A day on the road with TOH

May 7, 2008

We are about to embark on over a month's worth of filming at the Bensonwood shop in Walpole, NH, beginning…tomorrow. But first, on our way up to the Granite State today, Jen and I had some scouting to do. We had wanted to scout a native plants story at Garden In The Woods (The New England Wildflower Society), but I didn't give them enough notice, so we ended up at the Miele appliances test kitchen in Wellesley, MA, instead―unannounced. But what a place―they've agreed to make a six-course meal for us in one hour using the latest steam and induction cooking methods, so we'll definitely be back with the TV cameras.

After that, we drove North 1.5 hours to Brookline, NH, to a place called Bingham Lumber. On the way, I realized that I had extra time and could make a 2pm online meeting and conference call with the architect, Chris Adams, and the homeowners, Pete and Amy. So I pulled over at a farm stand, popped my laptop on top of my car, fired up the broadband card, and was soon dialed into a web-based meeting where the Benson team was showing Pete design options for the central stair in real time.

Patience goes well with wine

May 1, 2008

So, it is May 1, 2008, and while perusing my Mac and enjoying a glass of wine I have recovered my "House Project Notes Log," a somewhat ambitious, slightly geeky venture I attempted to partake in daily when Pete and I finally decided to bite the bullet and build ourselves a new home. I started this journal of sorts on February 26, 2006. Yes―over two years ago. And I have to laugh now because I am not one who has a lot of patience. I am more of an impulsive, instant gratification kind of gal. No waiting for me. Yet somehow I guess I discovered I had within me a whole boat load of the P word, and it would for sure come in handy. My Grammy actually use to say to me all the time, "Patience is a virtue; try it if you can. Seldom in a woman, never in a man."

(Sorry guys, but Grammy was sweet and she made the most outrageous homemade Indian pudding―and if you don't know what that is, please find out and make some right away―but only eat it warm and with vanilla ice cream.)

So I guess I conjured up Grammy's favorite saying and I managed to successfully navigate our way through two years of house planning mire. It was tough.

A TOH producer's job is never done

April 30, 2008

Hi, my name is Jennifer Wells and I'm the associate producer of This Old House. I do many different things around here, but a big part of my job is working with the homeowner, vendors, Tommy, Richard, Roger and everyone else involved to get all of the materials chosen, ordered, and delivered. This can mean everything and anything from roofing materials to toilets to countertops to irrigation systems.

During a typical TOH project this process happens over 3-6 months, but for the Weston project, where 75 percent of the building is pre-fabricated during a four week period, most building materials need to be delivered to the factory within a very tight window. Here I am with Stephen "Dino" D’Onofrio, the best cameraman there is, on the first day filming the Weston project. Oh, and I’m the one on the left!

Stay tuned for more posts from me, producer Deb Hood, and our homeowners, Amy and Pete Favat, about the progress at the Weston project.

Our barn house: The beginning

April 29, 2008

Copyright 2008 Benson Woodworking Co., Inc.

Wow―we are finally doing this. But it has been a long journey. So let’s start at the beginning.

My husband originally came from New Jersey, and I was raised on the North Shore of Massachusetts, where we both grew up in tightly condensed neighborhoods. But we have always shared a passion for traditional American barns and a more rural way of living. When we moved to Weston, Massachusetts, we found a great plot of land with a brook in the backyard, called The Stony Brook, running through it. Although our house was on a busy main road we also had a cul-de-sac behind us with great neighbors, lots of kids, and amazing hiking trails.

We then met a woman named Pam Fox who was the local town historian. She had written a book entitled Farm Town to Suburb: The History and Architecture of Weston, Massachusetts 1830-1980.

(More on Pam's book after the jump.)

MoMA's going prefab, too

April 25, 2008

Just got an email from the senior publicist over The Museum of Modern Art in NYC―on July 20th, they'll be opening an exhibit about prefabricated houses: Home Delivery: Fabricating the Modern Dwelling, which will be on view from July 20 to October 20, 2008. We might cover this story on the show.

