OUR FAVORITE 7 DESIGN CHOICES WE MADE BUILDING OUR HOME

One of the other key features we chose, was to have continuous hardwood throughout our home, including the entryway. We did choose tile for the bathrooms and mudroom, which are all separate spaces. The rest of our house, which has one room that flows into the next, has the same floors throughout, which again, helps to create the illusion of more space. I purposely did not want tile in the entryway (even though we live in a northern climate)  or kitchen. With a smaller footprint, you want to maximize on those visual illusions you’re trying to create.We debated back and forth between dark and light floors, and Neil really wanted to go with the darker tone – in the end I agreed as well. We do love them, they provide richness and an elegance, especially against the bright white trim.One of the cost saving decisions we made, was going with a mixed grade hardwood. We wanted a durable wood, so we decided on oak, however, oak can be pricey sometimes, so we needed to find something that was in our budget. We wanted to have variation in the grain as well, and it was important to us to get darks and lights throughout as well. Going with a mixed grade oak (A, B and C grades) allowed us to save money and get the look we were after. This is a walnut stain. Unfortunately I don’t have the brand or color name anymore! We did take our time shopping around, and we were so lucky to find a great deal on these floors.You’d be surprised what you can find yourself if you roll up your sleeves and do some of the dirty work. Which we definitely did – we installed all of the flooring, all of the trim (which is still not finished!) as well as painted every inch ourselves. This home has been a labor of love and we’re still laboring :)Take your time looking around, and talk to your builder – sometimes they’ll allow you to shop around and find your own materials which can save you money.Our master bathroom is one of our favorite spaces, especially now that we recently made it over (see the full reveal here). It’s our sanctuary and we love every detail in this space. One of the things we love most, that was an absolute must for both of us, was choosing to have a double vanity instead of a bathtub. We could have gone with a bathtub/shower combination, but a walk-in shower was also a must for the two of us.I am not much of a bath person, even when we had a bathroom with a big soaker tub in our first home, it wasn’t a ritual for me, nor for my hubby. So, with the limited number of baths we would take, we decided the walk-in shower and a vanity that was large enough for the two of us to be in here together at the same time was a no brainer.I need my space when I get ready and having ample counter space is huge when you’re two people sharing a bathroom. Trust me on this one – it was one of the best decisions we made. Everyone needs their personal space and I highly recommend going this route if you have to make the choice and cut back somewhere. Again, having a smaller space to work with, you have to be able to comprise sometimes – this was a well worth it compromise for us!
Our kitchen is one of my favorite spaces in our home. We’e made some updates along the way since we first moved in, which have brought it to a level that I love. I still have some plans for this space, such as counter to ceiling mirrored cupboards flanking the sink – I have a big vision in my head that I think would be gorgeous, and will hopefully come to fruition some day!
One of the most important design decisions in here was choosing to forego upper cabinets on the back wall and create a focal point with the custom range hood and flanking windows. We installed counter to ceiling white subway tile to create depth, add visual interest and texture, and again, make a statement.We built the open shelves next to the sink (where I want to add the mirrored cupboards) to bring in some added character to the space and I love having a space to display my collections. You can read about it here.Having that back wall without cabinets was a design decision that is not for everyone, that’s for sure. However I wanted to create a traditional kitchen that was atypical, and transport you to another era. I had an old-world-meets-modern-day vision fort this kitchen! We have ample cupboard space and our island holds all of our dishes and flatware, as well as trash and recycling and the microwave. It is one hard working island!

In our living room, or great room, which is central in our home, we wanted to make sure this space felt airy and bright since we spend most of our time here. The back of our home is north facing, and we don’t get much direct sunlight. We wanted to a make a big statement with as many windows as possible so we added the large transoms at the top as well to maximize on the height of the room.It was a small upgrade, but with a minimal investment, we have the statement we were looking for and this space gets great light year round, which is exactly what we wanted. By the way, I get a lot of questions about why we have no windows treatments. We have a very private yard, especially in the warmer months when the trees are filled in. I love having bare windows to maximize on the views of our foliage outside. We are in a very wooded area and we’re lucky to have so many trees to look at year round, it’s gorgeous!Building on the idea of creating a living room that feels as big and as bright as possible, we chose to raise the ceilings in this space from nine to eleven feet. We have nine feet everywhere else, and we realized during the planning stage that it would be a worthwhile investment to raise this ceiling – and it allowed for the taller doors at the back as well.Having the height in here makes a huge difference in the feel of the room and it also allowed us to make a big statement with the bookshelves we built after we moved in as well. You can read all about these shelves here. You won’t believe the difference in the room once we added them! Taking advantage of the height in here was a key factor, and makes the room feel even larger than before. I’m still talking about this room because it really is the central gathering space of our home (aside from the kitchen of course!) and the focal point of our home. We focused much of our energy in here to create a room with wow factor. Another detail we added was the double chandeliers. For a room this large – 15 x 23 feet, it needed the two lights for balance as well. I’m big on symmetry and that was another reason I wanted both lights. I love the way they frame our shelves as well. It was nothing to add a second light to the electrical plan, and again, the second fixture was a small investment…with big impact!Our home is 1700 square feet, which is not small, but it’s not considered large either. It was integral when we were in the design phase to create as much vertical space as possible and again, to give the illusion of larger, more open rooms. Opening up doorways, adding transoms, raising ceilings, tiling walls, double chandeliers, it all makes a huge difference and helps to sell a home as well, which was our original intent. We wanted to create a home that would capture your attention from the first moment you stepped through the door. With the small investments that we made, the rewards are that much bigger in the end, and the added resale value will be that much better too. I hope you enjoyed this post and if you’re building or remodelling, I know some of these design choices can help you too! Thanks for reading with me, I always appreciate your time! xo