KailuaGeoff's Honolulu Lounge (Bamboo photos 6/1/05)

While waiting for our screened lanai to be enclosed -- so we can get started building the Honolulu Lounge -- we've been gardening...

http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=12043&forum=7&0

Can't wait to get started inside!
KG & Wahine Marian

[ Edited by: Kailuageoff on 2005-06-01 19:58 ]

I love that fountain! The whole pond set up looks so beautiful! Very nice job!
I need to look into a tiki spitting water into our pond, very cool idea, and a way for me to bring a little bit of Tiki to my garden.
again, nice job!

It has been eight months since Marian and I moved into our new living space. We selected a small house five minutes from work that has an atrium we can covert into a sanctuary for our Scarlett Macaw, and a screened lanai we could enclose and use for our home tiki bar; the Honolulu Lounge. Florida's hurricanes set our projects back considerabley due to every available tradesman being put to work by insurance companies for the last six months. We finally lined up some people to do the work, however, and submitted our proposal to the HOA architectural review board last week. We are still waiting to hear back from them. I'll try to post pictures as the project moves along, but I have to admit the last few days of waiting for the project to begin have been the hardest; especially because the weather is warming and I don't dare put more plants in the garden for fear they will be trampled in the construction. Please excuse my bitching, but I feel like I have been more than patient. It's time to get this damn show on the road already!
KG

I thought you asked whether the Home Owner's Association had an anti-tiki ordinance?

[ Edited by: Kailuageoff on 2005-02-24 08:17 ]

[ Edited by: Kailuageoff on 2005-02-28 14:14 ]

Good news! Our project is approved and work on the concrete starts this week. Here are some pictures of the space we are enclosing. Hopefully this project will inspire others who only have small spaces to work with.

[ Edited by: Kailuageoff on 2005-02-28 14:04 ]

It is not the size of the space that matters, it is the size of your Tiki!

On 2005-02-28 15:31, bigbrotiki wrote:
It is not the size of the space that matters, it is the size of your Tiki!

So true. Stay tuned. I've got a monster... heh, heh, heh.

[ Edited by: KailuaGeoff on 2005-02-28 15:57 ]

Hey Geoff, now I wanna know what that reply said BEFORE you edited it!

...and about that monster: I heard that now you have TWO!

K,
I love this home improvement stuff. i can't wait to see what you come up with.
Mahalo,
Al

On 2005-02-28 16:35, bigbrotiki wrote:
...and about that monster: I heard that now you have TWO!

Yes, I guess you could say it is a two-headed monster. But let's just keep our audience in suspense awhile longer.
KG

nice KG, lookin forward to plenty of before and after photos!

Sometimes a smaller space ends up better because you don't have enough room for all your stuff and it ends up looking very Lush and ful like it's been there growing for years. Can't wait to see the project develop.

On 2005-03-01 07:24, Benzart wrote:
Sometimes a smaller space ends up better because you don't have enough room for all your stuff and it ends up looking very Lush and ful like it's been there growing for years. Can't wait to see the project develop.

Mahalo Ben. Yes, when we saw this space I started thinking Zen Tiki Garden; except Zen is uncluttered and tiki is cluttered -- but like Zen this project has required endless patience and contemplation of its manifold possibilities, if you know what I mean.....
KG

I've got some gingers I brought back from Hawai'i and cultivated. Ti plants, too.

I'll start a few potted transplants for you and bring them to the grand opening.

You know - if I'm invited and all.

Pablus,
Of course you're invited! After the walls are up I want to plant a row of ginger under the windows. Some transplants from Hawaii by way of the Lagoon Lounge would be awesome. Maybe you'll have to come for the pre-grand opening?
KG
(Make sure you check your private messages)

On 2005-02-28 16:35, bigbrotiki wrote:
Hey Geoff, now I wanna know what that reply said BEFORE you edited it!

...and about that monster: I heard that now you have TWO!

Good for you Kailuageoff. Glad to hear the monster's back in Florida if it had to leave it's home up there. Still wondering where the other one went...??

Aw fudge! The site is graded, the forms are set, the chalk lines are snapped, the 5-year termite killing spray has been applied and the vapor barrier is on the ground. Too bad the concrete guy's pump broke and he won't be pouring our new slab today as expected. Now I'll have time to sit silently and contemplate all of the different ways bamboo can be arranged on the walls of my future hut. The concrete pour has been re-scheduled for Monday.
KG

[ Edited by: Kailuageoff on 2005-03-03 08:07 ]

Okay, the concrete finally got poured between rain storms and everything is looking good. Here are some pictures of our progress, plus some extra stuff...

Our son Michael stayed home from school to watch the guys pour the cement. He has his own mug collection, so he was anxious too!

Here's the form around the fountain.

Here's the form for the Honolulu Lounge.

Concrete!!!

Hard concrete!!! Now we have to wait a few weeks for our windows to be delivered, so we can start framing.

