Purple Cone Flowers

We have new little visitors.

They are flitting and flying about.

I don't really know how they are getting their food, 

the cones on these flowers are quite stiff and brittle.

However, they must be getting something they need

or these guys wouldn't be playing, "King of the Purple Cone flower!"

What special things are you seeing out and about?

Let me know, I'd love to hear about your world!

Home Tour - Laundry Room

Hi all...today is the final part of our tour.

It's also one of my favorite rooms because it's a cozy place to be when "working".

It's the Laundry Room.

I know, that sounds really weird.

But...the laundry room in my previous home was a matchbox. 

Walk to it and back out.

So when we were planning this space, I wanted to make sure it was a usable space.

This is probably my favorite shot.

I love all the storage...and unlike the kitchen, this storage is being used.

It's great for tall items like vacuums, mops, and brooms.

This shot is actually from the far wall...but I think it gives a good perspective.

To the left is the entrance to the hallway that leads to the bedrooms and kitchen.

To the right is the door to the exterior.

Having a sink has already proven to be invaluable. 

It's great when our puppy has muddy feet or when you just need to hand wash items.

The farm sink has a front apron which is also comfortable when working.

If I could change one thing, it would be to add a sprayer. 

It's amazing how much you miss it when you are used to having one.

The washer and dryer were brought from our previous home.  

They are fine for now, although they are probably not the most efficient machines.

The cabinets above make detergent and cleaning materials easy to access.

The opposite wall stores our freezer. 

This storage isn't completely filled, however it does a great job holding miscellaneous things

like trash bags, dog food, and my husbands "drop off" point.

One of my favorite parts about this room is its easy maintenance.

The flooring is actually "Old Chicago" brick...similar in color and texture to the rest of the brick in the home. However, the brick company recommended it over the exterior/wall brick due to it's durability. 

Apparently it's stronger and can take "walking on" better than the other.

Who knew?

Anyway, it's super easy to maintain...just wet mop or vacuum.

Thanks so much for following along on the "finished" product.

"Finished"...ha...we all know that isn't really true.

It will be fun to compare these pic to ones taken later to see things that have changed.

If you have any questions about anything mentioned in the tour or about our experience, just let me know in the comments or my email.

I'll be glad to share!

Home Tour - Kitchen

Welcome back to our home tour.

Today we're going to spend time in The Kitchen.

Truth be told, I had a lot of help with this space.

I gave a list of things to include to our architect and hand-drawn pictures to the carpenter.

For example:

I knew I wanted white Shaker style cabinetry with stubby feet

Black Bull Pin pulls and simple knobs

Storage with drawers and pull out shelves

Walk in pantry

A brick wall.

The basic plan was drawn out and then both the architect and carpenter did a bit of tweaking.

 For instance, as to the exact placement of drawers and cabinets,

that was my carpenter. The bank of counter-tops, that was my architect.

By this stage of the game, I was completely worn out.

Luckily, they were both visionaries, the carpenter, a true craftsman.

Thankfully as things have turned out, 

everything is very handy, easily accessible, and very user friendly.

However...

I did do quite a bit of research on counter-tops.

Granite was the first choice because of budgetary reasons.

But I just couldn't find one that I liked and

couldn't force myself to pick one.

We really liked the look of white marble, but it was

obviously out (due to price and maintenance.)

So the search was on for a marble look alike...

it had to be easy care and budget friendly.

In my research, I stumbled upon the blog, 7th House on the Left.

Greg and Ashley are the cutest couple. You have to go over and visit,

you'll be hooked, I promise.

I wanted to sing their praises because it was this post that sealed the deal for me.

Cambria Torquay

It's quartz. 

I knew right when I saw it,

it was love at first sight.

love.

I contacted my counter-top guy and when he brought over a sample, I was sold.

I truly haven't looked back since.

I love it and would highly recommend it.

Now this shot is about the faucet.

I do not like it, I would not recommend it.

(I do not like green eggs and ham!)

...Sorry the elementary teacher in me just popped out!...

The sprayer is great, heavy duty, pretty and does a great job.

However,

the faucet handles need constant attention.

Sometimes they fall apart or actually fall off.

really.

And, 

there are always water spots on the base 

(unless I constantly clean it with Bartenders Friend - which isn't realistic.)

So, my best advice is to go ahead and spend the money for a quality fixture that is considered "spotless." 

I had one in my former kitchen, purchased it at Home Depot and it was perfect.

Pretty, sturdy, spotless.

Now let's talk about the brick.

I knew I wanted an interior brick wall in the house somewhere. 

(We put in three.)

