Building Our Home: The Nuts & Bolts
Building our new home has been personally exciting and challenging and all the emotions in-between. We started the journey back in October and we are hoping to have the project wrapped up by end of June. My heart is deeply rooted in the idea and belief in ‘home.’ It is something I hold close and with lots of affection. It also feels closely tied to my own creative journey and expression. I have found purpose and connection in the spaces I have created for us as a family and lately I’ve had the joy of extending this help to others as well (more on that later). Let’s get to it—
THE PROCESS
I haven’t been sharing much about our journey because I’ve wanted to allow myself to be in the process. Making sure I was connected to my own energy and my own gut for decisions. It’s hard to be solely objective when it comes to creating a space for yourself and that’s why it’s always helpful to hire someone or chat with a friend.
Another note: at the beginning of this process, we had found out we were spontaneously pregnant for our first time ever in four years. We miscarried a month later and it has been a wound that is slowly healing. The emotional layers to this project are too rich and too deep for me to have words at this point in the process, but I know one day I will look back with the wisdom of time and see the story in all her glory.
My heart is deeply rooted in the idea and belief in home
I have heard numerous of my interior design idols joke, “I wish I could have hired a designer for my home.” I can be a bit of a perfectionist with things and I have felt the pressure of time with trying to get this project rolling. I am so grateful that I was able to rely on a dear friend who has built many homes and has SUCH a talent for floor plans (I’m looking at you, Al!). My circle has been small, but it has been so helpful to talk to people who know me and know what I like.
We are wrapping up the process of selections and making choices. Framing is up, electrical and plumbing have been installed and insulation and drywall are happening in the next week. Things. are. unfolding.
Throughout this process, I have relied heavily on my gut intuition, seeing as many things in person as possible, gathering inspiration, and also taking time to think ‘What is important?’ and ‘How do we want to live?’ ‘Where can we add or highlight architecture with our budget?”
Photo of our soon to be primary bathroom
THE LOGISTICS: HOW DID YOU DECIDE TO BUILD?
I don’t see myself diving into floor plan or the logistics that much, but if you are building yourself or looking for information, I’ll share with you resources that helped me. Our situation feels unique, and a little kismet to be honest. As a lover of older homes and letting a home ‘speak to you,’ building wasn’t something I had thought for us. Once we discovered we would be moving back to Michigan from Arkansas, the market really started to ramp up and options felt really slim. We have a friend who is a builder and there were available lots in a neighborhood near other friends, and it all started to fall into place. Truthfully, we didn’t even see our lot in person before choosing it and getting started. Friends sent us videos and we knew we had to take a leap.
For helpful building resources, Kelly, from the Lily Pad Cottage, has a wonderful article outlining her build process and what she prioritized. She stresses the importance of floor plan, floor plan, floor plan. Focusing on the space flowing and be the way you want is easier than doing construction later.
I took her advice to heart as we laid out our home and spaces. More details below on changes we made and where we decided to invest extra money. Right now we are a family of two humans and a dog and we plan on this being our home through the big transition of growing our family and hosting our out of town families. I wanted space for guests, space to grow, and space for family. Space for future toys, space to be creative, and space for feeling close and space for connecting.
I also took to heart materials we would be using in our spaces. I knew I wanted to use natural materials as much and to any extend as possible. That doesn’t mean the fanciest or the best, for me it means humble or honest materials that will wear and weather with time. Items like butcher block counters, granite, stone, wood, tile, unlacquered brass etc. Our foundational pieces like the floors and counters I tried to upgrade to be items that can be lasting and that we absolutely love.
I’ve been fiercely pinning inspiration and trying to distill everything down. Inspiration can be difficult, but at it’s best it can leave us with a sense of wonder and excitement in our own hearts. I know I want our spaces to feel grounded and with a little sense of time(even if it’s new). Keep in mind: budgets are unique, time is unique, life is unique, but I am so grateful for this home that will shelter and nurture the next seasons of our life.
