The House That Jill Built:
A Woman’s Guide To Home Building By Judy Ostrow
Millions of women are already learning the basics of do-it-yourself home repair and getting in tune with the empowering nature of power tools. A quick trip to any home improvement store reveals that almost half of the customers are women.

The first book devoted solely to women-built houses will be released this month. Entitled, The House That Jill Built is a first in many ways. This book shows the whole process, before, during and after, not just the beautifully styled and tidied result of what sometimes amounts to years of labor.

All of the stories in the book are true: the dust, the dirt, tears, fears, money problems, marital spats, privation, and finally the satisfaction of a place that started as a dream.
All of the women who tell their stories come from all walks of life. They are young and old, experienced and inexperienced, mothers, married, single and empty nesters.

All of the experts giving advice are women. The experts are female carpenters and builders who teach other women. There is even a female buildinginspector.

This guide is not just do-it-yourself pep talk. It is full of valuable information, the who, what, when, where, why and how of home design and building, so that any women can learn the skills she needs to do home renovation or a whole house.

The authors offer helpful hits and advice such as; don’t bit off more than you can chew. It is easy to get overwhelmed. Think like a Girl Scout. Whether you are building a new house or renovating an existing home, you will collect a lot of paper during the process. Be prepared; keep a large accordion file or thick D-ring binder for all of the documents related to the financing and permitting of your project. Visit as many owner-built houses as possible. Talk to the owners and find out what they would have done differently. Learn from their mistakes. Learn about the tools and techniques of the building trade. It’s the first step toward getting hands on with a house.

Some of the best advice they offer is to get the best out of subcontractors. Some this includes educating yourself. Learn something about every tradesperson involved in the project. Learn the basics of their language and they will respond much better to questions. Avoid emotional reactions, no matter how difficult it gets. If a fit is thrown, only the action will be remembered, not the problem that needs to be solved. Follow up on everything discussed in writing, with an e-mail or fax. Work to be clear and concise in requests. Never be afraid to ask questions.

Judy Ostrow is an independent journalist whose articles about hone building, renovation and sustainable residential design have been published in magazines such as This Old House, Home and Natural Home. Karen Leffler began her career in architectural photography in northern California where she designed and built three houses.

Details:

Mass Market Paperback: 160 pages
Publisher: Gibbs Smith Publishers (March 28, 2005)
ISBN: 1586854593

Find this Book at Amazon

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