These were placed to give the impression that the house was an old home...with rooms added.

That was exactly what I was looking for, I just didn't know how to verbalize it until my architect suggested various placements.

As it turned out, we're really enjoying them. 

They are one of the things people comment on the most,

they make things feel warm, comfy, and welcoming.

That's what this house is all about, we want people to feel welcome, to feel at home.

This brick is the same as the exterior brick with 

 white mortar and wide seams.

We wanted the look of "Old Chicago" brick without the price.

This did it. 

It's new brick, but tumbled, it's called "Lafayette Blend" by Texas Brick. 

The masons smeared mortar to give it a messy, old look,

just what I envisioned.

My husband is really the chef of the house.

He wanted an industrial gas stove with bells and whistles.

Well, after checking around and doing a ton of research, 

this one beat all the "fancy" brands in price and performance.

I've never cooked with gas before, but I like it better than cooking with electric.

Back to cabinetry,

I wanted to give you a few shots of the drawers.

I would highly recommend pull out drawers, 

it sure beats the heck out of fumbling around inside dark cabinets.

Everything is easily accessible.

Now, don't let all those cabinets fool you. 

They are all not filled.

Here's an example.

Each upper cabinet has three shelves but only two are filled.

Really...all the way around.

And those top upper cabinets? Yep...

all empty.

The carpenter felt that aesthetically the top upper cabinets needed to be there because of two reasons:

1 - if the doors were extended all the way to the ceiling, they would be way too tall and awkward

2 - having blank space above the upper cabinets would just accumulate dust and basically be wasted space.

I was sold, sounded good to me.

Plus, I like knowing that I have the extra space if I should ever need it.

Who knows?

We put in one open cabinet with a dish rack.

I've always loved dish racks, even though I know they can be dust traps.

I kept telling my mother that my house would not have any dust. 

(haha)

So far, it's not so bad...and having some of my favorite dishes displayed for easily access is worth the price of a little extra vacuuming.

(You can tell we really use this rack...several dishes were used last night for dinner!)

And the open space...

I think it will be fun decorating each season.

The pantry is a walk-in and multifunctional.

On the far back wall are the food items.

Things are in basic categories...

it's not super organized like I've seen around, but for now, it's working.

On either side is a place to display items for tablescapes.

My sister says that if you can't see it, you won't use it.

Those words were the motivation for this space.

So far, so good.

That's all the main features of our space but there is one last thing: lighting.

There are spots, island lighting, and under-cabinet lighting. 

In this shot the under-cabinet lights are not on.

There is a lot of light but not for actual task lighting.

The shot below is basically the same as the very first, however in this pic, 

the under-cabinet lighting is turned on.

In my last house, I didn't have much lighting...I was constantly working in the dark.

However, in this kitchen, the work-space is very well lit.

It's a great working space.

Just a few things:

That banner is for my son who just returned from a summer internship abroad.

We were so happy to have him back home safe and sound.

Secondly, if you've been following the ongoing saga of camera experimentation, this entire post was shot with the camera on "auto".

I don't like these pictures as well as when it's on "manual."

"Manual" means I have to do all the thinking...

yikes!

And finally,

this shot below was taken the night before I took the main post pics.

It's overexposed but I really like way the architectural details pop.

Thanks so much for dropping by and following our tour.

Up next:  The Laundry Room.

Home Tour - Den

Hi everyone!

Welcome back to our home,

today we're visiting The Den.

If you've been following awhile, you know that the den started out looking like this:

and this:

The main purpose of even taking all these shots and posting about the house is for documentation. We wanted to "see" and review all the stages of the building process. Since it was our first project, we were learning along the way. And boy, learning we did. IF we were to ever do it again, we'd know a lot more.

Things would most likely be easier and we'd do some things a bit differently.

However, "...it is what it is..." and it's finished.

Well, the building is finished.

Decorating...nope.

But that's the fun part, right?

Okay, on with the tour,

and The Den.

 As you can see, there is a lot of natural light from both the front and back of the house.

Here the transom is doing it's job, allowing the light through from the front.

You can see the view into the foyer and dining room.

The brick corner niche is a spot for storage and another small seating area.

It's great seeing this perspective through a camera lens. I can definitely tell what areas need a little tweaking.

This shot shows the pocket doors in the closed position. It's great to be able to shut these at night so that we feel a little less exposed from the front of the home.

Plus, being closed, it adds a little coziness.

This is the view into the kitchen. 

The back yard is through the doors on the left. The foyer is to the right. 

