Chipped, Chopped, and Sawn Oh My!

Hi there!  We've been drowning in decisions and loan docs over here but I've managed to gather up a few pics of the process that we've taken to choose some exterior finishes.  Since the last post we've picked up some stone samples and that made a big difference when looking at colors for the stucco.  I  had previously chosen some colors that were way too light and now that I have the stone next to them we can make a more accurate decision.  

So how do you even begin to know where to start?  I've been collecting pictures, pictures and more pictures.  Even before the days of good ol' Pinterest I had a folder on the computer where I would throw anything that appealed to me in any way.  After collecting pics for some time you begin to see what you like the most over and over again.

I had many many pics of the overall look and feel of the architecture but when it came down to details I just love this one!

This was a picture that I had stored away from a picture on a real estate web site so I don't have a link or any more detailed pictures:(

I can't decide what I love the most about it.  Is it the stone, the pattern of the stone, the door, windows?  I like it all but this picture is what led me to the type of stone we will go with.  It's called Lueders stone.     

After sending this picture to the stone company that we will probably be ordering through I was told it is more than likely "antique" lueders.  Lueders is quarried in Texas but surprisingly I had never heard of it and now that I know better I see it's all over the place here in central TX.  After a few phone calls I found a place with a price for Lueders in our budget.  Yay!  Don't you hate it when you think you've found the thing that will work and yet it is beyond your reach and you have to start over?  

It's amazing how there are soo many decisions that you need to make when you are starting from scratch.  Not only will we choose the stone, but the pattern of the stone and then the grout!  Below is one of the random patterns we have considered. (yes we drive around and take pictures of random buildings with our phones)  It may very well creep people out if they see us.  It would me!  Except for the fact that we are rollin in the mini van..

This is what I'm calling a "random" pattern but have no idea if that's what the professionals call it;)

Here is another pic of the same pattern but with bigger stones.  Ah yes we need to decide the stone size too.  This was actually one of my faves at the stone yard and we brought some home to play with.

Below I'm trying the tried but not so sure if it's true...Lay it on the shingles next to a paint swatch trick.   I liked it with the Sherwin Williams Pavestone and the charcoal shingles.

Oh but it looks pretty good with the Gateway Grey too.

Oh and not to confuse you as much as we began to get confused but you have to decide if you want the cut "chopped" or "sawn".  The above stones are chopped and the pic below is sawn.  Can you see the difference?  

We actually ended up at this particular stone yard because of the Lueders prices that I mentioned above.  I had also seen grey lueders that looked great online but in person it was super blah.  It looked very bland and there was almost no color variation.  We don't want a lot of variation but don't want it to look like concrete blocks either.

See what I mean?

This Santa Maria below actually looked kinda cool in person but seeing it here I don't like it at all.  They actually achieved this look by chipping off the "skin" of the stone in some areas to give it a more rustic look. 

So just to make it more complicated you can have it "chipped" too!  You can see how we might have felt just a little "stoned" when we left now huh?

And then we came across these pretty babies.  This one is called Sonoma Tan and it made me realize that I wasn't really as in love with Mr. Lueder as I thought I was.  I think senior Sonoma may just be the perfect one for our casa.  There was some slight variation in the stones and it was laid in the same pattern as the awesome house in the first picture in this post so Mr. Sonoma stole my heart from Mr. Lueder and just so happens he is in our budget too!

I think we may have a winner in the paint department too!  As I downloaded these pics I realized that I was apparently really digging the mix of the Sonoma Tan with the Pavestone from sherwin williams, the charcoal shingles and you see that little sample there?..that is the metal roof that is a greyish color as well.  

See what I mean?  I took a ton of pics of this combo and you know what?  I like it!!  One bonus about selecting the Sonoma Tan in the pattern above (I wish I knew what it is called, I will soon I'm sure!) is that we won't have to select a grout color. Score!  One less decision in this process is a good thing!  I can't wait to see how it all comes together.  When it's all on the house and not just small little samples will it look totally different?  Only time will tell! 

Oh The Choices We Make

One would think after contemplating building a house for a few years that one would know exactly what they want it to look like (within one's budget of course).  

Well this "one" doesn't.  I actually amaze myself;)  How can a girl who likes everything home and has spent many many hours contemplating spaces, efficiency and of course looks not have every detail all figured out?

Because there are too many choices!  

