A House We Built

Custom House Designed by Husband & Wife Team | Modern Farmhouse Inspired

Questions & Answers about Products & Sources

by 585 Comments

Hey guys!

This is a place for you to ask us questions about the products or sources in our home.

Please be sure to read the entire home page (including the FAQs at the bottom of it) or look at each room source page as the information we’re asked for is very often already listed on our website.

We do not share our house plan. We designed our house from scratch so our plan is fully custom, very personal to us, and the result of over a year of our hard work so we have chosen not to share it. As such, we don’t answer questions about measurements or layout further to what we’ve provided on our website.

Our house is not for sale and we have no intention of selling it in the future.

We appreciate your understanding.
We check this page regularly so we will get back to you!

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. I’m so in love with your home. We just built a brand new home and still deciding on color themes. I love the black shiplap wall in the bathroom. What materials did you use to create that? My husband and I think this would look great in our powder room. We have a 20 ft foyer ceiling with 10 ft ceilings on the first floor and 9 ft on the second level. I just think the black, white, and wood theme looks amazing and would be nice for the foyer, office and powder room.

    Reply

      • Hello. I am just curious if you used any protectant sealing on the ship lap ? Especially behind the sinks.

        Thank you,

        Reply

        • Hi 🙂 Just normal caulking as you would on any sink counter. We painted the shiplap with a bit of a glossier paint though (so not a flat finish).

          Reply

          • Hi there-
            I absolutely love your style! Wondering about two things-
            What ship lap material did you use on the fireplace. I thought it can not be combustible.
            Also, what type of texture did you do through the home?

      • You have a beautiful house. You have done a great job. Thanks for sharing. How did you finish the outside shiplap corners on your fireplace and have you noticed any shrinkage in the MDF in the past year?

        Reply

      • Your home is strikingly lovely! Thank you for sharing your process : ) I am building a home and we are considering the Evoke Lionel laminate floors (in good part because of your blog : ). How are your floors holding up? I read some reviews about sunlight damage for a different brand so I wanted to check in with your experience with the Evoke brand. Your lifestyle embraces lights and kitties – as does our lifestyle; so I am curious if your Evoke flooring has experienced any damage from sunlight?

        Reply

        • Hi, thank you! we’ve not experienced any damage from sunlight and don’t even have window coverings. That said, our windows are glazed and triple pane so I don’t know if that maybe is a factor or not…

          Reply

    • Hi, I tried finding the answer before asking and couldn’t find it, what kind of flooring do you have in living room? Thank you. I love your home and fur babies ❤️

      Reply

  2. Thank you for sharing ALL of your resources with us! We’re builing a custom home and it can be very overwhelming…your organization is super impressive!

    Reply

  3. Hi there! I’m loving all the progress updates on your beautiful home! My husband and I often talk about building a home from the ground up, but the monetary aspects and the process seems unattainable and daunting. I’d love to hear more about how you started the process and any advice you may have. Your home is gorgeous!
    Thanks!

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 Thank you so much! In our area at least we actually found that buying vs building a home were quite similar as long as you made good choices. We did a TON of research (actually are real estate agent when we were buying our land said that in 30 years she’d never seen anyone as thorough as us lol), we got multiple quotes for everything under the sun, we made a lot of cost saving choices but without compromising the look we wanted, we evaluated choices based on long-term payoff too since we weren’t planning to flip this house, we put in a lot of energy efficiency elements into our home and built it in a way that would last very strongly and efficiently, and so there are a lot of factors and for us almost 2.5+ years of intensely hard work but it was definitely worth it!

      Reply

      • I absolutely love your home! I hope I’ll be able to custom build my home one day in the future. Do you know if you’ll blog about your journey of attaining contractors and how you came up with your plans? The scariest part for me is financing!

        Reply

        • Thank you! We’ve considered it. We didn’t think there’d be much interest at first but we’ve had several requests so are definitely considering it!

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          • I’m super interested in your process too and would love a blog post or many! 🙂 I’d love to know as much of the process as you are willing to share: from choosing the land (and land considerations) to contractors and budgeting; any books or other resources you recommend/used during your planning/learning process. Did you work with an architect or do either of you have a background in architecture, interior design or building. What things you learned through the process that you might’ve done differently looking back. Love love love what you’ve created and hope to learn more about the process!

          • Once we finish our basement, we plan to start writing more detailed posts about this. We learned a lot and have much to share, but there are only so many hours in the day and right now we just don’t have the extra time. But it’s on our to-do list.

  4. We are debating building our custom dream or buying through a builder and customizing paint but not the structural elements. Did you find it to be more expensive or cheaper buying the property and building your own home?

    Reply

    • We didn’t really cost out buying a builder-grade spec home because that was never something we wanted to do since we always wanted to design our own home from scratch so I don’t think I’d be the best person to give advice on that since my only experience is with the fully custom side of things. So sorry!

      Reply

  5. Beautiful home! Can you please share to brand and size of your fireplace? I love it! We are about to build and are considering an electric one. Thanks!

    Reply

    • Hi there! I have been following your page recently and love your home! We are in the process of building a custom home and have a similar kitchen layout as you. I’m wondering if you can share the dimensions of your kitchen space? I’m curious how it compares to ours. I am having a difficult time getting our island centred to the cooktop. I’m assuming yours is cantered to your cooktop? Thank you.

      Reply

  6. I left a comment on Instagram, my kitchen is somewhat similar, but I hated my stools. Where are these from? I couldn’t find in the article. Thanks

    Reply

  7. Love your home. We’re building also and am so thankful I can look at yours for inspiration. What was the most challenging part of the build process?

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    • Thank you! Hmmm… probably just the sheer amount of time it has taken daily researching all the best options and decisions. It’s a strain on work/home life to have such a huge project going on because it’s just hard to make the time to balance everything. I do think it’s worth it though 🙂

      Reply

    • Thank you so much!!

      I sourced it from a local tile supplier. We have chosen to keep our location private to balance out how much of our lives/house we share publicly so I don’t name local sources. However, the patterns we used are common encaustic cement tiles so anywhere that sells them (which there are several internationally) would likely sell them. The reason I don’t name them though is that each tile supplier tends to name them differently even when they are selling the same product.

      I’d recommend googling “cement tiles” or “encaustic cement tiles” and your location to find the best place closest to you. Hope that helps!

      Reply

    • I sourced it from a local tile supplier. We have chosen to keep our location private to balance out how much of our lives/house we share publicly so I don’t name local sources. However, the patterns we used are common encaustic cement tiles so anywhere that sells them (which there are several internationally) would likely sell them. The reason I don’t name them though is that each tile supplier tends to name them differently even when they are selling the same product.

      I’d recommend googling “cement tiles” or “encaustic cement tiles” and your location to find the best place closest to you. Hope that helps!

      Reply

    • Hello! I am in love with your home and hope that in the future my fiancé and I can create something as unique and beautiful. I have read your story about how you and your husband saved for many years before you started the process. I know you like to keep cost private however, I was wondering what percentage of the total cost you had saved prior to starting? And also if you could share a little bit about your journey before starting the process, regarding your previous home/apartment.
      Thank you so much!

      Reply

      • Hi 🙂 Thank you! Let me think on that for a bit. It’s a pretty delicate balance trying to figure out how much of the financial specifics we want to share. I can’t give you an answer right now, but I will take your questions under consideration and maybe write up a post in the future with more details on this topic. Thank you for understanding.

        Reply

  10. Your house is beautiful and the attention to detail is impeccable. It must feel amazing to see all your hard work coming to fruition. I have a question about your kitchen hardware; how did you determine the correct length of cabinet pulls for each drawer width? Your amazon link has several lengths and I got a bit overwhelmed when researching them.

    Thanks and looking forward to seeing more posts on the house progress.

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂

      Actually the Amazon links have specific ones that they’re set to so there are a bunch of sizes offered but if you read the last part of the product titles, it’ll give the sizing.

      Reply

      • I was trying to understand how you determined the width of the hardware you used; 1/3rd rule?

        For example: width of drawer is 19”. Did you purchase the 6” pull?

        I apologize if this was on Amazon’s site but I still can’t find the info. 🙂

        Reply

        • I didn’t use any rule – I just chose what I thought looked best. The ones I’ve listed on the home page are the specific ones I chose to use 🙂

          Reply

  11. Oh my word! I am in love with your house. Such wonderful attention to detail and I love how each room of the house has slightly different design elements, but everything flows so well together. I also love your floor plan! It ticks off so many boxes of my husband and my dream home. Did you purchase a pre-existing floor plan, or fully customize one?

    Reply

    • Thank you so much! We designed our house from scratch together so it is not based on any pre-existing plan. 🙂

      Reply

      • Loved your house! Absolutely gorgeous! Is it possible that you share the layout of the house with width & length measurements?

        We are just starting with preparations for our home & to be honestly it is really difficult to decide what would be the best floor plan for us 🙂

        thanks 🙂

        Reply

        • We designed our house from scratch together so our plan is near and dear to our hearts, and is the result of over a year and a half of work. We have not released or posted it yet, but may in the future. 😊

          Reply

  12. Your house is so well put together – what an impact to the design world! Also your project organization skills are seriously my love language. Can you tell me what you used for your baseboard trim? Thanks and congratulations

    Reply

    • Thank you so much! We used MDF for all trim including baseboards. It was supplied by our trim team, I’m not specifically sure what it’s called.

      Reply

    • Hi 🙂 They were sourced by our trim team so it wasn’t a personal purchase so I don’t know where he got them from. A similar one is linked on our home page.

      Reply

  15. I am in awe of your style and home! I’m loving following you blog and Instagram. We just bought our house plans and will be breaking ground soon. May I ask how many sq feet your house is and about where you ended up at price per sq foot? I know it will be different in different areas, but I just want a baseline of what true custom costs.

    Reply

  18. It looks like your bathroom cabinets may be a different colour than Simply White or is it just the lighting? I love the style!

    Reply

    • Thank you! Unfortunately both of those were sourced through our trim trade so I didn’t purchase them directly. I have no idea where our hinges came from but I’ve linked a similar handle on our home page 🙂

      Reply

    • Hi 🙂 They were supply & installed by our trim team so we didn’t purchase them directly. I believe they’re called Monrow though

      Reply

  21. I found your Instagram page a couple days ago and I just gotta say I love watching the progress on your home. You’re so organized and everything just goes together so well. I hope to one build my home from scratch like you guys did but I’m afraid my husband and I are no craftsman, I’d like to know if you and your husband are in that line of work or if you found the right people to bring your ideas to life. Thanks!

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 Thank you so much! No, we’re not specifically in the construction-related line of work. However, the small business we co-own does involve a lot of management and very similar types of organization so a lot of our work-related skills did easily transfer to managing a home build. We also did find really good solid trades so the combination worked out quite well.

