eggmountain

Tiny Violins

Things are crazy around here right now, but I'm doing my best to maintain a positive attitude.  It's no secret that this entire transition from Athens to Knoxville hasn't been the easiest.  I was totally naive when I thought finding a job with an awesome firm would be easy - obviously I've had my head under a rock for this latest economic downturn.  I'm doing what I can to make this a positive experience, although most days I just want to pack it up and move back into my old life where I had a job, a backyard, and great friends just down the street.  Passing the LEED NC exam was a gigantic step forward, and I'm currently wrestling with the application process for the NCIDQ - a registration exam for interior designers - but those things just aren't as fulfilling as having someone pay you to create.  Couple that sense of worthlessness with a completely isolating experience of freelancing from home, and you begin to understand my current mental state.

  Luckily I don't have time to feel too sorry for myself; I'm scheduled for a bike ride with Elizabeth and Joshua (Ethiel's cousins that live in the main house) at 2:00pm, and then my parents arrive sometime around 3:30pm!  Luckily the house is tidy so I can relax a bit before they walk through the door.  After that however, there will be no more relaxing - our schedule is packed with things I've wanted to do since we first arrived and real estate tours for my parents - they're just curious.

But in the meantime I keep thinking about Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz.  If only I had a pair of ruby slippers...

 

 

Cloud Nineteen

Internet, I haven't been completely honest with you and so I must now share my secret.  Since March 25th, I've been studying for the LEED for New Construction v2.2 exam.  I traveled to Atlanta for the Everblue Energy prep class, bought the online computer modules and practice tests from Green Building Education Services, and fretted over 1,300 practice questions, including the super tough suckers in the Colorado Study Guide.  For the last two weeks especially, this studying has encompassed most of my waking hours.  And for the last week, it's been the cause of my nausea and weight loss (for which I can't really complain). 

But the anxiety and stress have all been worth it, because today I became a LEED AP! 

Somebody owes me a trip to TCBY!  And it would be nice if the new accreditation helps me land my dream job...

 

His and Hers

I've been holding onto these images since the weekend, but I thought now would be a good time to share.  What are you looking at, you might think - but it's the dormer all framed out and the "his" of "his and hers closets!"  We were at the farm this weekend to continue sanding and patching plaster, but at lunch we brought our sammies out to the garage and ate while peeping out the dormer.

It was sublime.

 

And here is the "hers."  It's little, I know, but I can't wait to have my own teeny closet.

Happy Thursday!

Society Pages

 Yep, that's right.  We made it to the "Parties" section!  Best way to get your picture in the paper - say yes to every invitation. 

I should admit, I LOVE parties, but I hate the four hours just before we have to attend one.  I secretly assumed that everyone suffered the same affliction, but Ethiel greets each new event with open arms.  Me, I fight every social gathering until the bitter end, or at least until we're there and I remember I actually enjoy meeting new people and cementing old friendships.  Luckily, Ethiel ignores my pleas to let us stay home and watch movies.

They've ranged from backyard barbeques to swanky affairs at historic mansions (complete with chocolate AND mint fountains), but each event has been unique - except for one thing.  At every gathering, someone recognizes the last name, which furthers the conversation and enhances the connection between me and this new place.  And as an (almost) only child with an endearing but distant family tree, it's affirming to live in an area that Garlingtons have called home for four generations. 

Free to a good home

Meet Mable.  Don't let that face fool you - this dog has issues.  We should have known better than to adopt her from a flyer we found at The Taco Stand in Athens, but we were naive.  And now that she's been around for five years, well, we're just stuck. 

Because the dog FREAKS out whenever she sees another dog, and because we currently live in an area where dogs haven't been adopted from dirty hippie enclaves (it's only purebreds here in Sequoyah Hills), it's too embarrassing to walk her around the neighborhood in daylight.  I'm ashamed to admit, and yet I'm going to confess here, that for the last two weeks I've driven her to the park in order to avoid having to pass an unsuspecting dog and the prim owner at the other end of the leash.  I've grown tired of apologizing for her incessant barking and lunging, and so I've copped out and shuttled her there and back as quickly as possible.

But even that hasn't helped, as tonight she freed herself from the fenced-in dog run and starting getting weird with an Irish Setter. 

What gives, Mable?

