That is wonderful Tami!! I'm about to take on a similar project. Hubby is getting our back deck built on a new house and I'm wanting to do a little fence work for our dear pups. I'm thinking a little paver patio like you have, a space for two to sit and quietly reflect on the day. Nice landscaping around in pots and the fence giving additional privacy. Thanks for the wonderful picture and ideas!! I definitely need to find a good junk store around here! :-)

What is the scope of the project? If you are not doing structural work and you have some people in mind to do plumbing/electrical etc, I would recommend acting as your own GC. You will need some rudimentary knowledge of the process though so you know what order to do on. For instance, my kitchen had a leak last year which necessitated new base cabs and subfloor/floor. Since the kitchen was 20 years old, we decided to to the whole thing. What I did: Demo, sheetrock walls, hardwood floors, unpacked and placed cabinets, knobs, painted, ran ductwork for vent, installed vent insert and will tile myself. What I paid for: Drywall guy to drywall ceilings (can't do by myself) and tape mud and sand the whole kitchen.($300) Random helper guy (known for his trimwork but knows how to do everything) installed the cabinets, counter height window, repaired cedar siding outside, 3 interior doors and trim in kitchen. ($1800 plus lunch everyday) Electrician ran new wires for appliances, outlets, chandelier and 6 recessed lights. Later he installed all the appliances and lighting ($1800) Plumber ran lines for prep sink and hooked up 2 sinks, installed 2 disposals and dishwasher. ($1400) Counters done by soapstone people Limestone hood installed by mason ($1500) As you can see, I only paid out $6000 in labor for my whole kitchen. I saved considerable amounts of money. It takes longer to do it this way since you have to wait for the one person to finish before making an appointment with the next guy. It took a full 6 months from demo to having a functional sink. There are still 2 small things to do even 15 months later. I was able to purchase higher quality materials with the savings on labor. Figure out what you can do yourself and go from there. Demoing the kitchen can save you a few thousand. I think sheetrocking takes some prior experience. Cabinets can be easy or difficult depending on your walls and floors. Here is a rough order of events in a kitchen remodel. Decide on your appliances so you have the specs before the cabinet design process. Don't actually purchase them until you know they will work in your design. Order the appliances before you order the cabinets to make sure they have them available before you order the cabinets. Have all spec sheets available for the designer. Pick out your sink. Design and order cabinets. Triple check your measurememts. make sure your appliances will fir in the cabinets. Make sure your sink fits in the base. Demo: Order a dumster (at least a 10 yard) Demo a few weeks before the cabinets come in so you have several weeks to get the electrical, plumbing and walls before cabinet delivery. Electrical: Usually done afer the design is done but before the walls are in. (Appliances, Outlets, Overhead lighting, Undercabinet lighting) Have appliance spec sheets and cabinet design available. Ask at what time you should call again and how much notice you need. Plumbing: Sinks and water lines for fridge. Do this before the walls go up. Ask when he/she would like to be called to finish and how much notice they need. Sheetrock after the electricians and plumbers have done their thing. Paint before cabinets go in. Flooring either before or after cabinets depending how you want to do it. Cabinets Unpack immediately to check each piece and order replacements if necessary. Have appliances there for install for clearances Install cabinets. Install counters. Some appliances may already need to be in place or not (i.e. the dishwasher needs to be there if you are getting stone counters unless you buy a dishwasher labeled stone countertop ready.) Once the counters are in, call back the plumber and electrician to finish up. Hopefully now you have a functional kitchen. Now finish up by installing backsplash and misc repairs. Good luck. Learning to do a lot yourself is an empowering experience. I figure if I could get a doctorate, I could do this stuff myself too. Now that I am done, I am thinking of selling and looking for a new fixer upper!

Good to know you're back on better footing. It's a good lesson for all to sleep on the problem before you address it. That's a practice I always recommend. It allows you to cool down and respond correctly to the actual scale of the issue rather than the perceived scale of the issue that is always larger than life and emotional when first encountered. In other words, if this was the final labor on the project rather than just a prelim screwup that the GC hasn't even viewed yet, the scale of the issue would be much higher. You always want to save the escalated response to an inadequate response from the GC after he has had a chance, not the first response being volcanic. 20% for the material surcharge is for the time spent selecting the correct material, any associated required components, ordering the material, arranging for it's transport, receiving the shipment, inspecting it that it is correct and undamaged, and storing it so that it remains undamaged. Time is money and none of those services are free. ;) You'll pay it one way or the other, even if it's not specified in the contract. You'll pay higher labor fees, or you'll get less warranty, or something. The slack gets picked up somehow if the contractor is an actual business man and is going to actually remain in business. It's better to be above board with all charges in writing so you understand what goes into a remodel. If you elect to select and purchase your own materials, then you are the one responsible for all of the above and the contractor is no longer the point of warranty with the product.

I have been looking at these floorplans as well and have the same idea as cpartist on the exterior changes. I love the simple, more traditional look of removing the shutters an the extra garage bump out. I love the interior layouts of all of them as well, but am trying to cut corners (literally) to lessen the amount of bump outs in hopes that we can make it work with our budget. There are about 4 floor plans from the same designer that have a similar layout and range from 2000-2600 sqft. Here's the smallest of the floorplans