      Reply

  23. Hi! Thank you so much for sharing! Your home is gorgeous! I would love to know about your powder bath shower door – was that custom built? If so what material was used for the black framing?

    Reply

  24. Hi my husband and I are getting in the process of looking for land to build our forever home. Can you please share. We’re going to hire all the sub contractor. Can you please share what program did you use to stay organize? What did you use to keep up with your budget? Do you have a check list or time frame list? Thank You So Much!

    Your Home is Beautiful!!

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂

      We don’t use any program for anything we did with the house. We just kept our own lists and managed like that. But the honest answer is we just kinda… did it, lol. I know that’s not very helpful but we didn’t use any programs or official methods. We did do lists, and budgets, and schedules though on our own.

      Reply

  25. Hey!

    First off, I must say I love following your instagram page and think that is blog is so awesome of you to do!! I am an interior designer for a home builder and was looking for cabinet hardware for my personal home similar in style to yours which was going to cost me a pretty penny but after coming to this page and that you found yours on Amazon!! GENIUS!!! I will be purchasing those very soon and saving a bunch of money!! Anyway! My question is on your closet rods. Are they metal? They look like it but wanted to ask.

    I have wood ones but am considering switching them or even spray painting them black, just concerned with the paint chipping over time.

    Thank you! Keep up the good work!

    Reply

    • Thank you so much!! Our closet rods are metal. They’re made exactly the same way that we made our stair railing and the tutorial and sources for that are at the bottom of the home page of our website if you’re interested 🙂 (The type of spray pain I used doesn’t chip, at least not that I’ve been able to tell so far.)

      Reply

  26. First and foremost your Instagram page is amazing!! (I am a new follower). Your pantry especially is so nicely organized and is extremely satisfying (lol!) I along with many of your followers I’m sure truly appreciate the time it takes for you to be open and willing to share your experience with your home renovation. I’m 24 and graduated with an economics degree and looking to start a new career in interior design. I wanted to know if either your husband or yourself had any formal education with interior design/construction? Going back for another four year degree for interior design (in Canada) is not appealing especially when I would like to attain a certificate and move forward with hands on experience. Any feedback helps!

    Thank you 😊

    Reply

    • Thank you so much — I’m glad you’re enjoying our page! No, neither of us have design or construction backgrounds. This is the first house we have ever worked on. 🙂

      Reply

  27. Hi, we love your kitchen island. I know the dimensions are 11.5 by 3.5 ft. Did you not need some middle support since it hung over so much to accommodate for stools? Our builder is telling us we may need some form of support in the middle but I don’t see one in your pictures. Thanks for any wisdom and direction.

    Reply

    • We do have support, but not in the traditional way because of the depth of our overhang. You can check manufacturer recommendation for each countertop but we’re basically 1 inch less than the max overhang for the countertop we used. It’s is however reinforced underneath with plywood layers so we did it in a way where it’s reinforced but without an actual visible support.

      Reply

  28. Hello!

    Your home is absolutely stunning! We are moving to our home this week and we have two kitties that we adore ❤️ I was wondering what you did for your litter box for your kitties? It’s hard to find a location that isn’t an eye sore or a public area.

    Thank you 😺😸

    Holly

    Reply

    • We basically build rubber padding into the plywood structure that the machines sit on. So all the pretty white stuff you see is just covering, the true structure they’re sitting on is made from 2×6’s and 3/4 ply with rubber pieces in key places to help with noise and movement.

      Reply

  30. Hi, I love your home so much! I am preparing to remodel my bathroom and am wondering what material is your kitchen “backsplash”? And can you source it? I am thinking to use that as the powder room’s accent wall. Thanks!

    Reply

    • Hi and thank you 🙂 It’s a wood-like tile. Tiles are one of the only things I haven’t sourced because I bought everything from local retailers and our location is the one thing we’ve decided to keep private to balance out everything we’re sharing publicly. It wasn’t a super exclusive tile though so most anywhere should carry something like it.

      Reply

  31. Hey I love you house do you mind if I get the blue prints of your house I’m in love with it and me and my husband would like to build one just like yours just different colors. We will be willing to pay you for a copy. Thank you please respond

    Reply

    • Thank you! Unfortunately we are not selling our floor plan at this point. We may at some point in the future but right now we’re not.

      Reply

  32. Beautiful home!!!! Additional question about your kitchen backsplash. Same as the floor of slight variation?
    Thank you,
    Amazing work!

    Reply

    • Sorry. I guess a better question would be what material is your kitchen backsplash? Tile, vinyl…..? It looks similar to the kitchen floor with a slight variation.

      Reply

      • Flooring is laminate. Backsplash is tile. They’re actually quite different in person but in some lights they photograph similar.

        Reply

  33. Hello,

    Your home and style is absolutely beautiful. I love every detail! My husband and I are redoing a railing system on our second floor that is open to the main floor and very similar to your space. I love your railing and white balusters. Do you have product information and a tutorial of the install process? I am very interested.

    Thank you so much!
    Tracey

    Reply

    • Thank you! They were custom made & installed by the same company that made our stairs so I don’t have a tutorial on them unfortunately. Sorry

      Reply

  34. Absolutely love your home! Where did you purchase your stools from? I can’t seem to find anything about them on your page.

    Thank you!

    Reply

  35. Wow! Absolutely love your home and all the details. We live out in the country and plan to build soon and I’m not sure if this a weird question but have you shared your floor plan? I was searching your site for it – I love the loft style home and just wanted to see how all room were place. Thanks!

    Reply

    • Thank you very much! 🙂 No, we have not yet shared our floor plan. We designed our house from scratch and our plan is something that’s very near and dear to our hearts so I wasn’t originally planning to ever share it but I am considering it. It’s not available anywhere yet though.

      Reply

  36. Congratulations on your stunning home! I read that you used LED lighting sourced by your electrician. I am curious to know how you like it. It can be harsh, and from the pictures, yours does not seem to be. I have been researching replacing my high hats with LEDin a kitchen renovation, but the blue seems too harsh and the “warm” too yellow, I’ve been told. Any advice?

    Reply

    • Thank you! LED lighting is just all about the color you get. So basically it’s only harsh if you put in something like 5000K. I recommend just buying test bulbs and trying out to see what works for your home.

      Reply

  37. Hi! Love your home!! We are in the building process right now and have similar taste in finishing colors (lots of white!). Sounds like you’re still somewhat new to living in your house… but have you found that the light floors, white cabinets, white trim, white stair spindles, etc. have been easy to manage with keeping clean?? We don’t have cats but we do have a black dog.
    Thanks in advance!

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 Thank you! I guess it depends on how much vacuuming you’re comfortable doing lol. I vacuum the whole house once a week, I do the stairs every day or every other day, and I keep little hand vacuums around for trouble spots in between. I find doing that keeps all the pet hair under control. I will say though that our last pet was a large dog that was mostly black and I found that she shed more than these 3 cats combined so it may be different depending on the volume of hair…

      Reply

  38. Hi, love your house so much! Can you please tell me where you got the Master sconces (the ones with the round bulb top)? I love them and don’t see a link in your sources page. Thank you.

    Reply

        • Yes/no. It’s the same light I purchased — literally the same name and link from my order. However, they’ve made very subtle modifications to the light since I bought it so that’s why it’s ever so slightly different.

          Reply

  39. Hopefully I haven’t missed this info! Can you tell me more about your sound/tv set up at the fireplace? I know your speaker is on the side. We are trying to figure out a location for our subwoofer and tv boxes that will blend in. Where will yours be placed so that remotes will work?

    Reply

  40. Your house is so inspirational! An I absolutely adore the cat cameos 😂 We are in the process of a whole house remodel and will be painting the interior all BM simply white (walls, trim, cabinets) too! Did you paint your ceilings in BM simply white as well? Not sure if I should carry the white to the ceiling or just use the “ceiling white” standard white? (We unfortunately have very low 8ft ceilings throughout.) I would be so greatful to learn what you did in your beautiful home : )

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 Thank you so much! Yes, everything (white) is the same color. I listed everything we used on the main page. I think it would work just as well on 8-ft ceilings. I mean, we did it on our second floor 9-ft ceilings which is pretty close and it worked great so I’d guess that 8-ft would be just as good!

      Reply

    • Your home is stunning! Thank you for the inspiration. May I ask where you found your mantel brackets? We have a barn beam but I am searching for brackets that do not show. Thank you!

      Reply

  41. Hello!! I love your house! I saw that your windows are custom triple pane fiberglass. Did you have them custom made by a local company, or are they a specific manufacturer, and you just had them customized? They’re perfect!

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 Thank you! They’re completely custom made and designed, so not modified from an existing manufacturer.

      Reply

  45. I read in one of your posts that your bathroom tile has a matte finish. I love that idea. My question is what color is the grout? It looks light gray in the images.

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  46. Love your house!!! Thank you so much for ALL of the information!!! It helps out tremendously!!! I was wondering if you had the brand or manufactures name for the Italian white quartz Kitchen countertops? And bathroom countertop. I love the look!!

    Reply

    • Thank you 🙂 I just went to a good countertop place and basically picked out the whitest one I could find there!

      Reply

    • I checked your website for sources, and wow! You are a rockstar for including everything.
      The engineer brick on your exterior, are you able to provide the brand/color?
      I wanted to do white board and batton but my HOA declined the material so now I’m looking for a brick/stone and I just love yours!

      Reply

      • Hi – sorry, that’s one of the few items I don’t specifically source. However, there are many white stone options out there if you google around!

        Reply

  48. Absolutely love your home! I was wondering if you could share the information for the bathroom sink stoppers, and any towel bars and toilet paper holders?

    Reply

    • Thank you 🙂

      I believe sink stoppers were just sourced by our plumbers.

      We don’t actually have towel bars and toilet paper holders yet. Towel bars we’re going to make (same style as our railing and hangar bars that are mentioned on the man page) and we can’t have toilet paper holders because we have cats so our toilet paper always lives in the vanity drawer nearest to the toilet. Haha that’s life with cats for you 😛

      Reply

  49. Hi
    i am wondering which whole home air filterizatiin you used so you dont have to open the windows? What type of filter does it use and how often do you change it? Does it filter out smells as well?
    Thank you

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂

      We upsized the HVAC ducting and made sure all runs were short and had a minimum of kinks and turns, put returns in every room, and have a variable speed furnace so it can always be pushing a little air. We also have an ERV that is constantly exchanging inside air for outside air so it’s even better than opening windows because the ERV preserves inside/outside difference in temperature and humidity.

      Reply

      • What is this type of air filter/ exchange system called exactly?
        How much does it cost? Is your humidifier wirkung through the duct system as well? Do you worry about mold?

        Reply

  50. Where did you get the tile in the bathroom floor? I absolutely love seeing your post. Thank you so much for sourcing everything.

