We are moving right along. Brick and stone will be delivered on Monday. They just blocked up our back porch which will be our screened in porch. So far inside we have rough plumbing. This is a Frank Betz Holly Springs house plan.

Back of house:
http://i1187.photobucket.com/albums/z394/dlnilsen/553976_10150782765931063_607516062_12151794_257133068_n.jpg

Front of house:
http://i1187.photobucket.com/albums/z394/dlnilsen/525800_10150782757801063_607516062_12151773_1750648855_n.jpg

Okay...let's try this again:

Front of house:

Back of house:

Thanks Mayberry!

No I haven't ever posted a plan of the layout. I didn't ask for any GW opinions on the floorplan .... just didn't think it right to be second guessing the architect online especially during the design phase. And we were pretty set on what we wanted and it all came together nicely.

I haven't been able to post the plans since they are so tiny when transferred to the blog etc.

The house is about 4,500 square feet LA with a full walkout basement. The master is up and there are 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, a study and a center hall in the lower level.... plus a storage room and a mechanical room/workshop.

We're hoping to be in by August, but it's been pretty slow going. August will be 15 months!

Here is a link that might be useful: News From The Hill

Everyone's houses are looking great! Nice to see the progress being made.

The front of ours is actually finished now but the builder sent us these photos just before it was done.

The front door is Provia fiberglass with inspiration glass. And the stone is from Crab Orchard .. we went to the quarry and picked it.

Close up of front door:

And a close up of the stone:

Exciting stuff going on at our build last week and this week! Flooring last week, and this week. Appliances come tomorrow. Cabinet install this Thursday and Friday. Should start looking like a home soon! I'm going to wait to post pics til the weekend after the cabinets are in.

We've had some progress and I just updated tons of pics on my little blog below.

Please tell me if I'm being too lazy by just posting a link and not also reposting the pics on here :)

Here is a link that might be useful: our house progress

We're coming along! Drywall was finally started this week and excavators are working on the retaining wall for the walkout. We are hoping to begin painting by the end of next month!
Not much new with the exterior, this picture doesn't show the porch posts that are now covered. Just waiting for the stone.

Retaining wall

The box for the fireplace is built

Insulation is done. This is the wall adjacent to the fireplace

We have drywall!This is looking into the bonus room upstairs.

I have settled on my exterior design and created these couple of renderings. We will break ground shortly!

Beautiful homes - the ones I can see. For some reason the last four post pics don't come through on my monitor. I wonder why I have problems with photobucket and tinypic?

In the last ten days:

Planted trees in the back of the lot
Broke ground
Poured foundation
Poured basement floor

Walls will start to go up this week. They're built off-site so it will go very quickly. I anticipate the roof will be on in the next ten days.

Signed the Contract Last NIGHT!! To begin within 2 weeks!!!!

Love all the progress pics.

It has taken us 2.5 months (seemed like 6) and numerous changes to get ARC approval but we finally got it this week. Many compromises including our preferred standing seam roof which is now limited to accent roofs and entry, horizontal railings that required additional vertical posts and metal clad accents. Still very excited.

Next step is to remove a portion of scrub oak around the building envelope and stake the house. We hope to begin those activities next week in order to get the building permit.

I want to see dirt moving!

Continued good luck to all.

smpop, your open/closed cell insulation is not to the studs which usually is. They will tell you it is good enough but read what you paid for!

Peytonroad- our house has 2x6 studs. Does this make a difference with the spray foam insulation? Thanks for the input!

We are working on the siding right now and the weather is perfect for it!
It is a team of family working on decks, siding, fascia, and soffit! So glad we have family willing to help.
Siding color is: Spanish Galleon

Front of house:

Back of house:

We finally broke ground!!! Yay!!! This pic is actually from over a week ago. Our builder said we should have the foudation poured by the end of the week.

Everybody is making such great progress...such beautiful homes.

We've finally entered the finishing stage, which I would definitely call the most fun stage! Here are some progress pics...

DD trying out the stairs

Mudroom...very happy with how this turned out

DS entertaining himself with writing in the dust. I loved my Brown Antique slab but they cut it too short AND rounded one corner, so it has to be replaced :-(

Sun Room...one of my favorite rooms in the house

Another kitchen picture...I'm happy with how the two tone turned out.

