I stare at roofs too much

Did you know you're recommended to have R48 insulation in your attic in Chicago?
Signs your roof doesn't have enough:

• Icicles.
• No snow on your roof.

That translates into roughly 15" of rolled out fiberglass insulation (more interesting info here).

The very first project in the house was to add two layers of R30 insulation rolls in the attic.  We are overachievers who threw 20ish inches of insulation in (trust me: hauling 20 insulation rolls off the truck, through the yard, into the house and up two sets of stairs - more work than it sounds like).  Now we never get icicles on our roof.  But I can't stop looking at the roof to make sure we don't have a hotspot - and now I stare at everyone's roofs.  It's like a tick.  You walk down the sidewalk, you stare at roofs.

You stare enviously at all the houses covered in snow and simultaneously long for icicles, because they are quintessential signs of winter.

Here is my simple insulation breakdown:

You need to insulate your roof.  If nothing else because heat rises and you'll lose the most heat through your roof.  You can insulate two parts of your roof: the floor of the attic or the ceiling of your attic.

• An unfinished attic space: insulate the attic floor because it keeps the heat in your finished rooms.  
• Finished attic: insulate the ceiling between the drywall/plaster and the roof itself.

If you have a house with roof cuts, plaster walls might be as good as your insulation can get unless you re-roof the house with enough room for insulation.  Some day in the future you can look forward to a blow-by-blow of that project....hopefully in 20 years.

Where to buy insulation:  anywhere you find a deal.  Seriously, insulation isn't like plumbing fixtures - quality and brand name don't really matter.

That Chair in the Alley 8 Years Ago.....

The Chair, circa 2005-2013, partially complete

Nearly 10 years ago, while living at Hotel Spaulding, I found a sad armchair in the alley.  It was a few days after the 1st of the month.  It was surrounded by a pile of books and clothing, abandoned. 

It had a great shape and lots of potential.
It was neglected, with horrible fabric and I decided to gut it.  That weekend I tore it apart on the concrete backyard behind Hotel Spaulding.  As with all great projects, I jumped in - no research required.  (this is a pattern, remind me to tell you about the time we tore out the plaster wall without any experience putting plaster up....)

That weekend I met Megan for the first time.  This chair, weirdly, symbolizes our friend-iversary.  She later told me that when she saw this person tearing apart the chair where we all lived, she knew she needed to be my friend.  I think this makes her an awesomely adventurous person that I've been privileged to know for 8 years.


Over the next month I found different pieces of the chair: The chair stuffing and outdoor Waverly fabric on sale at Joanne's, the black furniture tacks and the tiny can of black oil paint at Home Depot, the tiny hammer from...somewhere, who knows anymore. 
I started piecing the chair back together.  I got bored 3/4 through and vowed to "come back to it".

Sometimes you have a week off between Christmas and New Years

Fast forward 8 years later....

Finished!

I had a week and a half off and no real plans for my time.  One evening, between halfway dismantling Christmas decorations and the 5 loads of laundry I was hating on, I decided the chair's time had come.
I broke out the electric nail gun (bought specifically to finish the chair around year 4 of the great chair decade).  An hour and a half later, voila!  I decided against all the pretty lime trim I'd purchased since the wood frame was so pretty and called it quits.  Maybe I'll come back with some black rope trim, or use all that extra fabric to make a pillow - but the chair has met its project-end.

 After 8 years I have a deep friendship and a chair I'm considering selling on Craigslist.