Please show me your backsplash...

[BlingDreams]

@ILikeShiny We are on the same page re: the color balance. Currently we're extending the hardwood into the kitchen, the lower cabinets will be a stained chestnut color, the uppers are white (soft white, not icy). We picked quartz counters, white with some grey veining that imitates marble. Backsplash is still being figured out but I'm gravitating toward something in the light grey or white family. Waiting for samples on two linear glass tiles. Stainless hood, sink and hardware. The overall tones should be a little similar, I think, to this look that has similar cabinet colors, floor color, etc.:



This is not my photo, I found a pic online of the tile we are getting a sample of, and a similar quartz countertop



Mood board I made over the weekend because I was obsessed

Excellent balance of choices . It’s going to look great!

 

[BlingDreams]

So much to share!!

I've just been really really busy with wedding prep and life in general (including house stuff) that I haven't had time to fill you in as these have happened, but there's been a lot of movement!

Let's see... I was able to have an additional outlet added to the other side of my custom vanity even though we were technically past the submission date. In one of our original changes I deleted a closet to allow more room for the laundry room on one side, but left some room on the other side of the wall to build a vanity; I had thought I'd only need one outlet but then I realized there might be times where I have a hair dryer going, curling iron heating, my jewelry cleaning in the ultrasonic, and my lighted mirror on for my make-up. I mean, what's a girl to do?!

I was also able to get a 3-way switch put outside our bedroom door so that we didn't have to go into the dark room before turning on the light, and then didn't have to go out of the room to turn off the light (and then stumbling around to find the bed without stubbing a toe!). That's how it is now in the house we're currently in and it drives me crazy!

We got approval on our front doors!! We had hoped we'd be able to have a single door with two sidelights but that was denied, so we've got two front doors (which I don't mind, but DH was hoping for the other). I think I mentioned that we ended up swapping from the swirly one and chose one that has four different textures/patterns of glass within a wrought iron pattern; it really should flow well with the stone pattern of the house's exterior


There's been a lot of..... well, fighting!.... about the master bathroom. They came back and said we needed to put a door on the shower because they were concerned about water splashing on the floor. Whatever, fine. But then it couldn't be just a door, because it would be too big, so it had to be two doors. And they wanted them different sizes (something like 30" and 24"). I balked. We finally got them to do two 27" doors. Then came my asking the innocent question of what vendor we should look at to choose the handle for the shower door. You'd think I'd asked to turn everything on its head. "We only offer one"... "We've never ordered one in for a customer"... "I'm sure you'll be happy with it"... "We've used this one in $2million homes". Ugh. I don't care who you've used it for in the past, if I don't like it (and I didn't... it was a very bland tubular handle) then I don't want it. As I said to her, after putting so much time and thought in to the design of this bathroom the last thing I want is for the aesthetics to be ruined by an obtrusive option that I didn't request. So it became a battle of if we can't get a new one, then we request you only drill the holes and leave off the handle. And if you won't do that, don't do anything to the glass and we'll bring someone in. And seriously... all of this was over a $60 option!!!!! Finally they said "Fine" and we got our shower door handle .


Then came the email with the quote for part of the bathroom (the tub, faucets, shower heads and jets, and toilet lever). And guess what? Even though our request had the correct model, their quote was for the wrong tub!!!!!!! Had we not caught that, we would have been given the wrong tub and been stuck with it since we would have signed off on it . Unreal. AND they said the specs on the tub we wanted were wrong per their Jacuzzi rep and we weren't going to get the tub we thought we were anyway. You can probably guess what happened next... I got on the phone with Jacuzzi, confirmed I was right, and then (politely) chewed out my builder rep and told them to get their sh!t straight before sending me another quote. They quickly backtracked and are "diligently working to ensure it doesn't happen again"

Then came the problem with getting a quote for the tile used in the master bathroom, as they needed drawings done and no one wanted to take responsibility for doing them. I said I'd do them as long as I could have a week or so and they said that was fine. Drawing is so hard for me and I stink at perspective/angles but was able to draw a really good one of the tub layout, complete with all measurements and labels of what tile went where. I was so happy with it! All was good until I received a text from my son the next morning that he'd taken his eyes off of the 8 month old puppy for 1 minute and he'd shredded my drawing - even beyond the point of being able to tape it together. I still haven't quite gotten over that! So that was two hours wasted, and needs to be redone this weekend .

