Finally, someone...

... is working hard to get the house finished up.

3 days and counting...

Move-in day is fast approaching.  The closet systems and the glass work were completed today.  We'll still have a few loose ends to complete after we're in, but we're very close.  

Short post... lots of packing to do.

A colorful idea

I've always loved Mason jars (also called "Ball jars" after the Ball Corporation that manufactured them) but I get annoyed when restaurants use them to serve water or drinks.  The lip is too wide to drink from... and it's just been done so, so many times; it's tiring.

But while cruising around San Diego, I spotted this clever, colorful, cool, and cost-efficient idea:

It appears to be a simple Ball jar coated with a matte paint finish.  They look really fun!  I'm one of the least artistic people around but I think I can handle this project quite easily.  It will be a great way to add color to the new house.  And it's a good excuse to take another trip to the UW Bookstore's art department.

San Diego

Ben had a conference in San Diego this week so I decided to tag along.  It is one of our favorite cities.  We planned this months ago and didn't realize that we'd also be wrapping up the house at the same time 

I love this picture because it accurately depicts life here... quiet and restful pool time is often interrupted by the buzz of a Black Hawk helicopter.  I will also note that the weather lady has assured me that this is a "stormy day."

My first home project

If you've visited our old house, you'll remember our pale green, cardboard moose head hanging in the man room (via cardboardsafari.com).  I guess at some point we thought that green color was fine - but it started to feel drab.  So, after lots of searching for the perfect "rattle can" color, I found this vibrant turquoise color.  

If you live in Seattle and need a fun spray point color... go to the UW BOOKSTORE!  A very smart clerk at City Peoples (who was a UW art major) told me about their fabulous paint collection.  The cans are about $2 more than those at Home Depot, but they cover much smoother and dry very fast... and there were about 95 cool colors.  I got to choose from about 5 different shades of turquoise.

Project cost:  $15.  This guy will hang above our fireplace; he's a reminder of our old house.  The color will really pop on the steel fireplace... oh, did I mention, I changed my fireplace design... again?

The final countdown...

It was a 6-month project, but well worth it.  We're in the home stretch.  Carpets and closet systems will go in next week.  Then, we move in!  We are so excited to get back into the neighborhood... sorry Madison Park, you just don't cut it.    

Clear cedar vs. Black cedar

You know who you are... you've dropped hints about NOT staining the cedar black.  You're thinking, why would they use clear cedar and then stain it black?  After maybe giving it a teeny tiny second thought, we did it.

Before:

After:

My vote is still stands in the "black cedar" camp.  To me, it finally looks finished.  (It will look even better once the sun is shining on it... as it is in the "before" photo.)

Banquette

Ben is clocking in some man hours at the house.  After receiving an estimate over $3,000, we decided to build the banquette (for the breakfast nook) on our own.  And by "we" I mean Ben.  

He's building an L-shaped wood bench.  We'll have a counter-height, super white Quartz tabletop that matches our kitchen counters.  We're hoping that this becomes a great little space for family dinners - and also a nice place to set drinks and appetizers when entertaining, out of the reach of the little ones.

We found a guy on Etsy to fabricate some steel legs to the exact height that we'll need.  

Sounds fairly straight-forward... we'll see how it turns out.

Floating staircase

I can't seem to remember if I've posted a picture of the floating staircase.  We stacked the new stairs directly on top of our basement stairs in order to save space in the living room.  We're using stainless steel (pre-fabricated) posts with 1/2" glass.  Yes... for those who are curious... you can lean, push and fall up against the glass and you would not/could not/should not break it.  Can you tell what bedtime story we read?  So for those of you that overindulge at our dinner parties, no need to worry, you are safe.

The steps are made of glulam beams and so is the stringer.  I think we'll just keep the stain simple and do a clear coat.

Master Bath Photos

Cabinets are hung...

Tile is complete:

Tub is in:

We're gettin' there!

Splash of Color

The house was looking a little pale until these pretty little dots arrived...

They are ModDotz, Blue Steel, with extra white grout.  This is the first little burst of color that has really made an impact on the main floor (well, this and the flamingo wallpaper in the bathroom).  I love these dots!  We originally talked about using gray grout but I'm so glad we went with white so that they stand out.  If you are going to hang bright blue dots in your kitchen, you have to own it.  The dots definitely fall into the "love 'em" or "hate 'em" camp... so far, it's about an even 50/50.

