Dreams and Achievement (walls and ceiling)...

The only difference between dreams and achievements is hard work. 

~Chris Bollwage 

The work continues.

I have two engines in my boat. They are accessible via a hatch on the back deck of the boat, but they must also be accessible from inside the boat. This means that the walls must be built accordingly.

We decided to build box seats around the engines. These will double as benches for seating (and the pups will be able to jump up onto them and see out the back window). Here is what they look like so far:

In this pic, the tops were not finished yet (these are just pieces of wood sitting there)

In the pics above, you can see that the engines will be easily accessible with the tops off of the boxes.

Just a few days later, the tops were finished...and here is how they look now:

I plan to have a cushion made for the top of the box.  This will be a nice lookout post for the pups!

We may add a shallow (3-4 inch) tray that will fit down into (but hang even with) the top of the boxes.  This would serve as additional storage, help muffle engine sound, and act as additional insulation.  Once the boat is renovated, I think each year will bring additional projects and improvements (like this one)

Also exciting is the ceiling in the aft has been installed:

The walls of the closet and head are also in place:

This is such a fun time of progress.  I still have not been able to flip up a switch and have a light come on, and I absolutely can't wait to see the beams on the ceiling...but we are getting closer and closer to making my "dreamboat" a reality!

A peek inside...

"True happiness comes from the joy of deeds well done, the zest of creating things new."

~Antoine de Saint-Exupery

Since the day I bought this boat (back in March), I have been looking forward to the day when we would start building.  There was so much demolition that needed done.

Now the building is well underway, and I am beyond excited!

I wanted to take a moment to look back and compare how things look now with how they looked the first time I walked through the boat.

Let's look at the stairs between the galley and the salon.  Here they were as I first saw them:

And here they are now (stained mahogany):

The treads of the stairs lift up to allow for additional storage.  In the old stairs, this was wasted space:

Here is a side-by-side comparison:

This is a view standing in the salon and looking down toward the galley.  We  are using birch for the walls and ceiling, and mahogany for the trim.  We aren't finished yet...we haven't put the finished floor in (it will be mahogany), and the dinette is still very rough (it will be polyurethaned on the outside, and the seats will be upholstered (maybe in black?), and the ceiling will be coffered with mahogany.

A closer look at the ceiling...the old ceiling was covered with those white, plastic sheets you often see on shower walls.  Many boats have white ceilings, so it was a traditional look done inexpensively.  It was moldy and looked cheap:

And here is a close-up of the old air conditioners:

And the new ceiling (not finished yet).  We used birch to cover the ceiling.  You can see the holes and wires that are ready to hold my new stainless recessed can lighting.  Also, the ceiling will be coffered with mahogany beams (there is a pic below that shows what it will look it):

Another angle of the ceiling:

And here is the nice, new air conditioner.  In this pic, you can better see the seams of the wood sheets.  These will all be covered with the coffered beams, so that the birch will be divided into 6 sections.

This is the "vision" pic.  It is NOT my boat, but it is the look we are going for.  You can get an idea of how the ceilings will look once the mahogany beams are in place.  The floor of my boat will be a solid color (mahogany), not the striped look of this teak and holly floor (maybe someday).

And these are the light fixtures that will be installed in the ceiling:

Here is another before shot.  The counter tops were white formica.  The panel was dark, warped with moisture and moldy.  The floor boards were rotted through.

In this pic, you can see the condition of the paneling and the floor (looking at these pictures now I just shake my head that I actually took this project on):

And here is the same area.  New everything.

The progress on the boat is happening fast now, and it is very exciting to see it all take shape.  I know that I have recommended my contractor several times in this blog already, but bear with me as I do it again.  If you have need of a contractor (not just for boats, but your home, office, etc.), I do highly recommend Jerry Williams with twin hills construction, LLC:  513.293.7744 or jwilliams209@cinci.rr.com.

Seeing her restored to a beautiful condition is very exciting.  While this has been (and continues to be) a huge project, it has brought me lots of happiness--doing the job well and bringing newness to her is very rewarding!

Becoming my boat

"Create your own visual style...let it be unique for yourself and yet identifiable for others."
~Orson Welles

When you look out into the marina, it is easy to spot the one orange boat.  She stands out.  

Finally, we finished painting her!  It took 5 coats of paint to cover the dark green.  Because weather did not cooperate, it took quite a while to get all 5 coats on (in hindsight, I should have sanded off more of the green).  

After the painting was finished, it was time to remove the tape.  This was not an easy job--it had been left on for too long.  We used green tape, blue tape and the traditional beige masking tape.  The type of tape really didn't have much effect on how easy/difficult it was to remove.  What did make a difference was the amount of exposure to the sun.  The tape on the shady side of the boat was much easier to remove.  Also, the tape that was completely covered with paint was easier to remove.

In this pic, the easiest tape to remove was the tape in the middle (because it was completely covered with paint).  The tape on the top was the most difficult--it was not covered with paint, and it was folded over the edge of the boat:

Luckily, I had help removing the tape:

These are my friends Nancy and Beth.  This was such a tedious job, and I was so thankful for their help!

There were two areas we changed the design of the stripes:

1)  We widened the bottom stripe on the top of the boat so that it was parallel with the rest of the stripes: 

This is her with the green paint.  Notice the stripe on the bridge (the very top)...

The stripe on the bridge is widened--the bottom of the stripe is parallel to the lines of the boat.

2) We painted the triangle between the low stripes and high stripes to make the color flow better:

Here it is before we painted the triangle (it was taped off in this pic, though)

And here it is with the triangle painted.  I like the way it makes the stripes look more continuous.

There is some sticky residue left from the tape in some places.  I think I will try goo gone to see if it comes off without damaging the paint.

Overall, I really like the orange, and I am happy with the finished product!  She will look great when we add the new graphics with her name in the Spring:

Another thing to celebrate is that the contract I have with the previous owner is just about fulfilled--and the title is now in my name!  

The interior is moving along, too.  More on that in my next post...But, like the outside, the inside will have its own visual style.  It will be unique, as well!