{slate flooring}

we decided to do slate throughout the main floor with the exception of the master bedroom, living area and study.  i went with "california gold" because i loved the blue/gray colors it had throughout most of it.  the great thing about slate is that it's durable, easy to clean, and when it "flakes" or "chips," you can't tell!  i love the un-evenness of it.  i have learned that people are either slate "lovers" or slate "haters."  i ran into both when deciding on which flooring to use.  for me, slate adds a certain added texture that tile can't give you.  some may not want that, but i did.  anyway~ the slate is in and it looks great! 

 

 

 

 

.first glance of the outside.

{here's our first look at what the outside is going to look like, though it's a long way from finished.}

{the back of the house.  they started putting the vertical siding up.}

I skipped a few "steps" in our building process, like the windows and roof, but I figured I'd talk about them here.  We went with Pella energy saving windows.  We liked that they already had tinting, so no worries about fading furniture.  The roof is a 6/12 for the most part.  We did a 4/12 on one of the front peaks.  If you think you see a huge overhang around the home, you're right.  I wanted at least a 2 ft. overhang, like most craftsman/bungalow homes.  I think that this detail is one of the most charming details of craftsmans, and is sadly not done much anymore.  I don't know if you can tell, but we went with a metal roof.  More expensive up front, but it'll pay for itself in the long run.  Plus, it was "greener" than a normal roof. 

.main floor.

{the main floor.  here's looking from the foyer into the living room}

{looking at the foyer.  i wanted all glass front doors.  the stairs at this point weren't finished yet.}

{part of the master bedroom.  i love the 3 square windows that will be above our bed.  i also love the little "love note" i wrote for J on one of the 2x4's on the wall.}

The framing process for me was one of the longest waits.  It took them nearly a month, and while I knew it was worth it, it was hard to w.a.i.t.  I'm not a patient person to begin with, then you throw in "changes" and, well, let's just say I was antsy.  J at this point had me driving around, looking at roof pitches, and researching the roof pitches of craftsman bungalows.  It kept my mind off the slow-moving framers somewhat! ;) 

concrete's down, walls go up!

{basement framed & ready to start main floor}

While I was visiting one of my closest friends & college roomie, the basement was framed and they were getting ready to start the main floor.  Here is where we ran into the first issue we didn't notice on paper.  During our last "redo" of the plans, we didn't notice that our revisions had reduced the size of a couple of the rooms.  We had to change a few things around, eliminating the exercise room, and having it be the mechanical room, making the craft room into the exercise room and moving the craft room to the class room.  It allowed the downstairs dining/game area and the family room to be bigger, and better suited for what we were wanting.  The walls had to be taken down and moved.  It was a process, but better to take care of it then, than worry about it later and regret not doing it.

{the start of the main floor.  the garage is to your right, and not framed yet}

.radiant heat.

{j and london shoveling gravel}

{this is where i come in.  the start of the radiant heat installation}

not only did these foam boards have to meet up perfectly, but they had to be level.  not an easy feat.}

{the "after" picture.  radiant heat was laid & set, ready for concrete!}

If you're not familiar with radiant, the little red hoses have hot, hot water running through them, the warmth of the water heats your floors and in turn, heats your home, making your electric bill decrease by huge amounts.  We also planned on using a hardy furnace {another "green" living choice}, so that our electric bill will be next to nothing.  The great thing about hardy furnaces, is that it's not your parents wood stove.  You fill it once a day with wood and it's good, it also uses less wood than other wood furnaces.  J also made it to where if he is on a trip, and I'm home, I don't have to worry about filling it.   If the fire goies out, and the house reaches a certain temp, the electric kicks on and takes over.  Even then, we won't have to use the electric much at all, thanks to the radiant heat.

Okay, so as far as my experience in installing radiant heat, I will say that it's grueling work, but a great workout.  ;)  You have to be precise in your measurements {thank goodness J is}, and there is very little room for error.  Preparation is key. 

