products galore: hardwood floors

 we are the luckiest people in the world, and maybe the most spoiled people we know.  the flooring in our entire house is essentially going to be beautiful solid cherry hardwood.  i know, sounds extravagant and expensive.  well is wasn't cheap to be sure, but it wasn't really anymore than buying an engineered hardwood from home depot, we got the deal of the century.  i just looked at prices for engineered hardwood on home depot, they range from a low of about $3.00 to a high of $8.00.  and solid hardwood generally starts around $3.85 for very thin plank stuff and goes up from there.  cherry hardwood floors...forget about it, most of the cherry out there is brazilian cherry which doesn't seem very sustainable to us.

we actually purchased our cherry floors a year before we even had a house design.  we had another house designed that we were going to build in a different location, that all fell through but we still had a deposit on about 2000 sf of flooring from Hull Forest Products in pomfret, CT.  so if you are like me you are thinking connecticut is a long way from colorado, and it is, however, we really liked the way that this particular company works.  they have been dedicated to using trees from sustainably, and responsibly managed forests.  all of their wood is local to the new england area, no brazilian jojoba here,  and Hull offers management of private lands to ensure that all the forests are preserved for future generations. plus like i said we got the deal of a lifetime!

we are getting a wide plank floor for about $4.85 a square foot.

beautifully wide plank cherry

we will have wood in our baths as well- with tile in the wet areas

our cherry will have some knots to give it that farmhouse look

a serious glamor shot of our premium cherry hardwood

Hull Forest Products has many other species of wood and also sells wood timbers, lumber, and wood chips, nothing goes to waste! They are always running specials on certain products so check out their sale page!

photos via hull forest products

vacation time: ambergris caye, belize

we are headed to the beautiful island of ambergris caye off the coast of belize today for a much needed vacation to some warm tropical weather.  björn and i have been looking forward to this for a few weeks now and in preparation for the trip I have been working on my scuba certification through padi.

i have a few posts prepared for the next few days so i hope you enjoy!  is anyone planning a vacation soon?  see you in march!

i will be spending as much time as possible soaking up the warm sunshine

the water in ambergris caye looks absolutely amazing
 and the coral reef starts just 1/2 mile off shore

this should be me swimming with the fishes!

all photos via ambergris caye.com

products galore: kitchen counters

i have no idea what to do for our kitchen counters.  there are so many choices available to consumers that it makes deciding a very difficult process of elimination.  i think the most important features of a kitchen counter are, ease of maintenance / cleaning, durability and looks.

i have been reading about all types of solid surface products, these are typically products that are made up of an acrylic resin.  within the group of solid surfacing are many different manufacturers all with slightly different looks, however Corian by Dupont, is probably the most well known.  it is non-porous and stain and chemical resistant which makes it a great choice for medical and food-preparation areas.  i like the idea of this product being super sanitary and easy to clean, however it is not known to stand up to heat very well because it is essentially plastic.  but i like some of the different looks that Corian has so i think solid surface is still in the running.

Rain Cloud from Corian Private Collection

Arrowroot from Corian Private Collection

Beautiful Corian countertop via Houzz

I love how thick you can make Corian
 look like on this solid white island via Houzz

another serious contender is the engineered stone that is available on the market today.  people are OBSESSED with granite, you watch any of those HGTV shows and every person says "oooh granite counter tops" as if that instantly makes a space more classy, regardless of the layout or the fact that they are probably looking at THE cheapest granite money can buy, but anyway (yes, I am kind of a granite hater)  the types of granite i love are waaaaay out of my price range and come from exotic locations in africa and europe so instead i am seriously considering an engineered stone.  these have all of the great qualities of granite- stands up to heat well, easy to clean, beautiful movement but can be made in large slabs at a lower cost than the real stuff.  all of these engineered stones are basically the same make up of 93% quartz and 7% resin, and because it doesn't need sealing it is lower maintenance than granite! yay for me!

