Selecting our Marble Slab

Almost every year for as long as Derek and I have been together he has taken time off between Christmas and New Years. Many years in the past we have taken this time to do small remodel projects in our house. This year we decided to knock off some items from our new construction to-do list.  Namely, taking a visit to East Coast Granite and Tile to pick out a stone slab for our countertops, and the local lighting shop to narrow down our light fixture choices.

When we signed our contract back in March, we had it drafted in a way that allowed us to personally pick out a stone slab for our kitchen countertops and island. Otherwise, we would’ve left it to chance that the style we picked would look as good as it appeared as a small sample piece in the showroom.  What we didn’t know at the time was that the level 3 stone that we opted for not only included granite and quartz, but marble as well.

After doing a bunch of research on the pros and cons of each stone type, we ultimately decided to go ahead with marble versus a granite or quartz that only resembled it.  This was the article, “Should you use Marble in the Kitchen?” that helped to solidify our decision.

Here are a couple snapshots of the stone slab we picked out:

Mont Blanc Level 3 Marble – East Coast Granite & Tile, Spartanburg
Love the amount of character the dark veins in this slab create!

In other news, yesterday we spoke with our new home consultant, Vanessa Herb, to pass along the details regarding our countertop decision. She let us know that as soon as the drywall guys confirmed their work was complete, we’d see paint, trim, and tile go in next. It’s still somewhat surreal that we are down to the last three months of this build process, but we are super excited that we’re finally at the point where we get to see the interior work start to come together!

Exterior Cladding Work Begins

This week was a busy week for the builder. Not only was drywall taped and then mudded with multiple coats, but as one crew worked inside another was simultaneously working outside on the exterior cladding.

We love the way the hardboard siding is turning out. Especially with the extra character of the vertical board and batten under the front porch. Currently the siding is unpainted and not it’s final color. We picked out a dark slate grey with white trim and can’t wait to see it painted.

We are hoping to see the stone accents under the windows of the front bump out and garage, and possibly even the screened in sun room go up next. Our new home consultant mentioned that the concrete would be poured for the driveway, sidewalk, and 15×15 patio under the rear deck after the paint stage, but with Christmas just around the corner, and rain predicted for the next 7-10 days, we don’t expect a lot of work to be completed until after the new year.

Drywall Taping & Mudding

The drywall portion of the build process is just about complete! The taping and mudding is well underway, with only a few touch ups and possibly a second coat needed in a handful areas before sanding and painting can begin.

Meanwhile, workers have already begun to put up the external hardy board siding and trim. We are hoping to have some of those pictures ready to share with everyone by the end of this week.

For now, here are some more shots of the drywall progress to date.

Looking into the dining room from the front entry
Hall leading to the master bedroom, office / guest bedroom, and guest bath
Looking into the master bedroom from the doorway
Standing in the walk-in closet and looking through the master en suite
Front office / guest bedroom
Front entry
Dining room
Great room
Kitchen and second floor loft
Kitchen
Bonus room / fifth bedroom
Upper level, front facing bedroom
Upper level, rear facing bedroom
Great room view from the second story loft
Garage
Walk-out basement

First Stages of Drywall

Earlier this week we saw delivery trucks unloading loads of drywall into the house. We were excited to come back the next day to find the workers had already begun to hang it. In two day’s time, all the drywall is up and all thats left is to do is tape and mud. We were able to get in and take quite a few pictures of the progress.

Our new home consultant also reached out to us and confirmed the design of the hardboard siding on the house. Hopefully that will be delivered and put up soon.

Drywall being placed in the great room
Drywall for the kitchen ceiling is complete
Stairs leading to the basement
Looking through the master bath into the bedroom
Master bedroom drywall is just about complete
Guest bedroom / Office drywall is complete
Looking into the dining room from the front entry
Drywall work is underway in the great room
Great room drywall is complete
Wall of windows in the great room
Kitchen drywall is complete
Looking into the kitchen and up to the loft from the great room
Kitchen pantry and stairs leading up to the second floor
View from the kitchen looking towards the opposite side of the house
Basement ceiling has drywall
Electrical box in the back corner of the basement
View from the opposite end of the basement – ceiling drywall complete
Drywall around the zero clearance fireplace in the great room is complete
Dining room and front entry way
Kitchen and pantry
Heading up the stairs to the second floor
View from the top of the stairs, looking through the loft area
Stairs leading back down to the first floor
Upstairs bedroom at the rear of the house
Looking into the jack n jill bathroom from one of the upstairs bedrooms
Looking into the jack n jill bathroom from the hall
Bonus room / Fifth bedroom
Upstairs bedroom at the front of the house
Looking down into the great room from the loft
Garage drywall complete

Prepping for Drywall

Last week I mentioned how we sent an email to the builder, expressing concern about a few areas on external walls that the spray foam installers missed. We included these photos highlighting those spots:

As anticipated, the builder was easy to work with and had the issue corrected within days of our communication. This cleared the way for the county to do another code inspection (which passed) and allows the builder to move on to the next step in the build process: Drywall!

Yesterday, Derek and I swung by the construction site and saw that the material was in the process of being delivered. We decided to stop by again this afternoon to grab a quick video and some pictures of the house progress to date.

Drywall delivery has arrived
Drywall being moved through the front entry
Sheets of drywall placed in dining room and great room
Prepping for drywall – Great room, kitchen
Prepping for drywall – Great room
Prepping for drywall – Dining room, front entry
Drywall placed throughout the lower level – Can’t wait to see it go up!
Prepping for drywall – Master suite
Prepping for drywall – Guest bedroom/office
Prepping for drywall – Garage
Prepping for drywall – Upper level front facing bedroom
Prepping for drywall – Bonus room/5th bedroom
Prepping for drywall – Upper level rear facing bedroom
Prepping for drywall – Looking down from the loft into the great room
Prepping for drywall – Basement
Obligatory fall/winter view of the lake 🙂