    Reply

    • Welcome! Tiles were all purchased from local suppliers and local retailers are the only ones I don’t source because we’ve decided to keep our location private to balance out everything we’re sharing publicly.

      It’s called encaustic cement tile though so you should be able to just google and find a local source 🙂

      Reply

  53. Hello! I saw that your floors are by Evoke. I just received all the samples I ordered from them and have a few questions. First off, I wanted to see if you are happy with this flooring. I love the samples that I received and they seem to be a great quality. Any negatives that you have found with them yet?

    Second question, the pricing. Would you care to share a range for how much it was per sq ft?

    Lastly, did you find Evoke through their website or do you have a local place that had it? I am going to reach out on their site about a local dealer, but just wanted to see how your process was.

    Thanks so much!

    Reply

    • Hi,

      We got the flooring through a third party supplier that did both supply & install, though I did order a sample box directly and was perfectly happy with them. We don’t have any complaints and love them so far!

      Reply

  54. Love everything about your home, it’s beautiful! Thank you for all the links to your selections! I was wondering what you did for doorknobs/levers?

    Reply

    • Thank you! They were supplied through our trim company so I never purchased them directly. I don’t have their specific source but have linked similar ones.

      Reply

  55. Love your kitchen pendents!! Question did you order 18” or 24” also your ceiling is 10ft there what length Did you order!!??

    Reply

    • We designed our house from scratch together so our plan is near and dear to our hearts. We have not released or posted it yet, but may in the future.

      Reply

  57. Love following your ideas! I’m in the process of building a home too so your instagram has been inspiring. I did some searching but couldn’t find sources for your interior door handles. Can you tell me where you got them?

    Reply

    • Thank you so much! Similar ones are listed on our home page (I don’t have the link to ours as they were supplied by our trim team)

      Reply

  58. Your house is stunning. Pretty please consider sharing your floor plan! I’m trying to design a custom home and I’d love to too how yours is laid out!

    Reply

  60. Can you tell me…. did you overgrout your exterior stone? Or did they lay it a certain way to get it to fit together so tight? Thanks

    Reply

  61. I am so in love with your house, specially the black fixtures and white paint. Can I ask you where you got the two panel shaker doors? Did you paint them with BM Simply White? You mentioned the counter is Italian white quartz, where did you get it from? We just bought a house and we are renovating the bathrooms and the bedrooms on the second floor, would love to use a bright white quartz countertop for our master bathroom and change all the doors to two panel shaker door in white. Thanks in advance.

    Reply

    • Thank you 🙂 Everything I listed on the front page is accurate. So the paint color is the same BMSW for everything white. Quartz and two-panel shaker doors are fairly readily available anywhere that sells countertops and/or doors. I don’t list local sources though to protect our privacy as our location is the one thing we have chosen not to share to balance out how much else we’re sharing publicly.

      Thanks for understanding!

      Reply

    • Hi and thank you 🙂 We designed our house from scratch together so our plan is near and dear to our hearts. We have not released or posted it yet, but may in the future.

      Reply

  63. Hi! I love your house. My husband and I are beginning this process and are at the choosing Windows phase. I know your windows and custom triple pane. Do they have a sun glass or any kind of slight tint to them to help with sun rays? Thank you!

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 Thank you! No, ours don’t have anything like that, but just with being triple pane they kinda look like “sunglasses” from the outside if that makes sense. I’ve posted pics on Insta that show it from the outside during the day if you want to see what I mean.

      Reply

      • We are also planning a large open vaulted living space with lots of windows. We are building in North Idaho, long -COLD winters. I want all the natural light. My concern is heating cost and efficiency with the high ceilings and all the windows I must have and want! Trying to research our best window options. Sounds like you did lots as well, do you have recommendations?
        I’ve been IG looking into Passive Homes for some good energy efficiency ideas as well! Love your home, one of my favs on IG!

        Reply

        • Hi 🙂

          It all comes down to a combination of materials + insulation strategies. Our windows are custom made triple pane double glazed fiberglass which is basically the most energy efficient you can get. Yes, they cost more but we were looking at it as cost saved over a lifetime so yes, it’s more upfront, but over time heating/cooling costs are lowered and our math led us to believe that it was a cost savings if you took a very long-term view of it all. But those alone aren’t enough. Our house is also insulated far above norm – among other things, we did a complete exterior blanket wrap of insulation which essentially turned our house into a thermos so we have very low heat loss. We also personally went around during construction literally sealing up any holes before the walls were closed in. Finally, we have a good air circulation/exchange system so that keeps the temperature even across our house. I hope that helps!

          Reply

  64. Hi there! I would love to know where your purchased your barstools. I absolutely love your home! Thank you for sharing it!!!

    Reply

  66. I love your entire house. And I really love your Master Bath. What wood-like tile did you use? Also is the hex tile on the floor of the shower? If not, what did you use on the floor?

    Reply

    • Thank you 🙂 As explained in my FAQs on the home page, I don’t list tile. The floor is the wood-like tile as is the back of the kneewall.

      Reply

  67. Hello! What do the inside of the swing arm sconces look like? Are they black as well, or bronze or white maybe? It is so hard to tell from the online listing. And with that being said, even though they are labeled as oil rubbed bronze, they do appear pretty black, correct? Thank you!

    Reply

    • I think they’re white? I’m not in front of them now but check my office posts on IG, you might be able to see up one on there lol (and yes, black not bronze)

      Reply

  68. You’ve done a beautiful job with your home- I’m currently building with a very similar style in your most recent Instagram posts I noticed you have some beautiful stools at your kitchen island. Can you please send a link to where they were purchased.

    Reply

  70. I just swoon over your home (and kitties). Now that you’ve finished the exterior, what is the final color stain of your wood beams in front of the door? I ask because I tend to lean towards neutral stains or dark woods. But I’d like to branch out and stain our new porch beams a lighter tone. I worry the color I chose (it’s sitting in the garage) is too orange. Oh the decisions… Thank you!

    Reply

    • We actually haven’t decided yet! That wood weathers to grey so I’m half thinking I might even just leave it…. Honestly not sure yet. Haha I have decision fatigue.

      Reply

  72. Hello! First of all THANK YOU!! for all the time and details you put into your posts and pages. I will definitely use all your links b/c I really hope you get some value from all of this too. My question is on your MDF shelving – pantry, closets, etc. I think that’s one area we could really DIY-it in our new build. I know your Dad did most of it in your house, and it looks fairly straightforward. I’ve been onYouTube looking for the best DIY-MDF shelving video and haven’t found a great one. Could you recommend one, or is there anyway a short one from your build could be put together? A lot to ask, I know! Thanks for any ideas 🙂

    Reply

    • Thank you so much!! Hmm, I wouldn’t know what video to suggest to you — he built them from experience so didn’t use a tutorial. I’ll definitely consider adding some kind of tutorial on it to our website in the future though, maybe once we get more settled in 🙂

      Reply

  73. I’m in love with your beautiful house. I will like to know the paint color from the front door. thanks for your info

    Reply

  74. Hello there 🙂
    Firstly, your home is so so beautiful! Gahh *swoon*
    Do you have your floorplan available? I love the open void over the living room but haven’t found many floor plans which incorporate it as well as you guys.
    Many thanks
    MICHELLE

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 Thank you! We designed our house from scratch together so our plan is near and dear to our hearts, and is the result of over a year and a half of work. We have not released or posted it yet, but may in the future.

      Reply

  75. Hi ,
    First of all, Love your home and thought put into designing into each and every aspect of it.
    I have a similar place for pantry where I am planning to add a door and have drawers and shelves.
    Please let me know where the cabinets are from, with a closed drawer and pullout wire baskets .

    Reply

    • Our tiles were mostly sourced through local suppliers. Local suppliers are the only ones I don’t list for privacy. We appreciate your understanding on this matter.

      Reply

  79. Hi! I’m sorry if you’ve answered this question before, I didn’t see it in your FAQs. I did see you’re not sharing your floor plan right now, but I would love to hear any advice you have on creating your own floor plan. How do you start that process?? It seems so overwhelming. I absolutely love the glimpses I’ve seen of your home and the layout. A lot of what you’ve done is what I want to do, so any tips you have would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

    Reply

    • We designed our floor plan ourselves, but we went through an architecture firm and basically we chose where all the rooms would go and exactly how the house layout would look, and they made them into official plans with proper engineering etc. Cuz sometimes and idea you have might be structurally unsound or against code (which varies from place to place) etc so especially given that we were building 4 stories and had some unconventional design features it’s always best to come up with the ideas yourself but let the professional architects draw up the official plans. Generally the process went that we did a ton of research as to how we wanted our house’s floorplan, then we sat down with them and figured out our initial layout, then they’d make those into plans, then they’d send them to us, we’d photoshop in our fixes and/or changes, send them back to them, they’d revise the plans to reflect our changes, send them back to us, etc etc. I think we went through 19 revisions from start to finish (?) and then once you’re happy they finalize the plans with an engineer etc and then you take it to your town or whatever to get your building permit.

      Reply

  80. Hi! I am obsessed with your house, me and my fiancée are actually looking to build our own home as well. We have flexible careers and we’re wondering if you chose your location specifically because it was cheap to build there or if you made where you already were work? And following up to that, do you have any recommendations as to where building may be cheaper than buying? Thankyou!

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 We chose are location based on a lot of factors but it wasn’t the cheapest place to built (nor was it the most expensive necessarily) but we chose this general area to be closer to family. We’re still a bit of a hike away from them but a lot closer than if we’d moved across the country. As far as building where it’s cheaper that would probably depend on your area but as a general rule the further you are from a major city center, the cheaper the land gets.

      Reply

  81. Hi!!
    I am in LOVE with your home and style. I went through and was looking at some of the items you linked as I am decorating my new home.

    I didn’t see your bathroom shower door linked and I’m so curious as to where you got that black window paned shower door.

    Thank you in advance =)

    Reply

    • Thank you so much! 🙂 It’s listed under FAQs — all our shower glass is custom so there’s nothing for me to link to.

      Reply

  82. LOVE your home. Simple, classic, bright. It is beautiful!

    What color Blanco sinks do you have? Planning on similar matte black cabinet hardware and black faucet. There are a couple of colors that “LOOK” black, but colors are very deceiving on a screen.

    Thanks!

    Reply

  83. Hey!! I’m so obsessed with your entire home! Would you mind sharing the source of the counter-height chairs you used for your kitchen island!? Thank you! 🙂

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 They’re listed on our sources page, but they’re also out of stock. Sorry! But I’ve listed similar ones.

      Reply

  84. I was wondering the name and where you bought your barstools? Those seem to be the only style both my wife and I agree on, so need to find them haha. Hope to hear back from you soon. Thank you

    Reply

    • Hello! I’m looking to do thicker counter-tops in my home as well and was wondering how that works? Is it just a longer overhang or is the actual counter top thicker so it sits higher? Does this affect the sizing / proportion of your drawers and cabinets below?

