Building A House - Part 1
Walking construction sites, daily trips to Lowe's, and talking floor plans and finishes around the dinner table has pretty much always been a way of life growing up in a family of home builders.
For the past 7 months, Michael and I have been building a house of our own, so every spare minute has been dedicated to designing, planning, and constructing. Our move in date is fast approaching so I wanted to share some insight about the design process thus far. Michael and I planned everything from the ground up, which could be pretty intimidating... Fortunately for us, I have a rockstar for a dad who has been building forever and makes the process really manageable and exciting!
Let's talk floor plan.
This is the first step in the building process and there are millions of possibilities, so it's really smart to begin with your must haves.
We knew we wanted an open concept floor plan with plenty of air and natural light. We also knew that we had to have a master suite, a kitchen that overlooks the living area, plenty of space for entertaining, smart storage options, and a coffee bar!
Once we had this list narrowed down we started drawing with my dad and after a few revisions landed on a layout that we loved. Shoot me an email if you're interested in seeing the actual floor plan - I'm super proud of the way it turned out!
Once the floor plan was hammered out, we moved on to the exterior colors!
I knew I wanted lots of texture and light colors, so after many trips to different suppliers around town - I found a white brick that I loved and paired it with stone that runs all along the bottom of the house. The brick color is called Chesapeake Pearl - and it's absolutely perfect. We tied it all together with board & batten and white colonial windows.
Moving on to the inside!
There is soooo much to talk about here. It's absolutely amazing how many decisions you make when you are building. From ceiling heights to cabinet colors, every detail tells a story and I wanted to make sure that our home was a representation of who we are as a family. We wanted it to feel warm and inviting, but also have some statement design elements that set it apart.
Ergo, arch.
The first thing you see when you walk through the front door, is an archway, completed in the same brick that's used on the outside. This is without a doubt my FAVORITE part of the house. As an artist, texture is an important tool that I use to elevate a design and I think that the same rule applies when building a home.
Another way we brought in texture, was utilizing the same stone from outside on our fireplace. Centered with the cathedral ceiling in the living area, this becomes the focal point of the house.
The kitchen is going to be its own blog post, so more on that in a few weeks. :)
Dining Room
Our dining room sits on the left when you walk through the front door and with the 13' ceiling, crown molding, and wainscotting - it makes an elegant statement.
We also decided to add a walkthrough to the kitchen with a nook for a coffee bar! :)
Master Bath
Marble. This was my non-negotiable and I am in LOVE with the way it turned out. Can't wait to share the light fixtures I chose for the bathroom once they are installed!
A few more fun details!
We added a cut out shelf on the backside of the fireplace where we can store all of our ugly tv equipment! (Insert praise hands here!) I'm thinking about hanging a large painting on this wall to cover it up, but we will see how it works once we move in.
Love the tray ceiling in the master bedroom! 
Laundry room...
Guest bath...
Woo... as you can see there are a million decisions to make and more details to think through than you can even imagine. I'll share another blog post soon with the flooring finished and the kitchen installed!
Builder: James & Company Builders, LLC.
Photos: Emily Bolt Photography