Waterfall design

The counters are in!  We decided to add "waterfalls" to the floor for a little bit of added drama.  If you have extra material in the slab, it is a great way to make use of the product.  These are Pental Quartz Super White (polished).  We would have gone with the "honed" (matte) finish, but the rep told me "if you drink red wine, you should opt for the polished..." so that was that.  They look great and not too "polished." 

T minus 3 weeks.

More progress...

As we leave for the "Happiest Place on Earth," we leave our house in good hands... with just about 5 or 6 weeks to go!

Color

This is the part when we begin to start seeing all of our hours and hours of design planning come to life.  It is by far the most fun part of the whole gig!  And the most time-consuming... who knew there were so many different colors of Schluter?  "Schluter?"  You ask, confused...

Here is the first peek at the ombre bathroom:  (Thank you, Radu, for your thorough tile calculations and tedious tile work... and thank you for asking me all of the right questions before you started placing tile on the wall.  You rock!  And it's gonna look rad.  So rad, in fact, that I can't decide if I should skip my pedicure today to go check on the progress.)

The exterior paint colors:

(Only two exterior colors to choose from and they still managed to mess it up.  Good thing we have a sunny week ahead.)

Inspiration for Master Bathroom

Here is our inspirational Houzz photo for the master bathroom design, except that I hope our color palate will be (much) less boring.  Think: ombre... hooray!

I love the floating double sink vanity with drawers underneath as well as the floating tall cabinet to the right.  This set-up will make the floors really easy to clean.

I also dig the offset mirror that stretches to the left.  I can't think of any rule that says I have to hang and center my mirrors directly over my sinks, and besides, I don't believe in rules.  (Ryan, that one's for you).  Okay, I do... but I'm going to break one or two this time around.

Special master bath feature: an outlet in the back of the floating tall cabinet so I can charge my Sonicare without it sitting out in plain sight.  (Almost but not quite as cool as our moisture-sensor bath fans.)

Gutters again

Okay, a bit better... but still...

Flamingos!

The battle of the wallpaper... it's over.  I won.  It was a battle of palm trees versus flamingos.  (Sadly, the original wallpaper that we had our hearts set on was not appropriate for a bathroom.)  Both papers are fabulous and very unique, but as most of you know, I have a soft spot in my heart for animals.

"What wallpaper did you choose for your powder room?"

"It's black.  With silver and turquoise flamingos." 

"Huh?"

"I said, silver and turquoise flamingos." 

"Why?"  

"Why not."  It's just wallpaper, people.  Relax.  And enjoy.  

It will look stunning with my JA sconce.  And it's much more practical than Ben's compromise of purchasing the Palm Jungle wallpaper and adopting a real flamingo for the backyard.  

Ready to paint!

That's a wrap.  The drywall is finished and primed.  We chose to do Level 4 flat walls so it required three, sometimes four, rounds of mud and sanding.  The ceilings are painted.  If you've painted a house, you know that the most difficult color, by far, is the white of the ceilings and trims.  People say, "white is not a color," but believe me, it is!  And for some reason too many whites lean taupe.  A sad, sad thing.  (I hate taupe.  It is almost as bad as building a brand-new house and saying, "I think I'll paint the walls khaki.")

The best, clean white we've found:  Sherwin-Williams "Extra White", SW 7006.  It goes with green, blue and gray.  It kind of just disappears (and isn't that what white is supposed to do?) but can also hold its own in battle.  Contradictory, yes.  But it's just what we needed.  
 

Oh gutter guy

A letter to the "gutter guy"...

Dear Gutter Guy:

This just isn't going to work.  What is this?  What are those things?  Why did you decide that your gutter concept would look nicer than what is called out on the plans?  I've never seen something quite so U-G-L-Y.

It will have to be re-done... like immediately, since we're supposed to start painting TODAY.  We'd prefer something a little less noticeable and maybe a bit more "clean."  Oh wait, if you could actually just follow the plans, that would be awesome.  

Thanks,
Homeowner

And P.S... The gutters on the other side of the house blew off in the storm over the weekend so maybe some additional nails?  Screws?

We've grown a bit this year...

Early 2013:

Late 2013:

Happy New Year!  (Better late than never...)

small sink?

We are having a heck of a time finding a sink small enough for our (shrinking) powder room.  Ben came up with this idea:

Ha!

Finished Siding, Pre-Paint

Our Resolution:  Finish house and enjoy!