Building Our New Home in the City

We've been working on the design of our new home in the city of Spokane. Our street is lined with old homes, each unique in its own way and it was important for us to create something that fit our style as well as blend into the neighborhood. I knew all along that it would be a French-inspired exterior with interior elements that are both classic and chic. For me, designing a home begins with the location and working forward from there, to what feels natural for the setting. I completely had my heart set on a white brick exterior (which actually isn't very French at all) but came upon a bunch of obstacles with that plan. It turns out that white brick isn't readily available any longer in our area because there is no more natural material available to produce it, and it's not widely available anywhere really. For half a second we talked about going with a classic brick (like red) and painting it white, but were worried that it would require a lot of upkeep and repainting over the years. We spoke with several bricklayers and a supplier about the durability of painted brick and in the end, it was just too risky to us. So, we changed our plan to natural colored stone, which we are really happy about and actually like it even more.

My favorite feature on the front exterior is the oval window - something I had to go around and around on to get it just right, but I'm really glad I persisted.

The foundation is in place and we're waiting for spring to begin the build. As we move forward, I'll be sharing my design choices, visits to suppliers, the progress, and the journey towards our new home here.

 

 

Comments

[Jill Summers]

Just in case you change your mind about natural stone (which I think will still look gorgeous). Another blogging couple recently painted their red brick white: https://www.younghouselove.com/painting-our-brick-house-white/

I let people talk us out of it with our brick home in Colorado because they said it would be too much upkeep. But now that we are back in Spokane I have returned my search to brick homes for this very reason! Happy Building!

[Lynn Weddle]

I love the house in the link so much, but only in the 'after' photos! The white brick turned it around.