Goodnight, Sunday

Hi!  We just returned from a quick stroll around the Sequoyah Hills neighborhood - and the gorgeousness did not disappoint.  Actually, it was lovely until Hank stopped to poop in the neighbor's ivy.  If we hadn't remembered to grab a baggie before we left, which is often the case, we would have had to run the whole way home to avoid being caught.  It was bad enough that yesterday he treed the neighbor's cat. 

This was an amazing weekend for us here in Knoxville, and there are several key highlights to share, but I'm going to stop now so I can spend the last few remaining weekend moments with Ethiel and the pups.

I hope you had a terrific weekend, one that didn't involve picking up poop or rescuing treed cats.

 

 

Concept Board

Hi!  I hope everyone is having a terrific Friday.  Regardless of the fact that my current life isn't driven by M-F, 9-5, I still LOVE Fridays.  They are always filled with hope and optimism for what might happen over the weekend. 

I'm getting ready to attend a meeting at the local Botanical Garden, and I thought I'd share my new concept for their reception space.  I fell in love with the garden the moment I arrived and immediately began volunteering for them - not to mention that I came THIIISSS close to taking a position there.  Because their offices are housed in a 1920s cottage with 1950s additions, I thought their interior should reflect that - hence my attempt at cottage chic + warm modernism. 

I hope they like it - hope you do, too!

Happy Friday.

Proposed Kitchen Layout

 

Hi.  I'm just peeking in to share my first attempt at a Sketch-Up model.  This is what I've been doing while I should have been sleeping, or more importantly, getting final specifications out the door for a project that just won't end.  I can't get Vic Chesnutt's "Deadline" out of my head, which means that I should go now to wrap up loose ends.

Things to keep in mind when viewing the model above:  it was my first try, the color scheme is only approximate, and I think there should be floating shelves on the wall flanking the window.  Oh, and despite the best instructions, I can't figure out how to "close" the doors on the refrigerator and freezer.

Back soon with more updates!

Style File 05

Another one from the cut sheet box - this beautiful kitchen from Mark Cunningham, which was at one point featured in Elle Decor (being that it's a cut sheet, that's all the information I have).  This interior is definitely a departure from the two we saw earlier, but I am drawn to the sparse decor and can appreciate the challenge of designing around such a low ceiling.  Negotiating the height of the ceiling in the garage is challenging, although with the construction of the new stairwell, we're assured that Ethiel (at 6'-0") will no longer hit his head on his way down to the main level.

 In the garage, I was originally inclined to paint the existing casement windows a deep blue/black, but I now realize that it might be best to paint them white so they recede into the wall, encouraging the eye to move towards the ceiling, unimpeded, as we see here. I'm also digging the open shelves, and would like to incorporate something similar in the kitchen - these floating shelves work well because they don't have the visual weight of typical wall cabinets.  However, I'm not sure our motley assortment of mugs will have quite the same appeal as the beautifully arranged ceramics above...

And just so we can remember what we're working with, here is the current state of the future kitchen and living room:

 

Design Dilemma 02

So the question I'm pondering now - how are we going to fit two adults and two hounds into 800 square feet?  And more importantly - are we out of our minds?  Granted, our tiny little cottage in Athens was no more than 900 sq.ft., but there we had the advantage of an attic in which to conceal the overflow of stuff.  That luxury is absent at the garage, and so the question remains - in lieu of purging our possessions down to one towel, one plate, and one fork each, how do we artfully manage our belongings to minimize the appearance of clutter? 

I'm the type that likes everything organized and neatly stowed behind doors.  I like clean surfaces - minimal visual clutter.  So last night I pored through my box of cut sheets for inspiration, and I found some examples of beautiful, small interiors that have reconciled copious amounts of stuff with tiny interior footprints. 

I'm loving this living room from design guru, Paul Fortune - especially how the bookcases ground the space while providing abundant shelving.  (Looking at this, I'm also wishing we could enlarge the casement window on the Southwest elevation of the garage, but that's not a possibility.)  The contemporary gilded coffee table is an interesting counterpoint to the distressed leather + linen upholstery, and the combination provides an additional layer of complexity to the design.  Well played, Paul Fortune.

 

And then we have Thomas O'Brien's beautifully appointed, but small, Manhattan apartment.  O'Brien is one of my favorite designers - his work is elegant, and he is most coveted for his "warm modernism." 

 

His space is obscene with "stuff," and yet it's still gorgeous.  His layered approach to building an interior is something we're going to have to attempt in the garage. 

I still think we've lost our heads.