So Many Colors In the Rainbow

 With construction of the foundation not starting until November and framing not starting until February, we've got a little bit of time on our hands to think about colors.  We've spent a lot of time looking at houses in the area, and are starting to get a sense of how colors interact.  Most houses in the area have 3 colors, so there is a lot of room for creativity.  In fact, the covenants in the subdivision specify that your house may not be painted the same color as the immediately adjacent houses, so diversity is encouraged.  

We originally ran into some design issues with the height of the roof.  As a result of the original design, I've been on the lookout for color patterns that would minimize the height of the house.  I had thought that I liked houses with a darker color on the bottom half, and a lighter color on the top.  It gives a house the impression of having a solid foundation.  Upon further investigation however, I found that a lighter color on the top drew my eyes up, and I focused on the height of the building.  Houses with a lighter color for the lower band made the first floor the focus of attention, which is what we want.  So, without further ado, here are some combinations we are looking at:

We want either a blue or a green for the main color.  The darker portion of the board and batting is meant to minimize that portion of the house, and draw the attention to the extreme front.

We like green because it is a very natural color.  Here is an example with a darker shade for the entire top band of the house, meant to minimize that portion and draw the attention towards the lower band.

Here is a color combination that I really like, but I am afraid too much attention is drawn to the top portion of the house.

And finally, here is a blank canvas.  I know some of you have design skills, so grab a screenshot and the paint bucket tool from your favorite photo editor and fill this in with your favorite colors!  If you find a combination you really like, we'd love to see it.

One Year

Today was our first wedding anniversary.  Hopefully there will be many more to come.  Limei feels like the day is flying by, it could have something to do with how late she slept in :)

Back On Track

I just got back from a meeting with our builder, and I am happy to say that things are back on track.  We got the roofline changed from an 8:12 to a 6:12 (the first number is the change in height, the second number is the horizontal distance it takes for that amount of elevation change) so the roof will be 25% lower.  We also got rid of the 5 ft garage overhang, and will have something like the picture at right put in over it instead.  I think this will add a nice detail to the front of the house. Without crossing over into log cabin territory, I think the more rough sawn, naturally stained fir we can use the better!

First Mistake

Last week I ran into what I'm sure will be the first of many roadblocks.  The original plans called for a vaulted ceiling in the living room running east to west.  There is nothing interesting in that direction, where as the north facing end of the living room will face the Bridger Mountains.  With a modification to the roofline we were able to change the direction of the ceiling vault, but the modification I envisioned and sketched out was a little different from what I saw in the final plans:

So now I have the option of going back to the original plans ($600!!!) or sticking with this and trying to make it work.  My main concern is that this new roofline is so boxy and barnlike, it seems kinda plain.  We've found similar houses to this one where some details were added to the front that helped break up the main South Elevation portion, but I'm not sure how much it's going to cost to get something like that added.  Then again, I don't plan on spending a lot of time sitting on the sidewalk staring at the front of my house, so it might be more molehill than mountain.  For the record, here are the original plans:

I hated the modifications at first, but the more time I spend looking at them the less I hate them, and they will result in me getting the vaulted ceiling that I want.  So, what do you think?  Leave me some feedback in the comments.

Coming soon I'll get a better image of the plans with some color added, and I'll post up the actual floorplan.