The Main Floor:
Above is a simplified floor plan of our main floor. I thankfully worked with a close friend extensively on the layout of the first and second floor. The original floor plan had a front den space that we actually split into a proper entry space and then created extra room in the back of our living room for a ‘den nook.’ Think space for puzzle table, future built-ins, etc. I also liked that this allowed us to have a front glass door, but with the entry wall across from it, it allowed for privacy in the rest of the home.
I am so excited about styling this entry way and finding a big antique console table that can be layered with a large mirror, lamps, and other goodie to greet our guests with. We also decided to have the front porch wrap around the side of the house to bring some dimension and have it feel a bit more generous.
We have three casement windows that will be above our sink and in our kitchen we will have no upper cabinets at all. Pantry spaces and broom closet will also have electrical outlets for storing small appliances (microwave) and plugging in our vacuum. That feels so darn luxe to me. We added an exterior door off the mudroom to allow us to let Stella in and out of that space easily. In theory, we lost a little bit of living space for benches, hooks, etc, but I think we will gain more function (and be able to contain the doodle mess that happens whenever it’s snowy or rainy).
Our sunroom will have recessed French doors that will allow for more sound privacy when it’s desired, but also openness for majority of the time without having doors take up space or get in the way. I envision a big console table along the back wall in front of all those windows that will allow for a working space when desired, but will be pretty display area the rest of the time. I scored a sweet little couch off of FB marketplace and I am keeping my eye out for two cozy chairs and an ottoman to allow for cozy reading and sun bathing.
The Second Floor:
The second floor plan is where the majority of our bedrooms will be as well as laundry space. This plan has actually been changed because I decided to add a sweet little window to our closet along the back. The natural light and views of the tree tops has already made it feel like the best decision. We extended our bathroom and closet space into our bedroom to allow for better flow and function in those spaces. I would much rather the closet and bathroom to have more space and better flow because our actual bedroom is for sleeping and occasional TV watching.
The other bedrooms with window seats are probably my favorite part. The charm and coziness that can come from those excites me so much. I swapped the door in the laundry room to be recessed to allow for easy in and out without having the bulkiness of a door (I hated the door in our last laundry room). I can’t wait to have kids and babies in those rooms one day. They feel so utterly special to me.
On a controversial note: I decided not to add more windows to the bedrooms with two exterior walls. I wanted to dedicate that money in the budget to somewhere else, and while in the grand scheme of things I may regret it, I know that bedrooms for kids are often spent trying to minimize the natural light coming in. I decided to roll with the one window and see how it feels. I also took out two windows of our own bedroom because it was closer to the street and would limit to me to bed placement along that wall.
The kids/guest full bath is a bit straight forward because it was the best way to extend our budget in other areas. I will be sourcing all of our own lighting and I upgraded the tile in both bathrooms to be a mosaic tile. Each bath will have some sort of wall sconce for flattering lighting. Our bathroom will have medicine cabinets that will look like a nice beveled metal frame mirror to allow for additional toiletry storage.
I am most excited for the tub; it was an upgrade that was incredibly important to me. I have long dreamed of taking a bath in what feels like a restful retreat. It feels charming and soulful and I feel like it makes the bathroom feel a bit more special.
The Exterior:
The exterior will be white whingle siding on all four sides. I channeled a New England cottage vibe and wanted it to feel a little more charming. I dream of a warm sage green front door and hydrangeas mixed with boxwoods to welcome people in. I’d love to have peonies, lavender and other welcoming florals and plants to add some whimsy and charm.
We upgraded by adding two exterior lights around our front door. We upgraded to have the porch wrap and feel a little more generous. We will have three garage stalls and opted to upgrade to have three single garage doors instead of one large door and one small.
The small round window was to infuse a bit of extra charm. I chose a light gray roof to add to a soft cottage feel and I can’t wait to see how the rest unfolds.
So as I keep filling up my board and scouring for inspiration I am starting to hone in on these items: a light and bright base (like walls and flooring), focusing on natural materials as much as possible like wood, stone, metal, etc. Choosing items with “living” finishes or that get better with time will allow the house to eventually settle into it’s own skin and find it’s own vibe. Also, wanting to to stretch myself and have some fun.
Stay tuned for details and mood boards for each space!
Hugs,
Meredith
