We would have 2 options and say "On the count of the 3 say option 1 or 2.....1..2..3..and we would always say the same number", so that was nice that we agreed on everything and we didn't have to convince each other on anything.
That is our granite and cabinets...I will show better pictures later.
We were debating between the left and right tile for our backsplash. Both were an upgrade but there weren't that expensive.
We went with the one on the right since the granite and cabinets are so dark, we thought it would lighten it up.
This is our backsplash with the granite (this granite came standard)...
This is the backsplash with the cabinets (these cabinets came standard)...
This is what the cabinetry looks like when all put together...
Close up of the granite. It has a lot of gold specks in it...
After we went home and thought about the choices we had made we decided that although we liked the veining in the backsplash, we wanted a more "stone" look and if you ran your hand across the tile it was smooth. So when we went back we decided to upgrade the already upgraded tile and go with the stone look that doesn't have as much veining, but it has little chunks missing like natural stone tile should have.
This was the original we decided on...
And this was our final decision. Its a little lighter and with the undermount cabinet lights in the kitchen, I think it will look really nice.
The lighting in this design center was beyond awful, so every picture I took turned out looking different than it really looked like in person. The picture above and the picture below are the same tile.
So here are our cabinets, new backsplash and countertops...
We priced out what the builder offered for the "wood look" that is actually tile so we could run it into the bathrooms, but what they wanted was absolutely ridiculous. Luckily for Chance and I, I have a brother-in-law that is a home builder so we can have his team come out and do a bunch of things for a fraction of the price. So this is the tile the builder offered, and we weren't even 100% happy with it.
We wanted something a little more brown and rustic looking, this is what we found that we fell in love with...for a fraction of the price..
So we have decided to go with the standard tile and carpet for now and will replace the flooring over time.
This is the tile we went with for the floor...
We are actually putting this on the fireplace surround as well since we would like to rip it out also and do a stone fireplace, hearth and cedar wood mantel.
For the walls we were given 3 colors, dark beige, medium beige and light beige. I want to paint most of the main living areas a grey color, so we couldn't go with the dark or medium beige since they are painting the ceilings the same color. So we went with the light beige and white trim...
The light beige on the left may look like it has a nice tint to it, but in a room, it actually looks like a white wall. See picture below, and again this lighting is awful. In person the room is stark white, this picture actually looks like it might have a beige tint to it. At this point, who knows what we are getting since we picked out everything under fluorescent bulbs. The picture above (with our wall color on the left and trim on the right) that picture looks like the wall might be black or something, it's actually a navy blue wall.
In the master shower, master bath surround, and guest bath surround we decided to upgrade to a slate tile.
Here are 2 pictures of the same tile, the second looks so much lighter, but in reality the color is much darker than both of these pictures...
Then it was time to pick the brick color. While there we were given small wall samples and Chance knew exactly which one he liked. I couldn't really tell from the mini samples so I called and got addresses and drove around.
We checked out 4 colors, the main difference between them is whether they used grey or buff grout. It makes a world of difference.
This is called Bristol Oak..
This is called Canterbury...
This is called Canyon Bluff...
This is called Texas Highlander...
And we chose....drum roll please....Bristol Oak!
Now here is a picture of grey mortar, and one with buff mortar...
HUGE difference right?! We are most definitely going with the Buff mortar so ours will look like the picture above of the garage.
We decided to upgrade to include stone as well, and we chose this one...
We thought this would have a nice contrast next to the brown brick.
We are so excited to see it finished with all of our picks.
Some things we upgraded:
- Added the fireplace
- Ran gas to the fireplace and kitchen
- A covered patio out back
- The stone we added on the front
- The buff grout on the brick
- The elevation we chose
- An undermount stainless sink in the kitchen
- Undermount lights under the cabinets
- Blinds in the entire house
- Blind insert in the back patio door
- An eve outlet out front for christmas lights
- An eve outlet out back for year round patio lights
- Stainless steel appliances in the kitchen
- The backsplash in kitchen
- Tile in bathrooms tubs/shower areas
Some things we decided not to upgrade:
- The flooring
- Rocker switches throughout the house, which we will do ourselves down the road
- Oil Rubbed Bronze door knobs, faucets, etc throughout the house, we are sticking with standard brushed nickel knobs, fans, faucets. Eventually we will replace the 2 master bath faucets, the guest bath faucets and kitchen faucet to match the brushed nickel.
- We will also be changing the brushed nickel round door knobs to brushed nickel levers
We tried to upgrade the things we won't be able to add once we move in (fireplace, gas stove, etc) and the other little things we will upgrade ourselves. The builders charge you crazy amounts. For a bathroom faucet that you can buy at Lowes for under $60, they wanted over $200. That is just not something we want to finance and pay interest over time.
We are excited to get in and put more of our own touches to the house. We are really looking forward to the back yard and landscaping the front!
Stay tuned :)
Chance and I at our last visit to the Design Center
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