The Fence

We have a 1/2 acre lot with the ranchburger.  It's really a pretty nice lot with woods on the north and west sides and a big grassy area between us and the closest neighbor.  We also have a dog, Jax, who needs a fence so that he can go out and play.

Shortly after moving in we talked with reps from three fence companies, and told them some ideas we had about a fence made from wood and "hogwire" or wire mesh.  We had seen some pics on the Houzz website, and were pretty excited about having something interesting and different.

The fence guys thought we were nuts.  Their suggestion was to have either split rail or Kentucky board fence with wire stapled on back so the dog wouldn't escape.  One guy told Dan we should find a carpenter to make the fence we were talking about.  So Dan decided to do it himself.

He ordered eastern red cedar from a local sawmill and 2"x2" welded wire mesh with black PVC coating from a company in Cincinnati.  He and Brian designed and built this fence and created what we now call our "outdoor room" over the course of a few weeks in the fall of 2013.

Getting started -- first two panels

Fence complete -- looking East

Looking North

The Master Bath

Our little master bathroom had gross carpet and an old vanity that we didn't care for when we bought the house.  I don't have a "before" photo.  It did have a cool shower with seafoam green tile, which we kept.

Dan ripped up the carpet and repaired part of the subfloor shortly after we moved in.  He designed a floor with black and white mosiac tiles and a local tile artisan installed it.  We got a vanity and wall cabinet from Ikea, and a Toto too :  ) Here are two "after" pics.

Some "Before" Photos

Viewing into Living Room from Dining Room

From Dining Room -- sliding glass door to kitchen (I kid you not) and view to old kitchen

These are photos from the real estate webpage when the house was on the market in June 2013.

The original kitchen, later remodeled to include an indoor charcoal grill!

The "new" kitchen, circa 1970

Ranchburger Defined

Ranchburger:  n. A traditional, one-story ranch-style house, particularly one in a suburban development where the surrounding houses have a similar design. Also: ranch-burger, ranch burger.

Our Oxford Ranchburger

 Over the years Dan and I have referred to ranch houses as "ranchburgers", assuming that WE would never own one. Well, now we do.  This blog will tell the story of how we make this old ranchburger our own.