We searched far & wide for regular 4'x8' paneling... the kind your mother warned you about... but evidently in the Valley there is not a big demand for your typical paneling - we presume because there are so many natural wood products available. I like the look of Aspen so we went in search of some tongue & groove. We checked with a local lumberyard that is going out of business to see if they had any "deals" on Aspen tongue & groove... even at their "discounted/going out of business" price it was TOO much for us. So we moved on down the road to a local sawmill - expecting it would be pricey as well. The first price we were quoted was more than we were willing to pay. As we visited with the manager (about things like Big 12 football - he likes the Huskers - & oh, BTW, did we mention we have season tickets to the Huskers?) he mentioned that they have something called "cabin grade" tongue & groove... it tends to be knotty and imperfect... but we actually like the look of knotty wood... and we would get some 8' pieces and some 4' pieces. We were pleasantly surprised when he quoted us a price that was half of the "good stuff".... and knocked off another 15%!! He loaded the truck & we hauled our booty home!!
Truck unloaded, we began hauling 4' pieces up the stairs (these stairs are my buns of steel workout) and began nailing them up. This actually went fairly well... considering we nailed it all by hand - even tho some of the boards were a little bendy & didn't want to go in. We have a few boards set back for "craft projects" like birdhouses or something. We got three 4'x8' sections of the ceiling done with 4 footers... then decided to tackle the 8'x8' section in the middle... with 8' boards. This was MORE difficult than the 4' sections... but it surely does look beautiful!!! (Can't wait for you to see it!)
We finally caved in & bought another roll of insulation to finish off the area above the stairs... it was twice the price - no rebate and twice the thickness (we had to pull it apart to get it to fit)but at least it's done and we were able to finish the T&G above the stairs as well. Currently the only place that has not been completed is the section where the stove pipe will exit the roof. We thought maybe it was best to wait until the stove pipe is in before we cover it.
Our "garden" (in pots) is doing fairly well. The cucumbers, radishes & carrots are up... don't know what the green beans & peppers are waiting on. I STILL haven't planted the lettuce... don't know what I'M waiting on.
We've returned to Nebraska for a few days... my mom is turning 75 today and tomorrow is Father's Day... and we wanted to pick up the rest of the insulation we bought & take another load of stuff back with us! The weather here is icky... in the 80's but the humidity is kicking my behind! Ugh! We'll be back on the mountain soon!
**Pictures coming soon (I hope)!!
We went to Menards yesterday... bought 4 solar powered INTERIOR lights (like these, only ours are white)... and electrical boxes, switches & outlets and wire. Guess what our next project will be!! Better check with my insurance agent to make sure we're covered. Ha!!
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