Those are the plates :)

My grandmother has some formal china with sheafs on it, it has gold...I'll have to ask her what kind it is. I'm sure it is old though.

We do need tableware for recruitment. We have glass plates now, but need more. We've had plain glass for so long, it would be great to find something different that we can get enough of at a reasonable price. I'll have to do some searching and hit the outlets...

Any excuse to shop of course :D

Is there a Crate and Barrel in Louisville now? I really like this pattern, although I have no clue what they're looking for :)

http://www.crateandbarrel.com/family.aspx?c=20&f=1534

Nope .... no Crate and Barrel :(

I think the closest is the one they opened last year in Columbus, OH. Which probably means another 2 years at least before it gets here...

In the end, it will all come down to budget of course.

Construction Photos!
 

I went by over the weekend and took some pictures.

http://www.womenchefs.org/associatio...ew 3-18-06.jpg
This is the front view.

http://www.womenchefs.org/associatio...ew 3-18-06.jpg
This is the rear view. (Check out all of the windows Chris!)

"We're movin' on up..." :)

We get inside for a tour on Friday - I'll try to get some interior shots for you.

WOW!!!! Get excited!

Re: Construction Photos!
 

That's it?!! That's ours?? Really and truly? WINDOWS!!! LOOK AT ALL THOSE PRETTY WINDOWS!!! For those of you unfamiliar, currently the chapter is in a basement suite. To be generous they currently have have a kitchenette with about enough room for 2 people, powder room (no shower though), living/dining room, chapter room, office and storage areas. Please correct me if I'm wrong about the current suite setup, Dori. Windows are the ultimate luxury.

PS--the Columbus Crate and Barrel is only about 45 minutes from me.

You are correct Chris. That's the current set up. Oh, to be above ground and not have the worry of water every time there is a heavy rain... :)

We'll double our available space and have 3 sets of double doors that will allow us to shut off the rear room if we like. The kitchen alone is probably as big as the current chapter room. Our biggest upgrade so far is tile, which we have in the entry, baths and kitchen. We went with 16" tiles set on a diagonal. But of course... We're most excited about the windows! :cool:

Thanks for the heads-up about Crate and Barrel. We probably won't get to deciding on those things until summer, but I'll let them know you are close by.

PS: Mark your calendar Chris - we are planning a fundraiser for June 4th and I've set it up so that we can have tours of the new suite! It should be pretty far along by then. Hope you can make it!

Edited to add: If I haven't mentioned it to you yet, there is a window in the kitchen too Chris! :)

Calendar marked already. Please email me the details once time, etc. are set! :)

Funny thing about windows in the kitchen...our kitchen in our house in KY was in the middle of the house so no windows. My only requirement when we moved to Pittsburgh and then here were windows in the kitchen.

As of right now the fundraiser is set for 2pm with small group tours to follow starting around 230-245.

That's unusual to have no windows in the kitchen. I would expect it in an apartment, but in a house you would think windows would be most everywhere...

I believe we are the only group with windows in the kitchen. We may even have the most window area period (I can't really tell with all the equipment still around). They're big too. On a guess-timate, I'd say each smaller pane in the photo is at least 12"x16". That's a lot of windows!

We must sound nuts to everyone else to be obsessing so much about a few panes of glass... but then close to 20 years underground will do that to a person :)

I sent some additional photos to UofL and they are supposed to put them online. That should give a better scope of where we are in relation to everyone else. I'll post a link when they are up.

Here is the link to additional photos online:

http://www.louisville.edu/student/co...rk/updates.htm

What exactly is being built for Pi Alpha? Is this a suite, a townhouse, a house? Will chapter members live there? What is the Greek housing like at Louisville?

If I remember the details, it's a suite/meeting/lounge type setup with residential spaces available for the chapter members. From the info on the Community web site: http://www.louisville.edu/student/co...park/specs.htm

The area will be equipped with two half bathrooms one of them will also include a shower unit.
The fellowship/gathering area will be approximately 920 sq. ft.
The kitchen will be approximately 245 sq. ft.
The kitchen pantry will be approximately 25 sq ft.
The office/study area will be approximately 110 sq ft.
The TV/seating area will be approximately 700 sq. ft.
Three sets of doors will open the TV/Study area to the main fellowship room for additional seating for large groups.
The storage area will be approximately 175 sq. ft.
The total parlor area will be approximately 2790 sq ft.

I don't know what our specific dimensions are, since the plans have changed several times, but those numbers are probably a good estimate. We should end up with about double the space (and be above ground!).

Currently there are 8 greek organizations on campus in historic homes and 3 groups on campus in suites. With the addition of the 5 new suites, remodel of 2 other suites and new house constuction there will eventually be a total of 17 organizations on campus.

Right now, the other 5 NPC groups are in the houses and AOII is in a basement suite. This fall there will be 3 remaining in the houses and 3 will move into the new suites, so there will be a parity in housing among the NPC groups that we haven't had previously.

There are no residential rooms connected to the suite directly, but there are 3 floors of dormitory space above the suites. Members of greek organizations can request priority assignment near their organization's suite.

That is so great for you all. Congratulations!