Last night marked the inception of R. Craig Lord University.  The “university” is a series of seminars related to remodeling and home improvements, and represents the realization of a long standing vision for company president, Craig Lord.  Seminars will take place in our newly remodeled office space, housed in a 19th century farmhouse @ 1237 North Church Street in Moorestown.  The space features a demonstrator kitchen and multimedia-ready conference/dining area.

“Trends in Kitchen Design 101″ covered all apects of kitchen remodeling, from thoughtful design to fine finishes.

Eric Ravikio from Apple Kitchens in Moorestown discussed trends and principles of kitchen design.

Bill Siebert and Natalie Wachman from Westwood Tile in Cherry Hill were on hand with samples and practical advice for picking counter-tops and back splashes.

http://www.westwoodtile.com/

Many thanks to our presenters, and those in attendance, for a wonderful, enlightening evening.

Plans are underway for upcoming seminars this fall.  Subscribers to the blog will have first notice.  For more information, or to suggest a future seminar topic, please contact the office @ (856) 235-4237.

Wall boards and antique flooring are salvaged and set aside for future use.  The clients have a keen eye for antiques and have a particular interest in reusing salvaged materials around their home.

Wall boards that once lined the furnace room.  A closer examination reveals hoof marks, evidence of the building’s past equine residents.  The relics will likely be reused as wainscoting in the new powder room.

The team takes a break from demolition for a field meeting with both the client and architect.  Group discussion focused on the beam to be installed at the exterior wall.  The size of the beam required will affect ceiling height.  Options include exposing the existing ceiling joists, exposing part of the new beam, or leveling and lowering the existing ceiling joists.  The latter would allow for a continuous, level ceiling with approximately the same ceiling height as the adjoining kitchen.  A final decision will be made in the next few days.

The project is officially underway!  Interior demo began on Monday.  Lead carpenter Mike Payne (pictured, above left)  gets a helping hand from Gary, and the two are making quick work of stripping the room down to the framing.  This exterior wall will eventually be removed for the addition, but needs to stay in place for now to support the second floor.  At the top of the wall (not pictured), we found dense packed straw.  Unclear is whether the straw is remnants of rustic insulation, or evidence of some crafty birds.

The back of the existing kitchen wall is indicative of challenges inherent to working with older homes.  The framing is a hodgepodge of original post and beam framing and modern stick framing.  Some of the kitchen’s drywall covers what appears to be wooden clapboards. 

In addition to the framing, a complete gut remodel allows us a better look at the plumbing and electrical systems.  Both gas piping and electrical wires will require modifications and rerouting to ensure proper finishes in the new room.

The wrought iron spindle wall is a detail that will be carried over to the new room.  Existing materials will be dismantled and saved for reuse.?

The team returned today with a new set of jacks, capable of lifting the shed high enough for insertion of the rollers.  Once in place, the building moved with ease. 

With the lateral move accomplished, preparations are underway for the new resting spot.  Final adjustments are needed tomorrow.

Today was a family affair as the Lord family took on the formidable task of shed moving.  Company president, Craig, mans the helm of the backhoe while son Nate, and nephew Patrick scramble to attach chains.  The shed was jacked up and placed on a “sled” for towing.  Despite their best efforts, the shed only moved about 10 feet.  The idea was to get PVC pipes under the sled to use as rollers, but the jacks were insufficient to get the rise needed.  Back to the drawing board.

Coincidentally, today is Patrick’s birthday.  Happy 19th Patrick!

For those of you anxiously awaiting updates on the office renovation, pictures are coming! Finishing touches are nearly complete.
In other news, we’re getting underway with our next job blog; a new family room for Dr. Susan Gamble and Janice Stanek. Their home, a beautiful 19th century carriage house, has a lot of character, and this addition should compliment it well.
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In a nutshell, the plan is to extend the existing 1st floor family room to allow for more entertaining space. The catch is that the existing room is built on slab (I believe it was a modified garage). Rooms on slab are generally difficult to condition and thus uncomfortable living spaces. Our solution is to gut the interior, remove the slab, dig a crawl space, extend the room, and put it all back together while incorporating elements of the original “carriage house”. Sounds like fun!
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Step 1 (okay, step 2 really) is to move the shed and wood fence pictured above. The shed houses a grown-ups “clubhouse”, a whimsically decorated abode, and a unique feature of the home’s yard.  The shed will have a new home at the opposite corner of the property.?
Step 1 (for real) is to remove the brick patio and walkway in the construction area.
  

The bricks are stacked out of the way to be reused later in the project.?

Thursday, July 23rd will mark the grand opening of R. Craig Lord University.  The “University” concept is a series of educational seminars related to home remodeling and improvements.  The first in the series is entitled Trends in Kitchen Design 101: 10 NEW ideas in Kitchen Design from the affordable to the extravagant.  The event will take place at our newly remodeled office. Attendance is limited, so call to sign up today if you’re interested.  Public announcemnts will go out on Wednesday, so you, our blog readers, will have first opportunity to attend.

The flyer below was generated as a handout for the 2009 Burlington County Earth Fair. The document was exported from MS publisher, thus the unreadable scale. To read, i suggest zooming at least 150%.