They also have a behind-the-scenes blog going―including weekly diary postings from each of the five architects whose full-scale prefab houses will be displayed in the lot to the west of the museum and from the curators of the exhibition―recording the process of fabricating, delivering, and assembling the houses leading up to the July 20 opening. To quote the email, "The site documents the fabrication and delivery of these homes, showing the questions that the architects encounter and the solutions they devise as they go through the process. So, while the finished product as presented in MoMA's exhibition will be fascinating, the process is wonderfully exciting to see behind-the-scenes through the live journal on the web site." 

Welcome to Weston: New house, new bloggers!

April 24, 2008

Copyright 2008 Benson Woodworking Co., Inc.

Hi there. I’m Deborah Hood, the producer of This Old House, and (maybe surprisingly?) one of only two people who works exclusively on this TV show day in and day out. (There are many others of course, but they also work on our show Ask This Old House.) The other one is our associate producer, Jennifer Wells, and this year, we’re both going to join in with the homeowners on this blog to give you behind-the-scenes scoop on what it takes to pull off these renovations while, at the same time, making a national TV show.

So for the first time ever, I am announcing our new project in cyberspace. Which is fitting, because it is one of the most forward-thinking projects we’ve done in years. For the 2008-9 broadcast season, we’re trying something new…

Click through to see what's up for the coming season.

We are rebuilding

April 22, 2008

Hello blog readers!

It has been a special treat to be able to walk out my doors and work "in" my studio on my side porch. What's been most important to me is to get settled back at home and in my community―physically living there―and to continue working with others on its redevelopment. It's taken some steps of progress since the last two years and will continue to.

There has still been a lot of attention on the house since its publicity on TOH, which continues to bring people into the neighborhood and give it the attention it needs. We have a lot of redevelopments, new developments, and historic landmarks already in place.

I'm beginning classes at my home on my huge side porch on Monday afternoons to get the creative clay energy moving. I met with students from University of Minnesota about my side lot and its needs for a rain garden to absorb the flooding water―at least 1-2 feet during long rains. (I'm on high ground by the river so the water wants to go down towards the yard away from the levee and just sits there until it soaks in the ground.) A rain garden is a system of sand, rocks, mulch, and plants that enjoy an abundance of water, which enables large quantities of water to soak into the ground.

Walk-throughs and punch lists

March 21, 2008

I just wrote a post for the second time, and lost it because I hit a sensitive button. So my energy has changed. I was up and ready and excited―had a lot written―and its gone. So I'll try again. I just want to update and follow up with you all about what's going on here.

I did a few walk-throughs and made a list of things that weren't done correctly, and tried to acquire a warranty to ensure that the contractor would repair anything else that wasn't done correctly. My tub panel is still open. It was not built correctly with access to the motor panel, so the tiles were busted out of 1/2 of the panel to rebuild it. And we didn't have the correct valve trim for my shower valve, so that's on its way here for installation.

I have to impress onto home builders and renovators to get a signed agreement of the specific work that will be done to your home from your contractor, as well as warranty coverage upon its completion.

My aesthetic paradise

February 16, 2008

My house is an aesthetic paradise, inside and out. I just love looking at it from inside, and from the outside as I drive to and from it on the street. I love it love it love it!

There has been a passionate discussion taking place on another blog post and on one of the message boards, which seems to be sort of centered around whether I should have raised my house and rebuilt in a flood prone area. Well, I actually did think about raising my house…and still do for the future―maybe. It of course would have been better to do this before the addition was built, and I do still wonder if I will flood again. And of course, I will never know until it happens.

But I have other things to worry about in life. Trust me, I have my worry priorities. And one of the reasons why this worry is not at the top of my list anymore is that the likelihood that my house will flood again in the area it is in is pretty slim, unless MRGO (Mississippi River Gulf Outlet) remains open and we do not actively work to restore our wetlands.

