Tag Archives: design

Construction: Choosing Colors

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Too many choices!

On May 20, 2014, I began blogging about the construction of my new home in Malaga, WA. You can read all of these posts — and see the time-lapse movies that go with many them — by clicking the new home construction tag.

I’ve been choosing colors for my new home since early December, when I ordered my appliances. That was an easy choice: brushed stainless. I had stainless in my old home and I liked its clean look, despite the fingerprints that always seemed to appear as if by magic on the refrigerator. I think it looks modern and timeless at the same time.

The next color choices weren’t so easy, mostly because there are so many choices I could make.

Kitchen Cabinets

Cabinet Door
The cabinet style and color I ordered.

The kitchen cabinets were the next thing I ordered. I went with Kraftmaid ordered through Home Depot. They had a special offer going on that saved me about $1,000 on some good quality cabinets. Not only would I get soft-closing doors and drawers — a real step up from what I had in my last home — but the lower cabinets would include slide out drawers, making it easy to access items such as pots and pans.

Style and color were the tough parts. I knew I wanted a light color and I knew I wanted a more rustic look. So I went with something called Honey Spice on a Hickory wood. The style was simple, with a beveled panel in the doors. Easier to clean. Although my old home had an attractive southwestern trim on all the cabinets, they were a bitch to keep clean, with dust and grime accumulating in every single crack.

Kitchen Countertops

Ubatuba granite
I’m really looking forward to having granite countertops. This color looks amazing with my cabinets.

Countertops needed to be ordered next. I knew I wanted a dark color and I knew I wanted a surface that didn’t need a lot of care and maintenance. My old house had tile, which was attractive and durable but it was a royal pain to keep the grout clean, required regular sealing (which I only did once in the 15 years I lived there), and was impossible to use as a surface for rolling out dough.

I went with granite. Again, Home Depot was having a special and I scheduled my purchase to coincide with the dates of that deal. Granite comes in multiple price levels and I saw absolutely nothing wrong with the lowest level, so I saved a bunch of money. The color I chose is called Ubatuba. It’s basically black with gold and greenish gray speckles. It looks amazing with the cabinets.

Wall Colors

This week, I needed to come up with my paint selections. The contractor I hired to do the insulation and drywall is also texturing the walls and painting for me. He’ll likely get started with that sometime next week. Right now, they’re still taping.

Color Samples
Although the painter will be using Sherman Williams paint and not the Behr paint shown here, he’ll match the colors from the chip I got at Home Depot. For a great online color tool, visit Behr’s Color Smart page. It’s a great way to see how colors work together and help you come up with eye-pleasing combinations.

My old house started out Navajo white through and through. It was mind-bogglingly dull, especially when paired with the off-white carpet and mellow peach colored tile. The first five or so years I lived there, I began repainting various rooms to add color. A friend helped. We used colors thinned out with glaze and applied with sponges or brushes. Some rooms came out great; others didn’t.

This time, I wanted to start with something other than white while keeping the color relatively bright. My new home has vaulted ceilings in every room, starting at about 10 feet high and going as high as 20 feet in the great room and my bedroom. Even the bathroom ceiling rises to at least 15 feet. There are lots of windows so the place is very bright. I like that. There’s nothing I hate more than living in a dark, closed-in space.

I toyed with the idea of using actual colors — green for the great room, rose for the bathroom, and possibly blue for the bedroom. I even bought paint samples to paint onto sheetrock pieces and hold in each room. But when I presented my samples to my friends at a get together the other night, the one they all liked best was the one I’d chosen first and then discarded: a color called Rye Bread. Even the painter liked it best — and he saw the painted out samples. When I put it with my cabinet and countertop sample, I agreed that it looked great.

But the real selling point was when a friend said that it would look great with red. The focal point of my living room area is a red leather sofa. I was sold.

Flooring

The last color decision is flooring and I’m still working on that.

Brown Floor

Dark Gray Floor
Two options currently in the running for the floor in my home: inexpensive TrafficMASTER “Handscraped Saratoga Hickory” and more costly Bruce “Mineral Wood”.

I’d like wood look floors and will likely go with a textured wood laminate for durability and cost effectiveness. The snap-together planks are easy enough to install that I can do it myself. Everyone I know who has installed a floor like this loves it.

As for color, my biggest worry is having a wood floor that clashes in color with my wood cabinets. This is a serious concern. At first, I wanted a light colored floor, but have since been considering darker colors — even black or near black. My friends agree that my rooms are big and bright enough to support a dark colored floor. One friend said she loved the idea of black but warned me that it shows dirt. I have a Roomba I plan to run daily, so dirt isn’t really a worry for me. What I need are some samples I can hold next to my cabinet sample. I see yet another round of floor store visits in my future.

