I just washed these windows, AMA

"AestheticsInMotion" (aestheticsinmotion) 01/07/2018 at 19:12 • Filed to: None

6

25

“surprisingly normal home” edition.

Business is glacial from January 1st until about mid March which means... A.) I take any and all jobs I can get, and B.) I’m working solo for a few months to cut costs. This job was found via my real estate agent/stager power couple that I’ve worked with since the beginning. They’re getting ready to put the home on the market, so I swoop by for the finishing touches. Everybody wins!

Dumb blind choice is dumb. There’s no way for a homeowner to raise these blinds all the way without a step ladder. I would probably just get rid of them entirely, seeing as they look pretty awful when parallel to the ground with the triangle on top, most of them at different heights. Raise your hand if that last sentence made any sense, because it sure sounded better in my head....

Here’s one more bad blind choice. Drives me crazy when people buy blinds without a locking mechanism these days. They’re not any cheaper (normally more expensive in the case of the fancy woven blinds) and sure, while they may last a bit longer.... They’re such a pain to use. Finding something to tie them around just to keep the shade up? Pass. Better yet, stop buying blinds with cords all together. Swapping over to the push/pull from the bottom is a game changer. Don’t even get me started on remote controlled blinds..... I’ve yet to see a single homeowner that didn’t regret going with those. Er... What were we talking about?

Okay, moving on to the good stuff! Spacious two car garage, and what’s that...? An attached shop? Yes please. Garage could be spruced up a bit, but there’s nothing wrong with it.

In the back garage is a door, leading to your private workshop/mancave/fortress of solitude. I love how houses from this era always seem to have a separate room off of the garage. I suppose the modern (and super expensive) equivalent is people building a bonus family room over the garage, with a separate staircase connecting it to the main floor.

Shelves, sink, and all the outlets you’ll ever need. The shop and garage EACH have two sepperate breakers, couldn’t read the garage ones but the shop has a 30 amp and a 50 amp. Unclear what’s connected to what.

The downstairs is “period correct” with linoleum floors, wood paneling, and multiple bathrooms with very strange layouts by modern standards. I like seeing this stuff. Go ahead, try to tell me this paneling isn’t fantastic:

I offered to blow the roof/gutters off/out respectively, so a quick job turned into.... Well. A slightly less quick job? I don’t know, I was here for two hours, but being the only job I had and it being winter, I went at a pretty laid-back pace, even by my standards.

Of course it starts pouring when I get up on the roof. Tis life for a Washingtonian.

And there you have it. A (work)day in the life of AestheticsInMotion, winter slowdown edition. I miss having money to blow, but I love love love all the extra time. When I’m working 60+ hour weeks in the summer heat along with three other employees, it’s the thought of the winter slowdown that keeps me sane. And while I could certainly budget better in order to keep my financial situation the same year-round, I find that when I’m semi-broke I make better decisions, and have a much easier time focusing on one or two major life goals/ projects. I like my monetary situation changing, because it basically allows me to live two sepperate lifestyles, if that makes sense. Plus, I get to complain about having no money in the winter, and no time the rest of the year, which means I cover all my bases!

This place should go quick, large property, no neighbors, fairly close to downtown locations... Maybe I’ll be back after the inevitable remodal.

CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever > AestheticsInMotion 01/07/2018 at 19:15

0

What’s the weirdest/craziest shit you’ve seen while washing windows?

AestheticsInMotion > CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever 01/07/2018 at 19:21

4

Too many to list/remember.

I’ve had a 60 year old lady tell me she was about to take a shower, so I should start outside. Sure, no problem. She tells me to start on the west side of the home, 2nd floor ladder work. Can do, miss.

So.... I go to the west side with a 24', climb up to the first window, and am greeted by a bare-naked elderly lady staring me dead in the eyes. That was fun.

Uh... I’ve seen a client pick his kid up from school. With a freaking helicopter. And then proceed to have his kid waterski from the helicopter.

I’ve also seen this: one of the most interesting homes I’ve been in. Dude has many, many interesting cars. I’ll do a full post about this place eventually

ranwhenparked > AestheticsInMotion 01/07/2018 at 19:35

1

I do like that sort of house. You can keep the fake panelling, but leave the diamond panel.

AddictedToM3s - Drives a GC > AestheticsInMotion 01/07/2018 at 20:12

1

That house looks beautiful. What state is that in?

In the bay area that house would fetch 2 mill easily.

AestheticsInMotion > AddictedToM3s - Drives a GC 01/07/2018 at 20:22

0

Washington state. Seattle isn’t quite at that level yet, although not for lack of trying. Wish I’d seen a price

AddictedToM3s - Drives a GC > AestheticsInMotion 01/07/2018 at 20:29

0

Ah, should have guessed based on the surrounding trees. One of the areas outside the Bay Area I’d be okay with moving to is Seattle.

Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo > AestheticsInMotion 01/07/2018 at 20:37

0

Oh you just KNOW she did that shit on purpose. “I’m gonna make this boy look at my body whether he wants to or not!”