      Reply

      • It all depends on how you ask them to make it so there’s no one specific way it has to work. In our case we raised our counter height by choice since we’re a family of tall people but that’s not the only way to do it 🙂

        Reply

  86. First of all, congratulations on what I’m sure has been a tough accomplishment (Instagram doesn’t see all the calls, texts, emails to contractors, suppliers, vendors, architects and more! )

    Like pretty much everyone here, my wife and I are amazed by your house as we both love white/neutral interiors as well!

    Do you have any plans to show your office spaces? Like you, we both work from home a lot and would love some home office inspiration.

    Thanks for sharing the awesomeness that is @ahousewebuilt!

    Reply

  88. You have such a beautiful home and I really appreciate you putting your resources out there for everyone to see. I noticed your cabinetry is all custom. Do you mind sharing the cabinetry company you used?

    Reply

    • Thank you! I don’t source local companies as we have chosen to keep our location private. We’re pretty open about everything else though.

      Reply

  89. First off, beautiful home! Sorry if you already answered this question but was curious as to the finish of your unfinished basement. Did you go with poured concrete or something like Supreme Walls? Where I live, it seems like a lot of builders are using the Supreme Walls. Would be curious to know how you decided upon your foundation choice. Separately, on your windows would you mind sharing if the cost was cheaper or similar to the big brand names? We are also doing a custom build and would help to know areas where you were able to save. Thank you!

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 Thank you! We have poured concrete floors in our basement with infloor heating (we just plan to polish them and that’s it). Our foundation is 12″ thick concrete with tons of rebar everywhere. I don’t know about window comparison cost though as the only quotes we got were fully custom. We did get 2 different quotes though from completely different sides of the country and their prices were pretty close — within 2-3% of each other. Hope that helps!

      Reply

  90. What kind of wood is your outdoor beams? Is it wrapped in Cedar or something else? Was it stained or left natural with clear coating. I’m obsessed with your farmhouse! xoxo

    Reply

  91. Hi! Thank you for sharing your home with us. It’s is absolutely gorgeous!
    Could you tell me how you decided to do stick framed+roxul vs ICF-to-the-eave construction? And I see you did a poured concrete floor but are your foundation walls wood, concrete, ICF or something else?
    One more lol: why did you decide propane heat vs geothermal?

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 Thank you! ICF is expensive and is actually pretty poorly insulated for the cost. Insulation was important to us so we didn’t use it. And geothermal is also either excessively expensive or requires a large cleared space for the pipes to be buried and we didn’t want to take down that many trees or spend that much money when we could so easily use propane at a reasonable cost.

      Reply

  92. Hi
    I love your style of black and white . We are customizing our house and I want to do white wall cabinets and black island. I just want the right white color and not super white . You mentioned that you used BM simply white. Is that more of a offwhite color? Also,I want to do black knobs and hinges as well. Do they fade over time ? I wouldn’t want to replace all of them if they do.
    Thanks !!

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 No, it’s white white and there are all kinds of picture examples on our Instagram page! The knobs shouldn’t fade. I mean I can’t speak for the future, but they shouldn’t.

      Reply

  93. Hi. I love the “shiplap” paneling that you have used in different spaces such as the bathroom faucet picture you have on the site, and behind the “X” on the end of the center island. I would LOVE to know what it is, and where i can buy it. I am doing an accent wall in my kitchen for an up and coming event and would love to use this material for the ones at the big box stores look cheap.

    Please advise – thank you in advance!

    Reply

  94. I didn’t see the source for your kitchen backsplash. Can you tell me what they’re called and where they’re from if not your local source? I’m very interested in it as it’s something different from the trendy subway. We are building and will be picking out stuff for the house soon.

    Reply

  97. I saw your doors with the wreaths posted but I couldn’t find the color listed anywhere. What color are they? Thanks

    Reply

  98. Such an absolutely cool home! Loved seeing the progression of your house and the reasonings you shared behind many of your decisions (and what must have seemed like an unending stream of decisions to make). I don’t recall seeing any pictures, so could you please share pictures of your kitty stations you mention that are on each floor? These intrigue me as we have had to do similar with our geriatric kitties. Would you please share pics? Thank you!!

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 I haven’t posted pictures but all the products I use are linked on our home page. They have a litter box on each floor and just standard food/water bowls too. I have a water fountain (linked on main page) on the main floor. And we turned a spare bedroom into a cat room with a couple boxes and beds and scratchers etc.

      Reply

  99. What kind of backsplash did you use in your kitchen? I am looking for something along those lines for my kitchen. I can’t tell if it’s tile or wallpaper?

    Reply

  100. So in love with house ! Sorry if I missed it…where did you purchase the electric fire place ! Thanks in advance

    Reply

  101. For the initial 3D rendering of your beautiful home, did your architect use a specific software? Or did you and your husband leverage any software yourselves?

    Reply

    • Yes and yes. I’m not sure what programs the architect firm who made our plans ‘official’ used, but we also had our own renderings along the way.

      Reply

  102. Hi there – your home is a beauty!
    What colour are your kitchen cabinets?
    What colour paint is the shiplap?
    What colour are your other walls (white) and baseboards?

    I’m also renovating my home with a lot of white and any advice or tips would be helpful =)

    Reply

  103. Your home shows great detail and well executed, WELL DONE!!

    Curious to know the kitchen backsplash material and name.

    Thanks.

    Reply

  104. Your home is so stunning and you are so kind to share all of your sources! I’m sorry if you posted your source and I overlooked it but can you share information on your baseboards? Thanks so much

    Reply

  105. Hi, sorry for my english because I speak french! Your house is just amazing , what a great job you did ! Thanks sharing it with us. I would like to know what king of exterior cladding is it on your garage ? It’s the vertical one. Is it wood ? I alaways ses that on farmhouse style but im not able to see if its wood. Thank you

    Reply

  106. Hello,

    Such a beautiful home and awesome list of sources, especially for someone as detail oriented as I am. I am remodeling a 70s ranch home into a modern farmhouse concept and planning to purchase black framed windows for the clean sleek look. I’m not sure if I have overlooked it anywhere on your site. What is the material of your windows and the manufacturer? I have been eyeing Marvin Windows as they have a beautiful line but open to others.

    Reply

  107. Stunning Home.

    I see you answered the question regarding your kitchen back splash. I understand its a wood like tile but is there a name for the product chosen?

    Thanks.

    Reply

  109. Hello, I have looked through your sources and cannot locate the kitchen counter top info. Can you please share the maker and color?

    Thank you.

    Reply

  110. Hi! I loved following the progress on your home and it turned out amazing. I wanted to know if there was any books that you followed in regards to the building process. We are about to embark on the same journey and I’m going through different reviews of books but I thought I’d see if you had any in particular that you thought were most beneficial.

    Reply

    • Hi! Thank you. No we actually didn’t use any books at all but we did a lot of reading online to help educate us in the building process.

      Reply

  112. Hi, Love your home! Would love to have resources for the light brown tile on the wall behind your master bathroom shower. Also, what type of material is on the white wall of your shower? Thanks!

    Reply

  113. Would you mind sharing what the brand of your refrigerator and freezer are? I’m sorry if you’ve already listed the somewhere I searched and didn’t see it …

    Reply

  114. I just wanted to say I love your home and WOW! Thank you for adding in all of these fabulous resources!!!
    I’m purchasing hardware for my kitchen and we are getting both 27 inch and 36 inch drawers. Any suggestions on size of pulls to get?

    Thank you,

    Nicole

    Reply

    • Thank you 🙂 You’re welcome! Honestly, there’s no right or wrong with drawer pulls, it’s all about what you most prefer. You can either do a long pull or 2 short pulls, both are great options.

      Reply

  116. Once you complete the project, will you do a beginning to end estimated budget, budget at completion, cost for major elements i.e. land, appliances furnishings etc and timeline of the project? Not super high level or detailed but just enough to get a general idea of what to expect when taking on a project like this.

    Reply

    • No mostly likely not and the reason isn’t because I don’t want to share but rather simply because building costs (both specific items and overall costs) vary hugely depending on location and the costs vary so wildly that really the only good way to determine costs that are relevant to you is to try and find costs of building houses in your area or the area you plan to build in.

      In general though, I would say that no matter how carefully you budget, to add about 10-20% to whatever your final number is. You won’t think you need it, but you most likely will.

      Reply

  117. Hi! My hubby and I love following along with you guys on Instagram! Your house and your experiences have been such an inspiration for us as we are in the process of buying land and building a house. I just had a few questions for you!

    We have been on the lookout for land for the last year and nothing has met all of our needs/wants. How long did it take you guys to find the perfect land? We want 10+ acres (ideally I’d love 30-40 acres) which has proven difficult to find within 20 minutes of the city near us. Were you able to find your land in the exact area you wanted it? Are you within good commuting distance for work or did the high acreage make you a bit further away? I’m just worrried we aren’t being realistic about the land being within 20 minutes of the city.

    We have designed our house over and over and thought we had it all figured out but now we have hit uncertainty with the whole design. Do you have any advice with coming up with a house design that will work well? Was there a certain process you went through that helped you? We have looked at thousands of designs online and none of them fit what we are looking for. It’s the most frustrating process to date.

    Sorry for the long post and thank you in advance!

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂

      It took about a year of searching for us to find the land we wanted. We don’t commute for work (work from home) so proximity to specific locations wasn’t a factor for us. And we did our house design completely from scratch (so our house is not based on an existing plan or any home that existed prior to ours) because we knew exactly what we wanted and there was nothing like it anywhere — basically our house layout is kinda weird, and we know that but it’s what we wanted so we had to step outside the box to make it happen. However, if you’re looking for ready-made plans, my favorite site for that is AD House Plans (I think that’s their name? if you google that you should find them) – if we hadn’t gone the fully custom route, we probably would have considered one of theirs. And considering how much we spent in architectural fees it would definitely have been the more cost effective route too lol. Hope that helps 🙂

      Reply

  118. Hello!

    Your house is beautiful. My wife and I are looking to build a house near us on land we purchased. Would you mind answering on average how much did it cost to build the entire house?

    Thank you!

    Vincent

    Reply

    • Thank you! That is one question I don’t answer because building costs vary *hugely* depending on location and we’ve chosen to keep our location private to balance out how much we share publicly. I’d recommend researching building costs specific to your area to get the best estimate that would be relevant to your situation.

      Reply

  120. I’ve seen that premade vanity from Home Depot in a couple of blogger homes now. That gray washed one. The reviews on the Home Depot website are not great. Have you been happy with the quality of it? Thank you!!

    Reply

  122. We are redoing our stairs and I LOVE yours. You said they are white oak? Did you install or a contractor? We are doing ourselves, so curious if I can replicate your look. They are beautiful!

