Don’t know if it’s evident to anyone other than John and me, but let me tell you, Stella has swagger. Tons of it!

A day I have anxiously awaited arrived on Friday, February 21st. Window treatment installation day. It’s been over a year since John and I began the process of coordinating the interior furnishings of our retirement home. When we started, the driveway didn’t exist and obviously, the foundation hadn’t been dug. Being the personality type we both are, we needed to be doing something that related to the house so we began choosing stuff from paint, to fixtures, to window treatments.

None of it was difficult, yet all of it was time consuming. We wanted to be frugal and to help toward that end we planned to utilize as much from each of our former homes as possible. I had the most furniture and accessories that could be utilized in the new house and so a color scheme was, for all intent and purposes, predetermined for the major rooms of the house. What we had to do was decide how we’d like to juggle the colors within the scheme, such as what may have been highlighted in the former dwellings might be given less emphasis in the new dwelling and vice versa. One decorating element neither of us could transfer to the new home was window treatments.

We found a wonderful interior designer, Kathy Corbet, of Kathy Corbet Interiors, who helped us pull it all together. As wonderful a word wonderful is, it falls short in describing Kathy, her professionalism, her expertise, and her talent. She quickly assessed the essence of us. She listened. She guided. She was genuine. She pleased us. Oooo weee, did she ever!! Thank you, Kathy!

In prior blog entries I’ve mentioned the colors we chose for the walls, I’d now like to introduce you to our fabulous window treatments. They are stunning. If you could only see them in person.

If Stella were a person, she’d be Ryan Gosling, the Prince of Swag!

Dining Room – the yellow ties in with the kitchen wall paint

Breakfast Nook – the trim and the lining fabric is also the fabric used for the family room window treatments

Family Room – this fabric is used to trim and line the breakfast nook window treatments

Master Bedroom – paint and window treatment fabric coordinate with the bedding and seating fabrics

Master Bathroom – window is above the soaking tub

Exercise Room – same fabric is used for the laundry room which is just off they exercise room

Laundry Room – same fabric as the exercise room, different style swag

Mud Room

Were I younger, the title would read OMG, OMG, OMG!, but recently I’ve discovered that I’m old. It’s a shame really.

Things have been accomplished this week and with the good Lord willing and the creek don’t rise, final inspections will be requested on Monday. Look at the pretty things accomplished — the protective paper has been removed, closets have been dressed with rods and shelves, the cook top has received its vent, the bathrooms have received accessories like shower doors, a shower rod, towel bars, toilet paper holders, and rob hooks, and the garage door was installed.

Stella best hear us knocking and let us in!

Protective covers removed from the Dining Room – we finally see our floors!

Protective cover removed from exercise room flooring. Note that we opted for the white shoe molding.

The cook top gets a hood!

The cook top gets a hood – as seen from the family room.

Master Closet – center view (what looks like a gap in the lower rod section is actually an intentional space mean for the hanging of Marilyn’s long dresses)

Master Closet – left view (what looks like a gap in the lower rod section is actually an intentional space mean for the hanging of Marilyn’s long dresses)

Master Closet – right view

Anyone who has ever built a house knows the thrill of these seven words…
Carpet installation is scheduled for this week.

Carpet is one of the last things to be done in the construction of a home. Carpet is installed when the traffic of the subcontractors is winding down – a builder can’t be having the newly installed carpet sullied. If the builder and the homeowner agree on nothing else, they agree on that.

Stella got carpeted last week! Sharon’s bedroom, the guest bedroom, and our bedroom. Nary an unsightly subfloor now to be seen!

Guest Bedroom Carpet

Master Bedroom Carpet

Master Bedroom Closet Carpet

Ira, our job foreman, and Sam, who can and does do everything (he even fetches lunch for his co-workers in his sleek white 700 series BMW), began the hard, tedious, thankless work of giving Stella a spit shine. This is work the builder trusts to his most loyal. Extraordinary care must be taken at this stage of the process, for it is during this effort that the chameleons are smoked out, all the damage and mistakes that have been camouflaged by the flurry of activity of the subcontractors. One doesn’t know what lays beneath the hardwood floor’s protectant paper until it’s removed. Who knows if the tub is scratched or perfect until all the crud is removed? One can’t know if the cabinetry shelves are free of splinters until they’re dusted with a cloth that will snag on the slightest flaw. Although I am grateful for their effort, because they’re doing it for us I don’t envy them this job! John and I are normally quite fastidious and are even more so as relates to Stella.