Since we needed to confirm and resubmit all of the tile choices for the master bathroom as though they were custom (even though we chose them from their in-house selections), I decided I might as well go to a tile store and see if I wanted to change anything. I kept feeling like we needed a "pop" of something to jazz it up a bit. I love a rustic feel, but not a boring/bland one. That being said, I changed two things - one small and one big. For the shower floor I changed from 1.5"x1.5" light gray tiles to 3"x3" dark gray tiles, and for the "accessory" tiles that I'll used on the front of my bathtub shelves, bathtub niche, and shower seat I changed from neutral color flat stones to shiny copper/bronze tumbled glass tiles . They really add that little touch of color I was craving and should go great with all of the oil rubbed bronze that's throughout the bathroom.







Lastly, on a good (great!) note, we got back our quote for doing a granite backsplash and it was over 1/3 less than what I was expecting . I had used a couple of "estimating" websites to get prepared for what I might see and saw that it would probably be around $3200-$3500 for a regular contractor, so I figured we'd probably see around $4000-4500 from the builder (it's approximately 70sqft of granite). Nope! They came in at $2650! I was thrilled!!

All in all, bit by bit, progress is being made. I keep waiting to not have to fight for things and I THINK we're almost to that point

 

[Arcadian]

Why would they MAKE you have shower doors? They plan on showering in there too?

Besides,you could just do an infinity drain at the door (or hell anywhere) and not have a "door" door.

https://www.google.com/search?q=Doo...-p_bAhXmw1kKHeq7CVsQ_AUICygC&biw=1536&bih=750

 

[BlingDreams]

Why would they MAKE you have shower doors? They plan on showering in there too?

Besides,you could just do an infinity drain at the door (or hell anywhere) and not have a "door" door.

https://www.google.com/search?q=Doo...-p_bAhXmw1kKHeq7CVsQ_AUICygC&biw=1536&bih=750

Believe me, I went back and forth with them about it. I showed them numerous references of how big a shower needed to be for it to not be a problem (ours was fine), and in the end they said they weren’t willing to approve any design without a door. It goes back to them being a production builder that offers some customizations, and not a custom builder. They’re only willing to go so far out of their comfort zone.

 

[Austina]

You couldn’t make this stuff up @ILikeShiny !

 

[missy]

@ILikeShiny glad to see you are handling everything that comes your way and yes it can be so stressful. Dealing with contractors and administration too etc is a huge pain and you need to rely on them vs doing it yourself. Always the challenge. My dh always says he prefers doing stuff himself if he is able because only then does he know it will be done right. However we cannot do it all ourselves obviously. And you are on it and you got this!

Sending you more good luck dust and lots of happy thoughts for your finished and gorgeous new house. It's gonna be amazing!

 

[BlingDreams]

@ILikeShiny glad to see you are handling everything that comes your way and yes it can be so stressful. Dealing with contractors and administration too etc is a huge pain and you need to rely on them vs doing it yourself. Always the challenge. My dh always says he prefers doing stuff himself if he is able because only then does he know it will be done right. However we cannot do it all ourselves obviously. And you are on it and you got this!

Sending you more good luck dust and lots of happy thoughts for your finished and gorgeous new house. It's gonna be amazing!

Thanks Missy. It’ll get there (we hope!) but as you said this is a painful part of the process.

I did manage to get three perspective drawings of the bathroom done yesterday so after I type up explicit details I think it will be ready for submission. Fingers crossed!

 

[Tekate]

@ILikeShiny I love all your choices as usual it's going to be so cool watching this come together for your party for your g/f's at Pricescope next year, be sure, I have family in the DC area and can EASILY make it to your house (j/k you know).. really everything looks just beautiful!

