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This blog post was originally written in October 2019, and I've gone through to review and update it ever so slightly for today's reality. Oddly, not that much has changed! Enjoy... After working long and hard on the concept, design, plans, drawings and such with an architect, who would've thought that finding the contractor to execute the plan would take even longer and be even more overwhelming?  First, a little bit about our experience here on our Juniper Hill Cottage project. And finally, we've got some insight on what we would have done differently, and a few tips for you to consider. I realize that we sorta skipped over the design process here, but I promise we'll get to that in another blog post -- look for an article soon where we talk to some architects about the ins and outs.
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| In our case, we had a pretty good idea of what we wanted to accomplish and this wasn't the first time through on a construction project for either of us. We chose to jump right in with an architect so as to fine tune what we were going to do, with the idea that we would then be ready to shift into execution mode. |  Process Dilemma: Which Comes First? |
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The truth is, it is now a year after the main house renovation was completed. Huge celebrations! And exhaustion. And ... more work to do. The details take so much time.
And with all of that and the Home & Garden Design work I do, it's been pretty tough to find the time to finish posting the remaining chapters to this story, here on this blog.
But, I do plan to get that done. I've got tons of fun and detailed footage and images to share along with a whole boat load of Lessons Learned.
Stay tuned. We'll get there.
Meanwhile, here's the current POST RENOVATION view of this little cottage:
And with all of that and the Home & Garden Design work I do, it's been pretty tough to find the time to finish posting the remaining chapters to this story, here on this blog.
But, I do plan to get that done. I've got tons of fun and detailed footage and images to share along with a whole boat load of Lessons Learned.
Stay tuned. We'll get there.
Meanwhile, here's the current POST RENOVATION view of this little cottage:
If you'd like to catch a few sneak peeks behind-the-scenes of the renovated 1924 house and the carriage house that we are going to be remodeling in back, your best bet is to follow us on social media. You'll find those links in the website footer.
Thank you for following along my friends!
~Miriam
I wrote a post today talking about Artful Bungalow Decor, done in a Nordic style (of course).
And since it features some vignettes from Juniper Hill Cottage I thought you might like to check it out.
And since it features some vignettes from Juniper Hill Cottage I thought you might like to check it out.
I hope you enjoy it and do let me know what you think! I'd love to hear.
Contentment and possibility,
~Miriam
Happy Independence Day Weekend!!
I've had this cactus now for so many years, I can't even remember the variety but when it blooms... oh - my - wow!
The bloom is actually bigger than the cactus stems.
For those of you that love gardening and cactus but are maybe newer to the high country, I know how tricky it can be.
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I've had this cactus now for so many years, I can't even remember the variety but when it blooms... oh - my - wow!
The bloom is actually bigger than the cactus stems.
For those of you that love gardening and cactus but are maybe newer to the high country, I know how tricky it can be.
~ post continues, click Read More ~
It's been a dry year. And warm.
This year we are so happy to have our summer monsoon season starting here in Northern Arizona - right on schedule.
This year we are so happy to have our summer monsoon season starting here in Northern Arizona - right on schedule.
This happy surprise is what happened 2 years ago right after the rains started. These wild morning glory vines just popped up and busted out all their beauty in a neglected spot of my garden at Juniper Hill Cottage here in Prescott, Arizona.
It's a special treat to see where they emerge each year and a welcome seasonal celebration.
This past week our monsoons thankfully appeared and today we had a massive storm. And, I'm starting to see the morning glories poke up out of the ground - in the weirdest places. Love it!
Enjoy the little surprises and look for the beauty all around you. Happy Monsoon!
~Miriam
More To Explore
We've got Garden Resources and a Gardens of Prescott feature you might be interested in too.
We've got Garden Resources and a Gardens of Prescott feature you might be interested in too.
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100 years ago, our little bungalow was graced with a small covered front porch, facing due west out over the valley and the downtown. We know this because although that porch was enclosed a very long while ago (we think in the 60's or so) we were lucky enough to receive 2 photos of the original porch taken in the 40's. |
The original whiskey porch circa 1940's. Notice the two elaborate windows. Only one survives today.
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In fact, that is the only historical information we have on how the home looked originally.
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It all starts with the foundation.
This is true for anything we create. A stable and solid foundation allows fantastic things to grow and flourish. And that's exactly where this projects gets underway - laying a foundation: footings, stem walls, and slab.
But to be honest, it sure feels like this is a surprisingly large footing for such a small addition. It's a massive amount of effort, concrete and investment for only about 152 square feet (the kitchen addition).
