Required Reading Begun

I started my self-imposed required house-building reading.

If you have read any of her other books or even watched her television series, you know that Sarah Susanska is not so swayed on the big houses emblematic of the building bubble.  Not because of the economy or even global warming – she simply and passionately believes smaller is better. 

In Creating the Not So Big House, she illustrates how to use space creatively to build a high quality house of substance through twenty-five examples, including innovative floor plans and clear concept descriptions.  Notwithstanding, she may have been even more persuasive if more of the house owners had also hired interior designers.

Now I have the lingo and context to impress our architect.   If you are about to design any size house and don’t already know what spatial layering or visual weight is, then this book could help you create a home to nurture the spirit, but is 1200 square feet really a small home for a single woman?

I am still looking for good reads...what have found helpful/informative/inspiring in designing your favorite spaces? 

Happy Friday!

This flower goes out to Abby and Her Boys, my new favorite blog, where she shares her home projects, design inspirations, favorite blog posts and a ups and downs of family life.  Head on over, and check out the link for "New Readers" and you will love her as much as I do.

From the hanging basket in front of my house, earlier in the year.

This post is participation in Flower Fridays at A Place for Tea. 
If you have a blogger you would like to appreciate today, head on over, and share a flower.

Industrial carts and more...

I decided to share my Craig's list finds with you again, since I can't buy them (which is killing me).  No room until we build the new house.  We are storing so much stuff in my sister's basement, we could practically live there.

Check out this industrial cart which could be used as a coffee table - only $125!  Industrial cart tables at Restoration Hardware frun from $700 - $1700.  I love this look.

These 50s retro bar height dinette and two matching stools are only $40.  I love them.  How fun for a small apartment or a basement bar.

The post by the owner of this 1954 Yellow Mid Century Lane Cedar Dresser is hysterical.  She knows she has a great piece, and it's killing her that there is no interest...Worn down, she's willing to sell it for $1.  Worth the read.

Mirror, mirror on the wall...this gold mirror reminds me of Snow White, and is $85.  How perfect for a little girl's room.

This church pulpit chair could add a unique twist to an office or even a dining room for $75.

Just in time for the weekend.  Check them out, pick them up the weekend, bring them home, take a snapshot, and let me know how you like them.

Great finds!

I love perusing Craig's list.  It's like window shopping at a flea market.  Sometimes I am amazed by the finds.  And since we have no more room in this tiny little house until the new one is built, you all (at least in the area) are the beneficiaries of my finds this evening, ladies.

1920s vintage crystal chandelier - $65

Gorgeous Gold Framed Mirror $100

Leopard Chair - Perfect Condition - $65

Old School Desks - $10

50s Retro Kitchen Table and Chairs - $150


 It's so cathartic.  I feel like I went shopping even though I didn't spend a dime.  Tell me, have you scored any great Craig's List finds lately?

Thank you

I am a bit overwhelmed with your gracious response to my last post.  Thank you for all of your kindness and sweet posts about my mom's quilt.  It's always comforting for some reason to know that others have experienced similar things.

While I would like to leave it just as her hands left it, I can't.  I know her.  She was too practical to want it to hang on a wall.  She wanted things to be used - nice clothes, precious china, keepsakes, etc.  Unfortunately, this can't be used, because it's not quite complete.  The squares themselves are intricately done, but they are barely connected to each other by a few pieces of string.  I will definitely keep you up to date with the quilt as there are further developments.

A bittersweet surprise

Press play for the soundtrack to this post...This is a great song.

My mom died a few years ago, about a year before my son was born. We were very close. I miss her so much, even still. After she died, I listened to this song called "Butterfly Nets" by Bishop Allen a lot. I especially love the line, "Should you be blown back, know that I will always run to greet you, still surprised to catch you every time."

This past Friday, I cleaned out one of her old closets to give my dad more room.  I brought some of her stuff to my house.

Saturday, we held a baby shower for my cousin at which she received the most beautiful handmade gifts I have ever seen given, including a quilt made by the baby's grandmom. In spite of my efforts to be thankful for what a strong, amazing mother I have, even if she is no longer with me, I found myself feeling sad that my baby boy wouldn't get to know his mimi. That's what her grandchildren called her, and she lived for them.  Sunday night, I went through the things I brought from my parents' house. As I opened a beautiful basket, I pulled out some unused fabric, wondering what I could do with it.