I would love a no door shower, but it would require my shower to be totally redone and hubster said "uh.. NO" ha!

Looking forward to seeing pix soon!!!

 

[rocks]

I'm horrified by the crap you have had to endure given the cost of your new home (I'm projecting). I recently completed an upscale renovation for my parents (kitchen, bathroom, hallway and office). I was having "issues" with the purportedly upscale contractor. So...I asked my cabinet maker (whom I have worked with before) whether I was being too difficult....his reply...."you are just being New York City /south shore/north shore". I asked him what that meant. He said essentially that city people/ south shore and north shore people have higher standards. Others say "it's good enough" and move on. Do not give in unless you get a significant concession. If you do, fabulous. You will get a the result you are looking for at a better price.

I hope your home is all you hoped for. I'd be swinging a baseball bat by now.

 

[missy]

I'm horrified by the crap you have had to endure given the cost of your new home (I'm projecting). I recently completed an upscale renovation for my parents (kitchen, bathroom, hallway and office). I was having "issues" with the purportedly upscale contractor. So...I asked my cabinet maker (whom I have worked with before) whether I was being too difficult....his reply...."you are just being New York City /south shore/north shore". I asked him what that meant. He said essentially that city people/ south shore and north shore people have higher standards. Others say "it's good enough" and move on. Do not give in unless you get a significant concession. If you do, fabulous. You will get a the result you are looking for at a better price.

I hope your home is all you hoped for. I'd be swinging a baseball bat by now.

@rocks yes me too. That baseball bat would be swinging if my dh wouldn't stop me that is. And LOL that explains it. We are too demanding. Wanting things done correctly. The nerve we have.

My dh and I have disagreed recently about a few things in our new kitchen that were not done properly. The ceiling in one area has peeling paint. The new cabinet where the microwave is on the island has a huge dent. And a few other odds and ends. My dh in his wisdom said it is not worth contacting our contractor about these issues (all from not being done properly) and now he is fixing them all himself. He fixed the ceiling and fixed the dent in the cabinet (but these were new cabinets alone costing over 45K just for the cabinets) and some other odds and ends. My beef? We should have contacted the contractor and made him make it right. No way on a reno costing what ours cost should we "fix" mistakes and live with imperfect. But hey, I am being too exacting and I am sure many would agree with that. My dh didn't say that and he agrees with me but he wants to take the path of least resistance and just fix it because it is still "good enough" and yes I know perfect is the enemy of good enough but it still annoys me.

I am sure I will get over it but all this to say I feel your pain @ILikeShiny and @rocks and everyone else who has gone through or is going through a reno. But the end result will be worth it so just hang in there. Fingers crossed for smooth renovation from hereon in.

To end on a happy note here are some pics of our new living room furniture. I hope it is OK to share this in the kitchen reno thread and I hope you enjoy the pics. Still a work in progress and it is hard to do all this part time between our 2 homes but I think we are doing OK.

The renovation hardware wood coffee table is no longer in the living room. Just in the photo because when our new couches arrived I took some pics with the room still in progress. Imagine it not there.



And we just bought an additional ottoman to expand the seating area where the couch and chaise are and I feel it makes the whole living room more cohesive. I will take a photo at a later date of the whole space so you can see what I mean. In the meantime here is a pic of the new additional ottoman at the end of our chaise.



Due to arrive within the next 10 days. 2 new Mid-century modern style coffee tables. 2 new shag area rugs and a new TV console setup all mid century modern in style. Cannot wait. Haha we have to buy a new Dyson vacuum cleaner just for the new area shag rugs. We have to get one that does not have the "beater" option or where you can turn off the "beater" option. Turns out those dont work well for shag rugs. LOVE soft comfy shag rugs. Hello 70s.

Looking forward to hearing more reno updates from you lovely ladies.
And my fingers are crossed for you @ILikeShiny!

 

[elizabethess]

@ILikeShiny they say that hardware is the jewelry of the room! Of *course* we pricescopers would have strong opinions on it! Since you were forced to have a shower door, I'm glad you got your choice for handle, and some other wins. Hang in there!