Meanwhile, this is what it looks like when Oceanic Arts delivers bamboo and thatching to your door...

No, we didn't order an entire semi full of bamboo, just about $400 worth of 1 1/2 inch poles, 4 inch poles and some 4x8 Lauhala.

This is what you do with your mug collection while your tiki room is being built -- store them in the garage... Maybe this is why they call them suffering bastards.

Actually, we did more gardening this weekend and put some resin wicker furniture on the lanai. Everything is kind of temporary though, because we are going to tile the lanai and the lounge after things are further along. More later.
KG

[ Edited by: Kailuageoff on 2005-03-13 18:22 ]

[ Edited by: Kailuageoff on 2005-03-13 18:25 ]

This is what happens when you rush your tiki bar project....

Sure, you start with the best of intentions carefully splitting each piece of bamboo...

Each task takes a little longer than expected, so you work faster and an inevitable slip up leads to a minor injury

Or two....

In your frustration, you start overlooking important details...

And appearances suffer.

The next thing you know, the whole damn project just goes to shit...

Flounder's comig over Saturday night. I'm hoping he can help me fix up this pile of crap. I'm so embarrassed.
KG

[ Edited by: Kailuageoff on 2005-05-20 14:18 ]

Damn, I hope Flounders one hell of a carpenter.
Hahahaha, thats just what I needed today.

I really love the bamboo splitter and the bloody stumps were cool.T he story was neat, just pulled you in. Can't wait to see the finished project.

On 2005-05-20 14:25, rodeotiki wrote:
Damn, I hope Flounders one hell of a carpenter.
Hahahaha, thats just what I needed today.

Damn I hope I'm that good of a carpenter as well because that is pretty much what my new fixer upper house looks like!

I can't wait to see the real thing. If it looks like that for real at least we have wood for a fire.

I can't wait to tast e the sweet nectar called Cruzan! haha

great pics geoff. Very funny.

Hope you didn't sever a tiki! Otherwise, full speed ahead.

Me and the wahine visited the Honolulu Lounge last night. One word can sum up the place and that word is AWESOME!

It was nice to see Geoffs dream come true especially after hearing him talk about it for a year or so. The first thing you notice as you walk into the bar is the fabulous 8 foot tiki supporting a cross beam. The tiki from BOT pg.24 to be exact. Right behind that is yet another incredible sight, that of the Witco bar and stools with original leopard print.

The bars tile floor continues right out the door into the garden with tikis and a koi pond with water being fed by a spitting tiki custom made by Wayne Coombs.

The bar is really well done and has a warm feeling to it.

Geoff also has an amazing collection of mugs, books, menus, and postcards.

I give the Honolulu Loungs four and a half stars. It would have had a five star rating but when I first arrived I heard Jimmy Buffet playing! LOL

Oh' and the drinks were great too! We started with a Scorpion Bowl then my favorite the Zombie. We then ended the night with a couple Mai Tais.

Thanks for a great night! It's good to know your right around the corner.

The place looks great. Too bad we never get invited.....

On 2005-05-22 15:56, NeptuneTiki wrote:
The place looks great. Too bad we never get invited.....

That's because your a bad influence! At least that's what I hear.

Next time you two come to town we can hang out at the Honolulu Lounge. It would be nide to see you. Like how I invite myself to Geoffs place.

Can I come to the party too???????
Neptune Wahine

[ Edited by: NeptuneTiki on 2005-05-22 16:18 ]

That was me asking that..... I don't know why Neptune Tiki came up? It is a mystery!!! The place looks awesome!

Neptune Wahine

Flounder & Meg,
Thanks for coming by last night. We had a great time as well. It so cool to have people come to you tiki bar who don't throw your vintage stir sticks in the trash or bang their beer cans on the top of your bar.
I knew you would love the Jimmy Buffet tunes. No way was I going to play Martin Denny as you walked through the door.
After all those drinks and good conversation, I was too burned out to drive to Tampa for Pablus' party. We do NEED to go visit him soon.
Neptune & Neptune Wahine,
Come see us Memorial Day weekend. Either that, or we'll come see you.
I'm going to post some construction pics of the real deal now.
KG

These photos are of work that started about three weeks ago. After our windows arrived, the framing started to go up...

Then the windows went in and the exterior walls went on..

And the door had to be hung.

I went to work hanging all the inside walls and Wahine Marian started painting...

Here I am cleaning up for the 100th time. I'm the one that looks like a mess.

The electrician and tile man came the same week, which was great. The electrician dropped the wires and installed all of the boxes. I wired up all of the lights and outlets.

The all-important tiki mug shelving went up next.

Then I spent an entire day working on a beam that runs the length of the room. I had to be careful not to split the beam but still carve out enough space to fit two of the Imperial Luau tikis around a support post in the center of the room.

