Before we started researching homes last year, I hadn’t put much thought into the process of building a house. For example, it never really occurred to me that most home features were selected as options. I suppose I thought they just came that way. You know, like babies from the stork, all nice and clean. Nicole, on the other hand, informed me that she had wanted a Corian countertop since shortly after learning to walk. Which either means that Nicole is mental, or that my mother never bought me the Fisher Price kitchen set with real Corian countertops. Hmm…

Nicole and I managed to compromise on most of the options, but the middle ground kind of leans more her way, because my taste is more “dark and cool” (no, really), and hers is more “fresh and clean”. Does that make sense? You’ll eventually see what I’m talking about when I post photos of the finished kitchen in a couple of weeks. In the meantime, let it be said that I lobbied for the “Armstrong Kitchen”, but was filibustered into submission.

Nicole’s dad commented during his last visit that Austin must be home to an army of masons, and that’s probably true. Most of the homes that I’ve seen around town make use of brick and/or stone in some manner. Our home is built with four sides of brick (standard), and we added stone accents on the front. We don’t expect trouble from the big bad wolf, but you never know.

The sheetrock is up, and the brick and stone exterior work is mostly finished. The kitchen cabinets were installed, but they weren’t the correct size, so they had to be re-ordered. That might delay things a little, but it’s still looking like a mid May move-in. Some of the interior ceramic tile/stone has been installed, and the driveway, front walkway, and back patio are framed up and ready for concrete.

Enjoy the latest collection of photos. Keep in mind that if you post a negative comment about our selected options, I’m revoking your free coupon to the Hanover Bed & Breakfast. And I’m eating your complimentary banana.

The House Photos

The construction process has recently passed into a new phase that includes the house starting to look like an actual house. Current estimates point towards a May move-in date, but that could be affected by change orders, the weather, and how long it takes us to squeeze a gigantic couch through the front door of our apartment.

There have been a variety of delays that have put a damper on the enthusiasm we once had for daily visits to the site, but we’re still out there trudging in the dirt several times a week. It’s important to document progress as it occurs, and we also enjoy snooping around other houses that are under construction. The photos posted here are only a small sample of the hundreds that we have taken.

The sheetrock was completed last week, and they have installed the baseboard, casing, window sills, and doors. The interior is scheduled to be painted this week, and after that, things should really start to move fast.

On a side note, selecting interior paint is an interesting process. They present you with color samples that pretty much all look the same, and ask you to select which version of white you like the best. They have strange names like “Dover White” and “White Duck” to make it seem more like a choice, but it’s all WHITE.

The album for this week includes photos of the insulation, the beginning of the sheetrock installation, several finished walls, and an important warning. Proceed with caution.

The House Photos

Work on the house has continued at a steady pace over the past couple of weeks. The electrical wiring and plumbing has been mostly completed, and we had the house pre-wired for a security system. Our old security system was a very large baseball bat. I recently went off the steroids, but I can still cause semi-permanent brain damage. Keep that in mind.

Although I realize its all part of working towards the goal, this hasn’t been the most exciting phase of the construction process. Things are going to pick up in the coming week, after we walk the house with the supervisor, and the sheetrock goes up. After that, the inside will start looking more like an actual house, and less like a frame building from the Old West.

We had our final design center appointment last week, and managed to change several of our selections multiple times before Nicole’s compulsive need to apologize kicked into overdrive and she started foaming at the mouth. The design consultant didn’t seem surprised by our strange behavior, so I didn’t feel bad about acting like she wasn’t there. She returned the favor by asking the same question five times.

This week’s photo album is super sized, but still better for you than a McDonald’s salad. The photos are mostly of the wiring and plumbing, with a few miscellaneous images, including the master tub and shower floor.

Clicking the link too fast may cause whiplash.

The House Photos

Although it may not seem like it, I’m actually still going to write about subjects that do not include the new house. It just happens that I haven’t written anything since the last entry, and now it’s time to post more house photos. Hold the judgment.

They’ve managed over the past week to get the first part of the roof up, and a few temporary walls. I don’t really know what is involved with building a house, so I’m not really sure what they’re doing, but it seems to be going well.

We visited the design center last week to select interior options. That includes the tile, carpet, cabinets, countertops, etc. It’s proven difficult to take a tile sample and a cabinet door and visualize how that will look in a much larger area. Most of these selections involve a bit of guesswork, and we’re hopeful that things will work out. It’s been a running joke between us that we’re going to walk into the house when it’s finished and ask, “Who the hell picked out this crap?”

The photos for this entry include my incredibly muddy boot (which sort of sums up our experiences at the lot), a later stage shot of the outside from the same side angle, the family room including the fireplace and triple window span, and the front door and window of the study/office.

(Editors Note: The photo quality looks somewhat questionable, but I’m working with a hostile environment here. The weather has been overcast and generally Portland-esque for a few weeks now, and it makes for dreary looking images. Enjoy.)

The House Photos

After spending a few months scrutinizing maps from the city planner’s office, and driving all over North Austin, the woman and I have decided to give up the apartment life and build a house. The weekend afternoons I used to spend wandering around Fry’s Electronics have been replaced by long days shuttling between Home Depot and Lowes.

Since we’ve both spent the majority of our adult lives (post-parents) in apartments, it will be an exciting change. I’m looking forward to establishing one half of the garage as the PING PONG RING OF FIRE. I’m not kidding. Enter if you dare.

Taking an idea from Ryan Sims (another one!), I’m going to post photos detailing the phases of construction over the several months it will take to complete our new home. I hope to publish a couple of new images each week, until the project is complete. It should be fun, and might even be interesting. Thanks for sharing this experience with us. If you’re on the recommended list, I’ll save one room just for you. Shoes off at the door.

These images are from the very early stages of construction. No, that’s not the surface of the moon; it’s the concrete slab at night. The other images are of the framework, which just went up towards the end of last week, and the pipe that will eventually bring water to the tub in the master bathroom. More to come…

The House Photos