We're hoping this is so well built that it'll last another 100 years easy.
This is true for anything we create. A stable and solid foundation allows fantastic things to grow and flourish. And that's exactly where this projects gets underway - laying a foundation: footings, stem walls, and slab.
But to be honest, it sure feels like this is a surprisingly large footing for such a small addition. It's a massive amount of effort, concrete and investment for only about 152 square feet (the kitchen addition).
We're hoping this is so well built that it'll last another 100 years easy.
 Big truck arrives to begin building the foundation.
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We put together a short video to show a little bit of the process. The simultaneous destruction on the street in front of our property makes it extra special (the street is getting a much needed make-over by the city too). Check it out. Bonus: Ibis-the-yellow-lab, as always, has a cameo shot! |
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The beginning of every castle is the foundation upon which it is built. And, in fact, castles used to be build essentially by hand, so this story fits right in (even though our abode is a tiny cottage).
The first few weeks have been focused on digging, moving earth, and discovering.
The first few weeks have been focused on digging, moving earth, and discovering.
 Pat, Leo, and Jose made it happen, one shovel at a time! | As prior chapters have described, while we are essentially keeping the square footage of our little cottage the same (even while putting in an addition) that by no means entails any less work than going big. Quite the opposite in our case. We are tucking a tiny 150 square foot kitchen addition onto the north side of our property where we have just |
BARELY enough space between the current house exterior and the 7 foot setback to the property line on the north.
And on the east side of that is a large deck, that we built when we first bought the cottage, and it's going to stay. The deck goes right up to the setback line.
On the west side of the addition is a gorgeous fence and trellis that we built many years ago, and it's now covered with mature Halls Honeysuckle. The scent of those blossoms will be wafting into our new kitchen soon(ish)!
So, there you have it. There is no choice but to hand dig the foundation (and also for the Whiskey Porch extension going up out front - more on that in a separate post).
And here's the story of how a 2-day excavation became a four week slog...
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As exciting as it is to focus on the end goal, we wanted to take a minute to share and appreciate where we are starting from on this huge renovation project.
The contractor is ready to roll, and so are we. We've removed all the small trees that lived along the north side of the property where the tiny addition is going for the new kitchen, and even moved two huge raised planters from the space to another part of the garden - to get out of the way.
Here's a short video to give you a feel for what we are starting with and an idea of where we are going.
And, if you missed it you might want to catch our Intro Video here.
The contractor is ready to roll, and so are we. We've removed all the small trees that lived along the north side of the property where the tiny addition is going for the new kitchen, and even moved two huge raised planters from the space to another part of the garden - to get out of the way.
Here's a short video to give you a feel for what we are starting with and an idea of where we are going.
And, if you missed it you might want to catch our Intro Video here.
next up
Finding a Contractor in the Wild West. Who would have guessed that this is almost as a big a project as the actual construction?
stay in touch
To find out about new installments, and new content, please join our mailing list. You'll only hear from us about once a month.
And if you are dreaming about a downsize to a smaller home or renovating your current home or garden, we are here to provide the support you need to make it happen. Learn more about our resources and services, and feel free to get in touch with me just to chat about your ideas.
Thanks for stopping by! Contentment and possiblity,
~Miriam
And if you are dreaming about a downsize to a smaller home or renovating your current home or garden, we are here to provide the support you need to make it happen. Learn more about our resources and services, and feel free to get in touch with me just to chat about your ideas.
Thanks for stopping by! Contentment and possiblity,
~Miriam
It's become really clear to me the last couple months, as I put content together here for the website, that photos (although they DO say a thousand words) do not always give a true feeling of a place.
As much as I don't particularly like being filmed, I've decided that it's time to get over that and just let the camera roll!! Plus, sharing the limelight with my trusty side-kick Ibis the yellow lab adds flavor and a touch of humor that keeps it fun. She's a natural!!
So, to get things started, we put together an impromptu little video to introduce Juniper Hill Cottage and the original whiskey porch.
Have a look -- Hope you like it!
As much as I don't particularly like being filmed, I've decided that it's time to get over that and just let the camera roll!! Plus, sharing the limelight with my trusty side-kick Ibis the yellow lab adds flavor and a touch of humor that keeps it fun. She's a natural!!
So, to get things started, we put together an impromptu little video to introduce Juniper Hill Cottage and the original whiskey porch.
Have a look -- Hope you like it!
Cheers and contentment,
~Miriam
Author
Hello! I'm Miriam and this is the story of our tiny historic cottage and it's complete renovation.
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