Two Car Garage Update

Again, work is happening so fast on our garage that I figured I’d throw up some photos because it’s about to be over before we know it! Ahhhhh!

Jerrod of Hill Farm Design (602) 562-4646 is our contractor. He didn’t do our home expansion that we recently finished (I mention this because we’re asked often) but we are happy to work with Jerrod for this project. He has been so pleasant to work with and also nearly every day something has been happening around here, just like our other garden room expansion. To say we’ve been blessed with great contractors is entirely true! We highly recommend them.

So here’s the house one morning while pruning the tree thinking we would keep it. I was like oh gosh I better snap a before photo while I can.

The next day, work started.

The slab was poured to extend the current pad which saved a bit. However, there still had to be footers put in and so there was cutting and chiseling. The current driveway will be ripped out and we will put in pavers. –

Then after we spent a weekend trimming the sissoo to make room for the garage, I realized it needed to go. It just has to – we heard how destructive roots will be and I had placed it there a few years ago for shade. We will now have garage shade. And while we were at it, take down the juniper looking tree on the corner that looked like it was contemplating death.

I never liked it. We also the palm trees were taken out on that corner early summer if you recall because I never liked them, and they are a pain to upkeep – the shedding and maintenance is crazy you guys.

I was asked on Instagram if I could have transported the trees… well here’s the answer, no. The roots are deep, they aren’t contained in a box and then find a truck to take a thousand pound tree and where will it go? I had joked asking about anyone wanting the palm tree to get it out of there for free and I got laughed at. So, the idea crossed my mind particularly for a future In-N-Out Burger haha.

I know trees are valuable I get it, I garden but here’s the thing, plant a new one. Nurseries are planting trees all the time and the mulch goes back into the Earth and reused as mulch, soil, fertilizer, our Earth will repurpose it. I also had to get permission from a horticulturist who said if you don’t like a plant or tree, take it out, don’t feel bad about it. And that my friends, just changed everything for me and I hope by saying that you too can give yourself permission to adjust your landscape. Because you take down trees doesn’t mean you don’t appreciate nature – just plant some more, plant what makes you happy.

Then the framing went up, and so did the walls, if you call that.

And then I saw this view from my kitchen and freaked out. It’s like I knew this would happen guys, I did. I really did, it was in the plans I approved by our plan designer. It was no one’s fault. I just didn’t realize what that view looked like until this. So I took a nap and then woke up and walked down the hallway to still see this and thought, oh h-ll no. I cannot look at at the inside of my garage for the rest of my life.

So I immediately called my friend Brittany, the one I went to Oregon with who has an incredible design eye and background and education in interior design (she lives in CA or else we would hire her services for sure but I’m the lucky friend who gets free advice from her). She said calm down, we can fix this.

Cut a wall out.

Sorry for the dirty dishes in the sink by the way, real life y’all. It isn’t always Instagrammable around here. Once I knew that would be fixed I was happy again.

And thankfully Jerrod our contractor was cool with it and it looked like this –

I think I’m always doing the dishes guys, LOL.

Also, we changed the boards, so no more plywood interior.

We thought of a panel finish but scratched it after I really desired this look from Sinclair and Moore –

Is that not the dreamiest spot? I want something similar to shoot in since the light will come in south and north and the wall is on the west side. (It would be best if it were east but I’m going to work with what I’ve got). It cost more. Of course it did. Down went the walls, and up went the tongue in groove wood planks – but boy, does it look gorgeous now.

And it’s not even painted white yet. I plan to create content here, for brands, for myself, a great headshot backdrop, I am swooning over it. I know it’ll pay me back with making my place as a studio. I already have my photo studio and I am excited to have a natural light location.  I still need to clean the photo studio because right now it’s a storage shed with our things for the expansion, per usual.

My heart is so happy, it’s literally souring but my bank account is depleting. So I must get back to work, be right back. xx

Diana Elizabeth made changes on the entire wall. But this was the time, and do it right and do it once. She‘s excited for it. She knows by the time she publishes this post it will look different!