Underneath, I pulled out an unfinished project (who can't relate to that?) of 4 x 4 hand quilted patches sewn together.  She obviously put a lot of hard work into it.

I am still surprised to "catch her" every time she "blows back" into my life.  It always seems like she comes when I need her most. How she knows, I'll never know.

Now I know what to do with the rest of the fabric. I'm going to finish the quilt for my son. Notice how it's blue (for a boy) and red (the main color in his room).  Actually that would be very meaningful if I could finish it, but I can't quilt. So, I'm going to have the quilt finished. Know any excellent quilters? I can't trust this special project to just anyone. It's a gift from his mimi, his angel.

Dresser Distress (Part II)

This is going to be short, but not very sweet...why didn't any of you tell me how much work this reworking furniture thing is?!...you just show the before and after pictures like whoosh!  Here's the ugly, drab, disgusting piece of furniture that no one in their right mind would ever buy, and then (*successive harp strums*) ta dah! here's the most beautiful custom piece of furniture you've ever seen that you couldn't find in a store if you tried. 

But you never mentioned the hours of grueling, labor intensive, sweat, blood and tears that went into it!  Needless to say we've been working on the dresser this weekend.  After a couple of hours on Friday and a few hours on Sunday, two of us have almost finished sanding it down.  I feel like such a wimp; we even had two electric handheld sanding machines.  I still don't think it's going to be in good enough shape to stain it (there is some weird paint in some spots underneath that won't come off and taking off the hardware left holes in some places that will have to be filled in with putty), so I am in the process of picking out a good color.  Wish me luck!

Dresser Distress

Hello ladies! I need help!  Our bought-out-of-college dressers are falling apart after ten years and we need a new one.

What I really want to buy is this beautiful handcrafted St. James 11 drawer dresser from Restoration Hardware.

But, since I'm having trouble committing to a house style right now, I am not ready to commit to an expensive dresser.  So off to Craig's list I go.  I have been searching for several weeks now, and yesterday, I came across this solid wood, well-constructed dresser (for $80!):

I think it has big potential, but I've never done a furniture renovation before.  Luckily, my sister has all of the equipment I might need, like a sander.  I am open to any kind of style really, as this will have many possible locations in the new house - kid's room, guest room, living room... Do you think I can pull off getting that natural look of the RH dresser above? or should I go with a bold color? or a neutral so it can be more versatile? Can you help a sister out with some ideas and tips?

P.S.  By the way, I think I just realized my inspiration for this is Blueprint Bliss's new project.  She just bought this great campaign dresser, and I can't wait to see what she does with it!

Even if she goes neutral, I love how BOLD this green inspiration picture of hers is.  She got it from Little Green Notebook via Lonny:

P.S.S.  I also just realized that the only reason I am crazy enough to believe I transform something like this into something beautiful is because of Fresh Paint Fridays at Life in the Fun Lane. 

I will either thank you or blame you later!

I'm worried - I'm always in love

I have a confession to make. I am fickle. No. Worse. I am an outright unfaithful traitor.  Some might call me eclectic, but that would be too kind.  I am easily seduced by beautiful style, no matter the persuasion.  I am so afraid I am going to end up with a big mish mosh of mismatched and incoherent design that I am scared into inaction. I need help.   We need to decide the foundation on which the style for the rest of our house will lay.  What do we want our house to look like?  If you could build anything, what style would you build?  Send pictures to ahouseandhome@gmail.com.

The Spanish Colonial Revival style lures me with its arches, clay tiles and balconies with wrought iron detailing. I can feel the wind whistling through the iron balcony, blowing my hair, as I walk out onto the beautifully detailed ceramic tile floor in my bikini and sarong (mind you, in this image, I am 5'8", 120 lbs. - it's my fantasy!).

I look out through the arch down below to where my man is playing the guitar like a Basque gypsy king. Maybe it’s the curve of the arches, the musky masculine feel of the dark wood, the feminine patterns of the moorish lanterns, or maybe it’s just the heat. I just love how the style mixes European and Moorish influences. It's so romantic, exotic, timeless.  A great example of this is Diane Keaton’s house (above and below). I love her movies and apparently, her style as well. See? I’m always in love.