Here were 3 of my missions today: going to Costco because we are out of the two things I use most often in this casa...coffee and laundry detergent! Driving 60 miles to pick up a stone sample for the exterior of the house and picking a shingle color, metal roof color, and stucco color that all look good together.

I accomplished 1/2 of one of those missions.  Although I didn't have the stone to help guide me along I started trying to put together some exterior colors.  I have an old Sherwin Williams paint deck, some shingle samples and some itty bitty samples of metal roofing..I mean ITTY!

All along we have been thinking of leaning towards more gray tones on the exterior.  I have a few reservations about it being to "cold" so lately I have been drawn to some more taupey gray tones.  I have been "pinning" away for what seems like ages to help me grasp what we are looking for.

Here are some of the looks that have caught my eye.

While our house will be quite different, I love this look and the mix of materials.

                 modern exterior design by calgary general contractor Veranda Estate Homes & Interiors

Here are more of the gray tones we are drawn to.

                        modern exterior design by seattle architect Rhodes Architecture +Light

This is a little closer to the way our home will look.  There will be a lightish stone, stucco, and some metal roof mixed in.

                     eclectic pool design by austin general contractor New Urban Home Builders

I LOVE this home.. Modern yet warm and perfectly contemporary Texas to me.  I looked into this type of stone for our casa and it was way out of our budget.  Bummer!

So I finally laid some samples out today and started playing around.  I did it outside to try to bring out the true colors.  To the right you'll see some of the gray tones I ripped out of my paint deck because I have a hard time visualizing if I can't lay the colors right next to each other.  I think these pics make the grays look a lot lighter and washed out than they are.  I'm playing with the "sticks and stones" color on in the middle of the palate on top of the paint deck too.

Here are those itty bitty metal roof samples I mentioned.  I actually tore off the slate gray color so I can play.

Here I laid the slate gray roof which reads pretty taupey  on top of the driftwood color composite shingle.  We can't afford to do the whole roof in metal and actually almost nixed it completely until we found out that some of the very slight pitches on our porches and over our garage won't allow for shingles.  So we will have a mixed material roof instead.  I like metal a LOT so I'm cool with that!

Here is the gray shingle that we are considering with the itty bitty metal color 

sample and sherwin williams stamped concrete for the stucco color.

Here are the metal and stucco colors against the driftwood roof color which has some gray and brown and may feel a little warmer for us.  Plus from what I understand the lighter the roof the better as far as avoiding the mean ol' Texas sun goes.

This is a horribly washed out picture.  These two potential stucco colors are way darker than they are showing up here against the gray roof materials.

Actually here they are against the driftwood.  See what I mean?

And here is a "gateway gray" against the driftwood for good measure.

Here it is against the gray shingles.

O.k. So I was hoping as I wrote this post I would gain some clarity but I didn't!  Doh!  You see why these decisions are so hard.  They are all so very similar but I have no idea how they will all come together on the big canvas that will be our house!

So that is what I accomplished today on the home building front.  I have a hard time putting the energy into this at times...you want to know why?

At the moment there are many things going on in the 

"not building yet" process.

For instance: 

Friday the frame engineering was completed!  Yipee!

Sunday I paid for the the engineering plan received it via email and sent it to the builder in hopes that we can finally get the completed construction contract to the bank.

 Monday I get a call from the hubs that starts with "Don't panic but....I've been on the phone with the builder and the engineer off and on all day and we have a problem"  Woohoo!

The builder apparently thinks that it is all "over-engineered" and the engineer says that he is not surprised and that they hear that often from builders.  He also was right to assume that the builder felt the foundation was also "over-engineered". 

You wanna know the best part?  The plan that the engineer suggests will add a whopping 15 grand to our costs per the builder.  Seeing as we are already at our max budget we most certainly DO "have a problem".

The next step is to get the builder, framer, and framing engineer together to see how we can safely and affordably deal with this issue.

Side note for the uber thrifty:  If you are ever considering building a home and can purchase a house plan online that already has all of these things done for you I would strongly suggest you look into it.  I know they can seem pricey but we have definitely made an investment in the plans and engineering for this home and it would have been much more budget friendly had we been able to find a house plan that would work on our lot.  Don't forget we are uber conservative with our $ and what may seem like a big investment for us may not for another. 