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 Our stairs were custom made and installed by the stair manufacturer. But we had them done in raw wood so I’m finishing them myself.

      Reply

  123. Hi! I’ve only been following you for a short while. Love your home and your posts including your cats. I looked on your website under your sources to find where you got your back splash in your kitchen. I may have overlooked it, but scrolled through several times. Could you give me that information? We are building our last home in the mountains of Arizona. It’s 20 acres that have been in my husbands family for over 125 years. We are so excited, not to mention our children and grandchildren. Thanks so much for what you do. You two have been an inspiration to me!

    Reply

  124. Hi
    Can you tell me how many inches your kitchen cabinet doors are ? I’m debating whether to split mine . They wilI be about 39 ” and I have 8′ ceilings. . What say you ?
    Thanks in advance for your opinion .

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 I don’t remember off hand (they’re custom sizing so I’d have to go measure) but our ceilings are 10 foot.

      Reply

  125. Thank you for opening up and sharing your beautiful home.
    We are in the process of building and I am curious to know what your choose for window coverings. We have plantation shutters on all windows in our current home, but the one we are building has much more of a modern farmhouse look and I’m not sure those are quite right.

    Reply

  126. Hi! Have you installed towel bars in your bathrooms? If so, what did you use? You have such incredible taste, I would like to add a little of your style to my home! Thank you!!

    Reply

  129. Hello! We are on the search for a local company that will make a similar shower glass wall as yours. I see you have posted that The black is vinyl? Can u expand on that? Is it raised? Vinyl wrapped? Also how long is the glass wall? How wide is the entrance to shower? What size are the squares? Thank you for your time and help 🙂

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 Ours was a custom product that we designed and brought to a glass specialist. They’d never done a piece like this before and said that it was a pretty unusual way to do it but it worked lol. I suggest contacting a local glass company near you and seeing what they’re comfortable making.

      Reply

  130. Hi….. I am in love with everything about your house!! You guys did an incredible job of designing and organizing as every detail is perfect. I especially love your beautiful Kitchen and Pantry! A quick question…
    do you have a sink in the pantry? Also do you move the mixer or blender or whatever you need into the kitchen when you use it? My daughter is a photo stylist and goes in some really beautiful homes that have great Butler Pantries. A lot of them use the pantry for everything including cooking, baking, and cleaning (dishwasher!) I am just curious how it works for you. I am super impressed with your organization skills!!
    Enjoy the gorgeous snow!

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 No sink (no need for one as it’s close to other sinks) and no we use everything that’s in there where it is. We could have put in a sink but opted for counter space instead and have never regretted the decision. Also there’s just functionally not much need for a separate dishwasher in there – again, to me it’s wasted space. But ultimately everyone’s preferences are different so there’s no right or wrong way to do it.

      Reply

      • Thanks for replying 😆 That makes total sense. Counter space is always a good thing. I’ve been curious how different people use their pantries. I absolutely love yours. I ordered a round mirror for my hallway. It will arrive tomorrow. Thanks for sharing!!

        Reply

  131. Hello, your home is amazing, we are in the new build process and I had a quick question about your bathroom with the dark shiplap. I searched through IG but wasn’t able to locate any full pictures of the bathroom. Is just the backwall shiplap ?
    Thank you, Kelly

    Reply

  132. I love your floor plan!! What was the average cost you guys spent on building materials, labor and supplies? I guess, everything but the land 🙂

    Reply

    • Thank you! We spent a lot of time on the design. However, that is one question I don’t answer because building costs vary hugely depending on location and we’ve chosen to keep our location private to balance out how much of our house/lives we share publicly, but we’re pretty open about everything else 🙂

      Reply

  133. Hi! Your home is beautiful. I’m towards the end of my modern farmhouse construction (about to lose my mind lol). My fiancée and I also chose to build ourselves- it’s very overwhelming! The researching and getting several quotes is a lot of the work, but so necessary as I’m sure you know. We did a white oak wood look tile on our first floor since we did radiant and also for low maintenance.
    My dilemna right now is it’s obviously impossible to match the stairs to the color of the first floor. I see yours don’t match either, but they still compliment your floor. What did you end up going with? We did Rubio Monocoat in Mist 5% and although it’s still drying, I have a feeling it’s too warm/orange so we are going to be back to square one :(. I appreciate any help/feedback. There’s nothing worse than having a choice not pan out and look how you expect!

    Reply

  134. When you finalized your home design did you get bids and hire the subcontractors yourself or did you hire a general contractor to manage and oversee the project?

    Reply

  135. Would you mind sharing where you sources your mantel from? Was it sourced locally? We are trying to get a hand hewn mantel and living in Florida will probably have to do it remotely, communicating via pics and phone calls.
    Any advice?

    Reply

  136. What brand of windows did you put in your home?

    What are the approximate dimensions of each window in the living room/dining room and what are the dimensions in the office with all the windows?

    I’m a window lover and these look like exactly what I’m looking for for in our house build!
    Your home is so beautiful!!

    Reply

  137. Your house is absolutely stunning and perfect! I know you mentioned that your floor plan was designed by you and your husband to fit your needs/lifestyle. However, now that it has been built and you are now living in it, I was wondering if there’s anything you wish you could’ve done differently/would like to tweak?

    Reply

    • Thank you 🙂 Not really so far! We spent over a year on the designs though so we had a lot of time to second, third, fourth, fifth guess ourselves lol

      Reply

  138. Love your house and we are currently in the process of building a modern farmhouse. I did not see a listing of the manufacturer and style of stone you used on the exterior. Can you share that?

    Reply

  139. Great work! One questions which I hope hasn’t been asked already…. In regards to the flat stock baseboards: are the outside corners mitred and the inside corners just 2 boards butted up against each other? Hard to tell from the pics… Thanks!

    Reply

  140. Hi! Your house is absolutely stunning! Working on a new build myself, breaking ground hopefully in May! I would like to know why you decided to use vinyl flooring instead of hardwood flooring? I was considering vinyl for its durability because of my dogs and kids, but my husband is against it. Just want your thoughts. Thanks!

    Reply

    • We didn’t use vinyl, but we were against hardwood due to its maintenance requirements. We wanted low maintenance and durability. Basically for us it was why pay more for something that will get worn down?

      Reply

  141. Love your countertops! Are they all just a straight white polished quartz or is there any pattern in them? Also wondering how they are for cleaning. Any problems w fingerprints showing or staining?

    Reply

    • I suppose possibly, but I don’t know. It would be up to your personal preference. Our island is 11.5 feet. They make a slightly smaller one too if you want that is actually on sale at this link: 18″ butte pendant

      Reply

  143. I was wondering about your crown mounding. Is it a smooth cove? I am having trouble finding something like this local to me.

    Reply

  145. I just stumbled into your IG page and I love your clean style and penchant for organizing and concealing less slightly items. I’m a designer myself and those pesky everyday things are a challenge to mask in design, especially when you have kitties.

    I have 2 Siamese sisters that are the most glorious addition to my life (I call them “matching Siamese cats” 😂). I’ve also trained mine. People always ask how I keep them away from my Christmas tree and I have to admit that I didn’t do any training there. They just stay away from it because they have so many other things to do. (Like make sure I don’t go to the bathroom by myself.)

    So I thought I share with you something I found on Amazon. I hate the look of litter boxes and I live in a much smaller home where the box would be visible so I wanted it to look more concealed. I was so happy when I found this Nora Designer Litter Box Chest In the smaller section I bought and cut a section of craft grass and put a liner under it. So it catches the litter stuck to their paws and doesn’t track it around the room. They love to sit on the top of it and watch me work or use it to hop in the window to bird watch.

    Anyway, I thought with you might enjoy the find.

    Happy designing,
    Cady
    IG: @aggiejudodiva (I share many pics of my famous girls Kira & Fizzgig)

    Reply

  146. Hi!

    I currently have shiplap on my wall. The walls of the house is painted cloud white.

    Should we paint shiplap same color or go with chanitlly lace or simply white as you used throughout your home? What color is your shiplap?

    Thanks!
    Alle

    Reply

    • The info you’re looking for is listed on our home page 🙂 As for what you should do, do whatever you’d most love to look at each day.

      Reply

  147. Hi there! Do you have matte black handles on your commodes? Source? I love the Moen Align series and I am looking for the best match. Thank you!

    Reply

  150. Hi. Thanks for all your sharing. You have done a beautiful job. Sorry if I missed this somewhere. What is the face height and depth of your fireplace mantle. Any hints on how you came up
    With that. Also where did you get your beam. Thansk

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 It’s irregularly shaped but I think around 9 inches. It’s an actual barn beam from a barn that came down.

      Reply

  151. Hoping this hasn’t come up already but would you mind sharing the distance between the end of your island and refrigerator?? Thanks again for all the great info!!

    Reply

    • I don’t remember the exact measurement but its basically enough to open the door and have someone walk behind it

      Reply

  152. Love your master bedroom colors and look! Do you mind telling me what black/dark color you used for the shiplap wall/headboard behind your white master bed?
    Thanks!!

    Sarah

    Reply

  153. Thanks again for all the great info. Wondering if you could tell me the height of your interior doors?? are they just the standard 80″ or taller 84″ (7ft) variety?

    Thanks!

    Reply

    • Welcome! They’re actually different on each floor depending on the height of each ceiling. Our only standard ones though are on our third floor.

      Reply

  156. Love everything about your home..What is the color name of the tile you used on your backsplash in the kitchen?

    Reply

    • As mentioned on our home page, our tiles were mostly sourced through local suppliers. Local suppliers are the only ones I don’t list for the above mentioned reason. We appreciate your understanding on this matter.

      Reply

  157. Hi there! Love your beautiful house! We are currently working on building a dream house of our own, and was curious what kind of texture you chose for your painted walls? Thanks

    Reply

  158. Hey there,

    First, LOVE everything about your home – it’s goals all around. 😍

    Re: your barnwood + round mirror look, what dimensions did you use for the mantle? And the mirror? I’d love to achieve the same look on a smaller scale for our small space. 🙂

    Thanks so much!

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 The mirror is listed on our home page. The mantle is a barnbeam so we just used the size it came as.

      Reply

  159. Hi! We are in the process of remodeling our kitchen and I love you back splash. I didn’t see it sourced can you share what it is?

    Reply

  160. Hello! I just wanted to say thank you for sharing all of your sources and information. We are building a home as well, and I knew I wanted black drawer pulls like yours but hadn’t found any for a good price point – until I stumbled across your Instagram page and found my way here. Thanks to you sharing all of your research- I ordered the same pulls! (At a great price!) Thank you for sharing your beautiful home with the world!

    Reply

    • You’re very welcome! I had the same issue – it was hard to find them at a good price but these were a great deal!

      Reply

  161. Hello! I may have overlooked it, but where does your kitchen backsplash come from? and/or what material(s) is it?

    Reply

    • Hello 🙂 It’s actually a tile product. The reason I don’t list tiles is explained under FAQs on our home page.

