Our Renovation - Granite Grey Exterior Siding

 

Certainteed Granite Grey

 

When I last posted about Our Renovation I left off with our siding options.

You can read more about our choices here.

Well, we chose Granite Grey.

 

When we decided that our budget determined we would be going with

Mainstreet Siding from Certainteed, I knew right away I wanted a shade of grey.

 

 

Travis started working on the siding in November.

Then....moved in inside to work on the mechanicals.

Plumbing, Electrical, Heating & Air.

So, it was a bit of a long winter.

As the mechanicals go in there is constant progress,

but it's not quit as exciting for me as the details of finishing.

 

 

So, when all the mechanicals were finally finished at the end of December, I was thrilled!

To say the least.

Then it was back to finishing siding & the FUN stuff.

Finishing the interiors are coming up next!

Now, we are getting to good stuff!

 

 

A quick peak of the front of the house before siding is complete.

I will share the finished photos soon.

It's a bit of a sloppy mess right now, in Iowa it's been snowing all week.

Can't wait for the weather to break to get my hands dirty in that front yard!

 

 

Carrie

 



Our Renovation ~ Choosing Exterior Siding Part 1

 

 

For all of you who enjoy following along on Our Renovation Journey,

you will be excited to hear that things are progressing nicely, actually even as I type this post.

But, I wanted to take a few minutes to update you on our progress.

A few weeks ago Travis & I finalized our exterior siding choice for our home.

 

This was not an easy decision!

There are so many options available, it is so hard to choose.

Wood shakes, wood clapboard, fiber cement shakes, fiber cement clapboard,

 vinyl shakes, vinyl clapboard, and colors and textures....etc.

It can be a bit overwhelming!

 

Travis gave me a few stipulations to work with when it came to our siding choice.

 

1. Must Stay within budget!

2. Stay in Budget!!

3. If at all possible choose Certainteed products. 

He works with these materials everyday, and Certainteed Siding is his #1 choice.

We are not being compensated for saying that. 

It is simply a presonal preference of his, as a contractor.

Certainteed materials are affordable, durable, readily available in our area

and in his opinion withstand the warm and humid Summers and cold, snow filled Iowa winters.

4. STAY IN BUDGET!

 

 

Here are my personal choices in order.

 

1. Wood Shake Siding - $$$$

 

If I could have anything in the world I wanted & that hasty budget word didn't keep popping up,

without a doubt it would be cedar wood shake ciding.  I will tell you now this option is out, but it was

still fun to search for the perfect wood shake home on Pinterest and Houzz.com for inspiration.

 

2. Certainteed Vinyl Shake Impressions - $$$

 

Vinyl Shakes are a great option if you are looking for durability

and still want that rough look of real cedar shakes. 

They actually have many different options in the varying types of shakes

which are molded from real cedar shakes.

 

3. Certainteed Cedar Lap - $$$

 

Similar to wood cedar clapboard siding look, but with the durability of vinyl.

Made to look like natural wood.

 

4. Certainteed Mainstreet Vinyl Siding - $$

 

Maintenance free and budget friendly double 4"

vinyl clapboard siding has a natural textured wood grain appearance.

 

Which one do you think we chose???

Staytuned to find out!

I will post Part 2 of Choosing our Exterior Siding soon!

 

 

Gotta run....before the hubs thinks I bailed on him:)

Hope you all are having a great weekend!

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Our Renovation - Accent Window Dilemma

The architectural detail of windows.

 

I love the architectural character added by the detailed design of the accent windows on this home.

I believe that windows can make our break any great home design plan.

 

Love the 3 windows in the peak.

 

Windows are the added character of the home's exterior.

They also add natural visual balance and warmth to a home both inside and out.

Windows are the main source for an abundance of natural light.

Every one of my ideas of the picture perfect dream cottage has an abundance of great windows.

 

The round windows in the peak.

 

I love the nod to a port hole with a round window in a peak.

 

Simple Single Square window in the peak.

 





That being said....

 

We have a window design dilemma!

 

 

 

Okay, so please try to work with me here.

Forget that the bushes are absolutely out of control and that that horrendous porch has got to go!

In due time my friends....in due time.

 

Please concentrate on the windows:)

 

Originally I shared that the reclaimed obsessed restoration admirer inside me

 wanted to save the architectural windows on the front of our home.

Well...um...now I think they look like crap!

(Please excuse me, there really was no easy way of saying that.)

 

So, now I have to decide the best way to handle this dilemma.

I need your help!

 

Here is what I am thinking...

 

1.)  The Gable on the Left could be without a window.

We are thinking of using an accent siding on that gable.

We are also planning some extra details on the trim to add character, more on that later.

 

2.)  The gable on the right could be a single small square window.

The problem with this option is that the peak is slightly off center from the

 windows below and things like that drive Travis absolutely insane.

It really doesn't bother me.  You???

 

3.)  Use another window layout with small squares on the right gable.

 

Oh yeah...& that budget issue.

We have pretty much used up our window allowance.

So, whatever option we go with has to be affordable.

The accent windows do not necessarily need to open.

They are in the attic.

 

What are your thoughts???

 

Please share I really could use some good old

 fashioned blogger to blogger DIY advice!

 

 

 

all images from Houzz.com

the old shabby house that's ours:)

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Our Renovation ~New Windows

 

We have been busy at work on our renovation the last two weeks.

Starting with prepping for the new windows to go in.

Removing the remaining old siding on the house.

Wrapping the entire house in house wrap before the siding goes on.