@missy the new couches look great! would love to see more updates as they come! Hey, it's your thread! You can post whatever you'd like

 

[elizabethess]

We had a good final meeting the other day with the design team! We've signed the build contract now, and hopefully demo will start in a couple of weeks. Yaaaay! I got some room renders I will share below. The only change we made from the proposal is in the area where it's half one tall wood cabinet and half wood upper and lower with small stretch of countertop. We've changed it to just wood lowers and white uppers (12" deep).







Also, finally picked the backsplash, whew!



In person it's so pretty, all my favorite subtle neutral colors. We're painting the living room (that you can see from the kitchen) a light bluish greenish grey which is in the same vein, hopefully it ties in nicely.

 

[ac117]

We had a good final meeting the other day with the design team! We've signed the build contract now, and hopefully demo will start in a couple of weeks. Yaaaay! I got some room renders I will share below. The only change we made from the proposal is in the area where it's half one tall wood cabinet and half wood upper and lower with small stretch of countertop. We've changed it to just wood lowers and white uppers (12" deep).







Also, finally picked the backsplash, whew!



In person it's so pretty, all my favorite subtle neutral colors. We're painting the living room (that you can see from the kitchen) a light bluish greenish grey which is in the same vein, hopefully it ties in nicely.

Gorgeousssss so excited for you!!!!

 

[ac117]

@rocks yes me too. That baseball bat would be swinging if my dh wouldn't stop me that is. And LOL that explains it. We are too demanding. Wanting things done correctly. The nerve we have.

My dh and I have disagreed recently about a few things in our new kitchen that were not done properly. The ceiling in one area has peeling paint. The new cabinet where the microwave is on the island has a huge dent. And a few other odds and ends. My dh in his wisdom said it is not worth contacting our contractor about these issues (all from not being done properly) and now he is fixing them all himself. He fixed the ceiling and fixed the dent in the cabinet (but these were new cabinets alone costing over 45K just for the cabinets) and some other odds and ends. My beef? We should have contacted the contractor and made him make it right. No way on a reno costing what ours cost should we "fix" mistakes and live with imperfect. But hey, I am being too exacting and I am sure many would agree with that. My dh didn't say that and he agrees with me but he wants to take the path of least resistance and just fix it because it is still "good enough" and yes I know perfect is the enemy of good enough but it still annoys me.

I am sure I will get over it but all this to say I feel your pain @ILikeShiny and @rocks and everyone else who has gone through or is going through a reno. But the end result will be worth it so just hang in there. Fingers crossed for smooth renovation from hereon in.

To end on a happy note here are some pics of our new living room furniture. I hope it is OK to share this in the kitchen reno thread and I hope you enjoy the pics. Still a work in progress and it is hard to do all this part time between our 2 homes but I think we are doing OK.

The renovation hardware wood coffee table is no longer in the living room. Just in the photo because when our new couches arrived I took some pics with the room still in progress. Imagine it not there.



And we just bought an additional ottoman to expand the seating area where the couch and chaise are and I feel it makes the whole living room more cohesive. I will take a photo at a later date of the whole space so you can see what I mean. In the meantime here is a pic of the new additional ottoman at the end of our chaise.



Due to arrive within the next 10 days. 2 new Mid-century modern style coffee tables. 2 new shag area rugs and a new TV console setup all mid century modern in style. Cannot wait. Haha we have to buy a new Dyson vacuum cleaner just for the new area shag rugs. We have to get one that does not have the "beater" option or where you can turn off the "beater" option. Turns out those dont work well for shag rugs. LOVE soft comfy shag rugs. Hello 70s.

Looking forward to hearing more reno updates from you lovely ladies.
And my fingers are crossed for you @ILikeShiny!

Love this @missy! The room looks so beautiful and bright!!

 

[BlingDreams]

@ILikeShiny I love all your choices as usual it's going to be so cool watching this come together for your party for your g/f's at Pricescope next year, be sure, I have family in the DC area and can EASILY make it to your house (j/k you know).. really everything looks just beautiful!