It’s the kind of house you might see in Beverly Hills or Malaga but certainly not the north east of the United States, so bye-bye Spanish Revival style. Maybe I’ll see you again on vacation or in retirement.

Arts and crafts bungalows charm me.  To me, they feel fresh and laid back.  Like I woke up at 5 a.m. to go surfing and tonight we are going to have dinner on the porch made from the fresh veggies picked from our garden.

From Southern Living.

I don't typically go for modern, but when it's done well, it's seductive.   In some ways, the modern style matches my personality - not afraid to try something new, logical, efficient.

From eyecandy-webcandy.

Or perhaps something more substantial, something like this.  If we build this house, our children are destined to become the POTUS or Supreme Court justices:

House Renovation in Virginia.

Hey, if we are going for substantial and traditional, why not go all the way?  With a house like this, Little Man would be fit to marry a princess.

From Veranda.

Being a huge fan of the Notebook, I am in love with the house from the movie (below).  This house is like the Southern drawl that Big Man can turn on the drop of a dime.  I fall for it every time.  See how easy I am?

From the movie, The Notebook.

We both agree we like a farmhouse style, and as I mentioned before, we love the character of an old house.  The best example of a classic gothic American farmhouse is the Southern Living house designed by Looney Ricks Kiss that I have mentioned before:

The style doesn't quite have the sex appeal of the Spanish Colonial, but it has it's own quiet integrity, beauty and comfort.  I can still see Big Man playing guitar on the porch, but this time he's playing something a little more his style and I'm listening from the garden, where I'm pulling weeds.  The kids are inside doing their homework.  You get the idea...The style has a simple beauty - real.

Having grown up in a stone and stucco farmhouse, I think these images below could be the right blend between the European feel of the Spanish revival and the simple American beauty of the classic American farmhouse:

From Country Living.

From real estate listings in Pennsylvania.

Perhaps something along the lines of this Italian farmhouse is a happy medium?

From Architectural Digest.

If you could build anything, what style would you build?  Me? I'm worried - I'm always in love.

Daydreaming about Porches

When I am stuck in my 10' x 10' living room on a beautiful day as Little Man is taking a nap, I start to imagine what I would be doing in our new house - curling up with a good book and a glass of wine on the porch. 

I think we are going to do a wrap around, which will lead to a screened-in portion in the back, which will lead to an outdoor patio, with partial trellace (more on that later).  For the Love of a House has recently inspired me to not limit my porch envy to just the first floor.

This one is from Haven Homes.  They are the modular company we were considering.

Love, love, love this one.  Looks like a screened-in porch with french doors leading to the regular porch, which is wide enough to dine. (not sure where I found these next few.  I started collecting a long time ago, way before I ever imagined writing a blog about this whole experience...sorry for not referencing).

Love the white wrought iron detail on the porch here.  This is what I think we are really going for. 

I like how wide this porch is and also how the porch roof is angled, adding to the private feel.

I can just imagine reading a good book here.

This is the upstairs porch from the blog, For the Love of a House.  Ella is checking out the great views.

What a great screened-in porch below.  I can just imagine sitting here with a bottle of wine and a friend.

What do you like best about a porch?

We are hiring!

(Photo courtesy of Looney Ricks Kiss Architects)

an architect, that is.  If anyone has ever interviewed or hired an architects to build a house, your advice would be much appreciated! I am a big believer in using other people's lessons learned.

We developed a list of local candidates based on recommendations and internet research, set up interviews and I found this excellent list of questions for interviewing architects.  After the interviews, most of the architects sent me proposals.  Each architect charged differently - fixed fee, estimated fees and percentage fee (based on construction costs), so I found it difficult to compare apples to apples.

I actually flirted with using a fourth architect, Looney Ricks Kiss, because I loved their designs so (see Tucker Bayou house above).  But they are in Memphis and we are in the Northeast, so the long distance scared us away.  However, if you are in the South, I recommend checking them out.  Carson Looney obviously knows what he is doing on the design side of things.

I am developing a wish list so that all architects can bid on the same scope.  It's also a great document to write down all my dreams and hopes for the house.  The blogosphere has been a great source of inspiration.  What would you include in your dream house?  What is your absolute favorite thing about your house? What is your least favorite thing?

Should we build with stock plans?

