I don’t know if you have been keeping track, but we certainly have. It has been four days since our little countdown widget turned to “0 days until Turnip Heads B-Day”. In fact we had to switch out “B-Day” for “due date” since things weren’t moving along so quickly. Luckily things are starting to happen, and we should be going to the hospital today. Posting may be a bit sporadic for the next couple of days while our lives readjust to the new schedule.

It’s hard to say anything to critical about a sofa that only costs $369. Even if this loveseat was a couple hundred dollars more, it would still be a nice couch for a good price. It has a hardwood frame and legs that have a 12-step stain on them, and lightly textured upholstery that is like a soft tweed. I like the lightness of the arms and the nice straight lines, all of which help to make it a nice clean sofa with a touch of class. There is also a matching chair which is available from overstock for $189.

Available from Overstock.com for $369.

Although at first glance it almost looks like a contraceptive device, rest assured the only thing the Method Aroma Ring prevents is a smelly house. Method has always had a good eye for design when it comes to home products, and the Aroma Ring is no exception. The look is simple and understated. So simple in fact, that it doesn’t have to plug in or anything. You just sit it out where you want it and walk away. All the mess is protected behind a one way barrier, so the only thing that is getting out is a refreshing smell. Available in cut grass, lavender lemongrass, sweet water, and vanilla apple. Price is $8 per ring, or $5 for a refill.

Available from Method, or anywhere Method home products are sold.

I have had a couple questions about some of the detail in our addition, and I though I would take a minute to answer some of them. First off, the wood paneling in the hall.
All the panels are made of 3/8″ baltic birch plywood. Baltic has a much lighter appearance compared to normal birch, but in my opinion it’s worth the extra money. I had a great theory on how to hang it (courtesy of Chris from Gleason Woodworking Studio) and it kind of worked. The idea was to use a keyhole shaped router bit to route out a channel on the back side of all the panels. Then you screw a normal drywall screw into the studs on the wall at the same height. The head of the screw fits just perfect into the fat part of the keyhole and the shaft fits in the skinny part. That allows you to just slip the panels on and they are securely fastened with no exposed nails anywhere.

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Since we are planning on only using passive cooling in our house, it was very important for us to have some good ceiling fans. Anyone who has looked for a modern fan knows that The Modern Fan Co. pretty much has the market cornered. We were looking for something clean, simple, and of course affordable. We ended up going with a Cirrus Hugger in white with a light on it. We have had it installed for about a week now, and we absolutely love it. The look matches our room prefect, the light with dimmer offers some nice light, and the fan keeps us snuggling under our down comforter all night long. We purchased it from a local store the Light Spot for $383 each. They are also available from Y-Lighting for about the same price.

Available from Y Lighting for $384

The big walls are up! Today the largest walls of our home were erected. This is a milestone for us. These walls are about 28 feet tall and they give a good idea of the height of the house. The only remaining framing is on the third floor and that should wrap up this week. My father in law and I are going to begin electrical work on Friday and hope to get most of it done over the long weekend. We expect plumbing, electrical and windows to be installed within about two weeks. If we can keep up the pace we should be done well ahead of schedule. Garth, Kenner and Stephanie are all doing a great job of keeping everything on schedule.
-Jacob
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Yesterday was the grand opening for Ikea Draper. I had considered taking the day off to get in on some of the early morning madness, but in the end I wasn’t quite up to braving the huge crowds. My wife and I did go down there around 5:30 last night though. I was expecting it to be very crazy, but it really wasn’t too bad. There were definitely lots of people, but the only time we had to wait a long time was when we were getting our meatballs. It’s crazy for us to think that we have an Ikea 15 min away from our house when the closest one used to be 12 hours away.

This is only day six for framing and they are bustin’ it out! Today Upright completed all the framing on the second floor. Tomorrow they will build the exterior wall surrounding the stairs. This wall will be almost thirty feet tall. They will be using a crane to put it in place. The north side of the stair space will be windows spanning the entire height of the home. The large opening you see on the first photo is where the steel stairs will be. The stairs will hopefully arrive soon, we find out their status tomorrow. The view from the third floor is actually better than we expected. You can see the mountains quite well.
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Voting has been open at Remodelingmyspace.com for a while now. If you are looking to kill some time, head on over and check out all the contest entrants. There is a good collection of bloggers doing everything from small remodels to whole house renovations. After you look through them and find your favorite, make sure you vote for your favorite blog. The winner of the contest gets $5,000, which is almost enough to start another affordable modern remodel!
Vote for Grassrootsmodern here.

With the popularity of green design increasing, it is becoming easier to find environmentally conscious products that look good. Take for example this Swissmar Bamboo 2 Bowl Dip Set, which is not only eco friendly, but chic too. This aprox. 12″ x 10″ serving tray has two porcelain bowls inset on the side, and is balanced out by a cut out section to hold whatever it is you plan on dipping. At only $27 for a cutting board and two bowls, the price is just as friendly on your wallet as the bamboo is on the environment.
Available at Kitchenzing for $27.