Brick, more trim, and STAINED CABINETS!

Lots of exciting happenings this week...along with a little bit of a train wreck too. Let's start with all the good things first! :) Monday, the mason came by to show us a sample panel to approve the brick layout since we requested a thicker/messier mortar than normal. But they got most of the brick done by Saturday. Crazy how fast they go! Can't wait to add those pics to the timelapse video. All they have left to do on brick is the back patio (they were waiting for the trim guys to get the paneling up in the vaulted area). They will also do the window wall inside in the dining room brick too if we have enough left over. 

Playing on the mason's scaffolding...pretty views!

Brick on the front almost all done!

A little panorama action on the back

The trim guys also came back this week to finish the crown molding, beadboard/wainscoting in the half bath, wood paneling on the patio ceiling, the office ceiling (amazing!), and wrapping the living room beams in cedar. They only got one of the beams done though and still have to come back tomorrow to finish the window seat in the master and the other 2 beams.

Office ceiling, half bath, cedar trimmed beam

Can't get enough of this patio!

Rob did a little DIY-ing to adjust the placement of the body sprayers in the master shower. The plumber had centered them on the shower heads but once they got the walls up around the fixtures, we realized they weren't centered between the actual knobs that control them. The plumber couldn't come out for another week and a half, so he fixed it himself.

All done now...and perfectly centered. :) So handy!

The painters showed up Wednesday and we met them out there to discuss paint colors. (Sorry no pics yet, sit tight!) They started taping off windows and caulking all of the trim that was done before they painted. Once they got that done, and the trim guys were gone Saturday, it was time to SPRAY the primer...which is also the ceiling color. So far the living room, entry, media, front hall and jack/jill rooms & bath are all primed now. They will start taping so they can spray the trim next.

Bedrooms and entry primed

MOST exciting though is that they got the kitchen/master cabinets all stained and the ceiling in the office too. It's looking great!!

Sherwin Williams Ranch Oak stain on the cabinets (1st pic after first coat)

Love it.

So now let's talk about the not so great things. It just wouldn't be fair for everything to go right, huh? So...our stone got delivered this week, yay! And they started putting it up, yay! But you may have noticed in the pics up there that there's not much of it up yet...because well, when we saw it we said "uhh that's not the color we picked". Oops. Apparently it is the right stone, but when this batch came out of the quarry it was just...grayer than what we thought it would be. 

Our stone....compared to the pic we sent them of what we wanted

We've stared at it way too much this week, and talked to the mason and the guy we ordered the stone from and finally decided to re-order. This time with a few more pictures of the house we found it on so they can get a better color match. Since it is a natural stone, we knew there would be variations but we had no idea it would be this dramatic. So...hopefully they can get that delivered in a week or so. It goes on the front where you see the spaces without brick right now, and the inside and outdoor fireplaces all the way up. It wouldn't look too bad on the outside, but it was very concrete looking and we didn't want that on the fireplace inside. 

Without the fireplace inside, we have to push out the wood floor installation and some paint and trim work that can't be done until the wood floors are in...domino effect: ENGAGE. Tile guys were delayed with some previous jobs this week too, so they haven't started either. They can't be in there while the painters are spraying anyway, so maybe later this week after the other half of the house is primed? We shall see!

On the plus side, everything else is looking AWESOME, so we're trying to stay positive. This week's agenda: Finish brick, finish trim list, prime/paint/finish stains, exterior trim paint, maybe tile/granite counters, line up septic/propane installation, annnd get the driveway situation figured out (another permit/inspection for that). Cross your fingers that stone shows up FAST. We need it...like yesterday.