Monday, July 26, 2010

Day 74 - Insulation and Drywall

The electrical, plumbing, and framing all passed inspection, so it's on to insulation and drywall. Insulation went in last week, and drywall started going up today. The siding on the south side of the house is nearing completion as well, which just leaves the front of the house to go.

Insulation in front living room.

Insulation at foot of stairs

Back corner bedroom insulated.

Insulation around south family room window.

Master bedroom insulated and ceiling drywall up.


Fiona's bedroom with ceiling drywall, and attic access.

The 3rd upstairs bedroom.

Master bath ceiling drywalled.

Upstairs hallway.
South face siding is nearly complete.

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Day 69 - Choosing the Exterior Color

We've spent the last several days agonizing over a paint scheme for the exterior. We've driven all over town trying to find inspiration from other houses. There are quite a few that we like, but we haven't found anything that jumped out at us as being a clear winner. We tried a few of the online painting programs, but without a picture of of the front of our house with the siding and trim on, we've had to just play around with pictures of sample houses that are sort of similar.

Yesterday, we put together some color combinations on the Benjamin-Moore site, and we're posting these samples for your consideration. We welcome your comments and suggestions, however I'll tell you we're leaning toward the beige and green, or the slightly darker, tan and green.

Flax and Green

Beige and Green

Tan and Green

Tan and Blue

Green on Green

Charcoal

Blue Grays

Monday, July 19, 2010

Day 67 - Shingles on the Porch and More Siding

The most important progress of the past few days was finishing the plumbing and electrical, but pipes and wires don't make for interesting photos. So here are the new shingles on the porch roof and the siding on the back of the house.

Newly shingled porch roof.


Siding on the back of the house, as of Friday afternoon.

Shingle accent and corbels on the back gable completed today.

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Day 63 - New Doors Installed

There's something really comforting about not having a big, gaping hole in the back of your house. We have new doors now on the front and back of the house. We will also have French pocket doors separating the front living room and the family room area, and the housing for those was installed today. There's also a pocket door in the upstairs bathroom, and that housing is in as well.

New front door. It's not quite right because the window should have a grille pattern. That's being corrected.

Rear French doors and back door.

The housing for the French pocket doors between the front room and the family room. This gives us a six foot opening between the two rooms that we can seal off when we want, while also giving us more usable wall space.

French doors leading from the dining area to the back porch.

Pocket door in the upstairs bath will separate the toilet and tub from the vanity area.

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Day 62 - The New Covered Front Porch

The front of the house has really come together in the last two days, with the framing and sheeting of the porch roof completed today.

This picture, and the following one were taken yesterday afternoon.


This morning's progress.


Tonight around 8:30pm. The siding on the north side is pretty much complete as well.



And, just in case you forgot what it used to look like.
Cedar shingle accent under the roof peak.


Tonight's view of Mt. Baker and Hat Island.

Monday, July 12, 2010

Day 60 - Details, Details

We were away for a family visit to Eastern Canada for a week, so didn't get around to updating the blog, and a lot of work took place during our absence. All the windows are in, except for the master bedroom. Siding has started to go on. Plumbing is underway. The furnace, and a lot of new duct work is in. The old fireplace has been removed, and most of the interior walls are framed in, except for pocket doors between the front living room and the family room area. Electrical is underway too, with switch boxes, outlets, and light boxes being placed.

Now we find ourselves immersed in details. We're still working on picking a suitable wood, or engineered floor for the downstairs. There are a ton of choices to make in the electrical plan in terms of placement of lights, outlets, and switches. How many hose bibs do we want outside, and where do we want them? We've spent so much time working on big picture issues, that these little details seem so trivial in comparison. Yet, they all have to be addressed in a timely manner to keep things moving along.

Siding going on the north side of the house.

We went with HardiePlank siding for its durability and minimal maintenance. The gray color is just the bare siding, and it will be painted, if we can ever settle on a color. Note the corbel which adds to the craftsman look.


The kitchen island begins to take shape. The angled doorway just to the right of it is a walk-in pantry.

Kitchen and dining area with a large opening for the French doors to the back porch.

Large family room windows face south toward the driveway.

Standing where the French doors will be, and looking east through the dining, kitchen and family room area.

The downstairs bathroom was tiny, but we've rearranged it to make it more usable. We flipped the tub from the wall on the right to the outside wall, and put a small vent window above it. A pedestal sink will go on the left, and the toilet on the right.

Where the old brick fireplace used to be. Eventually there will be a gas fireplace here, with some built in cabinets on either side.

The coat closet at the front entry, adjacent to the stairs.

Front entry with raised floor, and coat closet on the right.

Master bathroom walk-in shower. This will be a tiled shower with a regular shower, and a hand shower. There will also be a clawfoot soaker tub in the bathroom.


Facing south in the master bedroom. The walk-in closet doorway is on the left, and the bedroom entry is on the right.

Facing north in the master bedroom. Smaller storage closet is on the right, and the entry to the master bath on the left.

This evening's view from the master bedroom.

Facing north in the southern upstairs kids room. Closet on left will also have access panel to furnace in the attic. The second upstairs bathroom is framed in to the right of the closet, with access from the hallway.


New furnace installed in the attic space.


New heating duct to the master bedroom.



The north kids bedroom--already a mess.

Closet for north kids' room on right, with new bath tub and surround in the bathroom on the left.

Inside laundry/mud room on main floor, looking back into kitchen and pantry on the right.

Washer and dryer will go here.

New tankless water heater inset into the wall.

Main water shut-off valve for the house.
Another exterior shot showing  windows in, except for the master bedroom.