The house is painted! We were so excited last Sunday night when we drove up and saw that the painters had put the exterior prime and paint on the house. Bethany really struggled picking out the color for the exterior but finally settled on Sherwin Williams Alabaster (SW 7008) in satin. For those of you that watch HGTV’s Fixer Upper with Chip and Joanna Gaines, this is the same color they used on the exterior of their farmhouse. Bethany picked out the color before she knew that, but that was the final validation she needed. Continue reading Exterior Prime and Paint
All posts by Anthony Berg
Homemade Barn Doors
As part of building our new home, we have taken on some of the components of the construction ourselves. One of the things we were not planning to do but ended up taking on is the building of homemade barn doors for our kitchen pantry. When we started looking for a barn door to fit that space we quickly discovered that we were going to have to spend $800 or more to get the look and feel we were going for. Bethany finally talked me into just making them ourselves. I had no idea how easy it was going to be. Continue reading Homemade Barn Doors
Hardwood Floors Installed and Stained
The hardwood floors were installed a few weeks ago but we held off uploading pictures until the stain was applied. One of the main things Bethany and I both agreed about as a design requirement for the new house was that we would have absolutely zero carpet. We have a lot of kids so carpet always ends up stained, dirty, and gross. We also just love the way hardwood floors look and feel. This post has some pictures of the newly installed wood floors. The final coat of polyurethane has not been applied yet but they shouldn’t look a lot different in the end than they do now. Continue reading Hardwood Floors Installed and Stained
Interior Trim and Doors
Wow! I can’t believe what a difference interior trim and doors make! I was looking forward to seeing the interior doors hung and I knew it would be cool to see the trim installed but I didn’t realize all the details Bethany had planned for the trim. For example, she planned for the entire family room area to be covered in shiplap. She also requested beams to be placed on the ceilings in the dining room, main living areas, and the master bedroom. Even the doors are not the “normal” doors I’m used to seeing in most houses. For the doors she picked out a five panel farmhouse style door in keeping with the look of the rest of the house. Continue reading Interior Trim and Doors
Tile Installed
Its been a few weeks since the tile was installed but I’m finally getting around to uploading some pictures. Like much of the house, Bethany opted for simple colors and styles, mostly different shades of white. She did decide to do a checkered pattern in the utility room and requested to have it installed in a diagonal configuration. Continue reading Tile Installed
Porches and Decks
It has been a while since our last update but a lot of exciting steps have been completed, including the installation of the porches and decks. The plans for the house include a pretty large deck in the back as well as a porch off of the master bedroom and a front porch. The railings are not up yet but here are some Continue reading Porches and Decks
SketchUp Tutorial for Woodworking Projects
Last year I completed one of my first “real” woodworking projects, the Ana White 4×4 Truss Beam Table. I was impressed with the quality of the directions Ana provided, especially the images she created using SketchUp. We are currently in the middle of building our dream home and my wife has many woodworking projects in mind for me. For example, she would like me to Continue reading SketchUp Tutorial for Woodworking Projects
Trip to Ireland
We started a tradition two years ago with Mannah’s trip to Paris. The tradition is that for our children’s sixteenth birthdays they can take a week long trip to anywhere in the world they choose. Haven chose Ireland and we just got back yesterday. This post is a summary of where we went, what we did, and a collection of some of the best photos from the trip. If you have any questions about the trip please leave a comment at the very bottom of this post. Continue reading Trip to Ireland
Homemade Powder Room Vanity with Vessel Sink
For those that have been following Wholesteading.com for a while, you probably remember my first real woodworking project…the Ana White 4×4 Farmhouse Truss Beam Table. That project was a huge success and has given me the confidence to take on many other woodworking projects. My most recent project was a special request from Bethany for a homemade powder room vanity with vessel sink for use in the new house we are building. Continue reading Homemade Powder Room Vanity with Vessel Sink
Drywall Rough, Tape, and Finish
The drywall is installed! We met with the project manager on a Friday to discuss some things and he mentioned that they were going to start the drywall rough later that day. We left that meeting and took Mannah, our oldest daughter, to visit Lee University, the college she plans to attend in the Fall. We arrived back in Atlanta the following night and decided to swing by the new house quick to see if they had started hanging drywall….and THEY WERE DONE! The installers we able to hang all the drywall in the house, garage, the apartment above the garage…everywhere in less than 24 hours. That’s such a tremendous amount of work and it looked so great when they were done! Continue reading Drywall Rough, Tape, and Finish