Yesterday two things happened that I resisted but ended up liking more than I expected.
The inubashiri is a concrete walkway all the way around the house – literally it means “dog run”. It’s a common feature of modern Japanese homes in the cities where the law says you need a minimum of 50 cm between your house and your neighbor. It protects your foundation from insects and rot. It also creates a solid place to position air conditioner compressors, LP gas tanks, and all the other humdrum things that sit outside the house. In addition to that, it also creates the grading slope from your foundation to the rest of the property.
I really didn’t want one at 555. We don’t have any 50cm rules in play. I dislike concrete. But its facility is too fundamental (dare I say ‘foundational’) to easily replace with other material and so it was poured yesterday.
And I don’t hate it. It makes the house look more finished. There is a clear demarcation between the house and the future garden and patio area. Maru-chan gave me a pretty curved corner on the end of the deck, too.
The other thing I surprised myself with was carpet.
Upstairs is a vast expanse of sanded plywood floor. I consider painting it and adding stencils for interest, but Tod’s vision was carpet. He hasn’t expressed many preferences in this project and I wanted to honor this one. Plus it was expedient.
I selected inexpensive carpet tiles, just in case I hated them completely. I found colors that worked with the gorgeous cedar ceiling and planned a design to keep the room from being too much solid color. And then I started putting them in.
The result is much better than I hoped.
Ivory on the “guest” side, green on “my” side, and a stripe to divide them.
This morning I moved my yoga class over to 555. It may take a few more sessions before I figure out the best placement for the camera and how to light the studio so that I am not a silhouette in the bright morning sun. It’s a bit complicated, but we’ll get there.
