I’ve always dreamed of building and designing my own home for our family. Well, it took many years for this dream to happen and now it is just my hubby and me. But it’s never too late to start! After we sold our home last year. We looked at resale homes. Nothing stood out for us. There was a list of must-haves and we felt building a custom home was the best option.
We drove around looking at many neighborhoods. We found a vacant lot that we both liked, finally. The lot had been assigned to a specific general contractor. Which just happened to work out perfectly for us. He has been a great builder and we are very happy. We then looked at the lot and met with the developer and GC. Right then, we got into a contract with a deposit. The development was having a Parade of Homes tour right after our meeting. We knew someone else would buy the property if we didn’t get into contract.
It was important that I was going to be the designer of the home. The general contractor agreed (he probably regrets that one) LOL! The second item we wanted was a basement. We’ve had basements in several homes and that was important to us. Some parts of the country cannot do basements and certain lots are not able to do basements (water table, rocky terrain, etc). We were pretty happy that our lot worked out for what we wanted. And just like that, it was a done deal! My husband did all the bank stuff, appraisals, etc for a new home build.
Floor Plan and Exterior Design:
Now for the hard part – designing the floor plan and exterior. I will be introducing the floor plan in another post. But to be clear, the floor plan was designed first and the exterior was created around the floor plan.
I wanted a traditional home with a touch of lake house, cottage, and a slightly European feel. Our exterior siding will be James Hardie shingle. I had two digital renderings completed with two different colors. It’s hard to tell from the image that it is a shingle siding.
Here is what the exterior looks like.
The first image is a black paint exterior with white trim.
The second image is supposed to be Sherwin Williams Dovetail exterior with white trim.
Which color do you like better?
We still haven’t decided which color we are going to paint the exterior. But at least we have it narrowed down. Below is a picture of a close-up of a real exterior in James Hardie shingle painted with SW Dovetail.
This is a single-story home with a basement. Our main floor is designed to be our main living area. The basement is for storage, guest rooms, a man cave, and a craft room.
My next custom home post will be sharing our floor plan and the details going into the design aspect. You can see the previous home we sold and the remodel we did on that home.
Let me know in the comments what your favorite exterior color is. Yes, it is hard to decide from digital renderings. As of right now, we haven’t decided which color to paint the exterior.
Lori R. says
My vote is black. It was a hard decision to make. I think the black just pops all of the beautiful features. Enjoy that beautiful home.
Toni - Design Dazzle says
Thank you, Lori! I will be sharing soon what we decided. : )
Sherri Krzesnik says
I love the black! I saw that you are building in Idaho? I live in Homedale just 45 minutes West of Boise. Can’t wait to see your floor plan!
Toni - Design Dazzle says
Oh we are going to be neighbors! I can email you privately our town.
Thank you for the comment. I will be sharing soon what color we decided.
Susan Kimmet says
Gray! Black absorbs heat and would be very hot in summer sun.
Toni - Design Dazzle says
Thank you, Susan. We did ask someone about their black house and they said it was fine with summer – no extra heat. Maybe older houses have that problem because they aren’t built as well? I don’t know. We will be sharing soon what color we chose!
Melissa Brown says
Gray all the way! It looks AMAZING!!!
Toni - Design Dazzle says
Thank you, Melissa! I appreciate your comment. I’ll be sharing soon!
dot Trakas says
A hard choice. I starred at both for a long, long time and finally decided I think the architectural details show better in the grey color. It will be lovely regardless of which you eventually choose.
Toni - Design Dazzle says
Thank you, Dot. It is a hard decision. I will be sharing what we ended up deciding. Stay tuned!
melody miller says
The Dovetail paint color looks so much warmer and more elegant. The black looks too monochromatic and gloomy.
Cheryl says
My hubby likes the black… it has an east coast Hamptons feel
Becky says
Grey
Cyndy says
It’s so hard to decide. The black looks classy but is so dark. At any rate you will not regret James Hardie. We replaced our cheap builder vinyl with JH after a hailstorm did a number on the vinyl. It looks wonderful. Good luck!
Shaniah Evans says
The encouragement to view the customization process as a collaborative and creative endeavor resonates with the understanding that a home is more than just a structure