{concrete floors}

J and I knew we wanted polished concrete on the floors in the basement.  Besides being unbelievably beautiful, it was another "green" choice, because we weren't using any other materials.  No extra materials.  And, thanks to the radiant heat, the floor would be a comfy 70 degrees all year round!  I do plan on a couple area rugs in the kids' rooms for comfort, but still, much less than carpeting the entire basement.

.walls are a good thing.

{the forms up & ready to pour!}

{poured}

Now with the walls poured, we were ready to spread gravel and lay the radiant heat system.  I guess I should point out that J was the builder, and while most all the work was contracted out, we decided to install the radiant heat ourselves.  Now, I don't mind saying that when we started this process, I was ignorant about all things pertaining to building.  I've never cared to know anything about it, so saying that I was "ignorant," is like the biggest understatement of the year.  I've learned a lot.  A WHOLE lot. :) 

.starting out on the right "foot."

{the footings for the basement walls}

After the earth was dug up for the basement, they came in and made the outline of the basement.  These "footings" are what the basement walls would be formed on.  During this part of the process, I was a nervous wreck.  the outline of the house didn't look as big as I thought it should be, and I'm pretty sure I got on J's nerves a bit with my worrying.  It's not that I didn't trust him that he knew what he was doing, but it just looked so small, I didn't see how everything would fit inside. 

{a better view of the newly formed basement}

*next up: walls!

.just the right spot.

J and I had looked for land for a few years before we found just the right one for us.  We needed acreage, since we have horses, and I was wanting to get a few longhorns.  We found 22 acres that backs up to a national forest and has a spectacular view of the ozark mountains and valleys.  We bought it and held on to it for 3 years while we designed our home.  J and I had been planning and dreaming about our "dream home" since we were married.  We knew what our priorities were, when it came to our dream home.  J wasn't budging on having a large shop/barn, for him to tinker in, and a place for a pool table in the basement.  I, in turn,  had full reign on the kitchen planning, craft room and the master dressing room.  We both knew an excersise room was a must, along with a pool.  We spent hours pouring over house plan books, trying to find one similar to what we were wanting, with no luck.  So, we decided to draw our own.  We spent the better part of a year, drawing, tweaking, adding, taking away, and tweaking again, before we came up with what we thought was our final plan.  We then sent it off to the architect to have drawn up.  When the plans came back, we noticed things we wanted to change.  After a few times of this happening, we walked out of the architects office, our house plans perfected.  I was sure that we would change nothing from here on out.  I was wrong.  It's amazing how you can spend countless hours planning, studying, researching and still overlook things.  Little things that you would never think about.  In our opinion, an architect is a wonderful asset to the home building process, but don't rely on them to notice or point out things that could be "mess ups."  We went over our plans with a fine tooth comb several, several times, and still had to change things here and there along the way. 

the entrance to our property.  the fence will be rocked, i designed the gate, {which you can't see, since it's open}. The shop/barn is in the background.  The barn on the right is one that was from the early 1900's, and came with the land.

We wanted to go as "green" as we could.  We splurged on some things, and on others, drew the line.  Overall, it's turned into quite a "green" house.  We couldn't be more thrilled.

the first day.  digging earth for the basement.

I thought I should probably include the plans to the house, so here they are.

the front view.  you can't tell, but the garage is at a 35-degree angle.

back of the house.

the main floor.

the basement.  changes had to be made here.  more on that later. :)

If you've made it this far, thanks for reading!  We look forward to blogging our building/designing process and decor choices with you!

?Who is the Beam Fam?

J and I met on a blind date 12 years ago while I was a wedding planner and he was a contractor.  Three months later, {yes, from "hi, my name is..." to "I do." was 3 months}, we were married.  Fast forward to present time, and here we are, more in love than ever, parents of 2 monkeys, and in the process of making our dream home a reality!

It's been a whirlwind of an adventure, and we've had the time of our lives seeing something that we designed on paper come to life!  I can't wait to share our experiences and our process with you!