Built-Ins in the study

View into the dining room

These were all taken last week after the trim carpenters had finished up and cleaned out all their stuff. I didn't get any good pictures of the family room but I'll add more later. The painters are there now, so in a couple weeks or so I'll have more.

cbusmom- Can I ask what brand your cabinets are? We're at that stage right now, and I like the shade of your white cabinets. We're also near cbus. :)

@Mom23Es-Thanks! Our builder uses Scioto Kitchens. The brand is Haas and I think the color is Marshmallow. But honestly, I'm a little confused about the color. Originally, we were going to go with Showplace cabinets because they were the only brand that Scioto Kitchens carries that had a soft white that I liked. Then my KD called me and told me that Haas was running a custom color special and I could custom match them to my trim (SW Creamy) and save some money. I didn't see the need for soft close drawers, which are standard in Showplace and thus increase the cost, so switching to Haas seemed to make sense. Then, when the sample door came back for my approval it had the name "Marshmallow" on it. I kind of freaked out because I thought it would be "SW Creamy". But, now my trim is painted and they are spot on, so no more worries!

Not sure that was at all helpful and I apologize for the long winded answer :-)

Submitted permits to county-- that counts as progress, right? Not very photogenic...

Nadine- what color paint did you use for your master bedroom? We would like to do a shade of grey and yours looks very nice, would love to compare. Thanks!

Almost done.

driveway

By bb19 at 2012-04-21

shutters waiting on stain

By bb19 at 2012-04-21

By bb19 at 2012-04-21

entrance

By bb19 at 2012-04-21

dining room/study from foyer

By bb19 at 2012-04-21

entering family room

By bb19 at 2012-04-21

more of the family room

By bb19 at 2012-04-21

fireplace and tv cabinet flanking fireplace on the right

By bb19 at 2012-04-21

looking into kitchen

By bb19 at 2012-04-21

kitchen

By bb19 at 2012-04-21

mud hall with lockers

By bb19 at 2012-04-21

master bath

By bb19 at 2012-04-21

In our 18th week! Exterior 95% done, Trim 90% done, Paint done. Electrical and Floors next two weeks, Counters on 5/7 then we hope to close on 5/17!

Foyer into Great Room, Kitchen, Hall, and Dining Room

Foyer into Dining Room

Dining Room into Great Room

Wow, I have to say every single picture of these homes are amazing! I love hoe eclectic everyone's tastes is and how it comes out in their homes!!
Dnilsen,
I would love to hear your thoughts on building a Frank Betz home. We are building a modified Highland Place from Betz.
Finally after all our trouble with drainage we have some progress. Temporary driveway was put in and grading has begun. Hope to have footings this week!!

Hey aucorley!

So far it's been great! A lot of it depends on your builder. Ours was able to push our garage out 2 feet (along with the over garage bonus room) without any modifications through Frank Betz. We also chose to push our front porch out 2 feet which gives us a really nice and spacious front porch! Everyone that comes and walks through (we are dried in), comments on how well laid out it is. Good luck to you and I look forward to seeing lots more pictures. I will post more as we get closer.

BB19 - I love the style of your house - it looks so warm and inviting with the wood tones and brick. Lovely home!

All the new homes are exciting to watch take shape!

More progress made since last update a couple of weeks ago!!

This is our future screened in back porch!!!

Thanks downsy! We're excited because we only have about a week left. Landscaping should be finished by next Friday.

bb19 - BEAUTIFUL! I have only seen bits and pieces but seeing it all come together in that beautiful setting - wow!

bb19~ Love your new home! Would you mind sharing the details for your brick floor? I'm also considering a brick floor for my mud room. What do you think the maintenance will be like? What paint did you pair it with? Thanks!

Thanks athensmom. Like you, we chose to paint the brick and I'm very happy we did.

laurajane02 - The brick floor is reclaimed brick called coffeeville set in a basketweave pattern. I'm hoping the maintenance will be low. Brick floors are somewhat common in Louisiana so I got to talk to several homeowners who have them. The consensus was that they are great but you have to seal them approx once a year otherwise they can chip or crumble at the joints. The work required for sealing depends on what you seal with. If it's a water based sealer then you just roll it on and let it dry. If it's a polyurethane then it's much more involved but you don't have to seal it as often.

Our paint choice was difficult but we settled with SW antique white in the "common" areas and used SW believable buff in the hall. The pictures I posted seem to make the rooms have a green tint which is not the case in real life. I like both because they are neutral and don't compete with the wood and brick.

bb19 ~ Thanks for the info! Brick isn't a common flooring choice in my area but I love the look. I'll probably have to source some brick tiles online. I also hope to be as successful as you with mixing painted trim with wood trim within different rooms of our house.

