Flatwork and Landscaping

Driveway with stamped border.

Front walk being laid.

Completed front walk matching front porch.

Terraced platform at east side of home.
Two gates, an upper and a lower, will be placed here.

Gravel path leads around east side of home to backyard.

Area under deck to be used for garden equipment storage.

NE corner of backyard showing retaining wall and fence posts.

Sprinkler system along back of yard.

Sprinkler system being laid underground.

Paving stones to be used on patio and walkway inside fence line.

Looking west, utilities on right. Utilities trench
stretches across backyard to east side.

Fence line on west side of house.

A concrete walk will branch off from the sidewalk and go
up to the fence line.

Plants going in the front.

Plants at east side of driveway.

Retaining wall and planting in backyard just outside Stephen's window.

Backyard curbing defining separation between planting bed and lawn.

Paving stone patio and walk.

NE corner of backyard. The trees are dogwood and Japanese Maple.

East side of yard. Trees are Sky Rocket Junipers.

Furnishing the great room

We designed our new house with the idea of having the kitchen, dining room, and family room flow unobstructed from east to west. This resulted in a large, essentially rectangular room in which the kitchen is separated by a peninsula and set apart by its extensive cabinetry.

There is no natural separation between the dining area and the family/great room, however the dining area is defined by the chandelier that will hang above the dining table. We will place our china on the south wall (wall away from windows) to further define the dining area. The dining area is about 11' long east-to-west.

The great room has a corner fireplace (SW corner), and contains the entertainment center (large TV, components, surround sound). This presents decorating challenges. Should be furnish the room so that the large TV is the focal point, or make the corner fireplace the focal point?

The great room is about 20' long and 18' wide with a fireplace in the SE corner. 

Moving clockwise around the great room there's the arched entry.

Then bookshelves on the left of the fireplace.

The fireplace itself, with an hearth extending 6'10" across.

A large, flat-panal TV will sit on the lower level shelve to the right.

There are windows in the NW corner of the room.

The next two photos show how furniture would be oriented if the fireplace were to be the focal point of the room, which is recommended by some "how to" decorating sites.

The front of the chair shown in this photo is 10' from the hearth, which makes for  a comfortable viewing distance from the TV.

Diagram of the great room drawn roughly to scale. Notice the floor outlets.

One possible arrangement of furnishings. Here, the fireplace is the focal point.

Another possible arrangement is an L shape, with the TV as the focal point.

This is one of the area rugs we looked at for the great room. It's an Old World Classic, Pazyrk Burnished Rust (1660-3066). The 5.3 x 7.6 size was priced at $799, but is selling at a substantial discount. 

Another area rug for the great room.

Sofa and arm chair we are considering for the great room.

A dining table chair we are considering to replace our current chairs, which are uncomfortable.

The buffet we will be placing under the arches opposite the stairs.

What should we do with this big wall behind the stairs? I think a tapestry would look good here.

Status Report

Work on the new home is nearing completion. The primary holdup is the concrete work for the driveway, front walk, and east side pad. The landscaper needs to complete a paving stone patio and walk in back. The weather has either been too cold or too wet to permit the work to proceed.

We also need stairs built for garage and deck entry.

Need to have a concrete walk laid up to fence line in back.

Electrical work needs to be completed. The light fixture outside the garage door needs to be changed, a blank needs to be installed for the great room light switch, and a number of outlet covers need to be installed. Light fixtures above vanity in powder room are crooked and need adjustment.

An additional outlet has been installed in the hall bathroom. According to Todd of Silverline Electric, the circuit for the bathroom will handle 1440 watts. Our current space heater pulls 1320, so we'll have to get a smaller heater. The 3rd pendant line has been installed in the main kitchen, and an additional switch has been installed for the can lights over the downstairs kitchenette. The LED covers have been changed.

There's still work to be done in the storage room, including installing the vent cover, wrapping the furnace ductwork, and covering a hole in the ceiling.

Trim around fireplace needs to be reattached, and floorboard in front of hearth needs to be installed.

Toilet seat in hall bath is missing.

Temporary shower panel for hall bath remains to be installed.

Touch up painting remains to be done (paint cans in utility room).

Talon Homes, Inc. performed a thorough walkthrough to identify drywall repair and touch up painting required.

Chip Grisham, Talon Homes, Inc.

Mike Creamer, Talon Homes, Inc.

Atrium delivered window screens Thursday. They are stored in the garage. Also in the garage are excess light fixtures that KIE needs to pick up.

There's some hardware (e.g., mudroom closet door pulls) that needs to be attached.

There are items in the garage that need to be retrieved (e.g., old kitchen window, lumber).

Northwood is scheduled to do their "bump and adjust" on the cabinets next Tuesday, the 11th.

Northwood will add hole and grommet to desk to allow electrical/phone wires.

Other fixes are shown in the photos below. Cleaners are working at the house this weekend and any further work in the house may require that they return. Subs should be instructed that shoe/boot covers are mandatory. Laying cardboard will not suffice. Painters should use measures (tarp, tape) to avoid spills.

Access door in master WIC needs to have a handle attached.

Talon is going to arrange to have a lattice work fence built to protect the compressor wire by the deck.

Stuccoed deck posts need to be painted.

Some laminate flooring is not flush. The gaps need to be filled/caulked somehow.

Washer drain needs to be installed.

Bottom of door frames in places not flush with flooring (this is entry to master WIC).