(You can also see part of the new roof in this photo.)

And...

 

 

And last, but certainly not least, installing new windows.

 

Yesterday Travis installed our new windows!

We chose to go with the Thermastar Vinyl Windows from Pella.

As you know, Travis is a contractor.

He works with all different brands of windows and different quality levels and price ranges.

From a contractor's point of view, the Thermastar from Pella

were a good quality & affordable option for us.

 

 

 

As you can see, we have a few remaining older windows still.

The house has an upper level.

The upstairs is somewhat strange & the ceiling heights are very low.

We chose not finish the upstairs for now.

So, the remaining older windows....well...I suppose you could say are still up for debate.

We plan to change out the older windows on the side of the house eventually.

But, trying to stretch our budget as far as we can we are leaving them for now.

 

 

 

 

French doors that will entually lead to our deck & patio area.

I have always wanted to have french doors in my kitchen.

I'm so excited!!!

 

 

These windows are actually my favorite windows from the inside.

They are part of the kitchen.

They also have some of the best views in the house.

They sit up just high enough that, through our neighbor's trees

you can catch glimpses of the Mississippi River.

 



 

It's very exciting to finally begin to see some major progress around here!

We may actually get to move in one day!

Ok, maybe I'm getting just a bit ahead of myself...

So, maybe there is still a LOT of work to do, but we are gaining on it.

 

 

Thanks for being patient with my blog posting that as been sparadic at best lately!

I'll try my best to keep updating you!

 

Interested in seeing how far we have come on click here. 

 

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Funky Junk Interiors 

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Our Renovation ~ Excavating

The renovation pushes on...

Back in May the Excavation Crew took over.

Luckily for us, we happen to know them pretty well.

Travis' Uncle owns an excavation company & they were our obvious choice.

Travis' Uncle, his Dad & his cousin were at our house bright & early on a Friday in May.

I even took off work a bit early that day just to watch.

It was really pretty exiciting.

I have NEVER seen so much dirt.

For those of you who may not know, we are renovating a home originally built in the 1880's.

In our hometown of historic LeClaire, Iowa we are building our dream.

Don't worry....

We have a vision.

We removed the old additions that were structurally not sound & now we are on to the dirt work.

This is on the back of the house.

We have to remove the ground in order to pour the foundation footings

for the new addition that is going on the back of the hosue and crawl space below.

As you can see we have some foundation issues that need to be addressed to.

A view from the back yard.

We have a little shady nook behind our garage that is the perfect perch to watch the progress.

Travis & his Dad

I just love this photo:)

It's really very special watching a father & son get to work side by side on a project like this.

They are good ol farm boys who are made for this kind of thing.

It's extra special because my father in-law is part of the excavating crew & Travis is our builder.

There are days in renovation that remind you exactly why you choose to do this in the first place.

This was definitely one of those days.

End of Excavating Day 1

Remember my favorite little perch.... it's slowly disappearing.

Day 2

Okay, so I have to admit I was in pure shock!

What had happened to my quiant & charming yard that drew me to this house originally???

It's gone!

Excavating turned out to be a little more than I bargained for.

I guess I just wasn't exactly prepared for how different the yard would be.

But, I can not help but be overwhelmed by the progress that has been made here in two days.

We will put our yard back together....eventually....

End of Excavating Day 2

Well, my shady nook has become a dirt pile.
Stay tuned...for the Foundation.

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Our Renovation ~ Removing the Addition Part 2

Our Renovation

Continued...

Back in March we (I use that word loosely, really it was all Travis & his friends:)

removed the existing addition of our new/old home.

We planned from the beginning that the existing addition would be removed.

It was necessary to repair structural issues of the foundation in the back of the house.

We also decided it would be a great opportunity to make this home into what we hoped for.

  A 3 bedroom 2 bath cottage home in our hometown.

We decided that we would add a larger addition back on to the home & totally change the layout.

So, we got to work removing our existing addition.

Travis & Scott, a friend.

If I haven't mentioned it before.

My husband is part of a dying bread.

He is just a good ol boy at heart.

We couldn't have done all we are doing to this house without the help

of all of the great guys who have lend a helping hand throughout this project.

For any of you that don't know, a good ol boy & his toys can do just about anything.

If not, they will give it a heck of a try!

And...

Here we go.

Enter the old tractor!  Ha!

Conventional?

Hmmm...Probably NOT!

Did it do the trick???

Well...

I'll let you be the judge.

And she begins to tumble.

My Aunt Tammy & my brother Michael

while I was near by with the same worried look.

While we all anxiously wait to make sure the entire house doesn't come tumbling down with her.

Actually it wasn't exactly that scary.
Okay, well there may have been a few moments...
Travis had strategically weakened the structure and detached the existing addition.
Remember he does do this for a living.
(Not normally with a tractor, but this project is all about budget.)
Then the real fun began...

Going...

Going...

Gone!

My Uncle Jeff

Whew...what a relief!

It worked.

1 Addition down.

1 Main House still standing.

My proud husband.

Who will do just about anything to see that our dreams come true.

Love you honey!

Me & my sledge hammer.

Ha!  As if I did anything but snap photos!

Here is what the back looked like before.

Here is my tip for this post.

Do not try this at home;)

But if you do,

definitely remember to appreciate all the long hard work that goes into a renovation!

Always be thankful for any helping hand!

I will continue try to catch you up to speed on our renovation.

I hope to get you to the present day soon.

I'm a little behind as you can see.

Follow our Progress.

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