We're scheduled to close on Friday so I guess this will be my last post??!!??
Master bedroom color: Feather Grey by Benjamin Moore. It's very similar to Krypton by Sherwin Williams which is what I had in my previous house and loved it.
Here are some updated pics:
Kitchen:

Living Room:

1/2 bath:

Master bath:

Main bath:

Walkway being built:

laurajane,

We used whole brick but you can get antique brick tile.

Here is a link that might be useful: brick tile

Congratulations Nadine33! Everything looks great! I especially love your paint colors and all your dark cabinets. Fingers crossed for you that everything goes smoothly and you close on schedule. Enjoy your new home!!

laurajane,

Correction of the white paint color. It's SW Roman column and not Antique white. Sorry.

Everyone's homes look fantastic!

bb19 - what is your foyer light fixture? I've been looking for something similar but can't find the "right one"

Andi K,

It's from Ballard design and it's the 19 1/2" x 11 1/4" version.

Here is a link that might be useful: Calisse Pendant

All these homes are beautiful! For me, I feel like we've been on fast-forward for months, and I think it will stay that way until we move in the house this summer. Lots of fun now seeing how it is all working together.
Cabinets are being installed in kitchen.

Tile work in kids and guest bath.


Wine room--still some cabinetry to install.

Barrel vault ceiling waiting for a glittery light fixture in the entry.

Exterior ready to start landscaping.

Still need to find a tile to surround the dining room fireplace. Original selection came back with a 3K price tag so its back to the tile store for me!

bb19 - thanks so much...that's a great fixture!

cvtxmama - love that barrel vault ceiling!

bb19...... I'm loving so many aspects of your home!!! Could I ask if it is a stock plan or original? We've struggled finding a house plan we love.

cvtxmama - Cool house! I really like all the stone.

Herewegoagain - Thank you. It's a custom home. I spent almost 2 years trying to come up with the best plan for our family. What helped me the most was looking through thousands of plans and studying the book "A Pattern Language". I got a lot of ideas from other plans and Pattern Language explained what patterns makes a home pleasant.

A home that has a similar layout to mine but a different facade is Tucker Bayou. I came very close to building that home.

Here is a link that might be useful: Tucker Bayou

bb19....Thanks for the info. You did a fabulous job! I know you will enjoy!

wow, all of these homes are tasteful and unique! i'm going to start browsing this thread more often. i'll try posting some pictures of our build tonight, but what fun to view and read all of these updates.

bb19....Your house is looking gorgeous! What kind of windows do you have? Are your grilles between the glass or simulated divided light?

lindsay221,

Thank you.

The windows are Hurd with wood on the inside and aluminum on the outside. They do have a strip between the glass.

Been so busy with baby Harry (who just turned 4 months old) that I haven't had a chance to post here, but I did update my blog last night so I'll put that link here. I'll post in May for sure though!

Here is a link that might be useful: Let's Build a Home

Grace - I love your house and Harry is so cute! I have a 9 month old DS so I know how busy things get...

I love the colors you've chosen. Any chance you have time to share the names? I'm looking for a similar palette myself.

Harry is officially the cutest thing on our monthly build thread!

I believe he's growing as fast as some of the houses... especially mine as I'm closing in on the one year mark. Yikes! Our builder had told us to expect about 14 months and it appears that he's right or even optimistic.

Thanks everyone! Harry is our pride & joy :)

Here are all our paint colors:

Window/Door/Built-in Trim: BM INT RM 02 - Super White in satin finish

Front door: BM 528 - Vienna Green in semi-gloss finish

Front entry, stairwell, upper hallway, kitchen, under stairs, front closet, laundry, playroom, mudroom, back entry: BM AF-310 Subtle in flat/matte finish

Pantry & Powder Room: SW 6219 Rain eggshell finish

Living Room: BM HC-171 Wickham Gray flat/matte finish

Family Room: SW 7661 Reflection flat/matte finish

Dining Room: BM 1565 Mount Saint Anne flat/matte finish

Office: SW 7616 Breezy flat/matte finish

Master Bedroom & Closets: SW 6224 Mountain Air flat/matte finish

Master Bath: SW 6227 Meditative eggshell finish

Back bedroom: MSL263 Martha Stewart Dolphin flat/matte finish

Front bedroom: BM AF-490 Tranquility flat/matte finish

Kids bath: SW 6219 Rain eggshell finish

MIL:
Entry & Main house: BM AF-310 Subtle flat/matte finish

Laundry room & Bathroom: SW 6219 Rain eggshell finish

Bedroom & Closet: SW 6217 Topsail flat/matte finish