I would love a no door shower, but it would require my shower to be totally redone and hubster said "uh.. NO" ha!

Looking forward to seeing pix soon!!!

Hahaha Tekate... I love that you're planning the house warming for me . Seriously, just tell me what date and I'll have the place stocked and ready! And thanks for the compliment. I can't wait until I have actual, real, honest-to-goodness photos of OUR house to share...

I'm horrified by the crap you have had to endure given the cost of your new home (I'm projecting). I recently completed an upscale renovation for my parents (kitchen, bathroom, hallway and office). I was having "issues" with the purportedly upscale contractor. So...I asked my cabinet maker (whom I have worked with before) whether I was being too difficult....his reply...."you are just being New York City /south shore/north shore". I asked him what that meant. He said essentially that city people/ south shore and north shore people have higher standards. Others say "it's good enough" and move on. Do not give in unless you get a significant concession. If you do, fabulous. You will get a the result you are looking for at a better price.

I hope your home is all you hoped for. I'd be swinging a baseball bat by now.

I couldn't have said it any better @rocks. I am horrified. And it's a really powerless feeling because there's not much we can do if they say "no" to something. It's not like we can fire our general contractor or architect or anything like that. We're locked in to a contract for a house plan that THEY offered, and we're at their mercy as to which exceptions they'll grant. Of course when you're signing the contract they tell you about how easy it is to submit for exceptions, but they definitely downplay the extent to which they're willing to go outside of their comfort zone . All in all I've been able to make a large number of changes (if you counted them individually we're probably at 50+) and only a few have been turned down, but it's the big ones we wanted that were made impossible by cost or flat out denied (raised hearth for the fireplace, frameless and doorless shower, and SubZero refrigerator).

Sorry you had the hassles too with your reno. But I'm with you - I just don't understand the "it's good enough" mentality when it comes to spending this kind of money. It's great or it's being redone. Period.

I am sure I will get over it but all this to say I feel your pain @ILikeShiny and @rocks and everyone else who has gone through or is going through a reno. But the end result will be worth it so just hang in there. Fingers crossed for smooth renovation from hereon in.
Looking forward to hearing more reno updates from you lovely ladies.
And my fingers are crossed for you @ILikeShiny!

Thanks Missy. It's amazing to hear how many people have such tough times with renovations. It makes you wonder if it's a breakdown in communication, expectations, abilities, personalities, something else, or maybe everything combined!!

I think my DH and I would have had the same convo about the issues. I would have wanted the contractor to deal with the problems out of sheer principle and he would have said it wasn't worth the battle. He'd be right, but I'd be bitter (at the contractor, not him) .

Your new furniture set looks great, and that view is to die for!! No wonder you escape there as often as possible. I'm not a beach person, but I could get used to that!!!

@ILikeShiny they say that hardware is the jewelry of the room! Of *course* we pricescopers would have strong opinions on it! Since you were forced to have a shower door, I'm glad you got your choice for handle, and some other wins. Hang in there!

OMG, that makes perfect sense then why these little details mean so much to me! It really would have irked me if we'd have been given that handle. It just didn't flow at all! I really should share a screenshot of the powerpoint I did for the bathroom showing the non-standard options I've chosen; it really shows how everything flows so well together, and how just that one piece would have stuck out like a sore thumb

 

[BlingDreams]

We had a good final meeting the other day with the design team! We've signed the build contract now, and hopefully demo will start in a couple of weeks. Yaaaay! I got some room renders I will share below. The only change we made from the proposal is in the area where it's half one tall wood cabinet and half wood upper and lower with small stretch of countertop. We've changed it to just wood lowers and white uppers (12" deep).







Also, finally picked the backsplash, whew!



In person it's so pretty, all my favorite subtle neutral colors. We're painting the living room (that you can see from the kitchen) a light bluish greenish grey which is in the same vein, hopefully it ties in nicely.

