framing the details...

We didn't expect the crew to work on Labor Day, May 25, 2015 - but there was no stopping them.  Even with the thunderstorms and rain this week, we've still seen some progress.

On Monday, we had tar paper!

 I was also excited to see the holes cut in the wrap for our windows.  That meant we were one step closer to getting "dried in".

You can tell how grey the days have been, but we're still getting moments of sunshine.

On Tuesday, we saw windows and our front door was installed!

 Adam had to work late, and it was cloudy -  so a lot of our pictures are darker than normal.

Most of the supports have been removed, and some of the interior details are starting to emerge. 

(And my detail-obsessed self fretted over the island framing in the kitchen.  We were right, they framed it too high, but it will be corrected soon enough!)

Love this view of the house -  looking into all the open spaces in the great room/dining room/kitchen/breakfast nook. It feels so OPEN!  Granted, we're still missing a door here.  

Another exciting addition on Tuesday was the stairs to the basement.  I am so thrilled not to have to hike through the mud to check out the lower level.

On Wednesday, we had more ominous clouds -  and more windows!  Although it doesn't look like it, I can tell that the crew has been working to clean up the lot too.  Most of the wood bits and trash are all piled in front of the house, instead of scattered everywhere.

 With the supports all down, it's easier to see what our views from the rooms are going to be like.

Love the view from our breakfast nook.. it's like we're living in a tree house.

Once again, obsessed with how open the space feels.

One of our worries put to rest -  the window between the tub and shower is framed.  So is the bench and tub surround.  It's going to be a LOT of tile to keep clean, but it will be worth it!

It's been raining a lot this week, and I think the framers are wrapping things up.  No pictures from our visit Thursday, though we did take some measurements.  With all the storms, I expect it will be a while before things are dried out and ready for the next crew.

For now, I'll continue to stop by every day and just enjoy the sights and sounds of our future nest. 

Framing the details - days 128 through 131 of our build.

raise the roof!

I drove by the lot on Thursday, May 21, after work for a quick preview before Adam got off work.  I snapped a few pictures of the progress.  Somehow along the way, my phone clicked over to black and white settings.. so we'll start off with a moody shot of the progress.

The clouds look so foreboding.. but in color, the sun is shining bright!

More roof lines are starting to emerge!

I always try to get a shot from this angle.. I can't wait to see the comparison from when we first started to today.

What is that I spy in the garage?

Looking a little closer, I see windows and our front door!  They're delivered..so maybe they'll be installed soon.

One of our big upgrade decisions was adding sidelights and a transom to our front door.  Just seeing it propped up in the garage -  worth every penny!

We also saw another exciting addition -  our building permit!  We're legit!

On Friday, I was able to get off work a little early (thanks to the upcoming holiday weekend) and Adam and I went by to see if anything else had changed.  Thankfully, it had!

The peak over the front porch was added, as well as some decking being added to the roof.

Check out the "ladder" that the framers have been using to reach the roof (propped up against the wall of the garage).

We didn't expect any work to be completed Saturday, May 23rd -  but we swung by just in case.  We caught the crew just as they were leaving.  I don't know if they were amused by my "happy dance" at seeing all the work that was finished.. or if they just thought I was loco.  

Either way, I was one happy camper.  It's really starting to look like a house!

Hopefully the crew knows how appreciated they are.  It feels so good to see things coming together.

We've come a long way in the past few weeks!  I know things will probably slow to a crawl now that framing is almost finished.  Still, any progress is exciting!

Raising the roof -  days 125 - 127 of our build.

mad about cliche' and shades of grey

So.. I had planned on titling this post "shades of grey" but because of all the pop culture rigamaroll over"50 Shades" .. I kept changing my mind.  I'm not a fan of the Twilight series, nor the 50 Shades series.. But I kept coming back to it... the post title.. because that's what we're really talking about here.. literally the different shades of grey in our house..

We met with the designer at Eagle Interiors back in February.  I've learned that our builder is a combination of production and custom builder, at least for our house.  He has a series of finishes that he knows will look great within our allowances, and it made the decision making that much easier for me.

I'm one of those people that can be paralyzed with too many options.. and staying on budget is always a challenge for me and Adam.  We are definitely champagne taste on a bottled water budget.  I'll talk about tile and finish selections later, for now.. let's talk paint.

In our last home, the main rooms were Glidden's Antique Silver (a light grey that read more pale blue), with variations on that same theme.  Our master was navy and we added in some teal and aqua in other rooms.  Click here to see. 

We both gravitate towards blues and grays, but for our new house -  we needed to choose two neutral colors for all the rooms.  Grey it is.

We selected two aptly named colors for the nerdy nest:  Software and Online.

Online, the lighter color, will be throughout the main living space.  Software will be in the master bedroom and dining room, as well as the main living spaces down in the basement.