      Reply

  163. Hi guys! You have a beautiful home. I’m wondering if you could please tell me if the inside of your exterior doors (what you see from the inside- like your kitchen patio doors) is the same colour as your cabinetry, mirror, shiplap? You mentioned you used Benjamin Moore Soot. I’m trying to figure out if my doors should be painted the same as my cabinetry. Thank you!

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 Our exterior doors and windows are all a true black color (listed in FAQs) unlike Soot which has blue undertones (even though it’s very dark). There’s no right or wrong way to do it though. They can totally be the same if you want them to be.

      Reply

  164. Stunning home! What are the dimensions of your baseboards? Did you install using nails or glue? We are currently building a home with 10’ ceilings and your baseboards look perfect! Love the clean lines!

    Reply

    • Hi, I’d have to go back and measure. They’re basically just as simple as they come. I’m not sure how they were installed though as our trim team installed them. We will be installing baseboards in our basement though so I’ll post all the details on them when we get to that!

      Reply

  165. Hi,
    I was wondering what paint color did you use on the trim of your house? Was it simply white or a different color? Also what color did you use in the ceiling other than living room?

    Thanks!

    Reply

  166. Do you plan of having kids? I’m just wondering because your house is so big. What are you going to do with all the space?!

    Reply

  168. Hello! I was hoping you could provide me with the stain color you used on your cedar posts on your front porch. Thank you, hope all is well!

    Reply

  169. Any chance you can tell me the deminsions of your dining area? I love that you have a large table with extra space around it. I’m having the hardest time knowing what’s large enough and what’s not.
    Thanks so much

    Reply

    • I’m on my phone so I don’t have my plans here but our table dimensions are on our Farmhouse Table tutorial so that should give you an idea to go off of.

      Reply

  170. hello:

    I am currently redoing my house and I absolutely love your style. I am looking at your kitchen chairs and I can’t find the right link. It’s ok if their sold out because I can wait for them to be back in stock or something. Is it possible you could copy the exact chairs even if they’re sold out ?

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 They’re not just out of stock, they’re actually unavailable so there is nothing for me to link to. It’s possible that it’s because I actually bought them quite a while ago (back during framing) and they haven’t been available for about a year to my understanding.

      Reply

  171. Hi- thanks for all the details and your home is beautiful. I love how simple and uncluttered it is!!
    I am so sorry if this is already answered, there was a lot to scroll through.
    I’ve clicked on every link I can find to take me to your EXACT fridge and freezer. They all just take me to a generic landing page of appliances at Home Depot. I am looking for your exact set up. Is it two fridges put together? One unit fridge/freezer? Two separate units of a fridge and freezer that are “put” together?
    I also can only find a single full fridge in the commercial line, not professional line. I can’t even figure out what the “style” is called…side-by-side???
    Ugh….. I’ve tried to figure this out, I really have!!! Lol Thanks so much!!

    Reply

    • Thank you 🙂 The appliance links are all linked to the brand at the location we purchased them. I haven’t had the time yet to dig back through my files and find all the exact model numbers but I’ve listed the brands so somewhere on the site there should be the matches or at least the newer versions of what we have.

      Reply

  172. Hello! I’m loving the shiplap in the bedroom. Do you know the specs? I want to go to Home Depot now and build the exact wall for my bedroom with a king bed!

    Reply

  173. Hello! I am in a process of remodeling our bathrooms and we have a slopped ceiling and I am having the hardest time to find small gimbal recessed light! Yours look small, can you share the source? TIA

    Reply

    • Hi, our recessed lighting is pretty standard, but we actually don’t have any in any of our sloped ceilings because we didn’t want any penetrations in exterior walls/ceilings so as not to break the vapor barrier anywhere.

      Reply

  174. I love your style! I can’t help but notice you have no window coverings. As I choose them for my own home, I’m reluctant to cover my beautiful black windows. But my bedrooms and bathrooms need privacy and light control! Can you tell us about why you chose not to have shades or curtains? If you did, what would you choose?

    Reply

    • Thank you 🙂 We don’t have any because we just don’t need them. We built our house in the middle of a large forest we own, plus we have no immediate neighbors, and trespassing is illegal so our property is quite private. I’m not sure what I’d choose if we had to do them though… I like bamboo shades for smaller windows but for large windows I’d want something more minimal. Maybe just simple roll-down shades? I sometimes like curtains, but often find them “too much” for my personal taste. I’d have to really research it to give a proper answer though.

      Reply

  175. You’re house is absolutely gorgeous. I love everything. We are building a cottage and using shiplap. Love it! I can’t decide between 6 or 8 inch boards. What size boards did you use? Thanks so much!!

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 I don’t but we got the backing cut by a friend of ours who has a cnc router, then had the mirror glass made, then just glued it together and added the nail heads.

      Reply

  177. So you said you used ground limestone on your drive ? Can you be a little more specific? I’m seeing too many variations on google 🙂 thanks !

    Reply

    • We put our driveway in a couple years back now so honestly I don’t remember the material specifics but it’s kind of a whiter/grayer material – finer grit – and it compacts down and binds together to create a surface that is actually quite hard… So it’s not like gravel in that sense, more of a similar concept to recycled asphalt I guess.

      Reply

  178. I would like to build a similar house in Chicago would you offer any advice on where to start and who to contact to help design and build? How much cash do you need up front vs getting a home loan financed through the bank? You should consider being a design consultant I love your style and attention to detail would love to have you apart of my home building journey!

    Reply

    • I’d start with looking at existing house plans that are available for purchase before going a completely custom route (it’s usually less expensive) and work with an architectural firm then to either completely design from scratch or modify whatever plan you bought to your needs. As for the financial side, you’d have to talk with your bank and a real estate agent for advice on that front as there’s no single rule regarding that. And as for design consultant services, I’ve had a few people ask that now so I suppose it’s something I should consider. My plate is pretty full at the moment though but I will consider it. It’s funny though I don’t actually consider myself a designer since our house is the first I’ve done, but I did really love the creative process involved in all the decisions and design aspects so I’ll never say never 🙂

      Reply

  179. What height are your baseboards? Apologies if this is a repeat question. I did search for the answer:)

    Reply

  180. Hello,

    Is your exterior hardie siding a pre-finished Arctic White or what paint manufacturer is Arctic White?

    Your home is very pretty!

    Thank you!

    Reply

  181. Hello- Beautiful home! We are building a lake home (I’m an influencer @dawnedonmeblog and will be featuring our build similar to this but will create a separate IG account as I’m mostly fashion). You’ve done a stellar job! I searched twice and did not see anything about the water filtration system you mentioned when talking about your drinking faucets. We’re on a well too. It is reverse osmosis? My parents have that and I’m not a big fan. At our current home, I lug gallon jugs home from the grocery store for our coffee water – total pain. Thanks for any info you might be able to share.

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 Yes, our drinking water taps are RO. We’re on our own well. Our regular water goes first through a particulate filter, then a softener, then a finer filter, and a UV sterilizer. Then the drinking water goes through a 4-stage RO filtration system as well which makes it about as close to true H2O as it’s possible to get.

      Reply

  182. Good afternoon:
    Your home is beautiful! I am curious if your fireplace wall is ship lap or painted stripes. Could you provide the exact source of what it is. I would love to duplicate. Xo

    Reply

  184. Hello! I saw the link to the rejuvenation pendant lights. What size did you end up getting for those? Meaning the length from the ceiling to the end of the shade?

    Reply

  186. Hello!
    I’m in the middle of a kitchen remodel and have found such inspiration on your site. I wanted to let you know that your matte black knobs are no longer available at CB2 I found some knobs (Kohler K-78385-BL) that look similar but am not sure if the size is the same. Are yours approximately 1-1/2″ wide?
    Thanks!

    Reply

    • You’re right. I did a little digging and looks like they replaced my knobs with these almost identical ones: CB2

      Reply

  187. Hi, Can you tell me the brand of the exterior engineered stone is? I’m looking for that color and stone for our fireplace? We are on the tail end of a year plus rennovation. Love what you have done.
    Thanks!

    Reply

  188. Hi-how did you achieve the extra thickness to your kitchen quartz counters? We picked out white quartz with minimal veining but can’t get it more than 3cm thickness. Is there a certain brand that miters it together or something? TIA

    Reply

    • It’s actually up to the supplier/installer to create that detailing – it’s not a prefab option to my knowledge, we had ours custom made.

      Reply

  189. I love your house! And the information you provide has been invaluable as we remodel our house. I didn’t
    see how the mantel is connected to wall. We have picked out a live edge mantel and want to free float it as
    you have. Thank you!

    Reply

    • Thank you 🙂 I didn’t do a tutorial on it because I just haven’t had time but we used a bunch of steel brackets from home depot and bolted it to every stud along the wall.

      Reply

  192. Hi again

    Where did you get that black metal plate with rivets in it hanging in the foyer (I think it’s the foyer)

    Reply

  194. Hi! Your windows look great. I’m deep in the thick of sourcing similar windows for a bungalow on the lake that I’m building. Can you tell me who manufactures your windows and what material they are?

    Reply

    • Our windows are fully custom made so they don’t have a brand. The info we’ve been open to sharing on them is listed on our home page under FAQs.

      Reply

  195. You have such a beautiful home. I am in love with the main floor kitchen/dining/living room layout. Would you happen to know the dimensions of the entire space? If you were to go from fireplace mantel wall to back of kitchen wall and from refrigerator to dining wall.. if that makes sense.

    Thanks you!

    Reply

    • Thank you 🙂 Off-hand, I don’t know exactly. As mentioned in my post, the only question I don’t like to answer is room dimensions. The information we’re open to giving is that our house is 6500sf spread out over 4 floors.

      Reply

    • Thank you. I don’t have a shiplap tutorial but we’ll be using a lot of it in our basement so I can add a tutorial then.

      Reply

      • A tutorial on installing shiplap would be great. Also, can you list what tools (nail gun, nail gages, etc) are needed? This would really help me with my new project. Thanks so much, your house is amazing!!!

        Reply

        • I will do a shiplap tutorial when we get to that stage in finishing our basement as I’ll be installing our shiplap down there myself.

          Reply

          • Thanks so much! One last question, the fireplace is placed on top of the shiplap, correct? It is a wall mount fireplace (dimplex model listed on your page). Love love love every post, so please keep them coming.

          • Neither one is really on top of or under the other honestly. They’re just against each other.

  197. Hey there,
    Your house is stunning! I cannot stop pouring over every detail. I found you because I was obsessed with the laundry room tile and am getting ready to remodel my laundry room. I did find the encaustic cement tile (thank you for pointing us in the direction), have samples and I love it. As I’ve been reading about it, I have been getting more and more freaked out about it staining, about it being finicky to install, etc. I would love to know if it is a choice you are regretting now having lived in the house a bit. How is yours holding up to regular laundry room wear and tear? Would you select the same light print again or would you go darker/busier to hide more? Did you install it yourself? I would love to know anything you’re willing to share about your experience with it. Thank you so so much and again, your house is gorgeous!!! Well done!