I recently got excited when I found Southern Living's stock of plans.  I found them when we were considering building modularly.  Haven Homes builds some of their designs.  I think the best ones are designed by Looney Ricks Kiss.  They have some really charming and efficient homes.  They are a bit more expensive than the Lowe's plans but have a lot more style and simple beauty.  Check out the house at the beginning of this post.  I want this to be our home!  Apparently they designed it for Southern Homes as an "idea" house.  Check out the link: http://www.lrk.com/cms.aspx?TabID=190. 

Has anyone ever built from stock plans before? 

I'm nervous about not having an architect take into account where you place the property on the site as well as customizing the house to the features of the property as well as our needs.

Mod Pod?

My sister suggested we go modular, sending me a link to Haven Homes.  Beautiful homes! I especially love the designs by Memphis architectural firm, Looney Ricks Kiss, like the Tucker Bayou.  Here's a shot of the porch from the Haven Homes website:

Modular homes are built fast, are inherently "green" because of their cutting/framing technique and can be very high quality.  Big Man automatically equated modular with junk and was surprised when he found that not to be the case.  I am so excited by the thought of them building the house in a few months!  How easy that would be...

However, I want to build a sustainable home.  I want to build something that looks and feels "old".  Can a modular company do this?

YES!  After much research, I found this forward-thinking company, New World Homes.  They build green homes in a traditional style.  I especially like the Denver and the Carson.  I am so excited about the company, I want to quit my job and spread the word for them.  They build almost exactly what I would build if I were building it on my own.  The houses are designed to feel "old" and to be "green".  You couldn't ask for a better fit.  I am head over heels.

Both of these companies made me feel very comfortable that they would deliver a beautiful end product.

Ever build modularly or know someone who did? I would love to hear about your experiences.

Can we build it like they used to?

You know the saying, "They just don't build 'em like they used to." We're hoping that, in this case, conventional wisdom is wrong.  If anyone out there in the blogosphere has any experience in building something new that has the look and feel, the charm and character, the detail and stability of something old, I am open to tips, advice, references.  I am about to embark on the perhaps the biggest project of my life, and I can't do it alone.

Let's start out by how we got to where we are today, which in itself was a journey.  We are a growing family looking for a house to buy.  We were hoping to find an old four or five bedroom house with some land or privacy in or near my hometown.   We found some really beautiful homes that all seemed to be out of our price range (what housing crash?!). 

Here is an example of the "Forever House".  It is a charming custom five bedroom house, built in 1740, on 5 acres in affluent Chester Springs.  These pictures are courtesy of the listing.

Look at the pond! I wonder if you can swim in it?

I love this big old fireplace and how it casually sits next to the spiral staircase.  I can see the kids running down the stairs in the morning because they are late for the bus.

Love this one too, as well as the built in bookshelves and exposed beams.  I can see myself in a rocking chair with a good book and Big Man with nearby with guitar in hand.

Love these deep windowsills and wide french doors that bring in so much light.  Great for entertaining.

And no farmhouse is complete without a barn.

I love old houses!  They have so much character and charm.  Above is a perfect example of how beautiful they can be but also how out of our price range.

So, cute three bedroom houses in town tempted us.  We questioned ourselves, "Do we need to buy the "forever" house, or could we just jump to a "for now" house?" Here is an example of "For Now" House (too small!).  It could work, if only it had more bedrooms.  A bit newer, this house was build in the thirties.  Courtesy of its listing:

I love the ivy on the stucco and all of the trees.

Check out this backyard! It is ripe for a summer party.  I can see the lanterns in the tree already. 

What a great tree for Little Man to climb.

Also great for hosting a play date in the fenced in back yard (that backs up to 30 acres of protected land).

The inside is also really cute, with this stone fireplace, built by Wharton Esherick's apprentice.

and great hardwood floors.

They just don't make 'em like they used to.  Alas, it is just too small.  We would grow out of it before we even moved in! 

As we pondered this ("too expensive vs. too small"), my wise and generous dad jumped into the conversation, "Why don't you just build a house out on the farm?" Wow, what generosity! 

So, we hopped on board the building bandwagon to create our own abode on the family "compound".  The next question is, can we "build 'em like they used to"?

By the way, many thanks are owed to our real estate agent, Joseph McArdle, who patiently, conscientiously and expertly guided us through this whole process.  Much love to Joe, we wholeheartedly recommend him.