don't get me wrong, there are plenty of granites out there that compete or even beat the price of engineered stones, but these are your typical santa cecilia or tropic brown or that gold color that ever new condo in the world seems to have.  (ive been drinking the hater-ade i know) products like dupont's zodiac, silestone and caesarstone all have a variety of colors and styles to choose from ranging from almost solid to pieces with tons of movement and color.  here are a few i am liking right now:

zodiaq cloud white

zodiaq bianco carrara- made to look like carrara marble 

silestone - bianco river

i love this silestone because it reminds me of concrete- color cygnus

silestone lagoon

white zodiaq counters via houzz

finally i am looking into concrete counters.  this is a real source of anxiety for me, i have heard great things about concrete and terrible things about concrete.  on the one hand i know that is stands up to heat, and cleaning really well and i love the industrial look of it, on the other hand i have heard about wine stains,  and oil spots that never go away.  i just don't know what to think!  our neighbor actually makes a living pouring concrete counters so i think i am going to go question him and get the run down.  in the mean time i have been eagerly looking at this company sonoma cast stone to get ideas as well a pouring over the internet for photos, here are few that show off the style of concrete i like.

beautiful bath with concrete counters and surround via houzz

a picture everyone has seen of jenna lyon's concrete counters via houzz
(still chic though)

beautiful kitchen with sleek concrete counters via houzz

big plans: our NEW laundry room

i may have mentioned that björn and i have done some rearranging on the first floor.  we started rethinking the location and layout of the laundry room, first floor bath and coat closet.  the old layout had the bathroom right off of the front hall, it was spacious and well laid out but we didn't like the idea of prancing through the front hall with just a towel on, so we started playing around.

here is our old plan:

and here is the new layout:

As you can see now the bathroom door is tucked back down the hall so it will have a little more privacy.  The front hall now has access to a laundry room / mudroom with space for coats and skis!  I would also love to have a deep sink and i think there is room next to the stacked washer/dryer.

Here are a few photos that I am diggin' of laundry rooms and closets.

beautiful built-ins- im obsessed with organization via houzz

yummy white laundry with a folding table
(won't have room for that but hey a girl can dream) via houzz

love the simplicity of this laundry room plus the sink! via houzz

built in storage- we will have to have a tall section for skis via houzz

nice cubbies for goggles and other ski gear via hgtv

nice looking ski rack via cozy winters

products galore: A Toasty Floor for Camping

Photo by Anna Wolf via Randi Brookman Harris

we can't think of anything better than waking up on a cold winter morning and putting your bare feet down onto a toasty warm floor.  so we are using a product called warmboard to heat the entire house.  warmboard is a radiant heat panel that creates the subfloor.  it uses hot water running through a system of pex-aluminum-pex tubes in conjunction with a conductive aluminum panel to evenly heat under your finish floor (hardwood, tile, etc)

radiant heat has been around for a long while, however warmboard has some really awesome features that we love.  unlike other radiant heat systems warmboard responds quickly due to its highly conductive panel and its low thermal mass.  other systems use concrete as the conductor which heats slowly and cannot respond to temperature changes throughout the day.  and unlike forced air their are no air registers to see, and no hot air blowing to dry out your skin.  you are also saving energy by not heating your ceilings which leaves your feet chilled, because we all know warm air rises.

Warmboard Explained

so what if you aren't building a new home but would still like the comfort of radiant heat?  bathrooms are a great place to start and warmboard has a new product that is thinner and can be used in renovation situations its called warmboard- r panel 

our warmboard is arriving tomorrow and it should be a breeze to install these panels on top of our floor joists!  it is exciting to think that in just a few days not only will our sub-floor be in place but so will our heating system!

products galore: wood stoves

björn and i had been debating about a fireplace versus a wood stove versus not having anything at all.  he grew up with a wood burning stove, i grew up with fireplaces.  i don't know if its because the weather has turned cold but i am definitely all for having a wood stove- its seems much more colorado-y (great word i know) there is something about cozying up to a crackling fire on a cold afternoon that is so dreamy and perfect. there are a lot of great examples out there of stoves that i would love to have.  here are a few we are considering and a few i think are cool!

