Screenhouse in the woods

cocobolo · 12-28-2010, 05:16 PM

Jules....that's awesome!

The instructions for installing the screens must be good, because even I can understand them!

So I suppose this means we don't get to see your bikini clad body in the river now does it?

We finally got a few hours of sun out this way today, but now the wind is up again and the cloud is coming in. I haven't bothered to stick my little toe in the ocean out here, but I don't imagine that it's any too warm!

jules4 · 12-28-2010, 05:33 PM

We've seen the sun for all of one day in the last four weeks - mostly it's rained, and rained, and rained some more, then a little snow, then several more days of rain . . . (Inland areas got quite a bit more snow.) I'm starting to think the weather has gotten confused about which coast this is.

cocobolo · 12-28-2010, 05:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jules4

We've seen the sun for all of one day in the last four weeks - mostly it's rained, and rained, and rained some more, then a little snow, then several more days of rain . . . (Inland areas got quite a bit more snow.) I'm starting to think the weather has gotten confused about which coast this is.

No kidding...sounds like what we have experienced out this way as well.

Lots of flooding on Vancouver Island and record snowfalls up in the mountains.

The weather gods (or goddesses, the ones with the curves) must be really P.O.'d for some reason!

gma2rjc · 12-28-2010, 05:51 PM

It's looking great Jules! You're really making a lot of progress.

Quote:

Cutting 44 pieces of screen rail for the knee-wall windows for the SECOND time, after failing to subtract the length of the corner segments the first time around:

Anyone could make that mistake. At least you didn't cut them too short the first time.

cocobolo · 12-30-2010, 12:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gma2rjc

It's looking great Jules! You're really making a lot of progress.

Anyone could make that mistake. At least you didn't cut them too short the first time.

It wasn't a mistake, she was just checking the lengths again, that's all.

Are you done for the winter now Jules?

jules4 · 12-30-2010, 10:30 PM

Yup - the cottage is closed up for the winter, so I won't be able to get back down until April or May.

I do have 10 pieces of finicky wooden lattice to assemble over the winter though to keep me entertained (I'm going to mount lattice in the upper corners of the big windows Chinese-style).

cocobolo · 12-30-2010, 10:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jules4

Yup - the cottage is closed up for the winter, so I won't be able to get back down until April or May.

I do have 10 pieces of finicky wooden lattice to assemble over the winter though to keep me entertained (I'm going to mount lattice in the upper corners of the big windows Chinese-style).

When you say Chinese style...are you referring to the style in their typical outdoor garden buildings? If so, they always made every panel different, no two the same.

The Dr. Sun Yat Sen gardens in Vancouver have such buildings. The panels really are quite exquisite.

jules4 · 12-30-2010, 10:57 PM

No, I'm not doing full lattice screens - I'm just making decorative corners of the sort you often see on porches or covered walkways.

I love lattice, but I suck at making it, so I try to keep the pieces relatively small so that it doesn't take me too long to fill in all the imperfections afterwords.

cocobolo · 12-30-2010, 11:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jules4

No, I'm not doing full lattice screens - I'm just making decorative corners of the sort you often see on porches or covered walkways.

I love lattice, but I suck at making it, so I try to keep the pieces relatively small so that it doesn't take me too long to fill in all the imperfections afterwords.

Imperfections? Oh, sure.

jules4 · 07-01-2011, 05:38 PM

In April and May I only managed to spend two weekends down at my parent’s cottage, so I didn’t accomplish a heck of a lot. However, I was down for two weeks at the end of June so I finally managed to make some picture-worthy progress.

Without further ado, here’s what she currently looks like:

I don’t think I mentioned this before, but Mom’s been studying Mandarin for several years and is quite the sinophile, culturally speaking (she’s not particularly enamoured with the government).

I was too chicken to attempt traditional Chinese timber-framing, but mom wanted the place to have a Chinese feel so in addition to the red trim I also wanted to add a few Chinese-esque details.

One of the hallmarks of Chinese architecture is the use of dǒu gǒng (斗拱): interlocking wooden brackets that support the roof framing, like so:

So I made a set of falsies to attach to the front of the screenhouse that are supported by the roof, rather than supporting it. (Only one falsie is installed here, the other is still being fitted.)

I also used some actual dǒu gǒng to support a built-in shelf:

Naturally there must be red lanterns (I carved these out of an old douglas fir branch):

Finally, any self-respecting Chinese garden structure requires a proper name, so the screenhouse shall hencefroth be known as wàng jiāng zhāi (望江斋), or “river viewing study/(retreat).”

jules4 · 07-01-2011, 05:44 PM

Some additional (non-Chinese) details includes a nifty drop-down table. The load is born by the legs, not the hinges, so it can support a lot of weight (I can’t take credit for the design, I got the idea from pictures I saw posted somewhere).

