www.artisanstructures.com
Little Mansions Designs
Little Mansions Has Moved to www.artisanstructures.com
Thursday, January 17, 2013
Little Mansions Has a New Website
www.artisanstructures.com
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Simple.White.Structure.
Schuan Carpenter
Little Mansions Designs
www.vintagegreenhouses.com
"Spaces for Community, Work, and Life"
Monday, September 3, 2012
Confessions of a Tomatoholic, by Lisa Kahan
Over the years, as my desire to have more and different types, my tomato starts went from window sill to dining room table pushed up against the window beginning in February and lasting into May. During that period I moved my tomatoes from tiny 72-seed starter trays into ever-increasing sized pots.
As the plants grew, we found ourselves dining with greenery all around us. I didn't mind this much because I love growing tomatoes, but I'm just one of four. So when I mentioned that I was considering having a greenhouse built, the idea was met with great enthusiasm, And when I announced that I had found someone who was both talented and affordable, the family said "Go for it."
So the tomato starts moved outdoors where I visited them often. My 10-year-old comes into the greenhouse to "help transplant" which she likes to do but which is particularly fun when it's rainy outside, warm inside, and we are nestled together with hundreds of tomato starts.
This year, because of the greenhouse, I was able to grow over 300 tomato starts (plenty to share) as well as get a great start on cucumbers and squash. I've got even bigger plans for next year.
Monday, August 20, 2012
The First Studio has Successfully Shipped
STUDIOS, greenhouses and sheds, can now be shipped anywhere in the US or Canada!
Our experiment to see if you can ship a studio or greenhouse has been a success! This one went to Thousand Oaks, CA. I met it on the other end and put it together. It arrived in perfect shape and went together like a charm.
The freight shippers were amazing. Although we learned a thing or two about how to package these, I learned from this that the glass is actually safer in a freight trailer than in the back of my own vehicle.
Although I won't be able to meet every greenhouse I ship, I am now confident that we can build a structure that is reasonably easy to assemble on the other end.
Schuan Carpenter
Little Mansions Designs
www.vintagegreenhouses.com
"Spaces for Community, Work, and Life"
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
The First Greenhouse Gets Shipped
While assembly is not normally included in the shipped structures, I will fly to LA next week to make sure my first one arrived in one piece. I will take pictures while we assemble it, with the hope of a 1-2 day assembly.
Watch the blog for more pics of what I think is my best one yet!
Schuan Carpenter
Little Mansions Designs
www.vintagegreenhouses.com
"Spaces for Community, Work, and Life"
Friday, August 3, 2012
Prototype Drawings
The first is a shipable version of the greenhouses and studios we have already built. It will be shipped in panels ready to assemble.
The second will be a mostly-polycarbonate model. The aim on this line will be to keep Little Mansions Designs' creative look while keeping construction and shipping costs down. You will have the option of choosing several different roof designs, door designs, and side panel designs. We can make curved roofs, round doors, gothic windows...all with wood and dual walled polycarbonate panels.
For those who like these options but also like the reclaimed window look...we can design the front around reclaimed doors and windows.
I am currently taking orders for these. For the next 6 months these greenhouses/studios will be completely custom.
Below is some of the first drawings. More are to come!
Schuan Carpenter
Little Mansions Designs
www.vintagegreenhouses.com
"Spaces for Community, Work, and Life"
Friday, July 6, 2012
Our own Back Yard Mansion
Ultimatelly this project became the catalyst for Vintage Greenhouses and Little Mansions Designs as people continually told me that I needed to bring this creativity to the market--both with my furniture and with my building designs.
The bookcase was built out of reclaimed wood from an old barn near Puyallup, WA. The owners had bought the house to retire in...and the barn was why they fell in love with it. They finally were forced to take it down. I found them and they gave me the wood for free! My favorite wood was the floorboards, which had about an inch of horse dung that had built up over the last 100 years. But after cleaning and lightly planing with a dull blade, I found the most beautiful old growth fir...still in good shape, but with plenty of "beauty marks" from bugs, nails, and just the perfect amount of rot!
Community Space and Teaching Space were very important to us. By spanning the space created by the tower and the lower wing, we were able to create a giant square in the middle of the building. The 320 sq ft building with a small grand paino, has been known to host as many as 38 people for concerts, events, and recitals.