WELCOME TO CASA DEL BELLA

 

 

Electrons and H2O

Our kitchen sink, garbage disposer, and dishwasher are hooked up! No more washing dishes in the bathroom sink.

Karen's Studio now has 16 outlets, exterior lighting, exterior outlets, exterior motion-sensing light, attic light, AND... air conditioning!

The garage clothes washer and clothes dryer are hooked up to dedicated circuits and I have one outlet (of many) LIVE and working. No more orange extension cords running all over the back yard,

Casa del Bella is beginning to feel like home.

Casa del Bella's major renovations are finally coming to an end. Kitchen goes in at the end of May. That will be an important improvement. Yay a Kitchen! Check back for those photos. Here are some of the latest updates:
1) Karen made majolica tiles for the fireplace to be installed.

 2) Above fireplace: Karen made a majolica tile painting inspired by Picasso's Dream.

3) Rick put up drapes.
4) Rick got up our new smaller Ikea tables put together. (a place to eat!)
5) Chairs put in living room. (a place to sit)
6) We brought over entertainment center. (a place to watch movies and Discovery HD & TUNES)

 

Casa del Bella is beginning to feel like home.

We Have Tunes

 
We moved in a few pieces of furniture including the home theater equipment and some chairs. We installed two more fans, new A/C grates, and electrical cover plates. This is a view from the front door. The refinished floors look great!

Painting & Floor Complete!

 


Thanks to Frank Papa (nHance) we have beautiful, shiny, restored floors.

Thanks to Rick Mansure for beautifully painted interior walls.

GREAT JOB GUYS!

[Photos are missing. We will try and figure out why. I'm thinking they were on Rick's older computer. We will get him to check on this ]

January 31 weekend update

Weekend Update: 1/31/10:

Rick installed outdoor lighting and a beautiful hanging fixture (we found on sale several months ago at Home Depot) in the hallway. Let there be light! woo woo

Karen cleaned out the fireplace, replaced a brick and patched up missing grout. 

We cleaned and cleaned.

Roof is being repaired this week.

New wall in kitchen and all old tile has been torn out. 

There's progress!

Update photos on the Renovation

We've been working so diligently that the blog has fallen to the wayside. Here are some new photos of things going on at Casa del Bella. You can click on this link to see more photos.

Studio Interior Primer Coat

Today I fired up my new Graco Magnum X7 Airless Paint Sprayer for the first time to paint the Studio interior. I sprayed an entire 5 gallon bucket of Kilz2! The sprayer is fantastic and made quick work of a difficult job; i.e., painting over fresh, rough wood. I had a little trouble at first with a leaky tip and managed to cover myself with paint. LOL. The downside is the clean-up that takes a while. Ryan stopped over to visit and Karen bought us some delicious food from Kristina's Cafe. They make fantastic Philly-Steak sandwiches.

Studio Interior Prep

Today we cleaned up some of the tree clippings and electrical work trash and prepped the Studio for interior painting. I was happy to see the plumber completed all the piping in preparation for moving the hot water tank outside in a custom hurricane-rated enclosure. Linda and Paul stopped by for a visit.

Studio Painted

Rick went over and painted the Studio with Behr Premium Plus Ultra, Siesta Tan ECC-59-5, Satin Finish. This is the main color we will paint the garage and eventually repaint the house.

Electrical - Day 4

Well, not really Day 4, but actually Night 4! I met Adam and Lee at the house. Adam trimmed some tree branches over the garage that were close to the power drop. Then we made a trip to Home Depot to buy some pressure treated 2x4's and plywood to build the channel above the new breaker box. When everything was completed, Adam climbed up on the roof, disconnected the old service, and attempted to swing the drop to the new service pole. Unfortunately, the drop was not long enough so I have to call Progress Energy to have the drop replaced.

The Bad Discovery

We bought this house "As Is" and we knew it had previous water damage. The leak was in the kitchen and some of the drywall needed to be replaced -- or so we thought. Today I removed the side kitchen counter, lower cabinets, and upper cabinets. Then I started pulling out all the bad drywall. And pulled, and pulled. Much to my dismay, the lumber in the corner is rotten from the ceiling to the floor with much of the floor rotted away. Hugh sigh! This will require more than minor repair.

