Do you mean the #1 is your home or it is your favorite?

Laurie

That was a fun tour, thank you. Given the fact that I dislike two-story homes and excruciatingly high ceilings, I didn't really have a favorite house but #3 is the one I liked best, although there was rather too much dark paneling. Each home had one or two rooms that I thought were rather pretty but the decor overall screamed "decorator-done" which I suppose is unavoidable. It's usually only the most high-end and/or talented interior designers who are able to avoid that look, or, better yet, home owners with design sense and a passionate love of their surroundings. Some of the kitchens were really nice, though.

Cool link, lacombe! In the Heartwood, I thought the laundry room and butlers pantry were fabulous.

I guess my favorite was the Nantucket #5, especially the master bathroom.

All in all, I found the outsides of the homes to be too busy. I really love the way the front of my home looks best of all!

I agree with Ingrid, too "decorator done." While the homes were pretty, I didn't find one of them to be a place where I could plop down on the sofa and put my feet up!

IMO, people are getting too "perfect" in decorating these days to where none of the rooms feel cozy.

Thanks for posting the link. There were elements I enjoyed in all of the homes. Butler's pantries and laundry rooms that I could do cartwheels in, fun wall treatments like the DR walls in #4, beautiful cabinetry and builtins, generous outdoor entertaining areas, etc. Granted if I lived in any of them, the rooms wouldn't be quite as "done." Kids will remedy the too perfect scenario in 1 hr flat(give my kids 45 seconds.)

My favorite was #2. I loved the windows and I'm an absolute sucker for the Shel Silverstein murals in the children's quarters.

Thanks for sharing the site. I always enjoy looking at expensive homes. There was some of each home that I liked, as well as a lot of each that I didn't (too "decorated", but still nice to look at--just not live in, for me anyway). What I couldn't get over were the TVs outside--surely they weren't left there full-time?

Thanks for the link they have some great decorating ideas.

I liked the interior of #5 the best but the exterior style of the house and butlers pantry of the heartwood. The other too I wasn't thrilled with the home style or inerior. The paneling and trim was great throughout though.

You're right, number 1 was the best. The others were so over done in decor and architecture, they looked ridiculous. I don't know if anyone noticed in one photo, a shot of a doorway going into what looked like a tiny office. They had gorgeous molding everywhere, but they couldn't fit in on this doorway, so they left it beautiful on one side and then sliced it off on the left because it knocked up against another doorway. It looked horrible.

You can't see the true house for all the stuff in them. They are cluttered with expensive stuff, but all the same, cluttered.

I only saw a couple of baths that appealed to me. Some were so plain and down right ugly. Looked like they didn't have a woman's touch in their design at at.

Nice! Thanks for posting.
Don't know if I should admit it but I live in a shingle style home that is probably too busy on the outside for some of you LOL
Mine is about half the size or less than these though.
I liked number 5 the best because is was not dark inside. I liked the big kitchen sink window, probably because I have one similar. LOL
It seemed a little less over the top and pretentious than the others.
I didn't like that big round window.

I like # 3 the best.

The combination of stained and painted moldings is something I can appreciate. All white is too much for me in an entire house. I love the drama that darker wood adds.

Wood paneling in a library looks so rich and cozy yet a lighter, brighter kitchen to offer contrast and spaciousness.

I just loved the many different 'feels' of that house.

I usually find that a continuation of the counter's stone carried on to the backsplash is found in more contemporary designs but is done here and looks nicely fluid.

They go on to use a pretty glass tile for the backsplash in the darker butler's pantry.

Two funny things I noticed...

One was a matching lime green toilet rug set....both for the lid and the floor in front. What is that about?!

The other was the little thingy...carved wood letters....in the office that say Home. It's kind of like those plastic wrapped cheese singles that say "American Cheese Food" on the label. I've always felt that if they have to tell you it's food on the label, it probably isn't!

Hi msrose, sorry I didn't word it right, saying that mine was #1, I meant to say my favorite house is #1. I did notice that all the homes were too over decorated, I can't remember which house it was that had a pitchfork in the powder room for the towels, now that is different. I just love looking at open houses, I get alot of ideas from some of them. I just wanted to share them with all of you, I'm glad your enjoying them.