And a removable doggie door (not pictured is a vinyl rain-cover that Velcros onto the door frame).

Doggie door helpfully modelled by Gryphon:

jules4 · 07-01-2011, 05:50 PM

Last but not least, I threw together a small outhouse for times when the cottage seems a little too far away (not finished painting it yet).

This will be a humanure outhouse, meaning no pit (and no smell, honest) – just a bucket and some lovely partly decayed old sawdust (courtesy of the mill across the river). For more info on humanure checkout Humanure Headquarters.

The End.

gma2rjc · 07-01-2011, 07:29 PM

Jules, this is truly impressive!!! You've done so much to it. Your mother must be proud of you and thrilled with all of the unique details... Gryphon looks pretty happy too. Thanks so much for showing us. You do awesome work!

Have a happy Canada Day weekend!

cocobolo · 07-01-2011, 08:03 PM

Hi Jules:

Well, you've outdone yourself this time. Fantastic job.

I see your mum has the same fondness for the Chinese traditional method of supporting the roof as I do. The Japanese also do the same, and there are a number of older Japanese temples which have survived with these amazing roofs.

Love the name you have picked out and the beautiful carving you did to go with it. Just an excellent job...congratulations!

And as Barb says...

HAPPY CANADA DAY!

jules4 · 07-02-2011, 09:50 AM

Thanks guys - I hope you had a great Canada day too!

I agree Keith, those Asian style roofs are gorgeous, but the complexity is a bit intimidating. (I'll bet you've built one haven't you

). And thanks for the complement on the carving, your carving work is beautiful so I'm super pleased mine measures up

12-28-2010, 05:16 PM	#106
cocobolo Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Gulf Islands, B.C., Canada Posts: 6,264	Screenhouse in the woods Jules....that's awesome! The instructions for installing the screens must be good, because even I can understand them! So I suppose this means we don't get to see your bikini clad body in the river now does it? We finally got a few hours of sun out this way today, but now the wind is up again and the cloud is coming in. I haven't bothered to stick my little toe in the ocean out here, but I don't imagine that it's any too warm! __________________ Just an old guy messin' with bits of wood... ...the friendliest thread on the site! Come on by. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

12-28-2010, 05:33 PM	#107
jules4 Member Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Halifax NS, Canada Posts: 260	Screenhouse in the woods We've seen the sun for all of one day in the last four weeks - mostly it's rained, and rained, and rained some more, then a little snow, then several more days of rain . . . (Inland areas got quite a bit more snow.) I'm starting to think the weather has gotten confused about which coast this is.

12-30-2010, 10:30 PM	#111
jules4 Member Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Halifax NS, Canada Posts: 260	Screenhouse in the woods Yup - the cottage is closed up for the winter, so I won't be able to get back down until April or May. I do have 10 pieces of finicky wooden lattice to assemble over the winter though to keep me entertained (I'm going to mount lattice in the upper corners of the big windows Chinese-style).

12-30-2010, 10:57 PM	#113
jules4 Member Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Halifax NS, Canada Posts: 260	Screenhouse in the woods No, I'm not doing full lattice screens - I'm just making decorative corners of the sort you often see on porches or covered walkways. I love lattice, but I suck at making it, so I try to keep the pieces relatively small so that it doesn't take me too long to fill in all the imperfections afterwords.

07-01-2011, 05:38 PM	#115
jules4 Member Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Halifax NS, Canada Posts: 260	Screenhouse in the woods In April and May I only managed to spend two weekends down at my parent’s cottage, so I didn’t accomplish a heck of a lot. However, I was down for two weeks at the end of June so I finally managed to make some picture-worthy progress. Without further ado, here’s what she currently looks like: I don’t think I mentioned this before, but Mom’s been studying Mandarin for several years and is quite the sinophile, culturally speaking (she’s not particularly enamoured with the government). I was too chicken to attempt traditional Chinese timber-framing, but mom wanted the place to have a Chinese feel so in addition to the red trim I also wanted to add a few Chinese-esque details. One of the hallmarks of Chinese architecture is the use of dǒu gǒng (斗拱): interlocking wooden brackets that support the roof framing, like so: So I made a set of falsies to attach to the front of the screenhouse that are supported by the roof, rather than supporting it. (Only one falsie is installed here, the other is still being fitted.) I also used some actual dǒu gǒng to support a built-in shelf: Naturally there must be red lanterns (I carved these out of an old douglas fir branch): Finally, any self-respecting Chinese garden structure requires a proper name, so the screenhouse shall hencefroth be known as wàng jiāng zhāi (望江斋), or “river viewing study/(retreat).” Last edited by jules4; 07-01-2011 at 05:51 PM.

Screenhouse in the woods