Guest Bathroom Tub/Shower

There remains a lot to be done, little, big, and medium sized things, at least in John’s and my eyes. However, the builder tries to give us the impression it’s simply a matter of a couple days’ work. Then how come we can’t be in there in say five days? That’s two couples and a single! That should be more than enough time to cap things.

Can’t wait until it’s all done and we’ve crossed the threshold as visitors for the last time, but for now, I’m in love with the sound of *these* seven words, Carpet was installed last week, yeah baby!, and feel I’m on a magic carpet ride! Woo Hoo!

Well, you don’t know what we can find
Why don’t you come with me little girl
On a magic carpet ride
You don’t know what we can see
Why don’t you tell your dreams to me
Fantasy will set you free
Close your eyes girl
Look inside girl
Let the sound (of those seven words) take you away
~ Steppenwolf

Magic Carpet photo from dreamstime

…and in craft beer brew pubs across the nation, in the form of a game called Corn Hole.

Throughout the ages for those anticipating the arrival of something, it has been said that “each day brings you closer.” For the anxious, such as John and me and our dwelling in Stella, one is sometimes wont to strangle the bearer of those words. Of course, figuratively only.

Each passing day does bring us closer, but builders have a timetable from which they appear reluctant to stray. Even with “snowmageddon” in the week’s forecast, two dry, fairly decent temperature days went unutilized. When the work to be done is indoors, “dry” and “decent temperature” don’t even come into play, which makes unutilized all the more perplexing. As snowmageddon arrives, with the exception of one carpeted room, the whole week is now lost.

The domino affect – I [likely] need to reschedule the installation of window treatments. I had been greatly anticipating seeing Stella’s interior clothed and adorned with window treatments.

On the bright side, we’ve seen the delivery of our appliances. The double ovens, the microwave, and the cooktop are installed. The refrigerator needs to be connected to the water source for ice making and water dispensing. The dishwasher needs to be anchored to the countertop and the cooktop hood needs to be vented and hung. It has been invigorating to see the holes filled that were custom made/cut for these appliances. They are gorgeous!

Double Convection Ovens and Microwave

5-Burner Gas Cooktop

We also saw the delivery and installation of our front and side porch railings. They are stunning! They are everything John and I hoped for. Legacy Ironworks, Inc. completely came through in crafting my design. I knew it would work and as anyone enjoys when it happens to them, I was proven right. The builder, who was set against black and vehemently urged me to go with traditional-style white vinyl railings, even told me black was the right choice for Stella and that he really liked my design. Coulda knocked me over with a feather!

Front Porch Railings – now you see them

Side Porch Railings – now you see them

Front Porch Railings – now you barely see them, which is what we wanted

The garage and carport roof has been completely shingled and the carport ceiling has been installed. The garage is three quarters finished and the house now is completely sided – that last pesky to the sight portion at the breezeway now “luks mahveeluss.”

Garage Front Shingled

Still, as we very much long to enjoy occupying Stella, close only counts in horseshoes, hand grenades, and corn hole. We’re brats – we know it and are proud of it.

Sun lights up the daytime
Moon lights up the night
My eyes light up when you call my name
‘Cause I know you’re gonna treat me right
You give me fever

I have the Stella fever! And, it gets worse with each passing day, oh lawdy, make that each passing hour. We received word from our builder that we can proceed with locking in a mortgage interest rate. That means we should be living in Stella within 30 days – the builder says 14 to 21. I would dance on the ceiling if my ankle weren’t still giving me fits and if I weren’t afraid that being too zealous in my excitement would result in a jinx.

Today wasn’t a bad day temperature-wise – in the 40’s. The ground was frozen this morning and began to get sloppy as the day worn on. Our sub visit today came from the electrician. Nice to see wiring work take place on John’s brewery. Nice to see spot lights on Stella’s exterior. Nice to have lights in closets. Nice to have so many “power” issues handled. Nice to see nice weather for the subs’ labor. It’s been quite cold ’round these parts (cold is relative, of course) and I’ve admired the dedication of our subs who have, in times of late, worked in single digit temps and harsh winds.

January 28, 2012, Stella Dressed In Snow

Can’t wait to have my fever reduced.

Fever, as sung by Little Willie John