manic monday: closing time

If all goes as planned this will be my final Manic Monday post...not because I am tired of poking fun at my own neuroses (that never gets old) but because we should have keys in hand by Friday! We will still have plenty of work to do once we move in to spruce the place up, so be sure to check back as I document all of my before-and-after projects.

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Between the closing, the impending move and celebrating our nation's independence my posts may be sporadic this week. In case you don't hear from me, I wish you all a happy and safe 4th of July. Whether you'll be at a cabin in the Midwest, a BBQ in the south or on a boat off the West Coast, cheers!

manic monday: wood you like to come over?

 

Wood floors are in! We still have many details to iron out but it's beginning to feel like a home now that the floors are down. We chose a very basic hardwood that was at a lower price point but came in a very classic color: coffee bean. We wanted to stay away from anything with too much red in it and neither of us are fond of the hand-scrapped look (must be our midwestern roots). Once again, keeping it simple and classic, we were able to stay within our budget yet still get a fabulous upgrade like wood floors.

Next stop: final coat of paint on the walls and molding.

manic monday: she's a brick....house

Missed my cue yesterday, sorry. The man in my life returned and I got caught up in finally getting to show him our little investment in person. Luckily, he loved it. As you can see we finally have a brick house! Shutters and landscaping will turn this basic exterior into something more unique, but for now I am enjoying the timeless neutrality of our choice.

One of my favorite features, as I've mentioned before, is our walkout backyard. Finding a flat lot to build a new house on is rare here in San Antonio so I am ecstatic that we can have a great patio for grilling and mingling rather than a multi-layered deck.

Now that the brick is up I want to reiterate an earlier piece of advice that I gave, but this time about the exterior rather than the interior. Keeping it simple and classic in our price point has already set our home apart from the others in our neighborhood. There was an option to add stone facade to portions of our home and decorative faux accents but we declined. This may make our home seem boring to some, but in my opinion it will end up looking well put-together and classic once we get the accents up and landscaping done. From an investment standpoint this will hopefully add value to our bottom line without causing us to go broke in the process.

manic monday: white out

I've been accused in the past of being allergic to color. There is just something so clean, crisp and classic to me about white. I've been told that once I get a dog and have kids I will change my tune but for now, I'm not afraid to admit my love of neutrals. You can imagine my joy when I stepped into the house this weekend and discovered this white wonderland. We are still in the bare bones stage of our kitchen completion but it's fun to finally see exactly where everything in the space is going to go.

Next stop: more design inspiration!

manic monday: sheet rock n' roll

I apologize for the recent radio silence, as you can see we are moving right along! The exterior hasn't changed much at this stage, but the entire interior is completely sheet rocked. I took the picture above while standing in the kitchen looking out at our family room and side yard. Coming from an apartment with only one window, I'm loving all of the natural light. The fireplace was an "extra" but I already can't wait to hang stockings from the mantle and enjoy a beautiful wood burning fire on Christmas Eve.

A funny side note, when I walked in to the house to take this picture the workmen were rocking out to some awesome spanish tunes. One in particular (must have been the pop star of the crew) was singing literally at the top of his lungs. He was so into the music it wasn't until the chorus, calling for a slight shimmy, that he swung around and realize he had an audience. I caught him by complete surprise but applauded immediately following his performance. A great moment.

I try to stop by the house every couple of days at this point since the walls are now officially closed up and most of the major decisions have been made. This paid off when I discovered they had forgotten to wire for our pendant lights over the island. Luckily, this was a quick fix that my contractor took care of right away but had we been further in the process it could have really set us back. Once the wood floors go down we will start getting into the customizable details, at which time I will no doubt pitch a tent in the front yard. Until then, I'm going to focus my excitement on the arrival of my husband this coming weekend! Back from a year long deployment I can't wait to see him and show him our new home!!

Next stop: more inspiration boards!

manic monday: the walls are closing in

After a few last minute requests via frantic phone call to my contractor, I think I'm finally ready for the sheet rock. I'm nervous and hopeful that I didn't forget anything because once those walls go up there is no turning back! Luckily, I had a fabulous inspector with me during my frame walk and he made sure I didn't overlook anything major.

If I can give any advice it would be to have the interior layout of your home done at this point. It sounds a bit crazy I know, but I was able to pinpoint exactly where I wanted extra backing (wood 2x4s) in the walls so that when we go to hang something heavy we are sure to secure it to wood, not just sheetrock. This step was essential for our wall-mounted tv, art and mirrors, shelves and window treatments.

Next stop: brick & mortar!

manic monday: let there be light

 

It's pretty neat to show up at the house each week day and see a significant physical transformation. This weekend they backed the framing and put in windows! I'm so glad we went with the divided light, I can already tell they are going to make a substantial difference inside and out. I also got to walk through the space for the first time. Things will feel a bit different once the sheetrock is installed but I was able to get a good sense of each floor which has really helped solidify my design plan.

 

Next stop, plumping and electric.

 

manic monday: drive by

This weekend I kept my stalking to a minimum. A simple drive by the new cement slab was sufficient. It was really nice to see the elevation in person since in my mind I owned a perfectly flat lot. That's almost never the case and our contractor told me we might need a stair or two leading up to the front door and out the back patio. Based on the slab it looks like there will be at least one in each location. This detail really makes no difference to me, however, it will impact our options down the road if we decide to upgrade the back patio. It's nice to have a step because it would allow us to just add material right on top of the concrete.

Next stop: framing!

 

manic monday

definition of manic: overexcited, crazy 

(yup, sounds like yours truly)

I have developed a new weekend routine that is making my contractor suspicious of my sanity. I wake up Saturday morning, get limber at bikram yoga, pick up a soy latte at Starbucks and drive directly to our lot where I immediately begin assessing the progress in a dehydrated, caffeine-fueled, lululemon clad fury. Some may call it controlling, over-the-top or even manic but I think it will prevent mistakes from occurring and hopefully keep this project on a tight timeline. So naturally, I'm going to make this a habit and reveal my findings to you in a weekly post.

Without further adieu...

We have a slab! Our lot has been cleared and prepared for the foundation which is scheduled to be poured by Tuesday. Here in Texas we don't have basements, so instead of "breaking ground" we get excited about cement slabs. One thing to note, our home is not actually going to be slanted. The photograph is an optical illusion, I swear.

Even though I have seen the lot layout on paper a few things surprised me once I physically walked the space:

• I was a bit shocked at how small our front and back yards are (we are in a garden home community so this shouldn't be surprising, in fact, my husband is most likely cheering as he reads this since he is in charge of mowing the grass).  
• Our house backs up to a road. We've always known this, however, physically standing in our backyard made the challenge of keeping noise at a minimum slightly more intimidating. The good news here is that we will have complete backyard privacy since our home does not back up to a neighbor. 

To keep things in perspective, we are lucky to have a lot at all. When I first came across this neighborhood it was completely sold out. Due to a faulty lender and some extra prayers we ended up with a corner lot full of trees. We were one of about 5 groups on the waiting list and became front runners because we were already pre-approved for an amount over the home's base price and I had the documentation to prove it on the spot.  

For anyone who is planning to build or buy a home the first thing that you need to do (prior to stalking realtor.com) is line up your lending and get pre-approved.  It will not only allow you to make a move the instant you find the perfect property but it will also help you settled on a realistic budget. 

I promise my posts will be more fun from now on. Enough with the sensible budget and lending advice, right? Design Center here I come!