7 years of hard work - finished! :)

That is beautiful work!

Love the split surface driveway look...

..and that water feature is really nice!
 
Wow! Very beautiful work Mr. Crosby! Congratulations! Does this mean I have to place to stay when I get out your way? And does this mean you now have time to play even more often? That's always good!
 
An amazing yardscape. A little piece of heaven at your doorstep.​
 
Agree with Bon about the English countryside. As Blake(?) said, "a green and pleasant land". Your beautiful grounds and landscaping and house are obviously a labour of love with a modern rustic aesthetic (not unlike your taste in drums).

Just wondering about the Leaning Dragon of Andy ...
 
great place to just be at peace
Exactly the reason for doing it :)

The best thing is: It's (almost) finished. .
Yes, the end is very much in sight.

What kind of roof do you have on there? I can't tell if it's an asphalt shingle or something else.
they're hand thrown clay tiles. Stainless steel pinned into oak batons. It gets damn windy up here!

That's a crazy amount of work, and to think you did it yourself if crazy.
yes, if you thought about it at the beginning, there's no way you'd start the job.

live there. Can I? Pretty please?
yes Larry :) Both kids are moved out this month, so there's plenty of spare room.

Can I expect to see you on site bright and early monday morning then? :)
Sorry Naige, but no. I've had enough!

Now, if only there wasn't so much land and water between you and I, or else I'd say when's the house warming party!!
That would be cool :)

How long does it take to cut the grass?
If I'm topping it, about 45 minutes. If I'm cutting & collecting, about 1.5 hours.

Now how do you do all that and have time to post so much on here, or make drums?
I'm an absolute workaholic. I have to be doing something continuously. I'm an 18 hours a day guy - 7 days a week. of course, my wife has no issue with that - yeah right!

Obviously photoshopped though.........there's not a cloud in that English sky!!
Nope - 28 Celsius here today, & it's been like that for the last two weeks :)

The dragon is MEZZIN!
That's Cedric, & he's getting re-housed next week :)

I hope you are blessed with plenty of years to enjoy the fruits of your labour.
That's my biggest worry, & just my luck. Get it finished, then climb into my box :(

When I saw your place for the first time Andy, I think I mentioned how wonderful it was to you.
Looking a lot more finished now Duncan :)

You deserve all the rewards of your labor.
Thank you, & yes, but there's always someone who deserves it more than me. However, I put the work in, so they can all bugger off :)

..and that water feature is really nice!
Water feature is also the ultimate beer cooler :)

Does this mean I have to place to stay when I get out your way?
Always welcome Bo :)

. A little piece of heaven at your doorstep.​
Thanks Harry, & yes, that's how it feels :)

What a wonderful place - a dream....

Bernhard
Thanks Bernhard. When I did my first house renovation, I thought it was tough, but this one is by far the most work of all the renovations I've done.

Your beautiful grounds and landscaping and house are obviously a labour of love with a modern rustic aesthetic (not unlike your taste in drums).

Just wondering about the Leaning Dragon of Andy ...
Yes Grea, there''s a lot of my character in this property. It relates very much to the drums too. The whole house is oak framed in the traditional 14th century style. No nails or screws. It's all willow peg jointed beams. Those oak beams you see on the outside, are the same beams you see on the inside.

& Yes, although Cedric has always had a lean, he's getting a bit unstable, hence his rehoming next week. Quite a job actually, as he's 23 feet high & weighs 4 tonnes!
 
You are an amazing man. I don't know how you do it all, and still have loads of posts here. What are you posting with one hand and shoveling with the other? You're insane! Did you carve Cedric?
 
You shall hence forth be know as Midas. You have touched your 2 acre estate and turned it to Gold. You have touched Guru drums and turned them to Gold. Some where along the way someone touched you with the proper work and life ethic. I hope you do spread it to others along your way. Absolutely stunning little estate. It shall be called the Manor of Midas. I would love to sit on the platform above the waterfall, listen and just think good thoughts
 
Cue the freak weather disaster that ruins everything in 5...4...3...2...




The water in the waterfall isn't reclaimed at any point? You're just pouring water into the ground there? Why not make a small pond and put in a pump to circulate?
 
Did you carve Cedric?
No larry. it was done by a friend of mine who carves dragons for a living. It's still the only one he's ever carved in the vertical. Took a while. Cedric was an old oak that had died in situ.

