Need advice on exterior of custom home.
5 years ago
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Comments (47)I would like to thank everyone who took the time to read through these posts and to post advice and suggestions and constructive criticism. I am taking all of it into consideration and some of it was not what i wanted nor expected to hear, but what I needed to hear. I feel as if a little more explanation is needed. We found a builder that we really like and everyone that he has built for has been really happy. He had several plans that we could look at or if we had any plans he could build whatever we liked. He has a gentleman that could draw and customize a home for us. We thought it was architect at first and the price was so good because we were going through him and he would then be able to have our house plan to use in the future. Upon our first meeting with the gentleman that was going to draw up of dream home so we could make it a reality, we learned that he was not an architect, or designer. He's retired now from 40 years of experience woking on/building homes and is good with the software. He is very kind and has been very patient with the many changes we have made along the way. However, we soon discovered that he really has no design ideas or suggestions. He just draws whatever we ask him to or whatever I draw to send to him. If we wanted something a changed, the standard procedure was to just make part of the house bigger, we had gotten up to almost 4400 square feet! If we didn't like the way something worked and asked for a change, he would fix that issue and cause 2 more. I got so frustrated that we are trying to build our dream home and pretty much the only person I had for design help was myself. Uhm, I really want someone with much more skill and talented and better taste to design my home. I know what I want, I just do't know how to get there. We have been working on this for 8 months. I got so frustrated that I gave up for 3 months. Our neighbors are using the same builder and they had difficulties getting their design as well. However they had found a floor plan that they liked and just had him make changes to it and add a mother in law plan. I firmly believe that we are his first truly start from scratch home. Again, this is the guy the builder sent us to to have plans drawn, not our builder. Giving him credit he has taking my very very basic sketches and turned them into something the builder can build from, but pretty much the design is about 99% me, not that I wanted it that way. Here is where I'm at, so you can see that he is doing all the builder type stuff. We don't want to be difficult, but we want a good design. We don't want the builder to think that we are difficult or indecisive because we just can't get there with his guy. I'm at a loss! Several people wanted to know the lot dimensions. So here they are: It is at the top of a ridge, has some slope to it and has a nice open are in the middle. Of course we want the house to sit about at the arrows part of the lot. There is an utility easement of 20 feet on the right side of the lot, but the utility poles are more like 30 feet inside the property. I really do appreciate all of your insight. It has been eye opening. I'll make another post addressing questions and comments. Sorry to be so long winded....See MoreWe are ready to paint our home exterior and I need some color advice!
Comments (3)The stone is not actual stone, it is likely a veneer. But, it is high quality with the look and feel of stone. Urban Puddy is very close to your inspiration photo. The trim would be done in Elephant Ear. Do you think those colors are simple enough? I am definitely looking for a more classic look....See More90s home advice needed! exterior renovation
Comments (9)Don't square anything off. The arched window over the door echoes the arched window to the upper right. That mass is asymmetrical. The two arches make it look intentional, give it balance. Without the repeating pattern, you'll have two mismatched windows oddly placed in an asymmetrical mass. The smaller, higher arched windows match. You have an asymmetrical house with good balance. Mess with it and you'll lose the balance. Your landscaping looks uninspired, but it could just be winter, when no landscaping looks inspired. When looking at before and after photos, like the first one you posted, always pay attention to the elements that are not about the house, like house in shade with brownish lawn and dark windows in the before and bright light, green grass, and warm golden light from the windows in the after. The 90s is fine. You house is great. "Updating" and "modernizing" are ways to sell TV shows. Did you know sll the verbiage about openness and "flow" came from HGTV's discovery that men liked to watch sledgehammer scenes? You need a reason to knock down walls other than "it improves the demographics of our viewership"....See MoreNeed advice on sprucing up exterior of home.
Comments (15)I would repaint the shutters, just a bit darker than what they are. They do appear to be faded. Maybe hire a landscape company to come and plan out a new landscape design, and depending on budget , you can work on it little by little. No more of those awful green ball things. Natural shapes on shrubs are much nicer, and I dont like that hedge in the drawing above at all. Get a professional designer involved, so you end up with something nice. Its a nice house. It deserves better landscaping....See MoreRelated Professionals
Oakley Architects & Building Designers · Clayton Home Builders · Brighton General Contractors · Country Club Hills General Contractors · Greenville General Contractors · Rohnert Park General Contractors · Schiller Park Architects & Building Designers · Jurupa Valley Home Builders · Conyers Painters · Damascus Painters · North Potomac Painters · Ashtabula General Contractors · Hanford General Contractors · Titusville General Contractors · Tuckahoe General Contractors- 5 years ago
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