#baldeaglebarn

A frigid shoot. Barn style.

loftshoot.png

by the Artist

On a subzero Saturday morning last weekend, the Carpenter and I met the homeowner at the Bald Eagle Barn https://www.applewoodremodelers.com/baldeagle-barn project. I needed to take a photo of the guys for an upcoming White Bear Press article (hats off to Shannon Riley who wrote a beautiful story) featuring the barn build.

Saturday was at the tail end of the some of the coldest weather we have experienced in many years. We arrived a little early to prepare. I asked the Carpenter to set up one of the kerosene heaters to position directly in front of the guys. (I envisioned hours of photoshop work to fix red faces) He thought it was a crazy idea. But it worked. I came close a couple of times to backing into the flame and melting my snow pants! (hey all for a good shot!)

It took some time to get the lighting and best locations figured out. We had to make due with small spot lights on saw horses.

When we were ready I sent the Carpenter to retrieve the homeowner who had been outside snow blowing his driveway. He came in and said… “I’m just sweating” He proceeded to take his coat off and he was steaming! Clouds of vapors surrounded him. All the years I’ve lived in MN I have never seen that. I thought.. “oh no!” This is a photo challenge I haven’t run into before! Well he put his coat back on, jauntily wrapped a warm scarf around his neck and was good to go. No more steam thank goodness!

After almost one frigid hour I had a good photo. The homeowner was a lot of fun to work with. He has good energy. The Carpenter was a bit stiff.. but then it was so very cold!

Anyway… we got it done and ended up celebrating that night with the homeowner and his lovely wife at a nice place in downtown White Bear Lake. We had a great time getting to know each other and talking about the project and how wonderful it had turned out.

It was a good end to a good day, and what has turned out to be a wonderful project for us and the homeowners. We are blessed. And we have new friends!

You can read the article by clicking here– https://www.presspubs.com/white_bear/news/wright-was-right-form-and-function-fuel-design/article_271abfe2-2fbb-11e9-bf4a-6779106af3be.html Or if you are local it will be in the 2/13/19 White Bear Lake paper edition.



Hello Beautiful Barn!

by the Artist

The winter hasn’t been too bad so far. November started out miserably cold, we started the “Post and Beam” style barn near Bald Eagle Lake. December’s weather moderated and we ended up with little snowfall and warmer days. That helped the crew keep a good pace.

Today 50 mph winds slammed in. Thankfully the crew was working on the sunny side of the barn mostly out of the wind. We still have relatively little snow. Mostly just patches of precariously slippery rutted ice on the job site which has made for careful walking. I wanted the Carpenter to build a plank walking path to get too and from the vehicles. Don’t think that advice was heeded.

The barn project itself has had a bit of a learning curve. Challenging as we have not built from a “kit” before (Sandcreek Post and Beam). But challenging in a good way.. like working on a great big grainy puzzle! I think other then working during the winter months the crew has enjoyed it. And it is certainly turning out beautiful and is fitting perfectly with the historic home and cottage nearby. Same architectural lines. It features shed dormers on both sides, and an overhanging “hay hood” (in original barn construction, a hay hood was a projection of the roof on the end of the barn which the farmer would hoist hay up to the loft) on the right side to mirror the home and the cottage. (the cottage was part of the original property.) It is all wood. And is built so snuggly I’m sure it would withstand a tornado! Definitely not “stick frame” construction.

The homeowner will be doing renovations on the home in the future and is excited to start with this beautiful barn to enhance his property and provide much needed storage. In fact it has come to the attention of our local paper- The White Bear Press- who will be doing a feature story on the home in the near future.

So while the wind blows and the flurries fly… we move forward to complete this exciting project. Perhaps we will have a “barn raising” party to celebrate at its completion. In the summer of course… under sparkly lights and fireflies, and the quiet lapping of the lake nearby.