For almost a quarter of a century, we have used professional janitorial supplies to clean our home. The cost-per-use is so much better than typical store brands — and they clean remarkably better, as well. Window cleaner you buy from a grocery store, for example, is diluted for use. So you have just paid to [...]
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When I was pregnant with Samson in 2000, I got a call from my friend. Apparently she knew that I was a tad anal retentive about organizing when I was pregnant. (Call it the nesting instinct on crack.) “Hi, Alison. This is Kendra. What are you doing right this second. Don’t lie to me!” “I…uh…” [...]
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As we near the first anniversary of moving into our home, we also approach the expiration of the warranties for most typical home appliances. Before they expire, we’ll be looking carefully through all our appliances to see if any of them need any kind of servicing. So far we’ve been fortunate in the condition of our [...]
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When we were building the house, I had a file full of designs I loved. One of the recurring themes was glass tile. Especially glass subway tile. I’d seen it in about every home design book and magazine I’d read through, and had fallen in love with the look. In our last home, we added [...]
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This post is far too late — as are a number of other posts reporting on the final steps of the build of our home. Our months-late move in was preceded by our daughter’s engagement — both of which left us with too much to do and too little time. To top it off I [...]
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Cooking.com is running some fabulous discounts for a limited time. Get some of the cooking gear you really wanted for Christmas! $15 Off Orders of $100 To receive $15 off orders of $100 or more (some brands restricted), just click through to Cooking.com and get your coupon code. Use it at checkout and you’ll save [...]
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Upon moving into our custom home, the prospect of maintaining and caring for all the new surfaces and materials became our responsibility. Our granite countertops were one of the bigger materials investments. But online advice for cleaning and care vary widely. Many manufacturers make special (and often expensive) cleaners for granite and stone countertops, but [...]
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One of the final steps in a custom home build is installing appliances. Appliances are a major purchase, one that you’ll be living with for a long time, so making the right choices is essential. After selecting our appliances, it was time to get appliance bids and compare prices. We purchased some of the smaller [...]
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If you’re looking for gorgeous granite countertops, but looking to keep the granite costs down, I have just the thing for discount granite countertops: granite remnants. On our first house, the granite fabricator required us to purchase entire slabs of granite. When the granite island was completed, the leftover granite was paid for whether we [...]
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This blog began as a means to dig into the nitty gritty of building a custom home and to openly evaluate the pros and cons of those working on the project. You all know I’m not afraid to give an honest critique. But once in a while you run across a subcontractor who is so skilled, [...]
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Generally speaking, I’m an organizational freak. But living out of a suitcase — waiting for the house to be finished — is only heightening my desire to get my new house organized. I can’t wait to get out the containers and labeler and create order out of our current chaos. If you love organization, you’ll [...]
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When planning a custom home, you can incorporate all sorts of really cool things that are important to you. We have durable, easy to maintain surfaces, granite with fabulous details, a stainless steel kitchen sink, lots of storage space, and a simple design. But you can’t bring in every neat detail you find. If you [...]
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As it typical for craftsman-style homes, we have a lot of built-in cabinetry. And that means lots of cabinet hardware as well. I found some beautiful cabinet hardware at Kitchen Cabinet Hardware and was able to get everything I needed for the whole house in one purchase. Best of all, I saved a bundle. My [...]
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Another involved process! Choosing countertops and tub surrounds was almost as involved as selecting cabinets. There are so many possible materials and dozens of qualified companies, that narrowing down the best selections was a difficult process. After all was said and done, we selected the following fabricators based on quality, expertise, selection, price, and responsiveness. [...]
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The counter and tub surround selection took a very circuitous path. I love the look of tile and had a lot in our first build in Boca Raton, but I really (really) hate grout. So we went with concrete floors and priced out anything-but-tile surfaces. It wasn’t until we began working with granite and solid [...]
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We are looking for appliances for our new home. We are prepared to order online, but could be persuaded to order locally if the prices are competitive. Below is the package we have decided on. If you’re interested in bidding, please comment below or use the contact form. Kitchen Appliances Refrigerator/Freezer Frigidaire Professional FPRH17D7KF Frigidaire [...]
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While getting countertop and tub surrounds bids, we learned a lot about various surface options and how they compare in today’s market. (Things have really changed since we last built in 2003.) Unfortunately there are no perfect home surfaces. All have pros and cons. While I love the look of tile, I really hate grout. [...]
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We are ready to get bids on the countertops, tub/shower surrounds, tile, etc. for our custom home. If you are interested in bidding on all or some of the items below, please use the contact form or comment below. After much deliberation, we have decided on the surfaces we would like to use. The materials [...]
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Choosing cabinets was, I think, the most difficult single decision on the entire house. It was grueling. Not just for me, but probably for the cabinet makers as well. With budget overruns in engineering, footings, lumber, electrical, and plumbing (oh, yes, you’ll hear about all that later), cabinets (unfortunately!) was one of the few places [...]
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Originally designed for those with dexterity problems— such as people suffering from arthritis — the amazing OXO Good Grips (pronounced “ox-oh,” for those of you wondering) brand soon caught on with the young and hip as well. These sturdy kitchen utensils, with their trademark easy-grip black handles, add style to function. Sam bought me my [...]
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