    Reply

    • Hi,

      I didn’t install it myself. I was told to get a very experienced tile installer (and I did). I hand sealed mine before and after install (the sealer I used is on our Laundry Room Sources page) and would not recommend these tiles unless you also seal them. Without the sealer, they’ll basically get destroyed very fast, and I reseal them once or twice a year.

      I was advised to not use these tiles anywhere that gets very dirty (i.e. mudroom) or direct water (i.e. shower) so I didn’t. This type of tile basically requires careful install, and maintenance over time. Personally I went in knowing all that so it was an informed decision and I love the pattern enough to make it worth it. But it’s definitely not a choice that’s necessarily for everyone. It’s really up to you 🙂

      Reply

  198. I apologize if you already answered this but what are the dimensions of your exterior fir beams? We are doing something similar and trying to decide between an 8X8 or 10×10 beam and was hoping to get perspective. Thanks!

    Reply

  199. I love the calmness your home brings through your photos. I follow you on Instagram and I’m enjoying looking at your website as well. Please continue to share. You’re definitely inspiration.

    Reply

  200. Hi! I so hope this will reach you. I am really stuck with my stairs. This is the last darn piece of this project and our entry….and now we are on round 2! I have the same floors as you and I am in the middle of RE-staining the stairs with my flooring contractor – two sets through a landing of the laminate floors. The first go was TERRIBLE and too pink. I am using white oak and I am really struggling to get the stain right to complement the floors/landing. All the images of the stairs you show have a very painted look, showing very little of the wood grain through the stain. My contractor is VERY hesitant to do multiple coats of stain but will if I insist. LOL . I saw your staining DIY (gave me some extra knowledge in working with the flooring Team) but at this point I am so very curious about your custom stain color. Would you be willing to share the details? I can’t get the gray (using Bona) to the browner shade I want that appears, in your photos, closer to yours.

    Your project inspired my entire kitchen/great room. White shaker, your floors, your pulls….If not for your sharing I wouldn’t have been able to have a remodel done 900 miles away from me. They have been so valuable!!!! Anyhow, many many thanks in advance!!!!

    Cheers!

    Reply

    • Hi, unfortunately the custom stain isn’t really something I can share literally because it’s just that — like he mixed me one big gallon of it just custom. But there was a whole like 5 step process with whitewashing etc to get it to look exactly like the laminate. I chose not to match them exactly and didn’t stain exactly according to the custom process. Don’t be afraid to just find something you like and go with it even if it’s not exactly a match. 🙂

      Reply

  201. Hi
    I know that you choose simply white by Benjamin Moore for the walls in your houses, what about the trim and cabinets in your kitchen?? Is it the same color?? What about finish??

    Reply

  202. Hi,
    Could you tell me the color of the interior of your front doors, you mention BM Soot for dark interiors but it’s reading dark blue in the image, so not sure it’s Soot?. Thank you so much.

    Reply

  203. I am just curious how you guys went about doing the polished concrete floor? Did you use a polish to cover it after sanding? How many times did you go over jt

    Reply

    • I still have to do a whole tutorial on this. It was a big ordeal and we learned a lot but just haven’t yet had the time to do a writeup. I do hope to get to writing it one day though!

      Reply

  205. Hi! Your house is truly a dream! I noticed you said the windows are painted vinyl. We are building now and I’m losing sleep over the decision of buying black windows ($$$) or white windows ($) and painting. Do you have any recommendation, how-to paint properly, or any words of wisdom in this? I appreciate your help! Thank you!

    Reply

  206. Hello – Would you mind sharing the ladder you are using in the Instagram photo posted today? It looks very sturdy/safe, i.e. a lot less scary to use than the tall ladder we have! Thank you.

    Reply

  208. Hi, Just wondering what some dimensions are in your living room ro compare with my build:
    the wall your fireplace is on
    the windows on that wall
    the fireplace itself
    and the fireplace insert

    I’m currently planning a build in the coming spring and have a similar concept, trying to figure out what dimensions work on paper versus how they actually look when compared to your pictures help! Thanks a lot!

    Reply

    • Hi, sorry as mentioned in my post above “the only question I don’t like to answer is room dimensions.” This is because while I don’t mind when people are inspired by me, but I don’t want my designs copied.

      Reply

  210. Hi there – Love the simplicity but yet welcoming feel of your home. I have looked and I totally could be missing these details, but did you source the door knobs for the actual doors anywhere? Also, I see both black and white doors. Did you do certain doors black and certain ones white, and which did you do of each color?

    Reply

    • Yes, door hardware is in the FAQ section on our homepage 🙂

      Regarding color, some of our exterior doors are white. This was chosen based on personal preference. All interiors are white.

      Reply

  211. I noticed you don’t have any blinds or curtains. Do you find your house getting hot? I LOVE the natural light but our house gets SO hot if I don’t have curtains up.

    Reply

    • Our house is very energy efficient due to our insulation and exterior material choices so it holds its set temp very well. We also have an air exchange and filtration system that regulates the temp as needed.

      Reply

  212. Hi!! I love how the MDF shiplap product turned out. Did your product come primed? Also, did you paint before or after installation? Brush or sprayer ?!

    I’ve been saving so many ideas from your home for our build. Thank you for sharing!

    Reply

  213. Your home is absolutely stunning and I always look forward to your Instagram posts to see the progress. I’ve always dreamed about building my perfect house but unfortunately it will never happen for me. My question is how did you and your husband afford it – what do you both do for a living?

    Reply

  214. Wow, you have made the process of choosing finishes for our new house so easy. A million thank you’s! I also have a question about your evoke floors. Is there a reason why you chose laminate over vinyl or even hardwood? Thanks for the reply! Our home is 960 square feet, so was thinking I’d like the floor the same throughout, even in the bathrooms, which makes me lean towards vinyl. But I can’t find one that I’m jazzed about. 🙁

    Reply

    • Laminate should definitely not be used for bathrooms or mudrooms. It’s water resistant, not waterproof. We chose laminate because it’s suited our lifestyle best. I’m not a fan of real hardwood generally – it gets damaged too easily and we have lots of pets. Vinyl can be good but I found it harder to find a style I liked and laminate has a lot of pros. It’s not specifically “better” or “worse” though, it’s just a personal choice. 🙂

      Reply

  217. Hello! I am a 3rd year Graphic Design student, and also a fan of your page/house! I wanted to get in touch to see if you could answer a few questions for my current project on interior design and style influences? It would really look great on my research side of things! I wanted to know what interior design styles helped influence you in your decision making process? Did you have a particular process for gauging light and shapes and textures? What research did you do before hand? What helps you chose the items you fill your home with? I look forward to hearing back from you! Thanks 🙂

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 I will probably end up releasing answers to a lot of commonly asked design/build questions on our website in the future as several people have asked me these type of questions and I have a lot to say on these topics – we did a ton of research work before making our choices – but right now I honestly just don’t have the time to really properly think them through. I’m hoping to have time do a bunch of long, in-depth posts on these topics after our basement is done, but I’m sorry I can’t be of help on your school project.

      Reply

  218. Your home is absolutely stunning! Thank you for sharing all of your resources. We just build a custom home and planning to do a second one! I am in love with your lovely cats! I have connected today on Instagram and now I cannot access anymore. Any reason why I could not access? Many thanks in advance.

    Reply

    • We’re happy with all the appliances we chose 🙂 (A couple things bad reviews say are true, like when the oven is on full blast the fan can be a bit loud but it doesn’t bother us and we rarely notice it.)

      Reply

  220. I have been looking for the exact length the pendent lights that are over your kitchen island are. When I click on the link it automatically takes me to 24”, but I know they are custom and can’t be sent back, so I just wanted to make sure that was the correct size. Thank you 🙂

    Reply

  221. Just wondering about heating in your living room. Do you find it is hard to keep the room heated with the high ceilings and all the heat is trapped at the ceiling?

    Thanks,

    Matthew

    Reply

    • Not at all, but that’s all due to our insulation strategy and air control system. But we don’t get that effect happening at all.

      Reply

  222. Thank you so much for sharing the design details. Your home is beautiful! Can you tell me, how tall is your baseboard trim?

    Reply

  223. Do you have a floor plan of your house with dimensions? I’m trying to figure out how large of a spade you have in kitchen and living areas to plan my own spaces! TIA!

    Reply

    • Sorry, as mentioned in my post and on the home page, the only questions I don’t like to answer are specific room dimensions and measurements of items further to the information we’ve already provided on our website. We do have a floorplan but it is fully custom and we put a lot of ourselves into it. As such we have chosen not to release/share it at this time and appreciate your understanding on this matter.

      Reply

  224. Hi, I looked through FAQ and wasn’t able to find the answer to this. I absolutely love the color of your 1/2 bath cabinets. Are they painted that way or is it a certain wood?

    Reply

  225. Your home is stunning! I am so happy to have found your IG page as I am currently building a home. We haven’t broken ground yet. I am so torn between painted white brick and a board and Batton/ stone combo for the outside. I know you don’t share exterior pics, but would you mind telling me what you used?

    Reply

    • We used all types of siding plus stone, though I equally love painted brick so I don’t actually have a favorite between stone and brick. It’s 50/50 for me.

      Reply

  226. Hi I am in the midst of a fireplace remodel and was wondering what type of brackets you used to support your reclaimed wood beam. Any tips would be greatly appreciated!

    Reply

  227. Hello! Beautiful home! I am remodeling my doors and trim. What are the measurements of your door trim and base board? That is exactly what I want. Thank you!

    Reply

  228. I absolutely love your home, it has such a calm and warm feel, especially with all your adorable cats! I just purchased a reclaimed barn beam to put over a fireplace in our bedroom, which, coincidentally, is the exact same one as yours! I read under sources that you left yours untreated which I am also tempted to do, as the colour and tone are beautiful and I do not want to loose any of that. Did you sand yours down or do anything to it? I already have several splinters in my hands just from moving mine around! Thank you!

    Reply

    • Thank you 🙂 Our ‘real’ beams are actual old beams so each one is unique, but I’m glad to hear you were able to find one as well! The beam in our bedroom is not real, it’s a faux one we made (stain is listed with all stains on our home page). The other beams in our living room and basement are all natural and untreated/unsanded but they look different because the living room beam is older, hand hewn and sun weathered vs our roughly milled basement beams with less weathering.