Although I was planning to put the same floor in every room, “floating” floors like this are not compatible with my freestanding bathtub. That means I either have to put vinyl or tile in my bathroom. I’m not happy about that. Not only does it change the overall look I’m hoping to have in my home, but I don’t like the look of vinyl and hate working with tile. Unfortunately, that’s the room I need to do first — I have to get all my plumbing finished before I get my kitchen appliances installed — so I need to make up my mind quickly.

Any suggestions for me?

Coming Together Quickly!

Although the actual construction of my home began in May 2014 and there were a few delays along the way, things are coming together quickly now. The insulation, drywall, and painting are a major step forward. It’s hard to believe that just two weeks ago I was looking at the same old framing I’d been looking at for months. Today, I’m looking at sheetrocked walls and, within two weeks, I’ll be looking at finished walls.

I’m already thinking about my first dinner party upstairs in my fully enclosed and heated space.

New Home Questions Answered

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Your questions, answered in one place.

Since I began blogging day-by-day construction progress of my new home on May 20, 2014, I’ve gotten a lot of questions and comments from blog readers, Twitter followers, and Facebook friends and followers. I thought I’d respond to a few of the most common ones here.

“Not much in the way of foundations. Small wonder whole towns disappear when tornadoes hit.”

Hoisting with a Crane
The long posts were hoisted with a crane.

This comment appeared on the blog post for Day 2, which showed the posts supporting the building in place. News flash: there is no traditional “foundation” and there won’t be.

I’ve repeatedly linked to a Wikipedia article about pole buildings in an attempt to educate readers about this type of construction. Unfortunately, the ability to consume web content beyond looking at pictures and video remains above the skill level of many blog visitors.

The posts supporting my building are 6×8 or 8×8 (depending on length and position). Each pole is sunk 3 feet into a hole 4 feet deep and 3 feet across. The holes and post placement were inspected by the county literally minutes before the concrete trucks arrived to fill each hole with concrete.

As far as tornadoes go, the chances of a tornado barreling down a path along the base of the cliffs in Malaga, WA are pretty slim. So slim, in fact, that you stand a better chance of winning a lottery jackpot, being struck by lightning, and being attacked by a shark — all in the same day.

But just in case it does get windy, the building is designed to withstand gale force winds. I don’t recall the exact number, but I do remember it being over 100 miles per hour.

And if you’re worried about seismic activity when Mount Rainier turns Seattle into an ash-covered scene from a futuristic disaster film, it’s also built to withstand earthquakes — not that we’ve had any serious ones here in a very, very long time.

Where’s the foundation?

See above.

When are they going to pour the foundation?

See above.

Please tell me they’re going to pour a concrete slab.

They’re going to pour a concrete slab.

Really. They are.

For some reason, they do this after the building has been constructed. I don’t know why. Maybe it’s so they can drive equipment around inside without worries about damaging new concrete. Does it really matter? The building is not attached to a foundation or a slab so it doesn’t really matter when they pour it. For some pole buildings, they don’t pour a concrete slab at all. In fact, I could save a bunch of money now by putting off the pouring of my slab until I’ve got some more cash. And believe me, I’ve been thinking about that for the garage side, which really doesn’t need concrete right away.

My building will also have a floor drain in the RV garage. That’ll make it possible to do something silly — like wash my car or helicopter inside. (Imagine that!) Or for the building to someday be used as a wine-making facility. (That’s thinking ahead.) The concrete in the RV garage/shop side will be gently sloped to that drain; the concrete in the car garage side will be gently sloped toward the garage doors.

I’ve got it covered, folks.

Who designed the building? Did you work with an architect?

I designed the building. I did not work with an architect.

This probably saved me about $10K in design fees.

It’s also one of the reasons I went with a pole building. Not only is it simple construction, but the folks who specialize in pole buildings can make whatever you dream up a reality without getting costly third parties involved. I brought my sketches to Western Ranch Buildings and Tanya patiently worked with me to fine-tune them for cost effectiveness without sacrificing my must-have features — such as the windows and huge RV garage door. Tanya, working with an in-house engineer for some components, drew up plans that would satisfy the county and give the workers something to work with. If you saw how simple my building plans are, you’d be shocked.

As for the design itself, I thought about what I needed in the building — space for all of my possessions and a modest living area. Then I thought about what I wanted in the building — a shop area, windows to let in light and air and show off the views from inside, decks to take in the views from outside. I knew I wanted that living space on the second floor and I knew it had to face the views. Since the RV garage side needed to be tall to accommodate my RV and helicopter, the living space had to be over the regular garage. I went with a four-car garage because that’s what fit in the 24 x 48 foot space I limited the living space above to.

(County ordinances allow me to have two homes on my 10 acres, as long as one of them is under 1,200 square feet. Since I can’t afford to build a garage and a home, I’m building the 1,200 square foot living space first and leaving the prime building location available for the construction of a real home, likely by the property’s next owner. When I had the septic system installed, I ran lines for both building sites, so the next owner will be all set to build that dream house.)

