And in the "car porch".....................

Saint Sophia has found a protected place, & hopefully will not continue to weather.
She had 3 daughters, Faith, Hope, & Love. Those three qualities were definitely needed in building this house.

Meanwhile, on another part of the house.........

Prior to nailing down the conventional shingle roofing, aluminum soffits & fascias were applied.

Then the roofing bundles were hoisted & readied to be installed.

Up on the roof.........................

Epoxy is applied to the steel decking that will soon be the living roof.

Then 2 layers of rigid insulation are applied.

Finally, the plastic membrane is adhered to the rigid insulation.

The cat's meow..............................

The stonework is almost complete on the exterior. The cats in the openings are decorations from our current home, but now are permanently installed. Perhaps they'll keep birds & bats out of the "car porch".

Stone cold great.....................

The stone colors go great with the site's natural colors.
As Marisa Tomei said to Cousin Vinny " Yeah, you blend!"

American graffiti......................

Below the watertable stone we've tried to create a foundation that looks fairly old. The masons had a little fun expressing their artistic side.

Windows of opportunity.................

The wall openings are weatherstripped & windows of recycled plastic are installed.

Sweet November........................

Here are the views from the driveway and future living roof.

The fire pit was built from excavated rock & unused block.

Looking a little blue...............................

Blue styrofoam insulation is attached to the metal studs because metal is too strong of a conductor of heat & cold.
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On the exterior cement fiber board is placed over the blue board to receive the stone.

Nearly framed in.......................

Under the future "living roof" an arched opening separates the kitchen from my office.

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The chimney for the wood burning stove is sheathed in cement fiber board to receive stone.

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By walking across the living roof you reach the attic over the left side of the house. Inside, I can bring plants during the winter. The skylights crank open & have screens for nicer weather days.

We've switched to wood framing for the attic areas since continuing the steel framing get time consuming & expensive. If termites ever make it that far, they deserve a treat.

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Oh, deer.................................

Our cast iron friend has now been moved to Harris County.
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Bar joists have been set in place, awaiting the metal decking for the living roof.

Progress continues.......................

The roof is almost fully framed over the " car porch".

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Stairs in the tower are roughed in.

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By walking across the "living roof" you can enter an attic space. I'll probably use it as a greenhouse & workshop. It will have an operable skylight

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From the upstairs bedrooom window, you feel as if you're up in the trees.

Roof framing begins......................

The ridge beam & rafters are placed over the left wing

of the house.

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I'm working on the earth berm against my office wall.

Piers for the rear deck are ready for the synthetic stone.

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Beneath the deck will be the barrels that store captured rainwater from the roof.

Preparing for earth berm.....................

In front of my studio is an earth berm, ending at about desktop height. Here it is waterproofed & backfilled.

The cardboard from the waterproofing is recycled at our local Goodwill facility.

Beam me up........................

The Great Room ceiling joists are in place. So are the beams which will support the workshop over the Car Porch.

The bar joists that will support the living roof have arrived.

No longer Taco Bell.....................

Thanks to tropical plants donated by our future neighbors Bill & Gwen, we're now tropical. So it looks like we're building a Tommy Bahamas.

Below is an arbor we just transplanted from home. Instant gratification!

There's a new Taco Bell in town...................

Blockwork is done for the "car porch" openings.
Next the block cells are filled with concrete.

Then the wood forms can be removed.

The opposite side of the study wall will be covered with earth & plants, so desktop height seems level with the greenery. This view is from the kitchen.

Steel framing begins..............................

After laying out the plan on the floor, a runner channel is screwed into the subfloor.

Then the steel studs are placed. The exterior walls are of 6 inch studs to allow extra insulation for energy efficiency.

Recycling project.........................

Partial concrete blocks were reused as a retaining wall, covered by stone from the site, & backfilled with excavation dirt. Cost = zilch!

Views of the frame.....................

I'm very excited about the views from the creek side of the lot. Especially when the erosion control fence is removed after construction is complete.