FYI, the Katrina flooding was a result of breached levees by the Industrial Canal and an unnatural (not act of nature) flow of water from MRGO, a human-made drench by commercial entities and the US Army Corps of Engineers to provide a so-called shortcut for cargo ships to travel to and from the Gulf of Mexico. However, one of these problems of possible flood culprits has been tackled: Community activists and workers who have been strongly fighting to close MRGO have been successful in their advocacy―MRGO will be closed!

During Hurricane Betsy of 1965, both of my parents, who grew up in the Lower 9th Ward a few blocks from one another, survived flooding of their entire houses. My mother's family had a boat and were able to escape. However, my father's family were on the roof for three days.

Moving in!

February 14, 2008

I must apologize―I've neglected my blogs. Been a busy bee working to finish my house…and of course, so much has happened since. The house has been finished and I've made it through Mardi Gras…and the best of all, I have officially moved back home!

There are so many things to talk about. First and foremost, I am so grateful for all of the people who've worked so hard to make this project happen. It was definitely a team effort and amazing to see all that is involved in building a house.

Sculpting a yard

February 2, 2008

It is amazing what a fence can do for yard. My new fence has been installed, with landscaping, and this has totally defined the yard and made it seem even larger.

I must admit, my yard was already HUGE! The property, sized 60' x 118', could easily fit two or three houses. The lady who lived in the house before me used this fertile land for gardening. The soil is really rich and plants can grow in abundance, since its right off of the river.

Well, this fence is not only absolutley gorgeous, it is also very practical.

Beautiful bathrooms

January 31, 2008

The clawfoot tub, after the storm, but before the renovation (photo by Katherine Slingluff)

So much is going on: The plumbing trim-out is being installed, the electrical trim-out is almost done, the stair treads are done―aargh!…Where do I begin without too much rambling?

My clawfoot is back!

When I bought my house, a built-in cast-iron tub with a flat bottom was in the bathroom. It was long and narrow and didn't make me look twice at it. So I was set on finding a clawfoot for my bathroom. As luck had it, about 4 years ago when I was driving down the street from my house, I saw an old cast-iron clawfoot tub on my neighbors' porch…It seemed so lonely, like it needed a home and was dying for a makeover. So my neighbor was so gracious to give me the tub for 50 bucks, I made sure I picked it up that day :) and got it refinished for $300.00. What a deal! A refinished old cast-iron clawfoot for $350.00! So my clawfoot was an added touch to my house, and I throughly enjoyed it.

Transforming my kitchen

January 29, 2008

My kitchen cabinets are really beautiful. They are maple mocha and the pantry cabinets are maple butterscotch. I bought the house because of the generously sized kitchen; when I decided to build an addition, I chose to leave the kitchen where it was originally located, even though all of the plumbing was being redone.

Since the add-on, the kitchen is in the middle of the house instead of the back…it's the heart of the house, with a french door giving it access to the side porch. Overall, my kitchen has had a complete makeover:  new appliances, installation of cabinets, a butcher block island…

The tortoise catching up with the hare

January 16, 2008

The original floors are 4-inch-wide boards (photo by Katherine Slingluff)

So much has happened since my last blog―interior painting, exterior painting, drywall, flooring, cabinets―so I need my blog to catch up with the house, since things are moving so fast! It is amazing how drywall can make a room seem so complete.

It all happened so fast: The sheetrock went up, covering up the studs and foam insulation, then primed, then a coat of paint. And then, voila! The rooms just popped out. The structure of the house is now in my memory―covered up. Then the flooring was installed―the icing on the cake!

That darn mold!

January 1, 2008

When I first got back to my house in October, 2005, I thought I had dodged a bullet. The house was still standing, and I didn't see any sign of the black mold that everyone else had.

That's why I was so so so shocked to learn that my house actually had mold. After all, I thought I followed the proper procedures: I gutted 1/2 of my house―you see since I had 6 feet of water in my neighborhood, and my house was raised 3 feet off the ground, I assumed I needed to gut only 4 feet of my wall from the floor. The studs were pressure washed with water and bleach. But there were two things I did not consider: