antique X besso X eco house X for sale X house X japan X minka X mt. fuji X old X restored X shojiko X yamanashi X zen X べそ X エコハウス家古民一軒家別荘売家山梨富士山富士五湖自然 X 公民科 X 売家 X 富士山 X 山富士五 X 山梨

Shojiko Kitchen – Classic Japanese meets Ikea

Reforming this kitchen was the biggest adventure of the whole house. We pushed out the south wall into the garden, and added big windows to let the light in and a deck next to the pond. The heated cherry floors were the only place in the house where we used imported wood; every where else is Japanese cedar. The real charm was when we exposed the beams above the drop ceiling that had been added. We polished them up and had to configure the new room to leave them visible. I really didn’t want to use wall-board behind the counter, so we ended up doing plaster by hand and added a piece of glass we recycled from an old pinball machine above the stove to catch the grease and be easily cleanable. We also wanted to keep a traditional country feel, but make the kitchen easy to use, so we added Ikea cabinets with all the special shelves inside for pots and cutting boards, etc, and an electric induction range with a grill built in for fish and toast. The final touch was the cedar splash board which we custom fit under the windows and gave 4 coats of varnish to make it last.

antique X besso X eco house X for sale X house X japan X minka X mt. fuji X old X restored X shojiko X yamanashi X zen X べそ X エコハウス家古民一軒家別荘売家山梨富士山富士五湖自然 X 公民科 X 売家 X 富士山 X 山富士五 X 山梨

Upstairs at the Shojiko Minka

The upstairs at the Shojiko Lake House  ( currently for sale ), is a beautiful example of old Japanese woodworking.  We left the hand hewn beams exposed to give character and show the strength of the old home.

The house is available for viewing.  Call Jake @ 090-9346-3774.

antique X besso X eco house X for sale X house X japan X minka X mt. fuji X old X restored X shojiko X yamanashi X zen X べそ X エコハウス家古民一軒家別荘売家山梨富士山富士五湖自然 X 公民科 X 売家 X 富士山 X 山富士五 X 山梨

Spring at Shojiko House

The antique Minka home we recently reformed is enjoying its first spring with all the new double pane windows letting lots of light in to warm the house. It is always a joy watching the gardens grow for the first season in a new home. The lilies and daffodils are coming up, the bamboo in the back garden looks healthy, and the yard is full of “sansai”, wild Japanese mountain vegetables that we didnt know about until they sprouted. In our small pond, the tadpoles are clamoring about the edges, hoping to make it soon to full frog-hood.

The 198m2 house is available for viewing for interested parties.
Call Jake @ 090-9346-3774 if you would like to arrange a visit.
Asking price Y34,500,000
More details here…. http://www.earthembassy.org/eden-homes/homes-for-sale/

antique X besso X eco house X for sale X house X japan X minka X mt. fuji X old X restored X shojiko X yamanashi X zen X べそ X エコハウス家古民一軒家別荘売家山梨富士山富士五湖自然 X 公民科 X 売家 X 富士山 X 山富士五 X 山梨

Handmade Staircase

This one was tricky.  The stairs in our restored Shojiko Home  (currently for sale ), had to fit in between the old beams, and not be too steep so as to allow easy access for kids or elderly.  We also wanted something with a massive feel, for solidity and to match the large structural beams of the home.   Akaike-san came up with this pine log solution.  On the side facing the entrance, the heavy stairs seems to float in the air, retaining lightness while giving strength at the same time.