I am in Tulsa, and am not sure if our clay is the same. What I understand is that early this century, the government (corps of engineers) built rivers and lakes that made Oklahoma greener, especially where I live. However, when houses are built, the builders use the decent layers of soil, and leave us with clay. I do not plant in what is here. In the front we had truck loads of top soil delivered, and in the rest of the property, we have brought in soil on our own. I don't know what it would take to plant in clay, but it looks like all it is good for might be bermuda grass. I would invest in soil first. A meadow sound exciting. Sammy

It was so much fun to read about everyone's paths to a "new old house." We are finishing our build in the next month, and I was very inspired by the concept of the new old house. For me, it was about capturing the classic proportions of old houses, rather than attempting to replicate them. For us, budget was a major concern, so I could not afford all of the materials that a true Versace-approved new old house would require. Instead, we focused on not making the mistakes that poorly done "new old houses" seem to really suffer from, like wrong roofing, wrong windows, etc. In some ways, it is just as important to focus on what NOT to do as it is to think about what TO do. I used two books, in addition to Versace's and lots of books of historic homes from our area, that gave detailed information about construction patterns. One is "Traditional Construction Patterns" but I can't recall the other right now. They are both on Amazon. (And I probably reviewed them there.) What they did was teach me what the obvious markers are of a poorly-done traditional construction...they are the things that - once you can recognize them - make the house obviously "wrong." By adhering to traditional construction practices and using new materials, we were able to avoid some of the mistakes that we would have inevitably made attempting to build a "new old house" on a budget. The homes in Versace's book and portfolio are gorgeous, but totally out of our reach. And, as other have suggested, really studying the home in the area helped me immensely. I paid attention to the size and placement of windows and doors, shape of window lights and number, trim details, porch raining profiles, etc. I was really obsessed! Good luck on your design and build. This is such an exciting process.

Hi all, Just wanted to chime in on this thread. I am starting my 3rd self-built home project. (Yes, I need to have my head examined) I run a remodeling company so it's not completely insane. Previous comments about kitchens and baths being core expenses are right on the money--- so to speak. They are expensive. Building one in an apartment and then a new one in your finished house is really shooting yourself in the foot. Try this instead. Build with the foot print of a 3 car garage, say 38 x 25, but only utilize the space a two car garage would generally take up as garage space--- 25x25. Use the 25x10 part to put your permanent stair, a foyer and your permanent kitchen in. Now you can think of the space over the garage as a second story of your finished home. You can get 2-3 bed rooms and a bonus out of the space with a hall bath. Unless you really need an apartment this approach can save a bunch of cash. Someone was asking about standing seam metal roofing. If you use the commercial folks you see on TV expect to be asked to pay $65 a square foot. I had one come out and give me a quote just to check it out. It was a real manipulative "hard sell" with all these "bonuses" and "programs" available "if you sign today." Be very careful. No matter how you slice it it's a rip. Either HD or Lowes will special order metal roofing for you. Its's not hard to install. (Be careful, wear sneakers and don't bend down on your knees, it is really slick.) If this is your forever house, install 40 year architectural asphalt. It looks nice and will likely outlive me. Good Luck and Be careful out there! Bruce

If I were seeding the lawn in the picture i would drag a heavy chain behind a riding mower to make a smoother surface. I would then hand sow the seed and then cover it with about an inch of mushroom compost. Recommendations for the amount of seed per 1000 Sq Ft are usually 3 pounds per 1000 Sq Ft. I would use a lot more than that maybe double. I would suggest you do NOT use seed from a big box store because they sell the same bags from Maine to Hawaii and from Key West to the Aluentians in Alaska. So no matter where you are most of those bags contain WEED seeds. You're paying good money for useless seed. I don't know where you are but here I would suggest "Penn State Mix" which is a mix of mostly Perennial Rye with some Fescue and some Kentucky Bluegrass. The place I buy from uses 50 pound bags of Pennington Seed Penn State Mix which is put in a big container. A scoop is provided and bags which you can fill with as much as you need. They have a scale and you pay by the pound. If you're in an area any where similar to mine I suggest you google that seed supplier and find a dealer near you. They also sell seed by the seed type. You can buy the component seed that makes up that mix by itself and you can buy; for instance a better grade of Kentucky Blue. I have added a little of the better KB but don't over do it. I say this because Kentucky Blue and Fescue will tend to get Red Thread and Red Dust in the summer if you have too much in your lawn. And if you have too much of those two varieties you will have to Dethatch your lawn fairly regularly. So if you seed and then apply an inch of mushroom compost you will be covering your seed to keep it moist, the birds from eating the seed (I don't have that problem), and improving the soil. Once your lawn is established you can repeat the inch of Mushroom Compost to better improve the soil. I would suggest in the spring just prior to when the grass starts to grow fast. To quicker hide the MC. If you're up North get it done quick.