Thanks for sharing...gave me something to look at on this boring evening.

Did anyone notice the green shrubbery side table?

I saw that! I guess boxwoods are all the rage in furniture these days!

I'm still getting over the refrigerator drawer in the master bath. Or is it a dish drawer? Or perhaps a warming drawer for the towels?

I loved laundry room and mudroom in $5 but loved the guest bathroom in #1 and this home seemed to be a home easier to live in rather than to show off. I really would prefer to live in a home like Brutuses (love her foyer and her bathrooms and colors she used) or Valinsv's home (I love her kitchen and her hardwood floors) than these overly done homes. The murals on the walls of the children's rooms in one of the homes (I forgot which) looked like a child would enjoy this. Some of the homes had cozy backyards.

#2 is the only one that appealed to me, tho I didn't like the shape of the tower.

Thanks for sharing the pix!

I liked #1. But I had to chuckle a little when I saw the note on the child's room that said something like "a child's bedroom that doubles as a playroom." Yeah, a lot of us had one of those growing up since we didn't have a dedicated playroom! ;)

None of them, as they are all northern style homes...been there done that,(no more 2 stories for me, no more steps) much prefer southern style homes..

I love home shows so much! Thanks for sharing! #2 is totally my style. I love Tudors and European designs.

I did not like the exterior of any of those homes. They are all such a jumble of features from "this" period and "that" style, they either look too fussy or unfinished. Lack of consistency = no style.

I certainly enjoyed looking at all these houses. But we simply wouldn't feel "comfortable" in any of them. They were beautiful houses, but didn't look like homes to me. Of course thats just me.

I look at those homes and see all of the stuff - all be it beautiful, I think each one was over done. Fun to look at. Hope I'm not just jealous!!!

You know I'm sort of tired of two story homes too, too many stairs, I know stairs are good exercise but thats enough, I wish they would show one story homes, they are very popular too.

Number 5 was about the best in my mind. I wouldn't buy it, but it was pretty well done. What the heck was with the decor in that red dining room...YUCK it looked like a faux finish class gone horribly wrong.

And the wine house? It didn't have squat for wine storage. But they were all fun to look at so thanks :)

I'm surprised at how little I liked most of them. Each had a room here or there I liked, but too much dark paneling or just odd decorator touches. I liked #1 the most too (the 5th one shown) and quite liked the downstairs pub area.

The first one was so huge I couldn't get through it all! I can't imagine living in 8000 sf - or why in the world anyone would need 8 bathrooms for a 5 bedroom house. They all just seemed excessively big to me.

I'm with Kswl, too many styles on the facades. I looked at the one that said new england, and thought, no way. I'm born and raised in NE and the only houses that look like that are the new ones. And I mean the new ones being built everywhere.
Jo

Overall I liked #5 the best - especially the interior. I also liked the exterior of #3. I enjoyed looking at the photos of each home - I love showhouses!

Overall I liked #5 the best, but there were parts of it that I didn't like. I really don't care for the 2 story rooms. None of those houses looked really comfortable and homey to me. There was the odd room that looked cozy but overall the houses had so much decorating and stuff in each room they just kind of gave me a crowded/busy feeling.

The blog is interesting, thanks for the link.

As for the "let them eat cake" show homes; eh. I had to chuckle when I read that "They werenÂt as over-the-top as usualÂthey actually showed some restraint, almost as if they were reflecting the current economy". "Almost as if". Why, it's almost as if I feel sorry for the short sided builders whose "ginormous" houses featured at the Cincinnati Home-a-Rama still haven't sold. Almost. ;^)

As far as the exterior goes, I'd say the last one was the easiest on the eyes, then probably that Nantucket jigsaw puzzle. I thought the others were predictable and boring, except for that "Tudor-style" with the modern windows; that one reminded me of some late 1980's strip mall office space. :^P

I liked #5 the best, partly because the porch was similar to porches in my neighborhood (although the roofline, etc. above the porch didn't seem to match the same period as the columns), and also because its decor seemed less 'busy' than some of the others. I'd trade my right arm for any of the 5 kitchens, as they're all a vast improvement over what I have. ;-)