That being said it is really hard to find a house plan that has everything that your looking for accommodates the dimensions of your lot and works with the topography of the land.

While I have to admit this kind of news about increasing costs(which makes it undoable) is not what I want to hear I have a confession to make.

I have been praying about this process a lot.  Not like a "Dear God please help us to get this house built" kind of prayer but something just the opposite really.  While it's obvious I dig this kind of thing...the planning, the imagining the attempt at designing I don't want it to define me or our family.  Yes it would/will be a fun place to raise our kids.  It's 2.6 acres of entertainment and memory making as far as I'm concerned.  But...I also know that memories can be made and fun can be had absolutely anywhere and honestly it may be better for our family not to go through the mental, physical, and financial stress of building.  

I think this crumbling little rental house has made me realize this more than anything.  Do I like it? No..it has many issues and we are cramped but my kids could care less and are happy and that is all I could ever, ever want!  So I will keep asking God to make it apparent to us.  If we are biting off more than we can chew I would rather know now that's for sure.

Boys Drool Colors Rule!

If you have been on Pinterest at all......  I mean I don't know a soul that really likes that site or that would  waste away precious minutes of life pinning recipes that they might try someday(if they ever routinely cooked) or design ideas for their "someday house".   I don't know anyone that does that do you?  I didn't think so;)

Anywho, I digress.  If you are a Pinterest fan (would love for you to follow my boards here) then you may have spotted a few of the awesome color boards from Design Seeds.

   
Jessica from Design Seeds has an awesome eye for color and a great concept!

She almost takes all the worry and hassle out of the sometimes difficult task of choosing colors for a space.  I love how you essentially pick the main colors that you want to use and then even know which colors to keep in mind for accessories because you know they will jive.

I am so in love with this concept that I have already written a previous post about it..  Geez me!  Get a life!  

Ok so we love the concept right?  But now what do we do with it?  When it is actually time to go get the paint do we go research the swatch isle looking for something similar or is there a better way?

As you can imagine Design Seeds has probably been asked this question a time or two and I was curious as well.

Apparently in the world of color there is something called a HEX code.  Design seeds has provided that and all you have to do is scroll over the color that your interested in on the right side of the color board and the HEX code will pop up.  

Then what?

There is a site called Work with Color that you can visit and enter the HEX code into the "color converter" and it will give you the RGB code which is what the paint store needs to mix your color.  Now obviously I haven't attempted this yet but I would probably try one color and see how it goes.  After all computer screens vary too so I am really curious how the colors come out.  If we ever break ground on the house and I get to get my hands dirty again I will definitely be trying this!  Almost for the sole purpose of seeing if it works!  Have you ever tried to find your perfect color palate this way?  If not what method do you use to get that perfect match at the paint store?  Do tell!

An Arsenal of Color

As if I don't have enough "making our house a home" addictions....

I came across this little beauty on pinterest!

A whole stinkin site of these color palates!  I got so excited I just had to throw a post together right this instant!!!

I am soo impressed!  My mind just can't ever pull together this many colors...

But apparently I am one of the few people that didn't already know about Design Seeds as they have over 15,000 fans on facebook. 

 Have I been living under a rock? 

 I am in love!  I see lots of new inspiration in our very near future!  If only we actually had our slab poured:)  


On a little side note Dana at Make Them Wonder recently did a post about pulling color from the nature around you that you will enjoy if you like the above little babies!

Should They Stay or Should They Go?

Oh this kitchen....It is absolutely fine right?  Newish and clean(sometimes), but when we moved in it was super duper cheapy looking.  I feel like it still is a bit "cheapy looking" but we have done a few things to make it a little less "track builder quality".  I am pretty sure I don't have a before pic anywhere so you will just have to use your imagination, but only a teeny tiny bit.

We started by:

Removing the large florescent light over the bar and replacing it with of course non other than an IKEA light fixture.  Our obsession with IKEA lighting and cabinetry started back when we lived in Houston 10 years ago and honestly before we had a house. Touring the floors of IKEA was sometimes a piece of our weekend entertainment. I digress....

We then replaced the builder grade 4 light chandelier that hung over the breakfast table

And then decided to tackle our ever so sad island that was essentially thin laminated sheets of particle board(and still are).  We trimmed it out with MDF and put a coat of the Sherwin Williams black fox that we had previously used here in our mini master redo just to give it a little character and make it look a tad more sophisticated.

