here. Here's hoping that like minded lovers of MCM will band together to try to save these examples of American architecture with as much gusto as others have devoted to saving the homes in the Swiss Ave. area.

MCM House For Sale - Or please buy this so I don't have to.

9745 Wisterwood - This house is just a few streets away from me in White Rock Valley North. It is a fully renovated 1600 sqft, 3 bedroom, 2 bath Ju-Nel home. If this had been on the market a few years ago, I would have bought it in a heartbeat. However, if anyone wants to buy my MCM so I can buy this one, email me. Learn more about Ju-Nel homes here and see more pictures of this home here.





Picture from www.ebby.com.

What I have been reading lately

I am on the road this week for work, but here is what I have been reading up on:

1. The Woodall Rodgers Park Foundation announced that Thomas Phifer and Partners will be the architects for The Park's restaurant and performance pavilion. Phifer used to work with Richard Meier, who designed the Rachofsky House in Dallas. More info here.

2. One of the finalists of the Re:Vision Dallas competition (turning a parking lot into a sustainable mixed-use development) is on the shortlist to exhibit its competition entry at the World Architecture Festival in Barcelona, Spain this November. Still trying to figure out if I should be proud of that or embarassed. Read about it here.

3. The Disney Streets and the people who live there - home to some beautiful MCMs - are still duking it out over whether there should be a conservation overlay. Read about the nastiness here.

Where to find MCM furniture and accessories in Dallas

Here is a list of my favorite places to scout and new MCM furniture:

1. Century Modern in Deep Ellum - We have bought a couch, two club chairs, some bent plywood chairs, and Eames lounge chair and a Danish style teak credenza. The owners are extremely nice and their prices are quite reasonable.

2. Lula B's Antique Mall on Lower Greenville Ave. - Be prepared to spend some time picking through stuff and go back often. Not a lot of "designer" furniture, but they do have a selection of furniture and accessories from the time 50s-60s.

3. Collage on Industrial Ave. - This place has some beautiful pieces. Mostly high end and in pristine vintage condition. I like to browse through here, but unfortunately I can't afford much of what they sell.

4. Smink in Inwood Village - You will find new editions of classic MCM furniture. Think Saarinen tables, Knoll credenzas, Eames lounge chairs.

5. Design Within Reach on McKinney Ave. - You will also find new editions of classic MCM furniture here, in addition to new modern designs. Get on their mailing list - they periodically will have evening receptions with wine and food to introduce new furniture lines or have speakers talking about architecture and design in Dallas.

6. Craigslist - I troll craigslist a few times a week. I have picked up the Case Study bed from Modernica, 6 original Eames fiberglass chairs, and a 50s dinette set. My favorite search terms: Eames, mid-century, Danish, teak, Herman Miller, Saarinen, Knoll, Heywood Wakefield, art deco.

7. Ebay - When looking for furniture I use the advance search function to limit my search to my local geographical area. This is where I pick up my Viking glass vases and search for Blenko glass.

8. Metro Retro Furniture in Pasadena, TX - This place is near Houston. I haven't been to his warehouse yet, but just from browsing his website, he has one of the largest inventories of MCM period furniture I have seen.