In a way, the design emerged on its own. Sketches evolved. The original design was a huge square building with a standard peaked roof. But when my neighbor put in a split roof, I realized that it would not only look better but also give me another interior wall for windows into my living space. I changed my sketches accordingly and the final design took shape.

Everything I did was well thought out — hell, I had enough time to think about it — with plenty of consideration for future needs — even a future beyond my ownership.

Why aren’t the builders doing the interior of your living space, too?

Two reasons.

One is that these folks specialize in pole buildings. Although they can do interiors, it’s not what they usually do. Not only that, but they’re very busy and I really can’t delay this project any more than it has been delayed. (I’m sick of living in a trailer and want a solid roof over my head, preferably one that doesn’t sway when the wind blows.)

Floorplan
Here’s the living space floor plan as submitted to the county. It’s not 100% right, but it’s close enough for permitting purposes and to get bids on HVAC, framing, insulation, and drywall.

The other more important reason is money. I’m not quite sure what I can afford to get done. I know I can pay for the shell of the building; I’ve been saving for well over a year, living on the cheap in my RV to put aside every penny I can. The income I get from this season’s cherry drying work and the promise of a loan from a family member if I need it assures the shell will be done.

I’m not sure, however, how far I can stretch my money beyond that. I know I can save money by doing things myself; I have every intention of doing all the plumbing and electrical work, for example, and will likely do the floors and all the painting. But I also know that I need to hire professionals to do difficult things such as HVAC ductwork, framing, and drywall. By breaking down the living space project into sub-projects, I can do them one at a time, knocking them off as time and money allows.

With luck, heavy rain over the next few months, and a lot of hard work, I’ll be cooking up Thanksgiving dinner for friends in my new kitchen.

Can you share a conceptual drawing of what it will look like when done?

This question from a Facebook friend made me giggle. You see, they’re working so very quickly.

My response: If you wait two weeks, I’ll have a photograph.

Elance

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What a freaking waste of time.

I needed a logo for my Maria’s Guides website and line of books. I wanted something simple, something that communicated the brand as well as the fact that the “guides” were in print, video, and ebook formats.

I have no design skills. None. I know what I like when I see it and I can often modify something that’s close to what I like to make it more in line with what I need. (That’s basically how I “design” my websites: I start with a theme and modify it.)

At first, I put a request on Twitter for a book cover design. That was a mistake. I got a bunch of responses from strangers linking to their portfolios or just promising they could do the job. (I created it myself based on a few other book cover designs I found online; it’s okay for now.)

Trying Elance

I decided I’d need a pro for the logo design. My budget was under $500, preferably under $300. I remembered hearing about Elance and decided to give it a try.

Elance is a Web site that connects freelancers with people needing freelance work done. It seems like a good idea and I know there are plenty of designers there. So I set up an account and used the “logo” template to submit a request for proposals.

I should have realized that something was wrong when I got six bids within about fifteen minutes. Although I’d set up my budget for less than $500, the bids ranged from $60 to $149. Four bids were from (supposedly) U.S. based companies, one was from India, and one was from Argentina. Most of them linked to logos or business packages they’d (supposedly) designed for other clients. Most were obviously canned responses that showed no indication that they’d read my request for proposals. LIke this:

Hello,

Thanks for reviewing our proposal.
We understand your requirement for creation of logo design. Plz check our portfolio attached.

Also view our elance portfolio :
[URL redacted]

or this (supposedly from a U.S. based company):

Hi and Thank you to review our bid!!
This Bid includes:
1) 7 Initial concepts of logo. (Designed by 6 different designers)
2) A complementary Stationery concept (includes Business Card, Letter Head, and Envelope)
3) EMAIL SIGNATURE without any extra cost. (100% NO COST)
4) Unlimited Color schemes of selected design.
5) Original Copy right files. (All rights reserved by you)

It should be noted that all I asked for was a logo.

I decided to give it a try by picking one of the (supposedly) U.S. based companies that submitted a proposal that didn’t seem canned. Their samples were in line with what I was looking for. The price was very good — only $65 — so I figured I wouldn’t lose much if they completely sucked.

On accepting the bid, the first thing they did was send me a list of information they needed. This was the same exact information I had already provided using the Elance template for a logo request.

So apparently, they hadn’t read my request either.

With my response, I added:

PLEASE do not respond to me with canned communications. I have extremely low tolerance for people who waste my time by asking for information they already have. I realize there’s not much money in this, but that’s not MY fault. If you can’t treat me like a REAL client, let’s end this relationship now.