Electrical - Day 3

I rode my bike to St. Pete Friday morning and met Adam for breakfast at the Four Coins Restaurant. Adam installed the new 200 amp panel, new electrical meter, and new service pole. He finished all the cutouts (except for the kitchen) and I helped him run all the bathroom wiring. This was a real pain. On his first attempt to cut out a quad outlet opening where we wanted it, Adam found a 2 inch galvanized pipe. Then we found a cross beam above the medicine cabinet frame. In true Tim Allen style, rather than cutting straight up, I cut at an angle right through the adjoining bedroom wall! I finally managed to get the 2 foot long auger bit up through the cross beam so Adam could feed me the wire down from the attic.

Thanksgiving Day

Our first fire at Casa del Bella!

Central Oak Park: A Bit of History

Boundaries:
5th Avenue South to 13th Avenue North and from 34th Street west to 49th Street. in St. Petersburg Florida

Amenities/ Character:
Central Oak Park is unique because of its central location. This attribute makes for easy and quick access to the Gulf beaches, downtown, Tropicana Field, north Pinellas, I-275, Tampa, Bradenton, and points beyond. The entire area is easily traversed. Large oak trees and a mature tree canopy provide a park-like setting for many homes. Many brick streets dating back to the 1920s add to the charm and character of the neighborhood. An additional bonus is the area's high and dry elevation, among the highest in St. Petersburg. The St. Petersburg Main Library is located within our borders. Central Plaza nearby offers shopping and the new YMCA athletic facility to open soon. The Pinellas Trail originates a few blocks away and provides 43 miles of biking, running, or blading. A new trolley service will begin running down Central Avenue to connect to the beaches and downtown. Central Oak Park is the only neighborhood association in St. Petersburg that crosses Central Avenue.

History:
The westernmost boundary runs along Disston Ridge, named after early land magnate, Hamilton Disston, who purchased 150,000 acres in Pinellas County in 1881 and instantly became the largest single landowner at that time. Originally considered a woodsy fringe area west of St. Petersburg in its early development, home building of any consequence began in the booming 1920s. Shadowing the boom/ bust history of Florida, substantial housing development really took off in the World War II and continued through the 1950s.

Organizations / Programs:
Originally the area was called North Central Neighborhood Association in 1989, then subsequently changed to United Central in 1998 with the expansion to 5th Avenue South. After much discussion in February 2000 the name Central Oak Park was chosen to more accurately represent the area. Central Oak Park Neighborhood Association (COPNA) has several accomplishments to date: the Neighborhood Conservation Program, North Central Neighborhood Park, supporting the Salvation Army, community-based policing, interaction with Crime Watch groups and participation in the Certificate of Inspection Program for rental housing. COPNA has been working with the Economic Development Office and the St. Petersburg Area Chamber of Commerce to assist with redevelopment of the business corridors surrounding the neighborhood. COPNA has also been involved in the Parade of Neighborhoods, the Block Party and the Florida Neighborhoods Conference.

Architecture:
There is an eclectic mix of architectural styles, sizes and
prices. Styles include those with Spanish influence, Colonial, English Tudor, cottages, bungalows and many American hybrids. Many homes have hardwood floors and alley access to separate garages. Ample opportunities exist for amateur and professional renovators alike. With sizes of homes in the neighborhood ranging from 700 square feet to more than 3,000 square feet, there are homes for just about any lifestyle.

Electrical - Day 2

Adam and Lee continued rewiring the house today. They cutout most of the outlets and ran more wiring. This is very tedious work since almost all the wiring runs are new and must be fished through 85-year-old plaster and lath walls. The most important tools are set of walkie talkies and an long wood auger drill bit. There is a great deal of "do you see that?" and "move over about 2 feet!"

While Adam and Lee worked on re-wiring, I replaced all the door hardware and locks. The Kwikset SmartKey technology is really cool. I was able to key all four locks to a single key. Karen worked on her USF homework amidst the noise while Hunter an Eve-A played.