SOOOOOO exciting!!!! And you have pictures!!!!!!! It's going to look amazing when it's done. You can already see how much more space and functionality it will have and I bet the colors, cabinets, and backsplash are going to pull it all together spectacularly

 

[rocks]

Hahaha Tekate... I love that you're planning the house warming for me . Seriously, just tell me what date and I'll have the place stocked and ready! And thanks for the compliment. I can't wait until I have actual, real, honest-to-goodness photos of OUR house to share...



I couldn't have said it any better @rocks. I am horrified. And it's a really powerless feeling because there's not much we can do if they say "no" to something. It's not like we can fire our general contractor or architect or anything like that. We're locked in to a contract for a house plan that THEY offered, and we're at their mercy as to which exceptions they'll grant. Of course when you're signing the contract they tell you about how easy it is to submit for exceptions, but they definitely downplay the extent to which they're willing to go outside of their comfort zone . All in all I've been able to make a large number of changes (if you counted them individually we're probably at 50+) and only a few have been turned down, but it's the big ones we wanted that were made impossible by cost or flat out denied (raised hearth for the fireplace, frameless and doorless shower, and SubZero refrigerator).

Sorry you had the hassles too with your reno. But I'm with you - I just don't understand the "it's good enough" mentality when it comes to spending this kind of money. It's great or it's being redone. Period.



Thanks Missy. It's amazing to hear how many people have such tough times with renovations. It makes you wonder if it's a breakdown in communication, expectations, abilities, personalities, something else, or maybe everything combined!!

I think my DH and I would have had the same convo about the issues. I would have wanted the contractor to deal with the problems out of sheer principle and he would have said it wasn't worth the battle. He'd be right, but I'd be bitter (at the contractor, not him) .

Your new furniture set looks great, and that view is to die for!! No wonder you escape there as often as possible. I'm not a beach person, but I could get used to that!!!



OMG, that makes perfect sense then why these little details mean so much to me! It really would have irked me if we'd have been given that handle. It just didn't flow at all! I really should share a screenshot of the powerpoint I did for the bathroom showing the non-standard options I've chosen; it really shows how everything flows so well together, and how just that one piece would have stuck out like a sore thumb

@missy...shag in a beach house!?? How do you keep that clean? Your view is phenomenal.

@ILikeShiny.....i dunno. In our world frameless shower doors, subzero and wolf are the norm. The raised hearth? If you requested it before construction started and you have the space, what's the big deal? The handle on the shower door? Nuts. You identified the problem some time ago. They just aren't a luxury builder, and don't want to be. I'd bet they are a large scale production builder....

 

[BlingDreams]

@ILikeShiny.....i dunno. In our world frameless shower doors, subzero and wolf are the norm. The raised hearth? If you requested it before construction started and you have the space, what's the big deal? The handle on the shower door? Nuts. You identified the problem some time ago. They just aren't a luxury builder, and don't want to be. I'd bet they are a large scale production builder....

Yep, you nailed it. They’re a large scale builder, all across the nation, and only about 5% of the homes they build are to our size/luxury level so they’re used to dealing with lower levels of quality offerings/demands. Nothing wrong with that, but it’s not where we are at. And since they offer these types of homes we expect them to elevate their game when they build these homes.

For the fireplace, a wood burning fireplace was a stipulation but the hearth wasn’t mentioned; I honestly had never heard of a wood burning fireplace NOT having one so this surprised me. They said it’s a matter of the weight requirements to support it since it’s in the middle of the floor vs side of house and the costs to re-engineer all of the support beams under the floor to prevent sagging, etc.

 

[chemgirl]

Very minor in comparison to all of your fabulous new kitchens and bathrooms, but I’m changing my counters! Very excited. I don’t love my kitchen and this is phase one of a series of facelifts. It’s been hard to get DH on board, but then I accidentally spilled phosphoric acid on our existing counter while making beer and it melted part of the laminate. It’s driving him crazy so here we go! It’s a leathered steel grey granite and we’re going with a 70/30 split for the sink. I dream of having the cabinets painted something not quite so yellow and changing the backsplash someday. Tiny marble subway tile....a girl can dream.

