I think I've been where your at before. When I started off I was doing almost exclusive container gardening due to a lack of land. I was really picky about mixing my own soil and the whole nine yards. That first year I had a horrible time with blossom end rot - not only on my tomatoes but also on my peppers. After a lot of research, what I found was that while it is a lack of calcium that causes blossom end rot, there are a lot of different things that can cause that lack of calcium - and in several of them, the calcium is actually there, but can't be absorbed properly by the plant. The next year, I did container gardening again, but this time I tossed all of my soil, made a fresh batch, almost completely avoided the fertilizer (I did use good materials to start with in the soil), and did avoid ALL fertilizer with any sort of a heavy concentration, and I had zero issues with blossom end rot that year - or any year since. Too much fertilizer can cause blossom end rot. Other aggravating factors can also be temperature, watering habits, and soil pH. Most all manufactured fertilizers tend to have concentrations that are pretty unnatural, and their successful application hinges on getting them properly diluted. In my experience, the stronger the fertilizer, the more likely you are to make a mistake, or have a problem even if you didn't make an obvious mistake just because something somewhere didn't mix as well or dilute as well as what was needed. As others have pointed out, success with fertilizer also depends heavily on knowing what's already in the soil so you can determine what to add. In general, I think if you just stick to mixing a good soil up front, and go really light on the manufactured fertilizer (as in maybe none other than a little about mid year, or plenty whenever if you have some nice composted materials) and you avoid fertilizers with high concentrations (If you need anything stronger than 10-10-10 you might be compensating for other issues that need to be addressed), you'll probably do just fine.

With respect to background, it sounds to me as if you're about as prepared to be your own GC as anyone. I know there are folks on this forum who will insist that you should "let the professionals do it" but... As far as I know, there are no colleges or trade schools that teach how to be a general contractor. Nor do I know of any formal apprenticeship programs anywhere although there may be a few somewhere. Many states don't require that GCs even be licensed. Some require a license but getting one is a matter of sending in a form with your name and address, a signed avowal that you don't have any felony convictions, and a small licensing fee. That means pretty much every "professional GC" out there learned on the job. Many of them started out as laborers in a particular branch of construction, decided they could run a business in that branch for themselves so started up their own painting/framing/roofing/foundation/whathaveyou business, and from there branched out to general contracting. Basically the GC's job is to keep the work flowing along, he pull permits, secures insurance, schedules inspections, hire subcontractors (and, IMHO, SHOULD make sure the subs work is done correctly), order materials and make sure they're on site when needed, handles the cash flow, and keeps records. If you need financing for your build however, you will need to find out if your bank will work with an owner-builder. Many won't. A few will. If your bank won't work with an owner-builder, find out what you must do, if anything, to get licensed as a builder in your state. Then set up a "building company" and contract with your own building company to do your build. As for whether it is a good idea to be your own GC... ARE YOU AN ORGANIZED PERSON? Can you keep up with names, addresses, sales slips, bids, contracts, warrantys, timelines, material's lists, etc. Do you know how to make and use spreadsheets? Are you willing to spend time learning everything you can about housebuilding? Are you willing to spend time checking references of potential subs? Are you willing to spend time everyday at your site checking the work of subcontractors and keeping up with use of materials so stuff doesn't "walk off" - at least without you knowing it? Will your real job suffer from neglect while you build? Can you be tough when necessary without getting emotional? Can you deal with people who lie to your face without losing your cool? Have you ever fired anyone? Have you ever run a complex project of any sort? Have you ever supervised a dozen people all at once? If you can answer yes to the above questions, I'd say go for it. It sounds as if you have a support system in place (parents) who can help guide you thru the order in which things need to be done and figuring that out is one of the more intellectually difficult parts of being a GC. Having worked in many phases of construction yourself, you probably know enough to at least be able to tell when most jobs have been done correctly but you might look into hiring a GOOD third party inspector with experience inspecting new builds at various phases. Getting subs is NOT that difficult and my experience when I took over GC-ing my own house after firing my sorry-a55 builder was that subs/suppliers were as willing to give me builder discounts as they had been to give them to my builder. After all, unlike my builder, my credit scores are good and I was willing to actually PAY for materials when they were delivered and pay the subs as soon as the job was completed. And the money I saved stayed in my pocket instead of going into my builder's. I found that the most difficult aspect of getting subs was getting them to actually show up when they said they would. When you're a homeowner building a single house, subs will often put off finishing your job in order to go start a job with someone else. Basically, they want to "lock in" all the work they can and they figure that once they've started your job and have some of your money in their pocket, you have no option but to wait for them to finish the job. The way to handle that is to make sure they never ever have any of your money in their pocket and that your agreement with them gives you the right to rescind the contract without notice to them and hire a replacement if they fail to show up. Email me and I'll send you a list of the terms that I started insisting be into every Sub's contract when I got fed up with being the "lowest priority job."

My Mama passed almost seven years ago, and I am still working on her fabric stash, but with materials used for quilting and also every other type of material one could need. I started quilting about a year before she died, and my first quilt was a Christmas gift for her, I finished in February. I kept company with her as I was quilting and she watched it come together, not knowing it was for her. She had always wanted to make a quilt, and had started the blocks for a Cathedral Windows, inspired by a friend when we lived in Missouri, as state just famous for it's cottage quilt industry. When one drove through the Ozarks, it was commonplace to see them hung out on clotheslines, to catch the eye of passers-by. She had also made some yo-yos but they disappeared sometime and I've never found them. I wish you much enjoyment with your new hobby. I think you'll find yourself close to her spirit as you work, as I find myself close to my mother when I am in my sewing room, handling the fabrics she had saved over the years. I have made about thirty quilts since then, really surprising myself since making ONE quilt was on my bucket list. LOL. Welcome to the forum, and my condolences as well on your mother's passing. BTW, that is one beautiful design you will be finishing. I also have a quilt cat who loves to lay on my blocks and scatter them too. He keeps me company each morning as I sew, and prefers my sewing room to all the others in this house.

you may want to get the entire building to adopt a change and address this. I agree with you completely on that issue, which is actually why I have liked the current setup in our bin--we are greatly motivated to unplug it. I don't want something that operates with a switch. Extension cords make me & DH antsy, and we won't go upstairs and leave them plugged in. In fact, right now we have to unplug it in order to close and lock the door, which is why I haven't yet just used cord slips to anchor the cord to the wall. And why I may never do that (but I have tried stick-on temporary cord clips, but putting the cord in and out each time we were down there was too much for them, and they were pulled or fell off the wall). I might try the Velcro idea, because it would be so fast to stick the cord up when we're working, and pull it back down when we're done. But you've also got me thinking that maybe I'll bring this issue up to the rest of the building, and ask them to show me their lighting setup for their storage closets/bins. (I'm the director in charge of electrical, which means I would have the authority to address this without seeming like a nosy person. And it explains why I am crabby at having people assume I am so stupid that I'd modify the actual wiring. With lamp cord, no less!!) And I can check to be sure that the other lighting setups are safe. Because at the receptacle the other day, I spotted someone's cord still plugged in. Nobody's bin was open, and nobody's light was on. So I unplugged it. That also gives me an opening to bring this issue up.