      Reply

  230. Hello! So thrilled to find your site, it’s a wealth of knowledge. Thank you! I’m wondering if you can give any information on how you built your custom range hood. I am trying to find a resource to build one very similar and I’m struggling to figure out how to make it and put my insert in. The manufacturer unfortunately gives very little details, and most builds that I am finding are angled range hoods not square like yours. I would love any information you’d be willing to share!

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 All our cabinetry is custom made. In its simplest form, our hood is really just a box – there’s a lot of empty space inside. I will say though that installing that vent was really annoying and frustrating. I mean, it could have been because we were doing it at 3am lol but it was not fun.

      Reply

  231. What material did you use for the ceilings?
    Wood planks or is it MDF?
    How long are they, I don’t see the joints

    Reply

  233. I am IN LOVE with your home!!! Everything from the layout to the small details! Especially the open concept, plenty of windows for natural light, and the high ceiling in your living room. My husband and I are just in the early stages of saving up to build our dream home, hopefully in the next few years *fingers crossed*. I know you’ve previously received questions a couple years back regarding the floor plan, but that you’ve decided to keep it private. I’m wondering if you’ve considered releasing/selling it? I would definitely be interested! 😀

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 Thank you for your kind words. At this point, no we’re still not open to sharing or selling our house plan. Honestly, it’s hard to explain why but our house design is like an extension of who we are personally – we put so much of us into it that it’s just too personal for us to share or sell at this point (maybe ever). It just doesn’t feel right to us. I hope that makes some kind of sense and we appreciate your understanding.

      Reply

      • No worries, that’s totally fair! I will just continue to admire your beautiful home through Instagram and this blog 🙂

        Reply

  234. Hi! LOVE your home and the style of the design! Hubby and I have been wanting to plan to build our forever dream home for the last couple of years, but it’s been hard to find a builder that can build what we want, the land with the perfect location and someone to help design with the style identical to yours. What tips can you give when trying to find a builder and designer with the home design style like yours?

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 We custom designed our home from scratch actually – so in our situation we didn’t hire anyone to design our home, we did all the design ourselves. Our style is our own personal taste reflected in our home design, but it’s not really a particular “house style” so to speak since we just made decisions based on what we loved and what felt right to us.

      For what you’re describing, you need to find someone local with the right skills and experience so I suggest driving around the area you want to build in and if you see a new home under construction you like the quality of, they’ll often have a sign up on the lawn or in front of the build.

      Reply

  235. Hi,

    Your home is a dream. My favorite part are the floors. I saw were you list the type of floor you have and the color. I’m wondering if you actually have some type a blog post that talks about the reason why you picked that type of floor, why are you picked laminate over LVP being that you also installed it in the kitchen and after two years, hoe do you feel about your floors. . I’ve had put floors twice in homes that after living there regretted because they’re very hard to maintain and keep clean. It looks beautiful as a small sample but you don’t really know the quality or how easy it is to maintain until you actually live there. I installed dark bamboo floors two years and hate myself everyday for it. I mop and I see all footprints after 10 minutes. So I want to change my floors again but not make the same mistake. I love exactly the way your floors look and that exact color but I’m scared to going with laminate since I’ve heard LVP is more water resistant. This is my last change of floors so I need to get it right.

    Reply

    • I mean ultimately a lot of it is personal preference and finding the type of floor that works best for your lifestyle. I have no regret about any of the house choices we’ve made. We always focus on two things – with almost any house decision: look and practicality.

      Our research showed us that laminate is better for pets (we’ve always had pets but specifically had a large dog when designing our house) and is less prone to fading (half our house is window and we don’t have window coverings). We also chose one with a commercial hardness rating so very, very durable. Also I just like laminate more than LVP but that’s personal preference. Laminate is also quite water resistant (though not waterproof) but we didn’t install it in bathrooms so it’s not an issue. Our cats have spilled their water bowls during the night and pools of water have stayed on the flooring for several hours without damage.

      Finally, always get a sample of the flooring first. I recommend buying a box and setting it up somewhere in your house – then try your best to damage it and see how it holds up, clean it then walk on it with shoes, see how different products react to it, does it dent, does it scratch, does it react to any products, etc. Your own testing will always give you the best answers.

      I hope that helps.

      Reply

  236. Is your master bedroom on the main level Or can you state how many beds are on your main level?

    Also where does your garage access the house from? I have always wanted to have my garage entrance near the kitchen for grocery purposes. Does yours not do that?

    For someone not wanting an upstairs. Would it look weird to have the 20 ft in the living room but then go down so much for the kitchen area? Or how could you transition nicely?

    Reply

    • We have not shared our plan or layout specifically anywhere (we designed our home from scratch so it is not based off of any other plan) and this is one of the only things we have chosen to keep private. Our home design is certainly odd and unique to us (4 stories high) but we’ve always tended to go against the norm with a lot of things in our lives so our configuration works for us but it might not necessarily work for someone else. Ultimately if there is a configuration you’ve always wanted, then you should go for it and do whatever feels right for you 🙂

      Reply

  237. Hi there!!! Like you, my husband and I are high school millennial sweethearts who got married at 25. We bought our first home 5 years ago and are now starting our own journey of building our custom forever home. We just finished the high level blue print but are not starting to get into the specifics, starting with the kitchen! As you can imagine we have been spending a lot of time on pinterest and instagram looking for inspiration. That’s when we came across your site. Your design and style is remarkable! We love everything you have done!!! Your kitchen, dining and family room area is almost identical to what we mapped out even before we came across your site. Our biggest debate has been where to put the double oven. I love the look of the double oven where you have it next to the dining room, visually it balances out the appliances and its nice to have the space around for putting things in and out. The other option would be putting it closer to the fridge where you have the pantry style cabinets. Our question to you, and its a weird one, have you ever felt that the oven was too far away from the other appliances while cooking? Or do you find the layout functional while cooking meals?

    Thanks in advance and congratulations on your beautiful home!

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 Thank you for your kind words, and congrats on your build. I’ve always strongly felt that there’s no such thing as kitchen layout that is perfect for everyone. We designed our kitchen around our particular cooking routines/habits and we have no regrets about our choices. That said, I know other people prefer different layouts (my MIL actually had a similar comment to yours and prefers her appliances closer together) so my advice is always to think about your own cooking routines and create a kitchen based around that no matter whether anyone else agrees with you. Ultimately, you’re the one who will have to cook in it so it needs to work for you specifically.

      Reply

  238. LOVE following along with your house, decor and building! I know you’ve shared the size of your house, I wondered how big of a lot you’re on and the size of your footprint.

    Reply

    • Hello and thank you 🙂 We own many acres of forest and designed our home up instead of out to ensure the smallest footprint possible for a house of our size.

      Reply

  239. Your house is very pretty ! i have a question about trim . could you tell me the size of baseboard trim you used and what product? Was it a two piece wood product that the trim carpenter came up with, or a one piece prefinished item ? what is your trim made out of ? thank you .

    Reply

  240. Your home is absolutely gorgeous and so inspirational! I was wondering how tall your cabinets are in the kitchen and how thick your crown moulding is? We love that your cabinets are one piece!

    We are struggling to design something since our ceilings are also 10 ft tall!

    Thank you in advance!

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 As mentioned in my post above, the only information I don’t like to give is specific dimensions. Our cabinetry is custom made so it’s non-standard sizing made to fit our space, go around our ducting, and to be comfortable for our heights.

      Reply

  241. Do you recommend BM Simply White for an outside color? in SemiGloss? or? Do you have pictures of your house from the outside?

    Reply

    • We love this color and favor matte/flat sheens, but that’s our subjective opinion. However, our siding is a pre-painted product so we prefer not to give recommendations on exterior paint since we don’t have personal experience with it.

      Reply

  242. Your home is very beautiful and layout/design detail is very well thought out!! I love that you are willing to share all your sources and tutorials! But what I love even more is that you have personally responded to pretty much every question asked.
    I know it’s your personal build and not willing to share all details, but I’m curious about the layout/placements of the mud room and pantry from the kitchen.

    Reply

    • Thank you for your kind comment. At this point, we have chosen not to share our layout. I have considered doing a full house tour when we get to a point where we consider all our spaces at least mostly done, but haven’t fully decided yet. I appreciate your understanding.

      Reply

  243. I would like to know the measurements of your doors where you have 9ft ceilings. I have similar door and 9 ft ceiling and my husband ordered 30×80. I don’t want it to look too far apart. Wondering if I should change them to 30×84 and ad some trim. Thanks. BTW love your home.. thanks for sharing

    Birdie

    Reply

  244. Not sure if this has been asked, but would love to see a floor plan of your home? It’s absolutely perfect!

    Reply

    • It’s mentioned in my post above that we do not share our house plan. We designed our house from scratch together so our plan is very personal to us and the result of over a year of our hard work so we have chosen not to share it. Thank you for understanding.

      Reply

  245. Hi, what type of hardware and hinges did you get for the interior doors of the home? Is it a bronze or black finish?
    Thank you!

    Reply

  246. Hi! Your house is beautiful and I am glad you were so detailed and organized while sharing this information.
    Did you also use BM Simply White for the exterior?

    Thanks

    Reply

    • Hi 🙂 Thank you! And no, our exterior material is listed in the FAQ section on our home page if you’re interested.

      Reply

  247. I love your house! I am considering designing and building my forever home too.

    Do you have any advice for things to look out for when you build a home from scratch? Would love to learn about your home building process (i.e. did you work with a custom builder, general contractor). Do you have plans for a blog post about your experience?

    Reply

    • Thank you! We have lots of advice but just haven’t really had the time to sit down and write it all out yet. We do plan to share this in the future though. 🙂

      Reply

  248. Hello from the other side of the world!
    I’m following you on Instagram from awhile, and I’m totally in love with your house. Then I found your blog and spent a lot of time staring at your projects. 🙂 It was one of my favorite reading while being ill and quarantined, before NYE.
    I’m a DIY & décor blogger myself, and I’m sure that my Romanian readers would love your home too. Would you mind if I feature it on my blog? I would need a few pics from your blog, and I would quote the source on each pic, then add active links to your blog so my readers could see your projects themselves.

    I would be more than happy to write about your beautiful home, if you allow me to share some of your pics and experiences.
    Thank you in advance.
    Gabi

    Reply

    • Hello 🙂 I’m very glad to hear that you’re enjoying our projects and following us, however I’m sorry to say that I do not give permission for our home to be featured on your blog. This is nothing personal as I give this same response to everyone (even large magazines etc that have offered features that we have turned down). We have decided that we do not want to be featured anywhere other than our own pages/website. I know this is not a “normal” decision, but it is what feels right to us. Thank you for the respectful way in which you asked, I really appreciated it and it shows your integrity. (Also I’m sorry to hear you were ill, I hope you’re feeling better now!)

      Reply

      • Thank you for your quick response, i appreciate it. I respect your decision despite losing a great piece of content, I can understand the reason.
        Yes, l’m fine now. 🙂
        Take care and stay safe!

        Reply

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