Sunday, October 23, 2011
Hand Forged Iron Baskets on the Fountain Wall
Patrick McClanahan did a great job making these iron baskets for the fountain. The holes in the fountain wall have drip lines for the fresh plantings.
Friday, October 21, 2011
Patience...it will get done!
What a beautiful day in Willow City! It is now 50 degrees in the morning and evening and 75 degrees during the day...such a relief from the summer heat. SO I am happy to report that Joe Cross, Landscape Architect and his men are putting in the sod/grass around the pool and firepit in the backyard. It looks so good! There were 6 Mexican laborers putting in the sod, hand watering each square and fitting each square piece with the one next to it. You can't imagine how hard this is on your back unless you have worked to do this. They worked until they ran out of sod.
The swimming pool is amazing ( if I have to say so myself!). It is a simple, classic, timeless design with natural stone coping...but it is simply beautiful. Amy Slaughter and Jim Donaldson helped me make the final decision to select the color JADE. I worked with Pebble Tech consultants for 2 days and researched all their colors, looked at a hundred photos ( never knew there were so many colors of blue), took into consideration the sky, lighting, surrounding elements and decided JADE would be the color closest to torquoise, which is the color we are using for some of our accents inside the house. The color is PERFECT! I am very pleased. It is a refreshing, rich, dreamy blue/green color which blends perfectly with the fabrics on the patio. Every decision adds to the total "look" of this home and it is really coming together. PATIENCE is paying off!
This week we are finishing the gate, fencing and Bevelo lighting at the entrance. The driveway looks very handsome with the grey pavers, cattle guard and chip and seal road. The barn is nearly complete as we landscape with a granite pad for the firepit and build the dog houses and kennels for our pups ( Bulliet, Maggy, Kinsey, Trey, Gus and Fritz)....we love our pups! We are still waiting on cabinets and here's where the patience comes in....waiting waiting waiting....we will be blessed to sleep in the house this Christmas but it will not be ready for us to cook, dress, office, or play there ...we may have a bed in the house but the kitchen, closets, study and entertaining areas will not be complete until after Christmas. DARN....
The good news is now we have security, cameras, automatic lights, internet, phones and Direct TV...This home looks like it's 150 years old but we are up to date with our technology. We have a cell phone booster which will help our phones receive good signals, our internet is Bee Creek which is really fast and working well. We also are self sufficient with rainwater collection for the house with our cistern completely full ( 30,000 gallons). Our generator will service a large portion of the house, our cistern connected to our well at the base of the property will service the irrigation and the swimming pool which is totally full of water. It is looking like a home.
....I think it's just one more miracle in my life...to be able to physically see what was in my minds eye, my imagination, come to life...take form.... be realized...is truly a miracle. I look at the home and think of all the folks who gave their time and talents to contribute to this sacred ground. SO it's with gratitude that I write this...it's with love that I gift it to my children...it's with hope that it is a still, quiet place, blessed by the Holy Spirit, it's with charity that we all use it for gathering of family and friends, to share fun times and JOY.
Patience is a virtue....I know this first hand...
The swimming pool is amazing ( if I have to say so myself!). It is a simple, classic, timeless design with natural stone coping...but it is simply beautiful. Amy Slaughter and Jim Donaldson helped me make the final decision to select the color JADE. I worked with Pebble Tech consultants for 2 days and researched all their colors, looked at a hundred photos ( never knew there were so many colors of blue), took into consideration the sky, lighting, surrounding elements and decided JADE would be the color closest to torquoise, which is the color we are using for some of our accents inside the house. The color is PERFECT! I am very pleased. It is a refreshing, rich, dreamy blue/green color which blends perfectly with the fabrics on the patio. Every decision adds to the total "look" of this home and it is really coming together. PATIENCE is paying off!
This week we are finishing the gate, fencing and Bevelo lighting at the entrance. The driveway looks very handsome with the grey pavers, cattle guard and chip and seal road. The barn is nearly complete as we landscape with a granite pad for the firepit and build the dog houses and kennels for our pups ( Bulliet, Maggy, Kinsey, Trey, Gus and Fritz)....we love our pups! We are still waiting on cabinets and here's where the patience comes in....waiting waiting waiting....we will be blessed to sleep in the house this Christmas but it will not be ready for us to cook, dress, office, or play there ...we may have a bed in the house but the kitchen, closets, study and entertaining areas will not be complete until after Christmas. DARN....
The good news is now we have security, cameras, automatic lights, internet, phones and Direct TV...This home looks like it's 150 years old but we are up to date with our technology. We have a cell phone booster which will help our phones receive good signals, our internet is Bee Creek which is really fast and working well. We also are self sufficient with rainwater collection for the house with our cistern completely full ( 30,000 gallons). Our generator will service a large portion of the house, our cistern connected to our well at the base of the property will service the irrigation and the swimming pool which is totally full of water. It is looking like a home.
