AFTER THE LAGUNA BEACH FIRE THE REBUILDING PROCESS BEGINS.

The excitement, frustration, anticipation, fear and finally.....the joy of building my house from the ground up.

A year and a half after the fire my lot was cleared and prepared for building process to begin.

My dad Bill Williams, ( here with his wife Gloria,) worked with Architect Bruce Spielbuehler, to design our new Mediterranean, Art Deco home.

Georgia stands on the cleared lot.  The view is spectacular, but our neighbor's Mark and Barbara's house will eventually be rebuilt across the street. 

My dad visits the site everyday.  Acting as Boss he makes sure every detail in the blueprints are properly addressed and fires subcontractors he doesn't think are doing their job.  I could never have done this alone.

The hill had to be pushed back five feet and major retaining walls built before the first floor could go up.

Gloria directs traffic as nonstop trucks go up and down the hill. The narrow street made It nearly impossible to squeeze enough space for trucks to stop and deliver wood, dirt etc.

My dad and Gloria see the vision of his imagination

unfolding like magic before their eyes.

My full time job as owner/Builder was being at the site everyday working with the Builder, Architect and my Dad..... I put in eight hour days answering questions, picking out tile, paint, appliances  and writing checks from the insurance money. 

The garage walls go up and I can't help think the safe that was in the floor holding my Baby diamond ring.  How could it have survived the firestorm? 

My Architect Bruce Spielbuehler and Builder Randy Smith, check the blueprints after the house was framed.

Even my brother Preston, helped a great deal, doing all the wiring for the stereo and surround sound.   

Finally the most exciting moment came when my dad and I climbed the stairs to the second story and stood in my new bedroom overlooking the ocean.  Maybe I wasn't able to write my book yet, but the dream of having a second story on my home came true for me.

To be continued tomorrow.

To see the whole series I did on the Laguna Beach Fire please check under archives. 

AFTER THE FIRE, "I DANCE WITH MY FATHER."

For eighteen months we watched our home spring out of the ground into a structure that would usher in one of the happiest periods of our lives.  Who would have dreamed I'd have to lose everything to gain it back ten fold

I think the most exciting part about building a house is seeing it framed..... and that first time you turn on the electricity.....  The thrill of seeing what was only a blueprint turn into a real home is awe inspiring. 

The biggest cost of building my home was the foundation and retaining walls.  Normally a fire wouldn't cause so much damage that you'd have to rip out the old foundation, but a firestorm that melts cars to the ground is a different story.

Another thrill in the building process is seeing the roof go on.  At that point you know the job is someday going to end.  Which up to that point doesn't seem possible.

What's really hard is spending the whole day with contractors and having no place to sit.  Gloria made a chair out of a cement block while my dad inspected the work being done on the floor.

The windows arrived and my dad checked them out to make sure they are all accounted for.  He'd built homes  before and knew the importance of checking and double checking every detail on the spot.

At last the structure takes on the appearance of a real home, but we are still months away from moving in.

My dad was fanatical about the paint job being done right.  He fired the first crew of painters because they didn't have an eye for perfection.  He wanted the walls so smooth that when you ran your hand over them, they would feel like glass.  That's what 1930's Art Deco was all about as far as he was concerned.

Getting close to finishing the job, we gained a new respect for working together as a team.  I'm not saying it was ideal, there were times we wanted to kill each other, but in the end I have to say, my dad was the wind beneath my wings.  He showed me I could start and finish anything with the right state of mind.

When the landscapers added the tropical plants to the outside of the house the whole thing popped with color and became a beautiful little Mediterranean Villa.  It was More than I ever dreamed I would have.

When the house was finally done and the contractors pulled away, my dad continued to come over everyday and add the magical details that made the inside of the house look like a movie set..... Here he is with the 1977 Series 1, Clenet, # 13, I've talked about so much on my blog.  We now enter it in Concours de' Elegance shows.

It was my dad who put the blue glass Cross on the fireplace to give the feeling of a sanctuary and the light from all the windows made the room an artist's dream.

DANCE WITH MY FATHER, BY CELINE DION.

Check back tomorrow to see the finished product as Georgia and I show you around our home.