Catskills - Sullivan County - Ulster County Real Estate -- Catskill Farms Journal

Blog Cabin Intro Video This should be great for the area. Lots of positive free press. There's this guy named Jack Thomasson, I mentioned a few times over the past 9 months, who pops into town more and more frequently. Having done house projects for the past 15 years for HGTV, various national magazines and now DIY, he's a combo house planner, talent scout, location scout, project manager. Not saying he recruited us as only the 35th builder he's ever selected from across the US, but someone else could say that. He would know better than me since I hardly leave Eldred these days, but he claims that Catskill Farms is one of more dynamic home design and build companies in existence presently, anywhere in the US. And he would know considering not much grass grows under his feet - he's always moving around the country - building this, scouting that. His latest project - HGTV's Dream Home in New Mexico - is presently airing and will be given away soon. It's validating for sure - and since it's not like I live in a place where many of the daily professional challenges can be shared with like professionals (since few exist), he's great to have around and bounce things off of. Well, This real sad looking photo is from Friday night at Erin and Gregs - over at 50's Ranch #1. For some reason I may be the worst portrait taker ever - still lifes are one thing, put a person in the photo and everything goes haywire.

Anyway, Erin popped up last January, and having never spent anytime looking at or for real estate, decided right then and there to buy 50's Ranch, even though it was only framed up with very little definition.

Gin Martinis, snacks, our baby somewhere doing something worrisome.

What's amazing about our clients is their general taste level - our clients have good taste. Not necessarily expensive tastes cause lord knows money don't buy taste - but just a general soundness to their aesthetic. Colors, contrast and whimsy.

Girl talk in the kitchen over drinks and sippy cups.

Guy stuff by the fire. Lucas kept running around sticking his fingers in the candles and playing by the fire.

And Jake, Lucas, the vacuum cleaner and sunlight on a Sunny Sunday Morning.

So, it's one thing to take pictures of empty good looking houses after we finish them - it's quite another to revisit a year later after everyone settles in and defines it a little more specifically. Maybe I'll start a "Martinis with your builder" program, where people can invite me over, feed me alcohol, good snacks and good conversation, and then we can snap some post pics of the house with them all saying great things like "What a guy!", "Frankly, genius!!", "Best decision I've made in my life!!!"

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What used to be my picket fence in my front yard.

And bel0w, the Snow Fro.

We're working today. We work everyday.

My damn dog Jake just got caught totally chewing up my cool Carhartt hat with brim. This really burns me up.

Jake loves this mid-century chair, and while it was emotionally painful, I let him have his way with it, and he preceded to use it as a big chew toy/comfy bed combo, which is fine since you got pick your priorities with a young dog.

Just ask Lucas, whose toys have been thoroughly mauled, chewed, destroyed and distorted by the chewing abilities of Jake. And Lisa has a real sad slipper that was chewed pretty good too - and since she is pretty picky about her slippers, I don't see them being replaced anytime soon.

Jake is growing pretty fast. He's going to be big and his feet have always been over sized (you know what they say about big feet!).

It's snowing again. After a pretty weak winter of snow we have been hit 3 times now in the last 2 weeks with some pretty significant snow falls. The reality of it is the less snow you get, the more extreme each storm is. I remember back in 2002 or 2003 when one of the winters brought a snow storm a week - so by the end of the winter, 6-8" was considered a dusting - that's how accustomed we became to its regularity. But with a storm just two days ago with 14" of thick wet heavy snow, this snowurricane promises more of the same - lots of work plowing, losing electric, losing time on the jobs, etc... I'm in the office alone today - a month ago I cancelled work after the hype of a snow storm that left us with about 3" - and after Lisa accused me of getting soft ("You What? You closed the office?! Wow, times have changed!), I was hardboiled against being duped again, but the other day it took some of our guys 3 hours to get home, I figure since it is snowing now, this morning, and they are calling for increased snow all day, I figure we can sit this rumored 20" out. I'm currently organizing my desk to Pandora radio, dialed into songs like Radiohead.

Like I mentioned last week, between the weather, we managed to finish up a few houses and get them sold. The closing that happened on the same day as Cottage 24 was for Susan at Cottage 20. Susan had considered building with us for some time, then one day she called us up and said she was ready and we had just so happened to start a neat little version of Cottage 23. Super sweet, on a hill with views, with neighbors with houses from Catskill Farms.

Like I mentioned several times, Susan is friends with other customers of ours and as it appears of most of our customers, had great taste and was a real treat to work with. Clean simple straight-forward aesthetic.

This Mini-Cottage comes in just under 960 sq ft, with two bedrooms and a full bath with big views and a half bath with big views as well. And the back deck cantilevers out over the hill. ,Fireplace, wide plank floors, covered porches, open floor plan, functioning good looking kitchen. Thing about small houses is that they don't have any wasted space. Every bit of the house is used -

This vantage is from the stairs landing going to the upstairs, over-viewing most of the first floor. 5 panel interior doors, little mudroom with bluestone floor coming in the front door.

Rads to keep you warm, and 'quick pass' windows for deck eating.

The staircase going down into the basement, lined with stone.

Bathtub frames the window that looks out over the hills. 6' tub, 2' deep, with white subway tile.

Secret little passageway into a little storage area in the bathroom.

Blue room, with perfectly matched blue light and sliding crossbuck barn door.

Catskill Farms is kicking it, with another closing set for Monday for Mid-Century Ranch #2. We are starting the DIY project Monday and that should take care of the NY Times ignoring us for much lesser stories for the past 4 years (stories of upstate designers, developers, builders - 7 out of 8 who were out of business before the print was dry on the article, and half the other stories filled with nonsense facts and exaggerated claims of vibrancy), currently building Farm 12, Barn 2, Micro 3, and Cottage 25, and planning to get started on 5 new houses in the Spring (get ready Norm (he's our excavator who keeps us moving)). Snow day in the Catskill. Not a bad thing at all.

Not saying we are the contractor for the DIY's 2010 Blog Cabin (which will be seen by millions) since that could be interpreted as publicizing my involvement in violation of my contract, but there does seem to be some pictures of our homes in the selection area. See it here - Blog Cabin Jeanne and Deb - look familiar - Cottage 14 is Famous link - Also, looks like Dean at Cottage 13 is gettin his game on in this interactive home design show. And the boys at Cottage 23 with a their refrigerator and kitchen shot. So these money shots are now going national. Blog Cabin is a show where the viewers (web) help design the house, and then in the end the house is given away. The TV show airs in the Fall, and there are 5 independent shows as well, focusing on kitchens, baths, landscaping and great rooms. Can't say we will make it on TV (them damn editors always act like their guys are doing the work) but it should be huge publicity, which never hurts. If we only had some houses to sell.