the palmer house rehab Vox 2009-08-31T00:31:54Z thepalmerhouse http://thepalmerhouse.vox.com/?_c=feed-atom tag:vox.com,2006:6p00d414328ff9685e/ our gated commune-ity tag:vox.com,2009-08-31:asset-6a00d414328ff9685e011018699777860f 2009-08-31T00:14:12Z 2009-08-31T00:31:54Z thepalmerhouse http://thepalmerhouse.vox.com/?_c=feed-atom

new opening, new gate let see if that gate actually fits... just a little last minute adjustment old hardware, new gate the gate is in place

Slowly but surely, we are eliminating and replacing the last vestiges of the old fence in the backyard. Yay! The last two weekends, we worked on installing a new gate on the back edge of the fence. Ben designed and built the gate, and we had ...

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]]> looking good! tag:vox.com,2009-08-03:asset-6a00d414328ff9685e01101681a64b860c 2009-08-03T01:43:06Z 2009-08-03T01:55:09Z thepalmerhouse http://thepalmerhouse.vox.com/?_c=feed-atom

scrubbing down the last of the bricks now we just need a bit more soil our modest plant stand painting the last part of the door the finished product! view out to the street

Over the last two weeks, the backyard has really started coming together! We are finally starting to see some payoff for all of our hard work! One major milestone is that we completed the masonry and soil prep work for the second planter. Ryan fin...

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]]> planter complete! tag:vox.com,2009-07-20:asset-6a00d414328ff9685e0110167792ba860c 2009-07-20T01:26:18Z 2009-07-20T02:30:45Z thepalmerhouse http://thepalmerhouse.vox.com/?_c=feed-atom

soil time! soil looking so good you could just swin in it the cherry tree goes in one happy gardener the finished product, plus another fence panel looking down the driveway scrubbing up that third coarse

Sometimes, we find ourselves working very hard on the house with very little to show for it at the end of the day (for example, doing boring prep work, sanding wood, masking, etc. – all things that are very important but not very satisfying to co...

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]]> planter progress tag:vox.com,2009-07-12:asset-6a00d414328ff9685e011016ad3717860d 2009-07-12T21:14:55Z 2009-07-12T21:14:55Z thepalmerhouse http://thepalmerhouse.vox.com/?_c=feed-atom

IMG_3619 IMG_3621 IMG_3623 IMG_3624

This week we battled some hot and steamy weather as we slaved away some more in the backyard. The most major piece of progress was that Ryan got another course of bricks finished on the second planter! It really looks great; it's amazing what a d...

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]]> happy fourth of july! tag:vox.com,2009-07-06:asset-6a00d414328ff9685e0110184888ad860f 2009-07-06T01:13:31Z 2009-07-06T02:19:04Z thepalmerhouse http://thepalmerhouse.vox.com/?_c=feed-atom

lay'in down the first coarse cleaning up the mortar joints one layer complete after a long weekend when using acid, always use protection almost complete back gate composter

In between Fourth of July gatherings and celebrations, the Palmer House team was able to make some solid progress in the backyard over the long weekend. Now that the concrete curb for the second planter was nice and set, Ryan was able to take eve...

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]]> another big pour tag:vox.com,2009-06-23:asset-6a00d414328ff9685e0110183f698d860f 2009-06-23T02:17:26Z 2009-06-23T02:46:48Z thepalmerhouse http://thepalmerhouse.vox.com/?_c=feed-atom

the form work and ramp is ready to go and he's off, every minute counts here filling up the back section with concrete are those concrete pies?! all nice and flat view from 2nd floor it's harder than it looks three sections complete!

This weekend the Palmer House team braved the hot and humid weather to complete the concrete pour for the second backyard planter. Like the first one, we are building a short curb to lay the bricks on top of. Ryan and his dad had spent a lot of t...

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]]> one planter down... tag:vox.com,2009-06-15:asset-6a00d414328ff9685e011018394633860f 2009-06-15T01:20:12Z 2009-06-15T01:48:44Z thepalmerhouse http://thepalmerhouse.vox.com/?_c=feed-atom

side planter with some plants 'in' finishing up form work for back planter new back fence! always know how to handle those power tools tasty cherries for mid-work snacking (don't tell ben)

After all of the much appreciated hard work that Ryan’s parents put in during their visit to Chicago, the house and yard are making big progress! The last weekend of their stay, Ryan and his dad were able to pretty much finish the first backyard...

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]]> with a little help from the kirby's... tag:vox.com,2009-06-01:asset-6a00d414328ff9685e0110160f2945860b 2009-06-01T02:02:46Z 2009-06-01T02:33:06Z thepalmerhouse http://thepalmerhouse.vox.com/?_c=feed-atom

our bricks ate texas! starting the first course sponging off the mortar ryan scrubbing away always start with the corners! finishing up the third course finished third course with side brick wall the staining gulag has arrived installing the first fence section the complete back fence (- gate) back fence in detail lynn managing the hastas the revitalized front planter front planter detail finishing touches in front garden vacant lot weedy front area (before) vacant lot (after) with concrete-pies for planters

­With Ryan’s parents, Dennis and Lynn, in town for a week and a half, the palmer house is in the midst of some major improvements! As you may recall, they were instrumental in getting the house up and running two years ago when we first bought t...

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]]> starting the fence tag:vox.com,2009-05-18:asset-6a00d414328ff9685e011017c6c907860e 2009-05-18T01:18:18Z 2009-05-18T01:34:34Z thepalmerhouse http://thepalmerhouse.vox.com/?_c=feed-atom

the current glorious fence faux-cedar finish big 4x4 posts installed constructing the shelf Ben getting jiggy with it (the jig saw) installing the mounting bracket for shelf resting slats in the shelf ah... we can see it already!

This weekend we began to construct the first segment for a new fence in the backyard. Our last few postings have been all over the place (new garage door, pouring concrete for raised planter walls), but there is some method to the madness (or at ...

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]]> new door for our garage tag:vox.com,2009-05-11:asset-6a00d414328ff9685e011018220d8c860f 2009-05-11T02:34:56Z 2009-05-11T02:57:50Z thepalmerhouse http://thepalmerhouse.vox.com/?_c=feed-atom

our sad garage door on its last leg carrying the door from the truck beating back the fence to fit the door through my what a heavy load! standing the door up fitting the door ryan wielding the crowbar masonry drills are loud! ryan and conor chilling with the new door installed and it opens too! new door frame sweet routing job spring bulbs are in bloom! ben's unnaturally large amaryllis plant duckies swimming in the foundation next door

This weekend our garage got a massive makeover! As you may recall, time had not been kind to our old garage door (pictured below). It started to fall off the tracks, and for the last few months it was almost impossible to open and close complet...

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