untitledhusband and I have been in home-building hell, trying to select, among things, faucets and exterior materials for our new house. If I don’t pop a cap in the next person who says “that will be an add-on,” it will be a miracle.
In the past few weeks, we have spent a vulgar amount of time (mostly during work hours) on such pressing issues as the finish on our faucets and the number of data jacks untitledhusband wants in the master bath (3). I am convinced that he won’t be happy until he can work from home whilst scrubbing his netherlands, watching re-runs of “Silver Spoons” and reading “Rolling Stone.” He claims this has been a dream of his since childhood, and only now has technology advanced enough to make his dream possible.
Far be it from me to stand in the way of a man and his dream. So we went to Best Buy over the weekend to peruse our flat screen TV options. Poor untitledhusband could hardly navigate the aisles, with his wang at full-mast. Every once in a while, I’d catch him brushing up against one of the massive screens, and he’d get this blissed-out look on his face. I find it funny that people get all up in arms over a porn shop moving into the neighborhood when Best Buy is right around the corner.
All in all, we’ve been staying on budget, aside from our plumbing, where we are all kinds of over (like to the tune of $3,000). Turns out the plumber bid in entry level plastic faucets — you know, the kind with plastic jewels for handles. Jewels, my ass. When I saw the faucet in the display room, I felt like saying, “What part of me says ‘plastic handles’ to you?” I will have, at the very least, brushed chrome in this new house if I have to sell my snootch on the weekends to make it so.
After I made this declaration, I found out that a brushed chrome finish is twice as expensive as polished chrome. And don’t even ask about brushed nickel, which would require us to send untitledson off to the rice fields of Cambodia. It’s quite yummy, this brushed nickel, and don’t think that I haven’t weighed the options.
An even bigger headache is the home exterior. We fell in love with a stone called “Tulsa Rubble,” but it turns out that it is no longer being quarried. Now we have moved on to a “cultured stone” (it’s actually concrete) called “Great Lakes Split-Face.” No one else around here has this stone on their house, so we can only view the online sample, and the photo of this house, which we also found online. We plan on trimming out with a contrasting brick, and using a light tan siding. Shiteous? Heinous? Righteous? Please share your opinion, as the flames inside my head could use a Molotav Cocktail about now. If it turns out to be a nightmare, you can count on untitledhusband posting photos of me beating my noggin bloody on the front of our house. Â
never never never use a building material you have not personally seen and felt. “Cultured stone” tends to look and feel like concrete. Which it is, of course.
We have a friend who built a 1.7 m. house and used the cultured stone on the front. It fell off 2 weeks later.
Okay, yikes. I was going to say it looks a little gray, but I think you’d better listen to Matt and Jean who know more than just, “It’s nice.” I want them to come redo my kitchen.
Eh. I like limestone, but it may be a regional thing.
Those shutters are hideous, though.
I like the rock, looks nice. I’m sure it is stressful building a home. My sister is adding on to her house and re-doing all paint inside and carpet and is about the have a aneurism! She’s wound so tight. I laughed at snootch comment, your funny. Hope you have a good week.
I like the stone in the pic but not with that colour of siding! ick
Sounds like Matt and Miss Jean know what they are talking about. You may need to take an untitled road trip to see this stone in person.
I’m sure that would give you some fodder for a blog.
When its all complete all the stress will be worth it.
BTW your comment about untitledhusband in bestbuy navigating the aisles was priceless. Thanks again for the giggle…
Why the holy shite do they do that???? Have the “perfect” whateveritis to tease us and then say it’s been discontinued? I found the perfect beadboard at the home improvement store for my 120 yr old Victorian Stick Style Queen Anne downstairs bathroom but it is no longer available!??? Why is it still on display? Instead they have all this cheap looking shit (but not cheaply priced)? C’mon, I’m not the only one with good taste…, why do they keep the crap coming but discontinue anything decent?
Wish I could help with the stone…, I really don’t have much of a eye for it since I guess I’ve never really looked at it. The pictures make it look very nice altho I’m with the Jeff & the shutters are hideous (yes, I know this isn’t your spec house or anything). Do you have an architectural drawing of untitled house? I’d love to see it!
What does untitled son think of all of this? Do you walk the construction site? I would! Put a little time capsule with a pic of all of you under the cornerstone! Someday the house will be famous when untitled son is President, you know.
On second look I realize the yellow is not siding…sorry. But that colour does not go with the stone.
I don’t think I would mix the stone and brick myself. It should be one or the other.
I definitely would not have something installed that I could not feel up or eye up beforehand. Internet pictures make everything much better than it really is.
Years ago I worked for a contractor and one thing I found is that many people are just looking at small samples when they are picking out the complimentary siding etc for their home. The problem with this is that the brick or stone finish tends to merge and from a distance may seem to have a different primary color. An example of this is choosing the tan siding, which after looking at the picture of the house you provided would not be a good choice for that particular house as the stones look to have a more overall grey/brown cast to them.
So as others have mentioned, if at all possible I’d jump in the car and go check out some homes with this finish. This should give you a better idea of what it is going to look like and if the colors you are choosing will work.
Also I would get with the contractor who is doing this work and see what kind of warranty/guarantee is provided for the stonework. Sadly I have to say that I know of many new homeowners who have also had problems with this type of finish, just as mentioned earlier.
Well I hope that it turns out just like you want and that you LOVE your new home!
No brick-just “stone” and a gray would be better. We have friends that have this stone–it actually looks good and they haven’t had a problem. Guess they don’t live near Matt and Miss Jean.
I work in an architecture firm. I know, from experience, how …upsetting… finish selections can be on the owners. Therefore, I am backing. Away. Slowly.
Those stones are gorgeous, me thinks. Good luck with this whole thing I’ve only heard how horribly stressful it is. When it’s over tho, it’s over and you can enjoy “your precious” for years to come.
However that sample house showing the stones, what’s up with those sticks standing up out of the ground? Trees? Can’t be. Say it ain’t so.
I hate the dumbass little black shudders! They don’t go with the shape of the window at all. I hate those type of shudders anyway, but those look especially stupid.
As for the stone, it’s ‘okay’. I prefer the look of stacked stone myself so I’m not a good one to give opinions on that. Good luck with it though.
Anonymity is a powerful thing. More power to you.