Wednesday, November 11, 2009

Hurricanes And Beadboard

If it wasn't consistently around 45 degrees, I might be feeling all tropical and southern. Hurricane Ida arrived and has dropped five inches and counting of rain in the last 48 hours. Underneath the cozy cabin out of the rain, the old style beadboard is covering the rigid insulation and making for a fetching ceiling for the basement patio.



Bare trees ebb in and out of vision in the wet soupy mix. A slight wind gives added chill to discourage the notion that this mess is a tropical storm. And here I thought the next storm would be snow and this is what we get.



Beadboard has a long history. "It began as the Victorian equivalent of Formica, a millwork sheathing used only for rustic retreats, and for kitchens, back halls and other rooms hidden from public view. Because it was made from scraps, it was inexpensive, and it could be installed by practically anyone. Beadboard is milled with a thin ridge or tongue on one edge and a groove on the opposite edge so that the panels fit together easily."

My design concept for the cabin all along has been a blend of contemporary and old fashioned styling. The beadboard does well towards this goal.



Southern tradition tells me I should paint the new ceiling a light blue to keep the haints at bay. I will consider it, though I am leaning towards the Crafted White, the light yellow trim color already in the cabin color scheme. This shaded and at times dark space definitely calls for a light color.



The long row of full sheets is up. Some of the seams still need a few more screws. The row of half sheets comes next. Then the sewer and gas line boxes will be covered. After that a wood trim will further close off any minute gaps between the beadboard and main girders and around the boxes. The mices will not be allowed in my house.



Another project heads towards the finish line while it is still warm enough, yea right, for hurricanes.

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

Good progress, Ida or no. Glad to see you have a dry, sort of place in which to work. We love the look of beadboard. I had a different idea of what you were going to install there. This is great and will be nice and light reflecting painted that trim white color.
Frances

Lisa at Greenbow said...

Go Christopher go. You are whippin up on those outdoor jobs while the weather holds...sort of. Good job.

Siria said...

Looking good!!! I love the pictures in the fog. I just can't believe a Hurricane came through in mid-November. One day when going back and reading your blog it will be astonishing to watch these weather patterns.

Christopher C. NC said...

Frances the building contractor leaves for the winter on Sunday and I needed to be sure and get those full sheets up while I still had an extra hand. I had to keep working rain or no.

Lisa the trim work on the bead board might could wait for a sunny and warm, like 40 degree, winter day. So many details to attend to. I won't lack for activities this winter.

Siria this could be a garden/weather blog. After 20 years of desert this much actual weather still surprises me.

Lola said...

Great going Christopher. It's looking good. That lighter color on the underground patio ceiling will help to lighten it up. Have you made plans for some kind of light in that general area?
Just a thought---what stops rain runoff from drive from coming down under the Cozy Cabin to the patio besides the rock wall?
I found it nice to sit on porch while it was raining when I was up that way. Love the pic of rain seen surrounding the bare trees.

Gail said...

A nice soft robin's egg would be pretty on a ceiling...It's not a dark blue and would reflect light well...and keep those haints away! gail

sweetbay said...

We're feeling the subdued wrath of Ida here too. Lots of wind and blowing rain. Not much fun for farmwork.

Your pictures of the misty woods are gorgeous.

Anonymous said...

Yes, it's nasty here today also. I am waiting to see how far the river will rise into my front yard...but we gardeners LOVE rain, right??!!!
I just have to think back on all those drought years to feel better.
Christopher, you are a machine! I hope you aren't stressing your hurt leg with all this.

bev

chuck b. said...

With the soupy fog, I was going to say you should go goth, but that would be counterproductive if keeping the haints at bay is a priority.

Annie in Austin said...

Don't know about haints, but John Dromgoole on the Natural Gardener radio show said to paint porch ceilings light blue to keep away mosquitoes. That's probably not a problem where you live, Christopher, but I'm sure considering it.

Hope you get some dry, sunny and not-so-cold weather to work in.

Annie at the Transplantable Rose

Christopher C. NC said...

Lola there is a light fixture in the ceiling of the basement patio and two more light fixtures on the bottom outside walls of the cabin that will light outside the covered area of the patio. Right now rain water is directed by a small berm to the drain line that goes below the walls made for the sewer line. Later I will have the driveway and the area on the east side of the cabin regraded to direct more of the water to the opposite side of the driveway from the cabin. The rain on my metal porch roofs sounds very nice.

Gail I have looked at a lot of the Haint Blues online and might consider it if I can find one that works with the Molera Vaquero Red of the columns and that I think the main girders supporting the whole structure will be painted.

Sweetbay we had plenty rain and no wind to speak of. The fog of which we also get plenty often makes for some very interesting pictures.

Bev our tiny little headwaters creek was way up. I can just imagine the bigger streams and the Pigeon River are running very high.

Chuck are you trying to make me twitter? I think blogging may have lost you to twitter. I do want to keep the haints at bay, but there is and will be a goth department in the garden. Due respect you know.

Annie the light blue color as an insect repellant has been poo poohed as an old wives tale. Haint protection is guaranteed. Yes our few mosquitos are so slow you can squash them in mid air.

Phrago said...

Hey Chris, If your mosquitos are that slow, send some in a jar to me in South Lyon and I'll release them. Maybe they will pass on the slow gene to the rest of the population up here in the swamp lands of Michigan. HA!
I know I don't post much here but I would like to say how much I enjoy reading your blog, Chris. Having rebuilt a couple of Victorian homes and currently starting to restore and reinvent my 170 + year old cabin in Coldwater Michigan, Your Cozy Cabin project is very interesting, particularily the size, which I find homey, practical, and Architectually delightful. Where does one find a selection of Haint paint colors? I like the photos of the insided and the drywall going up, it really is starting to flesh out. Don't you love seeing the drywall go up? Its like watching a whole new world unfold... Best luck on your winter projects... Patrick

Christopher C. NC said...

Thanks Patrick for the kind words. It sounds to me like you need to start a blog to chronicle your adventure. A 170 year old cabin here would be a log one. Chestnut hopefully. I found one color site that talked about haint blues. A search would likely turn up more. It seems haint blue is not one particular color, but a color range.