Saturday, April 14, 2007

Finish out details...

The first coat of interior paint is on the walls, and I'm pleased with the results. I'm particularly pleased with the color of the kitchen/butler's pantry cabinets. I wanted something with a little more character than the typical white/off white, but still neutral enough for easy resale.

I had a mossy green in mind, and after I put a dozen samples up, I quickly narrowed the options down to two. I asked J to take a look, and fortunately for him, his favorite (SW Connected Grey) was one of my top two. So don't say I never let him choose the finish out details, lol! Although fairly confident of my choice, I was still a bit nervous to see all the cabinets painted. It's a large kitchen, so the wrong color has a big impact. I really like the end result, and I think it will also go quite well with the granite I chose.

I personally prefer granites with a lot of movement. The giant island just screams to have a nice Yellow River on it, or perhaps something in the Juparana family. I've been told, however, by several realtors (and my friend R, a budding kitchen designer), that most people prefer granite with very little to no movement. Blech, how boring! I think I have a psychological issue with these types of granite since I know they are on the less expensive end --- I also think they "look" cheap. In any case, I compromised with the Giallo Verona slabs I found at a local stoneyard . It has a touch of movement so it doesn't look like Silestone, but it's still neutral enough for mass appeal.

A few more pics for you viewing pleasure follow:


Stone used on front porch columns (still needs mortar)

Crown moulding used throughout house (trim color is SW Dover White)


Trayed Ceiling in Master BR (rope lighting will be used on the tray "ledge")


Office built-ins (Cabinets are SW Dover White, wall color is SW Wool Skein)


West side of Kitchen (SW Connected Grey)

East Side of Kitchen with Desk Area

Butler's Pantry

Oh, I guess I should look at it.

J found another property on our our old street, a corner lot, and while I was have a pedicure Thursday night, he called the realtor (who's the owner's life partner). By the time I was done and having cocktails with the girls, he had agreed to terms on the house. Mind you, neither one of use had seen the inside. We wanted the house for lot value, so it didn't really matter, but it's still a bit funny.

The next evening (yesterday night), we stopped by the house on our way to a charity dinner/auction to sign contracts. It is a cute little house with really nice, recently finished hardwood floors - a typical Heights charmer that needs a little bit of lipstick. It's a great lot, and we intend to build a spec home on it down the road - probably in a year's time since we're going to have money tied up in building two more homes after we complete our current project. We're going to lease it out until it's time to build or to flip the lot if that makes more financial sense. If we do build oa new home, the original house will be moved off to another lot, not demolished. That eases my guilt a bit.

We close in 2 weeks. Crazy!