With the title of Expiration dates (and the subtitle “Life between now and when the milk spoils”) I was expecting a vaguely humorous personal weblog. However, this is a blog with a very specific purpose – to document the building of a house from scratch.
The blog is Typepad and isn’t a particularly imaginative template – the usual 3 column layout so common to Typepad blogs. Despite the lack of a template, it is solidly constructed with all the necessary “About Me” pages and photoblogs up and running. Basically, no marks for visual presentation but full marks for functionality.
The “About Me” describes a little more about the project – the author and her husband decided to build their own home (apart from the foundations which they got professionals in for) and this is their log of the project. It is quite nice to know that they really seem to be amateurs at this whole thing; so reading the entries, you can see how they learn as they are going along and how they overcome problems. Anyone thinking of undertaking a similar project could do worse than follow the tips, tricks and web links found amongst so many of the posts. This type of blog would not work without photos, but thankfully these are in abundance. There are plenty in the weblog entries themselves – all of a good quality, and even more in the photo albums. It was nice seeing the plot of land in the early entries develop in to a real framework (about where they are now). You can also get an idea about what the final house will look like by clicking on the “House Plans” link in the sidebar.
Apart form the building of the house, there are also enough personal entries to keep the casual reader interested – about their two dachshund dogs, about gardening and nature which they come across, a few health problems and other family stuff. The surrounding area looks fantastic and is shown in many of the photos. You also get a strong sense of family and friends pulling together for the project.
I love reviewing weblogs which find new and innovative uses for this format of online publishing and this is a prime example of how they can be put to good use beyond the purely personal diary. I am sure once their house is finished they will be chuffed to bits with their achievement as well as their log of the whole process. It is nice that we can share in this as well.
Expirationdates