A New Kitchen Design

This was an interesting project. Being without a kitchen for a few months and doing the dishes in the bathroom sink was a challenge. The existing kitchen had been built with tall and deep cabinets that were not easily accessible. The space was rather dark at any time of the day and was not functional. Also, there was not much counter space.















Our idea to rebuild the kitchen was, not only to introduce more natural light into the space, but also to redesign its functionality. With the help of our cabinet maker, Gary Peters, owner of Color & Grain Inc. in Champaign, IL, we solved many issues regarding the “work triangle” within our limited space. We worked out the design of a peninsula with a honed granite top and a single bowl copper farmhouse sink. Our “kitchen triangle” turned out nicely considering the configuration of the space. Ultimately, we were able to position the stove across from the sink and the fridge in the adjacent space. We sought to maximize the space with as much built-in inlay cabinetry as possible, including some with glass doors.















So, not only the circulation of the space was improved, but also the under-cabinet lighting makes the space much more welcoming. To balance out the large granite area of the peninsula with the wall where most of the cabinetry is, I uncovered and rehabilitated the flue, and sealed it with SealKrete, a waterproofing sealant to protect the bricks and grout. Above all, we are enjoying the new kitchen and so are our friends.

Just a Flue

This small project was to restore a flue that had seen better days. It was partly covered with plaster at first but the idea was to have it exposed within the kitchen. The whole was sealed with SealKrete, a waterproofing sealant to help preserve the bricks and grout.

A Tall Pergola

Over a year ago, I built a pergola adjacent to the back of the house. It is a 12’ x 21’ x 11’ H. The idea was, not only to enhance the backyard but also to add shade over a patio and create a more welcoming area for any gathering. The paver patio offers a nice flat surface.




The vegetation is not yet fully grown with Autumn Clematis, Trumpet Vine, and Passion Flower vine. We planted later than expected but are looking forward to it.

A Good Day for Salvage

On Saturday, I went with some other PACA volunteers to salvage woodwork from a 1892 farm house such as bullseye, trim, baseboard, doors, windows, cabinetry, etc. We met for lunch before getting to the site and our gathering turned out quite well. We salvaged some very nice features from this large house, including a set of doors with one side oak veneer and the other side pine.

The New Garage - the inside

All that was well and good but there was much more to be done. Some of the items for the inside included electrical, insulation, windows and doors, drywall, wall finishes, stairs and railing, flooring, etc.

Insulation was tedious but I was able to draw the benefits from it when we had cold temperatures this winter. The flooring for the storage area is built from salvage planks from a farm building and parts of the walls are covered with corrugated steel for additional protection at the base.


























The upper part of the building is a bit more elaborate. But before that, I salvaged oak flooring, pine railing, window trim, and baseboard from a 1908 farmhouse that was going to be demolished to make room for a very large subdivision on 160 acres. Of course, it is work to salvage wood flooring but it is well worth it when it is back together. It is hard stuff that is not going to warp so easily once installed. Another nice feature about this older type of flooring is its length that could be up to 17 feet sometime. I think it really enhances the overall surface once finished.

The New Garage – the outside

I had to have help for foundation and slab as well as raising the structure of the new two-story garage. The new structure was up in early 2008. I contracted a mason and carpenter who gave me very good insights. Whatever I could reuse from the old garage, e.g. 2”x4”, 2”x6” I did. This picture with the building wrap shows the structure after I added windows and doors. The carpenter stapled the building wrap in order to minimize moisture intrusion because I did not know when I could work on the stucco.




Ultimately, I prepared for stucco by sheathing the building shell with asphalt felt paper. I used a 30 lb felt paper (one might read a 15 lb paper would suffice) and installed the lath with galvanized nails. I found some good hints for stucco on the Handy Canadian.

In terms of building style, the theme was to depict Alsace with timber framing. The timber framing style is partly made of salvaged 2”x4” and 2”x6” from the old garage and other timber from a “to be demolished” farm building. Windows are salvaged, some with upper and lower sashes and others as French casement opening inward. Doors are also salvaged and they are mostly pocket doors. I chose this kind of doors to maximize space. They are set on a rail exactly the way they were installed originally. Above all, I am glad I got to put this material to good use.
















Before starting the outside work, I salvaged almost 4700 bricks for the wall base and street blocks for the landscape. The bricks come a demolished foundation and the street blocks from PACA.















These last two pictures show the new building almost finished with landscaping. The grading of the yard had to be adjusted and leveled. I built a retaining wall with street blocks to delineate the yard on one side and a brick walkway on the other side.

The old garage

Re-using salvaged material and/or salvaging it oneself takes time. Needless to say, I also went to the store to purchase new material for this project but… it is not quite the same, is it? There was a one-car garage on the property built in the 1950’s. Its structure started to lean to one side and it no longer was suitable to our purpose. For some reason, this happened at the same time that the silver maple started to die. So, considering the circumstances at the time, it was a perfect opportunity to build a new structure where I could incorporate as much salvaged material as possible.

Here we go, planning, networking, contracting, etc. We started with the tree and the garage structure was next. My goal was to salvage as much as possible from the structure, weighing out time and effort of course. The structure was certainly not sound; it came out very easily, one person. I think I saved quite a bit and have reused everything for the new structure.

And, when the site had been cleared with the backhoe, it was shocking.

The Story

I have only had two houses and did not do much in the first one. Perhaps I felt no connection to the house. It was a house from 1897 that had been divided into apartments. Many things had been changed and certainly not reworked as anything similar or even close to its original state. So, years went on and I went back to school and lived in a co-op building. It was a cozy apartment where I lived with my girlfriend. All that was well and good until it turned out that we wished for a larger space. We found a house from 1901, one of the oldest on the block. All floors are inhabitable and for 2200 sqft it is quite spacious and makes one feel at home in an old house.

To get to the point, I think when dealing with older structures, there are details that are almost irreplaceable in their original state like staircase features, wood hardness, etc. So, to say the least I have become much more involved in this kind of work this time around than a few years ago. I do enjoy it and I have discovered a network for architectural preservation in town. The Preservation And Conservation Association (PACA) salvage warehouse in Champaign, Illinois is run by volunteers. This is a great place to hang out and it has given me a lot of good insights.