After the tikis were in place, I started work on the ceiling. Where's Bamboo Ben when you need him?

After the ceiling was up, Marian and I couldn't resist the urge to start moving everything in even though there is a ton of bamboo that still needs to be inlaid on the walls.

There you have it. Welcome to the Honolulu Lounge.

Like I said before, the space we had to work with was fairly small (21 x 8 feet), but what helps make it work are two large doorways into the living room on each side of the room. They're not in the pictures, but they used to be sliding glass doors. Once I pulled those out, the room really opened up to the rest of the house. I'll post some more pictures when the bamboo work is done.
KG

[ Edited by: Kailuageoff on 2005-05-22 19:41 ]

Seeing those pics makes me want to come back already.

I can't wait to make a room myself again so I can bust out my mug collection again. I wasn't sure if I was going to build another bar but the Honolulu Lounge has inspired me to do so. Can't wait!

Fantastic Geoff!!!! Absolutely Fantastic. I really like the way it came out.

Looks great. Your at the point where I want to be. I'm adding-on and building a pool. Only I'm about halfway into it and can't wait to start decorating.

It looks like a great space and you are doing an amazing job

Way cool. I'm really liking that blue floor job.

Beautiful Job Kailuageoff, I mean like WOW and now the drool wot't stop and I'm about to short out the keyboard.(I need a drool proof keyboard for this). I Love the tile you installed on the floors. Love the way you cut out the main beam for the tikis. Love the pix of you working your tail off. BamBen was probably taking notes. Fantastic room the MaiKai would love to have.

Absolutely beautiful! I enjoyed your step-by-step photos and the end result is stunning! And to think, you only had to lose a hand and a leg to pull it off! :) You had me laughing out loud with those pics!

Mahalo to everyone for the praise. Hopefully I'll have better pictures of the bar and some photos of my mug shelves in a week or two. (Yes, I still use 35mm film). I've started putting the bamboo on the walls and have hung all of the short bamboo beams on the narrow part of the ceiling.
KG
Ben: You are more than welcome to visit anytime. Just give me shout.
Flounder: Stop by whenever you want.

Wow, really nice job, the place looks excellent!!!

21x8...sounds like my living room, it is a totally odd size. Good for a lounge, not so good for a living room...I guess that's what I get for buying a house built in the 20's.

Keep the photos coming Geoff!
-Jason

I can really appreciat the work involved...great job and I also noticed your extensive collection of tikis.

Again I'm impressed and the workmenship looks great.

[ Edited by: flacookz on 2005-05-28 06:11 ]

Here are a couple of pics of the bamboo going up...

Splitting bamboo with a machette and a sledge hammer. AAARRRRRRR! Funny, but none of my neighbors have stopped to ask me what the hell I'm doing as they pass my open garage.

First section of bamboo inlay.

bamboo going up near the Imperial Luau tiki.

Here's another shot of the garden and pond. Our Bird of Paradise started blooming as we prepared to serve our first drink in the Honolulu Lounge. Surely, this is a good omen.
KG

[ Edited by: Kailuageoff on 2005-06-01 20:16 ]

Ah, you're cookin with gas now! That's the way to split bamboo with less blood spilling.

What a great night at the Honolulu Lounge!

The place is spectacular. RIght out of a book.
You can really see the dedication to preserving the true timelessness of Tiki and you can feel the Aloha in the art items and the gardens.

Wow. You've really got something to be proud of there, KG. I enjoyed the Polynesian Paralysis over the Witco Bar and enjoyed talking story with you and Marian, Flounder and Mykainagirl and Madam Flounder.

Nice mug collection, too.
Get rid of your Tiki Bob now before it ruins the whole lot.

Yes thank you for another great night at the Honolulu Lounge.

Thanks for the praise and we're glad everyone enjoyed themselves. It's really nice to be able to share our little hideaway with such good friends. You guys are the best; especially Flounder's mom.
Aloha,
KG

A few people sent me a message in the last few days reminding me it has been a long while since I've posted any photos of the Honolulu Lounge / Kailua Bar. Here are a few shots with the lights down low... they're are a little blurry, sorry.

On the windward side we have the Kailua Bar.

On the leeward side we have the Honolulu Lounge.

The middle of the room, the Pali?

Aloha.
KG

Excellent!

WOW KG, I remember So Vividly when you began this project and the trials and tribulations you faced. The Struggles:

"And appearances suffer.

The next thing you know, the whole damn project just goes to shit...
"

Then things started looking better:
"The all-important tiki mug shelving went up next.
"

But you guys stuck with it and have one of the Crown Jewels of the Home Tiki Bars of South Florida (Mid, central just Florida?)
It is great to see you posting again and to revisit those days, Man you were having fun. Your Honolulu Lounge / Kailua Bar Looks like a room cut out of the Mai-Kai, How did you DO That? Thanks for the pic updates :P :lol:
HappyHappyhappy