We have walls - sort of

Yes, things are moving above ground!  All the foundations have been completed (and covered up, which is a shame as they really looked nice).  They are now moving upwards.

The lower part of the exterior walls will be volcanic rock (like the perimeter wall but not as crude). 

Above that will be traditional adobe.  Adobe is produced locally, which is something we wanted.  When the sun hits the stone it looks beautiful - all golden.  

Here's a load of adobe waiting to be placed.

Two contrasting walls will be “ladrillo” which are basically variegated red bricks much like you see in a turn-of-the-century house in southern Ontario.

Below are two VERY simple images of what the exterior will look like with the different stone treatments.  Most of the windows are missing from these images so they look a bit over-whelming.

The walls around Sergio are finished.  Inside they will be covered in plaster.  This week they will start to lay the adobe.  Behind Sergio is the guest bedroom.  The guy in the white shirt is standing in the downstairs bathroom.  It is sort of neat to be finally moving around the house from room to room.

You can’t really tell but this guy is chipping away on the volcanic stone to create a flat surface.  No saws here, just chisel and hammer.  And eye protection?  Who needs eye protection?

You gotta love that view!

Sergio and I spent last Saturday with Antonio visiting a number of different work sites looking at exterior finishing options.  All of a sudden we have to make decisions.

• Do we want stone lintels (the bit over the doors and windows) or wood, or a contrast design in adobo?  Ahhhh Ummmm.  Lemme get back to you on that.
• What colour stain on the wood beams?  Ummmm.  Lemme get back to you on that.

Antonio is great.  He’s going to prepare us some computer generate images of all the lintel options plus stain one of the beans in a variety of tones so we can then make more enlightened decisions.

It is also our VERY last chance to ask for structural / design changes.  Move a door, make a window bigger or smaller, etc.  We’ve had the plans – about ten gigantic pieces of paper - spread out on the dining room table since the weekend.  Decisions decisions!

Exterior Elevations

I realized after visiting Deb in December that I have never shared these computer generated pictures of the house as it will appear on the lot.  These images were done to give us an idea of the location of the house.  They are, in fact, fairly deceptive since the house exterior will not be white stucco but a variety of different stone treatments.  Again, everything has been designed to take maximum advantage of the views.

While the house design itself is not very traditional, the building materials, treatments, tiles and finishings will all have a very Mexican look and feel to them.  We opted for what we hope will be a nice balance between modern and traditional.

The exterior walls will be a combination of local volcanic rock, typical adobe stone and then brick accents.

The roof over the living dining area will have your usual rounded red roof tiles.  The roof over the exterior dining / relaxing area is flat and will act as a patio for the master bedroom in the second floor (no railing however - booze free zone!).

The roof area of the master bedroom and bath will have the water tank as well as solar panels, all hidden by a raised edge.

Check the next blog you'll get a better sense of what the place will look like with the coloured stone and adobe.