I would love to sit on the platform above the waterfall, listen and just think good thoughts
Thanks Grunt, & that's exactly what I do. It's my favourite place :)

The water in the waterfall isn't reclaimed at any point? You're just pouring water into the ground there? Why not make a small pond and put in a pump to circulate?
Water is recirculated, & filtered through 12 tonnes of gravel. Evaporation is replenished naturally through rain water diversion. You can drink it - no problem.
 
Water is recirculated, & filtered through 12 tonnes of gravel. Evaporation is replenished naturally through rain water diversion. You can drink it - no problem.

That's super-cool then. Do you have any pictures of the reservoir or reclamation device? I've never heard of that!
 
That's super-cool then. Do you have any pictures of the reservoir or reclamation device? I've never heard of that!
I'll have a dig through my old photo's, but it's essentially a big underground reservoir filled with gravel & flow channels so water doesn't stagnate. A sump pit at one end housing three multi stage impeller pumps of different capacity. The waterfall itself is butyl rubber lined to 8ft either side, so all water is captured on the way down (including splashes). The liner extends beyond the top of the fall & acts as a rainwater collection area. Similarly, the whole bottom area is gradiented towards the underground reservoir, the whole being controlled by an overflow so levels are self regulating. I also have our ground source heat pump elements running partially through the reservoir to improve underfloor heating efficiency (with air source heat pump backup). I doubt there's many who've integrated a waterfall reservoir into their domestic heating system. System designer = me :)

Biggest challenge = selecting, mapping out - transporting & placing naturally shaped boulders weighing several tonnes. To make it work, it had to be assembled twice. Once for fit - photographed & laser measured, then dissembled - foundations in, then lined, then reassembled. I didn't know it would work until the first time I fired it up, & by then, it's too late to fix if it's a screw up. It worked :)
 
Gorgeous Andy, absolutely stunning. I seem to remember you posting some pics a while back when you were having water troubles after a bunch of wet weather. Looks like you've "tamed" it considerably.

As with your drums, your artistic flair seems to come through. Making all this work the way you did goes beyond financial means ... it is about taste.

You do make it difficult on the rest of us ... I can't possibly show these pics to my better half...!!!

Well done (again)!

Best,
radman
 
You do make it difficult on the rest of us ... I can't possibly show these pics to my better half...!!!

Yeah, I showed my wife, she wants your house! It is beautiful, I love country settings.
 
It humbles me to see this. Not only can I not do any of these things, I don't know how to conceive of any of these things.

I could mow the lawns.

There are in this life a few exceptional people, people who do many things well because they have very fine minds. You're one of those people for sure, Andy, and knowing that makes my life better. Anyway I guess it does, how I'm not sure.

I'm definitely going to make the trip up to see you once I'm living in England. I'll call first.

Please have beer.
 
Jesus, Andy. Wow. I mean, that's incredible. Stunningly beautiful and a story behind it that inspires awe, at least for me. Like dmacc says, it's hard to complain about trimming shrubs (which is something I've done many times) after seeing this. And the best part is, you earned it.

And there are Guru drums inside this place? Save a place for me next to the other Larry.

Larry, you can have the bed. I'll take the sleeping bag on the floor. And the Gurus.
 
What a beautiful property! You must be very, very proud, especially having done the work yourself. Thanks for sharing!
 
Making all this work the way you did goes beyond financial means ... it is about taste.
Thank you, that's a lovely thing to say :)

I love country settings.
& they're getting harder to find on this little island.

I'm definitely going to make the trip up to see you once I'm living in England. I'll call first.

Please have beer.
Beer at the ready Jay, but I'm more of a wine head :)

And there are Guru drums inside this place?
Yes, they live in my loft above the barn/garage.

You must be very, very proud, especially having done the work yourself.
Yes, for once, I am :)

You'd never need to mow the lawn again.
Did the pony thing before the daughter discovered boys & cars - no thanks. They may well "mow" the grass, but the product of said mowing is a PITA if you just want to walk in & otherwise enjoy the surroundings. Not exactly cheap either :(
 
To say that I am impressed would be a severe understatement. The fact that you did this yourself elevates it from a beautiful landscaping job to a personal artistic statement.

I wish you and yours many happy years there.
 
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