Options narrowed; Decisions made

About 43 years ago the driver's license examiner barked: "Pull up next to the tan cahrh."  He was the only person in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. with a genuine Southern accent.  Down the street was a variety of vehicles that provided opportunities for parallel parking.  They all were light brown, beige, tan, sepia, taupe -- you get the idea -- cars.  The car stops, the examiner looks to his right, with condescension and disgust.  "Does this look like a tan 'cahrh' to you, boy?"  Obviously, not.  Parallel parking attempt over, test failed.  Bitter, even after four decades?

Two score and three years later, more color choices: interior paint, tile, siding, roofing shingles, counter tops, cabinets, appliances,  brick, trim.  "What do you like?"  Different, unique, under budget.  Construction moves fast and the builder, Anthony Singleton, has been promised pondering choices will NOT delay his work.

April 19, 2014

Weather has been cooperative, and even Hurricane Arthur was kind enough to pass gently by, leaving just some insignificant site erosion, but more significantly -- some confidence that the structure is strong and secure.

Just look (left)  at the transformation from mid-April to July.

May 20, 2014

Notice the large opening in the foundation, to the right of the front steps, covered with lattice in the July 5 photo?  There are two others near the sides of the foundation closest to the flow of the creek. Those are gates, so, in the event of any really high water -- and it would have to be above the 100-year flood level -- REALLY high , water can easily flow in -- and out -- from the foundation.

June 2, 2014

The color and styles for the foundation brick, roof shingles and siding were picked out long ago -- very early in the process.  Like many things in life, the really big decisions are the easiest -- simply because there aren't as many choices -- thankfully!  It is as the project moves on, that the choices are smaller but the possibilities are more diverse.

July 5, 2014

  Take picking out the granite for the kitchen counter tops.  On a Monday morning we headed out to Cosmos Granite and Marble in Raleigh.  The business has a nice reception area and showroom when you enter.  Then, after a brief discussion with Kristina Martin, our sales person, we were escorted back to the warehouse -- the size of a quarry with, literally, hundreds of slabs -- about 6-feet by 9-feet -- of granite and marble.  They're arranged by style and color-coded for quality and cost.  I looked out over the vast array of rock and felt like I was back on Academy Street at my drivers' license test -- way too many choices and poorly armed to differentiate among "Juprana Sucuri" from India; "Ibere Maestra Black" from Brazil; "Butterfly" from Brazil; and "Brass Blue" from India.  There were a few other folks also wandering up and down the rows looking at the rock.  They were armed with bags full of wood and tile samples, paint colors, and photos.  They'd walk up to one of the granite samples and stare, run their hands across the surface, pull out the samples and put them beside the stone.  They could have been neurosurgeons pondering x-rays and CAT-scans prior to performing brain surgery.

We arrived armed with our imaginations.  Nancy asked: What do you want, like?  "Different and under budget."  Not much help.  We spent about an hour going up and down the rows -- making a list of what interested us -- and then going back for another look at those that struck our fancy.  We picked the "Brass Blue," that we suspect will go nicely with the room color, the wood stain on the kitchen cabinets and tile for the kitchen floor (more about that, in a bit, below).

Granite: "Brass Blue"

After our choice was made, we were taken back to an even bigger area and picked out the slabs (picked two, but probably will only need one) that will be our counter tops.  A powerful hoist picked up each slab like it was a mere sheet of paper -- for our inspection and choice -- and then placed it back with the delicacy of a falling autumn leaf.  And, yes, we stayed under budget.

Before we went granite hunting we'd selected the tile for the kitchen, laundry room and two bathroom floors.  Byrd Tile offered a dizzying array of opportunities to make bad choices.  Not only were there colors and styles to select, but there were sizes, patterns and grout colors, too.  Now, don't think we've been surprised to be confronted with these issues -- but it all becomes a fun-house maze of potential tragedies and avenues that offers way too many chances for major disruptions in the very delicate arena of  domestic tranquility. Our "design consultant" at Byrd's, Sharon Whitehurst, patiently led us through the variety of tiles offered and then explained the various patterns that they could be laid out in.  In the kitchen, the 12x12 tiles and 18x18 tiles will be placed in a "pinwheel" pattern.  After the tiles are placed, there will be a photo.

Kitchen  Cabinets and Breakfast Bar

My friend, and amazingly talented home renovator, Hank Wall of Woodwise Design, has offered several great tips and cautions as we've been going through the design and construction.  It was Hank who'd suggested we check into TightLines Design for a house plan.  He offered several tips on ways, without going to great expense, to give a house some marks of individuality.  One suggestion was to find some unique wood and to panel a small area -- say portions of a kitchen.  Out of that discussion came the idea to panel the breakfast bar with old wood that's been salvaged from the Cape Fear River near Wilmington, N.C..  The work, bringing up wood up to 400 years old from the river bottom, has been the subject of reality TV, such as the show "Swamp Loggers," that was broadcast a few years ago on Discovery.

Salvaged Cape Fear River Wood -- unfinished

The salvaged wood has amazing character and is prized for unique flooring, cabinetry and paneling.  I talked to some folks I knew in the Wilmington area, did some online exploration and located a few places that offered river wood for sale.  I got lucky and found one business that had some pieces in odd sizes that would fit my needs.  The catch -- pay in cash.  The price was right and it was cash-on-the-barrel head.  I drove down from Raleigh to Wilmington on a very rainy Friday morning.  Suburban growth in the eastern part of Wake County, into Johnston County has been significant in the last 20 years.  Combine that with construction on Interstate 40, weather-related road condition challenges and the general nuttiness of most of us behind the wheel made it a not-so-pleasant escape from Raleigh.  But the trip was definitely worth it.  The wood dealer was a great character, a real craftsman, and to Nancy's delight, a HUGE Red Sox fan.  He gave me chapter and verse about the wood I was getting and a great look around his shop and latest projects.  

 The wood is beautiful.  It will panel the breakfast bar -- as it faces the dining and living rooms.  Michael Zaytoun, our cabinetmaker from New Bern, will help to match up the appropriate finish for the paneling so it works with the cabinets he just finished and installed.

Woodwise's Hank Wall also suggested that finding some unique tiles, at salvage stores or Habitat For Humanity "ReStore" stores can make an interesting back-splash for sinks in the kitchen and bathrooms.  As we looked around the tile store, Nancy decided she could go them one better -- and employ her pottery skills and make our own.  And here's an opportunity to show off some of her non-tile pottery.

Nancy's Pottery

Now on to picking out lighting, plumbing fixtures, appliances and hardware along with starting to think about landscaping.  Please stay tuned.