a cute little stove with wood storage via style-files

c-four stove, six colors to choose from via charn wood

wuelh yanes wood stove via design boom

this one you can cook on! esse ironheart stove via woodstoves.net

shaker wood stove- i really like this one! via wittus

classic 4 wood burning stove- you can bake a pie in this one!  via euroheat

designers we heart: air force academy, colorado springs

björn had to go to work on sunday morning and due to all of the snow in durango we were force to drive north to colorado springs so that he could catch a flight out.  colorado springs is a beautiful place geographically.  the mountains to the west of the city rise up so quickly and you can see majestic pikes peak from just about anywhere.  colorado springs is also home to the air force academy and the site of this great building designed by famed architect, walter netsch of skidmore, owings and merrill.  this building serves as the cadet chapel and is a beautiful example of a space which can evoke a feeling of spirituality and awe in just about anyone.  completed in 1962 the chapel consists of 17 spires made up of 100 tubular steel tetrahedrons spaced one foot apart.  the void between the tetrahedrons is filled with colored stained glass which glows from within. the 17 spires resemble fighter jets soaring in the sky and the piece is truly a great example of modern architecture.

view of the chapel from a wooded path leading from the visitors center

the interior of the chapel and the protestant worship space

the beautiful spires

the other buildings on campus are pretty interesting as well especially with the
 mountains as a backdrop

i enjoyed my visit to the air force academy chapel and was even fortunate enough to attend a service in the beautiful space.  i think that the mission of the chapel is important to note, the goal is "to inspire men and women to become leaders of character by providing spiritual care and facilitating the exercise of free religion."  

all photos via me for design house love

progress report: rock retaining wall

part of the trouble and the joy of having a building site on a river like the animas is that it is constantly changing.  in the spring the river is high and fast from all of the snow melt up the valley.  in the fall the river is low and slow moving as it is now.  this means the river banks are also constantly changing and erroding.  on our property we have several large bushy birch trees along the embankment.   these aid in keeping the soil in place and the rivers edge from further erosion.


because of the drop off from the level where the house will sit down to the river bank we have to design a retaining wall.  it has been a definite struggle for us to decided what type of wall we want.  the wall will be most visible from the river and the lower "yard" area so a natural look is probably best, which is why we ultimately decided on a boulder wall.  however, we explored many other looks before coming to this conclusion.

Steel retaining wall from Mulch Maid

Wood retaining wall with decorative wood posts via The Family Handman

Beautiful stacked stone wall via John Ziegler Landscaping

Boulder retaining wall with stone steps via MKM Builders

i hope our boulder wall looks as good as this one above.  we are going to go take pictures of walls in town that we like to give to our contractor to ensure we get the look we want!

big plans: the great room

hnj greatroom- ours is modeled after this space via Hugh Newell Jacobsen

i am finally ready to show off the entire first floor of our sweet little house.  it has gone through so many different phases and changes over the past two or so months.  from having a basement to not having a basement.  walk out great room versus no walk out.


we basically designed out house so that the great room and dining area is its own "house", one pure space with a great wall of windows looking toward the river and the sunset.  we were greatly inspired by Hugh Newell Jacobson spaces, but also by swedish architecture and classic barn architecture.  over the dining room end of the space we have suspended a loft not only to define the dining area but to add a bit of whimsy.  who doesn't like a loft space in which to curl up with a good book?!


since we are the designers the finishes of this space are changing constantly.  i have complied these photos as inspiration for when we get to the design of the interior.  i know i want it to be light and bright but beyond that there are so many choices to make!

First Floor Plan

the beams and high pitch of this roof is pretty fantasic via Tartan Scot Blog

sweet little loft space- the perfect reading nook via Chicago Home Magazine

i want this stove!  so scandinavian via Euro Heat

i like how they added the beams but kept everything white via Villa Anna

interesting space; furniture layout is good for our house via A Life's Design

this is more reminiscent of what our interior ceiling pitch will look like
via J. Banks Design