Our House: The Exterior

Ground has broken for our house! Bob says its ALL I talk about so I thought I would give him a little break and write about it here!

We are building a house called the Pawtucket, which is a craftsman style home.  The craftsman style home paid homage to the individual workers, or craftsmen, of the times, using local materials.  The craftsman style homes were built to suit middle-class Americans. One of the more famous craftsman architects of the time was Frank Lloyd Wright.  Bob and I toured some of his homes in the Chicago area many years ago and always loved the style. Our house isn't a complete craftsman style, it is a mixture of a bungalow and craftsman style, with a low pitched roofline, a gable, story and half, and a long front porch.  Sears and Roebuck used to sell bungalows through their catalog!  Our house slightly resembles the Vallonia model that sold for $1500-2500!

The builder is McBride and Sons, who have been building in the St. Louis area for 60+ years.  I like that they were a family business that started after WWI to help provide affordable homes for returning soldiers.

This house is the correct orientation, with the wrap around porch on the left.  The yellow door is not at all correct, looking more like mustard than buttercream!

We have chosen Boothbay Blue James Hardie siding for the exterior.  It is a medium gray with a hint of blue.  Neither one of us wanted a blue house, but the Mist was too light and the Charcoal was being selected over and over.  We chose white Anderson windows, Arctic White trim, and a buttercream front door.  I love the door, this one is similar.

I visualize the front of the house with knockout roses and a bright coleus bordering the porch, but that is getting way ahead of the game and besides, Bob is much better at putting the right plants in the right place.  I sure hope there is some color, though!!















I am eager to sit on the front porch!  We are installing two ceiling fans, one centered on each set of windows.  On the left side we will have two chairs with a table between.  I saw some wonderful adirondack chairs when we were coming home from Cincinnati on Hwy 270.  I think they could be a perfect choice for the outside.  The windows to the left are on the living room side of the house.  We spoke to our neighbors last night and it looks like the porches will be aligned.  We will be able to chat with our neighgors while they sit on their own porch!

Patience isn't my strongest virtue so I am happily planning and writing about it so I can enjoy the process.  Blogging will preserve our mindset as we build this house, for all our generations to come!