 

[BlingDreams]

Very minor in comparison to all of your fabulous new kitchens and bathrooms, but I’m changing my counters! Very excited. I don’t love my kitchen and this is phase one of a series of facelifts. It’s been hard to get DH on board, but then I accidentally spilled phosphoric acid on our existing counter while making beer and it melted part of the laminate. It’s driving him crazy so here we go! It’s a leathered steel grey granite and we’re going with a 70/30 split for the sink. I dream of having the cabinets painted something not quite so yellow and changing the backsplash someday. Tiny marble subway tile....a girl can dream.

That's a great choice for the marble!! It'll look perfect with the rest of your kitchen, and be very flexible when it's time for your other changes too.

 

[missy]

Very minor in comparison to all of your fabulous new kitchens and bathrooms, but I’m changing my counters! Very excited. I don’t love my kitchen and this is phase one of a series of facelifts. It’s been hard to get DH on board, but then I accidentally spilled phosphoric acid on our existing counter while making beer and it melted part of the laminate. It’s driving him crazy so here we go! It’s a leathered steel grey granite and we’re going with a 70/30 split for the sink. I dream of having the cabinets painted something not quite so yellow and changing the backsplash someday. Tiny marble subway tile....a girl can dream.

I love leathered steel grey granite! It's very rich looking and very stylish too. Nice job. It's going to make a big difference and I am with you. Marble subway backsplash with different color cabinets will really freshen up the whole kitchen beautifully.

Hmm, how hard would it be to "accidentally" spill some more phosphoric acid on the cabinets and backsplash?

Good luck and looking forward to seeing your new counters in place.

 

[missy]

@missy...shag in a beach house!?? How do you keep that clean? Your view is phenomenal.

Thanks @rocks. Since they are area rugs it shouldn't be too hard to keep clean. We have white area rugs now (since 2011) and while there is the occasional (sometimes more than occasional lol) cat vomit and spills it hasn't been challenging to clean. Of course we haven't had white shag rugs there but I'm hoping it won't be too hard with the shag either. We'll get a vacuum that is shag safe and hope the spills and cat vomit is kept to a minimum. If it proves to be a disaster we will have the original area rugs in storage to come to the rescue.

 

[junebug17]

Very minor in comparison to all of your fabulous new kitchens and bathrooms, but I’m changing my counters! Very excited. I don’t love my kitchen and this is phase one of a series of facelifts. It’s been hard to get DH on board, but then I accidentally spilled phosphoric acid on our existing counter while making beer and it melted part of the laminate. It’s driving him crazy so here we go! It’s a leathered steel grey granite and we’re going with a 70/30 split for the sink. I dream of having the cabinets painted something not quite so yellow and changing the backsplash someday. Tiny marble subway tile....a girl can dream.

Oh this is very exciting! LOVE the granite you've chosen, it's going to look awesome!

 

[ac117]

Very minor in comparison to all of your fabulous new kitchens and bathrooms, but I’m changing my counters! Very excited. I don’t love my kitchen and this is phase one of a series of facelifts. It’s been hard to get DH on board, but then I accidentally spilled phosphoric acid on our existing counter while making beer and it melted part of the laminate. It’s driving him crazy so here we go! It’s a leathered steel grey granite and we’re going with a 70/30 split for the sink. I dream of having the cabinets painted something not quite so yellow and changing the backsplash someday. Tiny marble subway tile....a girl can dream.

So exciting!! Love the leathered steel granite - the texture and color is fantastic and so versatile! It will lend well to what you have now and what you will get in the future

 

[Arcadian]

Very minor in comparison to all of your fabulous new kitchens and bathrooms, but I’m changing my counters! Very excited. I don’t love my kitchen and this is phase one of a series of facelifts. It’s been hard to get DH on board, but then I accidentally spilled phosphoric acid on our existing counter while making beer and it melted part of the laminate. It’s driving him crazy so here we go! It’s a leathered steel grey granite and we’re going with a 70/30 split for the sink. I dream of having the cabinets painted something not quite so yellow and changing the backsplash someday. Tiny marble subway tile....a girl can dream.

that granite

 

[missy]

Area rugs came and we love them. Wish I could share video of Tommy tearing up the new rugs LOL but here are some quick still pics. I did share video on my IG fyi.