....I think it's just one more miracle in my life...to be able to physically see what was in my minds eye, my imagination, come to life...take form.... be realized...is truly a miracle. I look at the home and think of all the folks who gave their time and talents to contribute to this sacred ground. SO it's with gratitude that I write this...it's with love that I gift it to my children...it's with hope that it is a still, quiet place, blessed by the Holy Spirit, it's with charity that we all use it for gathering of family and friends, to share fun times and JOY.
Patience is a virtue....I know this first hand...
Monday, October 3, 2011
Feng Shui....Balance in Everything
...so maybe I should have thought about Feng Shui before we started building O'Mesa but like so many things in life, hindsight is wiser. The art and science of Feng Shui is a 4,000 year old understanding which originated in China but is used around the world. Most folks don't understand why or how it works but simply accept that it does work, that is...to balance the energy of one's environment and create harmony and peace. Now that sounds really good to this tired soul! So here's some of my learnings and what I intend to do to Feng Shui O'Mesa. ( a little Chinese mixed with Hill Country Hacienda should be just what is needed, right? The country folk around these parts will say, "forget that business and drink yourself a long neck beer"...)
The word Feng Shui means Wind and Water....we will have plenty of wind on top of O'Mesa and the swimming pool is big enough for all of Willow City to enjoy! The Chi which I prefer to call the "Breath of Life", God or the Holy Spirit is our life force and has been called many things by many cultures. The bottom line is we want this life force to be with us and surround us in every way everyday. There's a way to achieve this in our environment by encouraging the energy to move around the home, the rooms, fill the space so people can feel it, can be soothed and comforted by the "Breath of God". Positioning of doors, windows and furniture help to direct the Chi ( Breath of God) to circulate...flow. In the case of O'Mesa, all the beds are placed against a strong wall with solid headboards used for support. The beds are across the room from the primary point of entry (door) which is the point of entry for the Chi.
Since our bodies are made of 80% water, it's not an accident that water is important and feels good to us, a natural attraction. We enter the home with the sound of water from the fountain and a beautiful reflection/swimming pool overlooking Enchanted Rock. To keep the flow of Chi in the home, we used doors and windows with panes to break up the flow and an antique buffet table behind the sofa. Off the patio there are stone steps and turf before the pool begins and at the far edge of the pool there will be potted plants in low flat containers. This keeps all the Energy flowing back toward the home.
Interesting enough even the water in the toilets is important. Each toilet closet has a door or antique saloon doors to keep the energy from leaking out. It is said that your lids should remain closed so money doesn't leak out especially when you flush!! Funny how this works but water is a drain on your finances/money if you don't have a way to keep it from leaking (flushing down the drain).
The other interesting concept about water is it's direction. Thankfully our pool is facing NORTH and not NORTHEAST, which is the worse direction for water! North is an acceptable direction and the fountains in the front of the house are on the Southeast wall which is excellent! The courtyard will be a very balanced peaceful gathering place for us with both water, fire from the fire pit, and plants in the pots. The ideal for us to achieve is free-flowing, vibrant energy. With a little bit of adjustment, O'Mesa will be in perfect harmony, a Feng Shui Masterpiece!
The word Feng Shui means Wind and Water....we will have plenty of wind on top of O'Mesa and the swimming pool is big enough for all of Willow City to enjoy! The Chi which I prefer to call the "Breath of Life", God or the Holy Spirit is our life force and has been called many things by many cultures. The bottom line is we want this life force to be with us and surround us in every way everyday. There's a way to achieve this in our environment by encouraging the energy to move around the home, the rooms, fill the space so people can feel it, can be soothed and comforted by the "Breath of God". Positioning of doors, windows and furniture help to direct the Chi ( Breath of God) to circulate...flow. In the case of O'Mesa, all the beds are placed against a strong wall with solid headboards used for support. The beds are across the room from the primary point of entry (door) which is the point of entry for the Chi.
Since our bodies are made of 80% water, it's not an accident that water is important and feels good to us, a natural attraction. We enter the home with the sound of water from the fountain and a beautiful reflection/swimming pool overlooking Enchanted Rock. To keep the flow of Chi in the home, we used doors and windows with panes to break up the flow and an antique buffet table behind the sofa. Off the patio there are stone steps and turf before the pool begins and at the far edge of the pool there will be potted plants in low flat containers. This keeps all the Energy flowing back toward the home.
Interesting enough even the water in the toilets is important. Each toilet closet has a door or antique saloon doors to keep the energy from leaking out. It is said that your lids should remain closed so money doesn't leak out especially when you flush!! Funny how this works but water is a drain on your finances/money if you don't have a way to keep it from leaking (flushing down the drain).
The other interesting concept about water is it's direction. Thankfully our pool is facing NORTH and not NORTHEAST, which is the worse direction for water! North is an acceptable direction and the fountains in the front of the house are on the Southeast wall which is excellent! The courtyard will be a very balanced peaceful gathering place for us with both water, fire from the fire pit, and plants in the pots. The ideal for us to achieve is free-flowing, vibrant energy. With a little bit of adjustment, O'Mesa will be in perfect harmony, a Feng Shui Masterpiece!
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