We got past that and they started submitting designs. The first batch had five. (I’m not sure if I’m allowed to show them; I haven’t paid for this yet and, chances are, they’ll use these same designs again for another sucker.) I liked one of them — it featured a graphic representation of a book emerging from a square — and made some suggestions:

…is there a way that the graphic part can indicate both books and electronic media? Maybe a 3-part icon that includes a representation of a book, an ebook (or tablet computer with writing on it), and a movie? For the movie, the old-fashioned filmstrip kind of thing might work.

“Designing” with Clipart

They submitted two more designs. They were dramatically different and very complex. But worst of all: they looked like they had been assembled by copying and pasting clipart. Clipart drawn from different perspectives and in different styles. I started to get a bad feeling.

I wrote back, telling them it looked like clipart. The response:

These are victor file, but if you don’t like them we will send you more revision.

Ah, yes. I know the U.S. education system is pretty crappy right now, but that’s not the kind of English I expect to get from a native speaker. I began wondering where the company was really based.

The next logo design was closer to what I could use. It included the three icons representing books, video, and ebooks. But the style of each icon was dramatically different. I had to look at the video representation under magnification to figure out what it was. And the ebook representation was just plopped on top of its frame with no attempt to make it look as if it were emerging. And, of course, all three icons appeared to be drawn from a different perspective, so they just didn’t go well together. More clipart.

Among my comments to try to fix this one up, I said:

The second panel doesn’t look like film. Consult this link http://www.jeffjonesillustration.com/[redacted] for something closer to what I envisioned. A reel of film with a strip of film coming out.

I should note here that the image I linked to as an example is one of many copyrighted images by illustrator Jeff Jones. Mr. Jones sells the rights to his artwork for use as stock images. I did not buy this image; I was just using it as an example.

Apparently, the “designers” I’d hired thought that they could use this copyrighted image in my logo. In the next revision, that exact image, scaled to fit, was part of the logo. They’d also managed to completely misunderstand my instructions for the ebook reader image in the third panel of the logo.

It was pretty clear that:

  • They had no real design skills.
  • They had no artistic ability.
  • They heavily relied on clipart to create logos.
  • They likely didn’t understand English enough to follow instructions.

Yes, I Know that You Get What You Pay For

Now I know what you’re saying: You get what you pay for. But understand that I was willing to pay more. This isn’t the first logo I’ve had designed — the others cost more. I picked this “design” company based not on the fee but on their proposal and samples. I don’t know where the samples came from, but it’s pretty clear to me that the people I hired did not design them.

By this point, I was fed up. This had been going on for a week and I was at the point where I dreaded opening my next email from them. I wrote:

I’m trying to understand why this is so difficult for you folks. Do the people working on this project read and speak English?

First of all, you CANNOT use the film clipart I linked to as AN EXAMPLE because it is copyrighted. If I use that in my logo, I will get sued. You should KNOW this.

Second, when I said that the tablet computer representation should have writing on it like an ebook, I didn’t mean to put the word “ebook” on it. I meant using lines of fake writing so that it looked as if it were showing an ebook. Also, laying a rectangle on top of a square does not match the design elements of the first frame “book” which is emerging from the frame.

Clearly this is NOT working out. I cannot understand how you folks have gotten good reviews unless the people you worked for were satisfied by your use of clipart to create “custom” logos. I don’t need to pay someone to do that. I can do that myself.

I cannot use what you’ve created and I’m tired of going back and forth with you on this. What an incredible waste of my time. I will contact Elance directly on how to resolve this issue.

And I got online with Elance and sent them a request for help:

I put in a request for a logo design. I got a bunch of very low bids, most of them from organizations that obviously did not read what I was looking for. I picked one I thought knew what I wanted.

For the past week we have been going back and forth on this. I’m supposed to be getting a custom design and what I’m getting is cut and paste clipart. When I offered a link to a sample image on the Web, the “designer” used THAT copyrighted image — if I included that in my logo, I could get sued!

These people are obviously amateurs, have no talent, and cannot follow instructions. I want to end my contract. I am willing to pay 50% of the agreed upon fee to cover the work done. I cannot use the logo as is and will have to pay a REAL designer to come up with something I can use. Please help me resolve this so I can move on and get the logo I need.

I’m still waiting to hear back from them. Believe me, 50% is generous for the aggravation I’ve been dealing with. What I’m willing to pay for is the idea, which I helped them develop.

[Update: They’ve agreed to the 50%. I guess people like this will take any money they can get.]

Apparently Freelancers Know Better

Now when all this started going south, I tweeted:

If this Elance experience is indicative of what it’s like to work with all Elance service providers, this will be my LAST time using Elance.

A Twitter friend tweeted back:

I tried providing service on elance, but would always get undercut by clueless people from india.

So that’s what it’s all about? A web-based service that leads you to believe you’re helping out local designers who are trying to build a client base. Instead, you’re sending business overseas to “design factories” manned by clipart manipulation experts.

What do you think? Do you have any experience — good or bad — with Elance? I’d like to hear a story with a happy ending.