I've looked at them in different lights and I love how they read as a true grey without too much distortion.  And surprisingly, we are very on trend.  We went on the local Women's Council of Realtor's house tour recently and I would say that at least 60% of the houses had a grey or greige tone in the main spaces.

It's subtle, but I like it. 

Our exterior color needed to be a bit bolder.  I was torn between a grey and navy.  After a recruiting trip to Lowe's and Home Depot, I came home with about 100+ color options. 

Adam and I quickly worked through them and got it down to our final 20 or so.  Then we snuck over to the neighbor's house (thankfully they hadn't moved in yet) one sunny afternoon and compared swatches to the stone work.

The light changes the colors so much depending on what side of the house, how 

bright it is, and if the sun is direct or not.

The house we're comparing to looks anywhere from brown, to grey, to almost blue-ish.

It was a tough decision, but we chose the middle color.  I think it will be neutral enough for the neighborhood while still giving us the rich tones we want.  Our winner for the exterior -  Behr's Sled.

Maybe one day we'll have some walls to be painted.. for now, it's back to the build.

a good frame of mind..

The framers took a break over the weekend, but by Monday, May 18th they were back at it.

It's hard to really see what's going on in these pictures, but we'll document for posterity's sake.  Above we're seeing the tray in the dining room take shape.

They've installed a massive support beam along the front porch and are beginning to add ceiling supports.

Looking at the ceiling in the great room and opening into the kitchen.

Main support beam in place along the back covered porch and looking out the great room "windows."

Lots of cross-supports for now, but it's cool to see the ceiling of the great room take shape.  I forgot how tall our ceilings were going to be!

On Tuesday, May 19th -  we have exterior walls!

The front of the house, slowly starting to look more like a house now!

Love seeing all these windows and doors across the front.  I really am fond of the elevation we chose.

Inside view from the corner of the dining room.  I can't wait for these cross-supports to be gone and us to be able to walk through the space instead of climb/ducking.

The view of the great room windows looking out to the covered back deck.

The view looking up from our walkout patio.. so glad I didn't have to hang that beam!

It was a little late when we made it by on Wednesday, May 20th .. but I'm glad we took the trip to check out the progress!

Apparently I can't hold my phone straight, but we have wrapping and part of the roof started.

Our roof is a combination of hip and gable styles.  I really love how things are shaping up.  There will be a small gable over the left garage door -  that will eventually have stacked stone over the whole face.

Fighting for light, but managed another shot from the dining room looking through to the great room.

The whole time we were there, the wind was picking up and clouds were moving in.  It never stormed while we were there, but the house wrap kept flapping in the wind -  reminding me of umbrellas at the beach, and reminding Adam of Loki the kitten and his percussive obsession with boxes and bags.

They've started framing out the tray in the master bedroom.  I love the angles and you can tell it took some serious time and effort.

One more lopsided picture for the road.. here's hoping for more of the roof line to appear over the next few days!

Framing continues -  days 121 - 123 of our build.

rock it out ....

Did I ever tell you about the time when one of my dearest friends wrote a musical about cavemen?

Yeah.  It was awesome.  It opened up with a huge stone in the middle of the stage.. and the cave characters eventually burst into song about the "Rock Musical."  I think we should totally crowd-fund a revival.

In the meantime, we were also focused on rocks.. stone to be specific.  There wasn't much debate on the stone we wanted for the exterior of our house, since we'd already seen it in the neighborhood on other houses our builder was working on.  Even if we had the option to change it, I doubt we would have.

We loved the variation in color and the dimension of the stone.  Even though it seems like a simple stacked stone, there are a lot of different shaped pieces mixed in.

A little sneak preview of our paint color contenders.

We love dark colors and grey tones too.. but we didn't want all grey stone because we were worried about the house looking washed out.  This has a nice mix of the dark tones we love, some lighter grays, and a heavy dose of tans and browns to keep it neutral.

Our builder had been encouraging us to go on and make many of the decisions on the finishes from the beginning.  Surprisingly, we had most of our finishes and all chosen before we even had concrete poured.  We were excited and also decisive.  I knew the longer I mulled things over, or the more options I had, that decisions would get that much more difficult.

More design decisions to come..

freeze frame... in 90 degree heat

Framing has moved quickly!  After how slow everything has been so far, it feels like the framing process is going at lightening speed!

Check out the progress from this week alone!

Everything started on Monday, May 11th.  These pictures were taken on Tuesday, May 12th.

Views of the basement from ground level..

and of the main level floor being installed.

Walking on the main level, trying to envision where the new walls will go.

Surveying his domain on May 13th.

Main walls are up on Thursday, May 14th.

Seeing the house take shape!

Just missing a few more walls.. 

On a fabulous Friday, May 15th -  Walls are still going up and so are the ceiling joists!

Home sweet home.. closer every day!

Framing continues -  days 115-118 of our build.