AestheticsInMotion > AddictedToM3s - Drives a GC 01/07/2018 at 20:37

0

There is a lot to love. Ocean, lakes, desert, soaring peaks, rainforest... All within a short drive. Great car spotting, although actual cars&coffee events are a lot rarer than what I remember of LA. Wonderful summers, if you can survive the somewhat gloomy october-april

AestheticsInMotion > Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo 01/07/2018 at 20:44

0

Oh, totally. She also tipped me with one of those massive Costco dog-food sized bags of pretzels. Which ended up breaking open in my subaru....

AestheticsInMotion > ranwhenparked 01/07/2018 at 20:47

0

Cool isn’t it? That Diamond motif is also in one of the strange bathrooms downstairs. Size of a small bedroom, with counters on all four sides, three sinks, a shower and no toilet.

415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°) > AestheticsInMotion 01/07/2018 at 23:42

0

Do they do floors and keep all the scrap? :P

Stef Schrader > AestheticsInMotion 01/08/2018 at 02:36

1

Hot dang, that is an exceedingly normal house. Reminds me of half the houses in Fairwood.

That clean modern look with the big windows has grown on me over the years even if they definitely overbuilt mid-entries out there. 10/10 would like on a good mid-century one-story, though.

If the new owners rip out that cool diamond pattern woodwork, though, they deserve my wrath. That’s neat.

Highlander-Datsuns are Forever > AestheticsInMotion 01/08/2018 at 13:58

0

The blind guy was telling us about how to cover the triangle windows. Now that I see it in person I’m glad I didn’t go for it.

AestheticsInMotion > Highlander-Datsuns are Forever 01/08/2018 at 14:19

0

There are certainly better ways to do it than the homeowners went with above, but yeah they all have drawbacks of some sort. No blinds is probably best, unless the sun comes in at a bad angle

Textured Soy Protein > AestheticsInMotion 01/08/2018 at 14:27

0

I like it, could use some updates. Also, knowing nothing about blinds for windows like that, a google image search leads me to conclude that blinds shaped to fit the angled top, that rise up from the bottom, are the best solution.

AestheticsInMotion > Textured Soy Protein 01/08/2018 at 14:39

0

It’s a cool place. The kitchen has been redone, granite countertops and backsplash, nice cabinets, stainless appliances, massive island. Standard fare for a modern “luxery home”. Everything else could use some renovation.

Those are nice blinds, but that style tends to be fairly delicate and short-lived. If starting from scratch, I’d probably go with electrochromatic glass for multiple stages of tinting sans blinds/shades. Some basic ambient light sensors and a few minutes setting up preferences and bam, auto-dimming that you’ll never need to worry about again. Pricier than standard glass, but generally still less than architectural glass.

fintail > AestheticsInMotion 01/09/2018 at 17:45

2

I’ll guess Woodinville or environs?

This is a plan-book house, and I think thousands exactly like it were built here between maybe 1975-80, give or take a few years. They are all over the place, on both sides of the mountains. My family lived in a house of this design when I was a little kid. I don’t recall a lot about it, but I seem to recall loud patteren kitchen flooring, and harvest gold countertops.

The diamond paneling is indeed very cool, and remarkable that it survived. Maybe it will be preserved. The cool mid century stuff is somewhat being saved, but much interesting 70s material won’t be so lucky.

AestheticsInMotion > fintail 01/09/2018 at 17:50

2

Good guess! About halfway between Bear Creek Country Club and the Trilogy sprawl.

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > AestheticsInMotion 01/10/2018 at 11:02

0

Any guess what this will sell for?

AestheticsInMotion > fintail 01/10/2018 at 20:36

0

3 or 4 bed, 3 bath. Any rough guesstimate on what this place will go for?

fintail > AestheticsInMotion 01/10/2018 at 21:29

0

Tough to say, really depends on the exact subdivision/location and interior finishes, I think - not to mention lot size. I kind of like some 70s era design, but I think a lot of people don’t like the interior finishes- even though this exact style of house is kind of a known entity here, and I think people will like the exterior anyway.

Maybe 600-700?

Looks like it has original windows, too.

AestheticsInMotion > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com 01/10/2018 at 21:37

1

I was thinking about 600-700, and fintail said the same. It’s juuuuust outside of the real high-demand area where it would easily be over a million for the land, and an almost gaurenteed teardown

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > AestheticsInMotion 01/11/2018 at 09:12

1

So, I’m going to go ahead and not tell you how (relatively) little we paid for a very nice 4000+ sq ft house on 10 acres in Oklahoma. =)

The longer I’m here (18 years now), the more I think that higher salaries in bigger cities never can catch up to the higher cost of living. My wife and I are very fortunate to each have good-paying jobs in a place that is very cheap to live.

AestheticsInMotion > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com 01/11/2018 at 22:56

1

I love Seattle, but after I sell this business I may look into a career that could get me into a cheaper state for awhile. It’s starting to look like the bay area around here, with no end in sight.

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > AestheticsInMotion 01/12/2018 at 08:59

0

It’s a shame, but there are plenty of places in the west that are beautiful and also inexpensive to live.