When we first got to the beach house yesterday and unwrapped the rugs Tommy of course couldn't resist.



Then all of them got into the act.



The match with the couches is perfect and it adds just the vibe I wanted. Warm and inviting and so soft underfoot but cool with texture as interest. Really happy with the purchase. Here it is temporarily laid out with the non slip pads underneath them. And keep in mind the set up is not complete. We have to cut the pads to fit the area rugs but I wanted to see how it all looked as soon as we got there and got the deliveries. And we are still waiting for a few more deliveries and also need to get Fred's beige ottoman replaced with something else that is prettier that he can use as a step to the window seat Greg made for the kitties. Poor Fred has severe arthritis and cannot jump anymore.





The only problem I see so far is that the cats are obsessed with the new shag rugs and love the feel as much as we do and I wonder how long the rugs will stay in good condition. Same for the couches. We already have a few puncture wounds on the couches. Oh well we'd rather have a home full of fur babies and love than pristine furniture and sterile relationships. There's a saying about that but I don't remember it.



Thanks for allowing me to share our new furniture and rugs.

 

[BlingDreams]

Area rugs came and we love them. Wish I could share video of Tommy tearing up the new rugs LOL but here are some quick still pics. I did share video on my IG fyi.

When we first got to the beach house yesterday and unwrapped the rugs Tommy of course couldn't resist.



Then all of them got into the act.



The match with the couches is perfect and it adds just the vibe I wanted. Warm and inviting and so soft underfoot but cool with texture as interest. Really happy with the purchase. Here it is temporarily laid out with the non slip pads underneath them. And keep in mind the set up is not complete. We have to cut the pads to fit the area rugs but I wanted to see how it all looked as soon as we got there and got the deliveries. And we are still waiting for a few more deliveries and also need to get Fred's beige ottoman replaced with something else that is prettier that he can use as a step to the window seat Greg made for the kitties. Poor Fred has severe arthritis and cannot jump anymore.





The only problem I see so far is that the cats are obsessed with the new shag rugs and love the feel as much as we do and I wonder how long the rugs will stay in good condition. Same for the couches. We already have a few puncture wounds on the couches. Oh well we'd rather have a home full of fur babies and love than pristine furniture and sterile relationships. There's a saying about that but I don't remember it.



Thanks for allowing me to share our new furniture and rugs.

Everything looks great! I love shag rugs too and have one under my dining table... so soft and comfortable I hope the kitties don’t tear them up too much!

 

[rocks]

Looks great......I admire your attitude.

 

[missy]

Love this @missy! The room looks so beautiful and bright!!

Everything looks great! I love shag rugs too and have one under my dining table... so soft and comfortable I hope the kitties don’t tear them up too much!

Looks great......I admire your attitude.

Thanks @ac117 and @ILikeShiny and @rocks. The new couches and the rugs made just the impact I was looking for when I decided it was time to redo the living room furniture and decor.

The TV console came yesterday but by the time we got back from our long cycling ride we were too exhausted to start putting that together. However the end tables also arrived yesterday and that was simple to put together. Not sure if I love them but my dh does so I will give it a few days before I decide what I think.

The original end tables we had in that space were so minimal in style and disappeared (just what I wanted them to do) but weren't midcentury modern so I wanted something more in line with the decor. And I literally spent hours of searching for just the right end tables but now I am not sure if I love them more than the original end tables we had there. These take up more space so will have to live with it and see. A work in progress. Will take pics another time to see what you guys think.

Thanks again for letting me share and sharing your thoughts. Looking forward to hearing more from everyone about how their projects are going and what's new and of course love any photos you all have to share with us.

 

[missy]

Quick pic and then off cycling. Sorry I only managed to capture one of the end tables in the pic. The one in the foreground. But it gives you an idea.



Here's a better pic from online.