I'm really glad we added the brick walls. Since we've "lived" here a while, they add warmth to the home. We always knew we wanted brick walls, but didn't know exactly the best spot. Thankfully, the architect placed them in perfect areas. I think it looks like the house was a really old house and rooms were added on to modernize it.

What do you think?

As darkness settles in, this is a partial view from the back of the house.

Can you see those two trees in the back? We tried our best to save them during construction. You see, they have grown together. The trunk on the left is no longer living, the trunk on the right is alive and well. Beside these trees is a little trail to the back of the property. You can see our grass is growing steadily, the beds have maintained themselves during this hot, hot summer.

The back wall of The Den is a bank of windows. I couldn't get a shot during the sunny day, but here you can see that behind these curtains are the windows. The double door leads to the back porch.

These curtains are the same I've used throughout the home, they are from IKEA.

They are simple, really add to the casual feeling of the home.

In this shot you can see the rest of that back wall and the closed cabinets which house the television. My husband didn't want the TV over the fireplace, so he designed the cabinets with shutter doors. 

It really is user friendly.

Since we both crave symmetry, the other side of the fireplace has the closed storage as well.

Of course they can be opened too...

Thanks again for visiting and following the progress of our home.

If you have any questions in the building process, just ask. 

Stay tuned, next part of the tour is The Kitchen.

New Little Visitors

Our yard is beginning to green, a nice transition from the sandy soil from building.

We seeded about a month ago and under a careful, watchful eye of my husband, we're seeing grass.

You know what's next, right?

Mowing.

It's kinda funny, isn't it? 

You seed for grass,

water,

watch it grow,

then...

you mow it down.

It's a funny world.

Anyway, about the same time as seeding, we put up bird feeders. 

We see and hear quite a few birds flying around, but none were venturing close to the house for a snack.

...until about a week ago...

We now have a family of cardinals that visit a couple times a day.

(This picture was taken with my phone zoomed all the way...it's a little fuzzy. But I was so excited to actually see a little visitor that I ran over to the window and snapped a picture!)

Now, I'm not an expert birdwatcher, but it appears to be one male and as my husband says, 

"...the male and his harem."

really.

I'll bet there are about 7-8 female cardinals that fly in with the one brightly colored male!

Unless they are young males and just haven't brightened yet.

Hm...we'll just have to see.

And guess who else has found our feeders?

Yep, the acrobat himself,

Mr. Squirrel.

It's hard to tell, but he's upright, hanging on to the left feeder with his front paws,

 and then still attached to the main pole with his back paws. 

He's very limber and very smart.

Here is another shot:

Mr. Squirrel, a female, and Mr. Cardinal.

They seem to be friendly,

sharing the snacks...

and all the while just chirping and chattering.

Before I close this post, I had to show these flowers, Purple Cone Flowers.

They are blooming and enjoying their new spot.

It's such a joy watching them grow and change.

Just look at these,

...this is one plant! Can you even believe it!! I'm so excited!

Just look at the different stages of their growth!

(I know that was too many exclamation points but I'm just super excited about these flowers.)

As an "adult", the flower almost turns inside out.

The "button" transformation is my favorite part.

And guess what I saw today?

A hummingbird.

Guess what attracted him?

The button part of this flower.

Guess what else?

I had an "artificial" hummingbird feeder for him and guess what he likes better? 

The natural nectar over my sugar water.

really.

Ha! Imagine that...

Lovely, lovely nature...

often imitated, never duplicated.

Thanks so much for dropping by and reading about my little visitors.

For those of you with mature, beautiful yards, I know this is all silly news.

But for me, with a brand-new-yard, I was just too excited to see all the new developments,

I just had to share!

Home Tour - Dining Room

Welcome back to our home!

Today we're moving across the foyer from the Living Room to the Dining Room.

It's a couple feet longer than the Living Room...a comfortable space. 

We've had a crowd of people here and thankfully, it worked just fine.

The dining set belonged to my husband's grandmother.

The seats have been recovered several times, this time in a neutral tone.

They are actually upholstered in drop-cloth fabric...it's very durable and easy to work with.

Below is a picture of our previous home.

The walls were a bit darker which made everything feel warm and cozy.

 

I really liked it, but was ready for a change.

For this home, we decided on more neutral walls, Sherwin Williams Eider White. 

This new shade allows for a variety of colors. 

Like this:

and this:

So far, we're very pleased.

Our architect added additional storage, this Butler's Pantry.

It can been seen from several angles, most notably, the Dining Room

Those drawers are perfect for napkin rings, napkins, place-mats, and flatware.

For instructions on making the glass doors, click here.

Are you still with me? If so,

stay tuned for the Den.