Today was my Preliminary Pick Day, as Im fondly calling it. This is the day when I had to actually make choices and about the items that will be installed in my home such as bathtubs and cabinets, flooring and paint, and about a zillion other things it seems.
When you go in, they give you a huge packet of all of the options. It's sectioned out but some parts can get tedious reading and navigating though. Luckily they don't even give you the carpet choices or it would be even bigger! I started on the packet two days before, when I came in to browse. Most of what I wanted I knew. However, I knew Id be adding on much more today.
I had the nicest sales rep, Jennifer, who graciously jumped in and started early with me when she found me browsing the kitchen area before my appointment. She helped me make choices, offered advice, let me take as much time as I needed and, since she had just built a home herself, she knew what I was feeling through all of this. Above are my preliminary choices.
I started in the cabinets and countertops section of the design studio as this is the first room you get to when you begin this process. The granite and cabinets came together really quick, thankfully. I love the granite! It's a snow white with chocolate and black. The cabinets I choice are an espresso color (not black, sorry if the picture doesn't show off its beautiful true coloring).
Then we sat down for a bit and she went over all of the interior structural options such as room conversions, upgrades to the countertop heights and prewiring for ceiling fans, adding on a patio cover, and stuff like that.
Next we picked out all of the faucets and upgraded the kids' bathtub to porcelain with tile surround. I picked the marble tub for the master with separate shower and marble surrounds in both of those. I love how clean and smooth they are! I know Im going to love sinking into that tub at the end of a long day (like today, wah!).
Next we moved onto picking the exterior 8' door and the interior doors. We picked out lighting, upgraded the railings to black wrought iron spindles, and talked about paint. Im opting to not have the house painted a special color inside for two reasons. One, they pretty much only offer shades of white; I don't want to pay for something Im going to turn around and paint over. And two, I have something else in mind for that money. :)
Brick, exterior paint and roofing came next. This part is hard! It's very difficult to visualize what a small sample of brick will look like on a big house. I drove around my neighborhood beforehand, but to be honest, Im still undecided. I made a pick, however it is subject to change before my final appointment next week. One good thing I learned though was that since Im on a corner, that side that faces the street will be solid brick. That's an add-on I don't have to pay for! Sweet deal!
Flooring and tile was pretty much the last step of the process. I was a little disappointed in their selection of backsplashes. They offered nothing by way of tiny pieces except for the glass mosaic, which Im not a fan of. I wanted something more along the lines of a pretty white but had to settle for a 12" tile. Thankfully its silky smooth like stone and not like floor tile. It'll work for now until I decide to rip it out down the road. I did pick out carpeting fairly quick, however I realize now I need to confirm with Jennifer which areas are having tile and which are having carpet.
So, the process seems short, however you're making a thousand decisions within a few hours and by the end, I was starting to get a headache. Im eager to see it all installed in my new home. I just know it will be beautiful!
