Siding.

We came back from vacation Saturday afternoon.
And the first thing we did was pick up this fella from Adam's parents' house.

Farm dog for a week.

Just kidding.

We went out to the house first because it was killing us. We usually stop out there every evening to see the progress. So we were anxious to see a weeks worth.

We have siding folks! In this post we were having a hard time deciding which siding to choose.

Via Cellwood

We went with the weathered ash.
I was so nervous to see what it would actually look like on the house. We didn't want it to be too grey. We didn't want it to be too tan. We wanted a little brown peeking out, just like in the sample.

But it's perfect.

Up close.

I think it works well with the brown trim.

 Where you see pink. You will later see stone!

They also worked on the front porch and the back deck.

Ceiling of front porch.

And the deck.

Doors installed.

Back deck has same ceiling.
There will be a ceiling fan installed and the lights will be on a dimmer.

Diagonal look for the wood...now to pick out a stain finish!
And railings and steps. We need those too.

hmmm who secretly added that TV jack into the back deck plans? Hint: Adam

It's so hard to tell from the photos, because the color looks beautiful in person. Can siding really be beautiful?


Anyways, now we have to pull the trigger on the stone. We think we have some picked out, but we just have to give the final okay. The exterior stone and the fireplace stone is going to be one of our huge DIY projects, with the help of my dad.

Stay tuned, lots more updates coming!

Do you think we made the choice on the siding? 
What do you think about a TV on the back deck?

Exterior decisions

We chose our windows a couple of weeks ago. We chose a prairie style grille.

Pella Prairie Style Grille

We decided brown color on the exterior, and white on the interior---wood casement windows.
Kind of like this.

And above the front porch entry we will have a arched window that keeps the similar prairie grille:

There will be one just like it above the back covered deck to let light in too.

French doors for the back deck, and for the basement back patio. We wanted to be able to swing both doors open on a nice day, or when we have get togethers.
Yes, you are all invited. Well, most of you.

We are still deciding on an entry door. I knew I had expensive taste, but did you know that a front door can cost more than a car? Well it can. Yipes. Still shopping around for the perfect front door. We already made the choice of having an eight foot door. And we know we want glass in it to let light in. Now just to find a pretty door that is just fancy enough and will not require us to go broke.

This week we are currently driving ourselves crazy bananas deciding on siding colors. After that, we will have to pick out the stone too. Exterior colors seem to be stressing us out the most because...well it's not easily changed.

We have decided on a shingle (dark black with a hint of brown), but the siding seems to be a little tricky.
Sometimes we 2 or 3 of them... and sometimes none at all. They all look different in different lighting. Sometimes too grey, or not green or brown enough. I suppose whatever stone we choose could help bring out the greens or browns too. But I am worried about that not being the case at all and it clashing.

Source

We have been driving around looking at houses and holding the swatches out the car window to see if we have a match. Adam is easily embarrassed, and will not let me actually get out of the car and walk up to a house to color match. I guess he did not realize when he married me I have little shame when it comes to crap like this. Plus, I'm sure we look like creeps driving slowly through neighborhoods and holding siding swatches out the window.

The next step is getting a few house addresses from the manufacturer so we can take a mini road trip...to look at siding. We are party animals lately I tell you.

What is your vote for the siding color? There will be very little siding on the front of the house--since it will be 75% stone. But the rest of the house & garage will be alllllll siding.

If you've ever had the experience of picking out siding, do you think it looks lighter/darker/just right once it's all finished and complete?
Does your significant other get embarrassed by you too or is it the other way around in your house?


P.S. Trusses will be delivered today! So hopefully some new progress photos for you in Thursdays post.