As for the rest of the cabinetry we just have not decided if we should paint or not.  I like wood cabinets I really do but these are just a tad too light for us.  If  going with a wood stained cabinet I prefer something darker. 

 Like this!

(yes this is a tiny pic but you can see a bigger clearer version in the link to it in my pinterest kitchen board)

 I also have had a thing for white cabs lately and of course I can't keep my eyes off of gray.  

(Not a kitchen but you get the idea...again found in the pinterest account on the right sidebar)

So how on earth do you decide whether or not to tackle the uber huge job of painting your cabinets....especially if you don't know what color you really want?  

In comes Sherwin Williams Discover Color program...You can take any photo and easily edit it with the color of your choice to see how you like it!

So here is the kitchen in Black Fox(the gray I am in love with)

What do you think about the gray?  I actually love the way it looks.....but....I am nervous about resale issues with this color.  It would of course look much better with an gorgeous marble or glass subway tile and new countertops but what kitchen wouldn't right?  We just can't put that kinda dough into this house.

So how about a lighter look?  This area in our house it actually a bit dark so I would love to lighten it up..oh and I guess that would be another reason not to go gray;)  Out of fear of going too bright white I thought I would play with this Softer Tan color.  The name is a bit misleading but I new it was a great color when I saw it here.

I don't know though...Of course it makes the pendant light stand out but not in a good way(I don't think) Hmm.  It just looks totally different than it does it the link above.

So then...I tried moderate white because that is what all of the trim in the house is.  This is o.k. and definitely lightens the place up but I don't like the way it brings out the tile and the black appliances and since we can't replace the tile and appliances..well...I don't know what to do.

What do you think?  Would you go for the bolder approach of gray(if your into gray at all of course) and/or does the white just look all wrong with this beige tile color?  Is it worth all of the effort?

Waiting in the Wind

Who doesn't love a good ol' before and after?  I have wanted to post about this room for a long time.  We bought this house 4 years ago and it was the first room that I considered "finished" and I have always really loved the way it turned out!  Unfortunately I couldn't find any before pics so she had to sit and wait and wait until I could either find them or find a newly constructed and open home that I could take a pic of since most of the homes in our neighborhood are very similar.  This is your typical builders half bath.

Actually this one is a tad bit nicer than the one we ended up with.  You see with the housing market in a bit of a slump the builders are now upgrading the homes a bit more to bring in the buyers but this gives you the general idea of what we had to work with.  Now they have real ceramic tile instead of linoleum and you see that towel holder? ...ours was a lovely plastic version(the you can't get any cheaper version).

Here is a picture from the outside..It is absolutely impossible to get a good picture of a half bath. 

We started the whole revamp with some color.

We went with the Sherwin Williams low VOC paint in Moody Blue

It is a great color!  Sometimes I second guess my color choices every time I see them but this one has not let me down. 

The art on the wall here is from IKEA

Here is a peek at the new sink and cabinet that we put in.  I love love this too.  Did I mention this is one of my favorite rooms in the house?  You can see here that we have new flooring in this bath as well.  That came waaaay after the bath rehab when we decided to remove all of the carpet from the first floor.

This is my sad attempt to get a picture of the other side of the room.  You can read a post about the art made from styrofoam here.

We found this unique little number at lowes.  I don't remember what we paid but since I am a cheapo I know it wasn't much more if anymore than most of your other average faucets.

This huge lovely sink was another IKEA find and so is the sink cabinet.  The hubby of course did the hard work of actually installing all of this fun stuff but changing out a pedestal sink to this really isn't that difficult.  Even though pedestals can be very simple and good looking we needed more storage space bad in this casa so this helped a ton.  We now had a place for extra T.P. and tons of towels since this room is near the back door and the kids tend to play in the water a lot out back.

Here is my attempt to get a picture of the cabinet.  We already had this mirror and just hung it right over the "builder grade" mirror.  We also replaced the T.P. holder and towel rack with beefier better looking finds from the pottery barn outlet.

And here is the view of this spot if your a really short person sitting on the pot;)

I think it is a pretty nice view!

Linking up to:



Thrifty Decor Chick, C.R.A.F.T, HOUSEography, The Stories of A 2 Z, Type A Decorating, House of Hepworths, A Glimpse Inside, Momnivore's-Dilemm, Green Door Designs