06/11/2012
While we’re waiting to break ground, I’ve been pouring over the plans for our new house hunting for anything productive we can do now. I’ve even studied the electrical schematic, looking at where light switches will be placed for which lights.
Our last house was lit at night by a spotlight kit we got at the local big box store. It came with a timer box, which eventually broke and we just put a regular programmable timer between the outlet and the plug for the lighting system. We had the lights automatically come on at dusk and shut off in the early morning hours (around 4am, usually). In the winter when it got dark at 5:30, it was so nice to arrive home from work to a lit up house. It increased our home security also, since anyone snooping around our house would have been hit with spotlights, making it difficult to be unnoticed by our close neighbors. When I saw the light plan for our new house and the marker for a light switch by the front door that operates the front under-eaves down lights, I had an idea. Surely, someone makes a programmable light switch; one that can be set to flip on and off at set times everyday.
Good old Amazon.com! Seems like I can find almost anything on there! I have two of these Honeywell 7-Day Programmable Timer Switches ($28.75 with free shipping)on my wish list for our new house—one for the front lights and one for the back lights. It can have a different program for everyday of the week. It fits a standard light switch box with a standard face plate (same size as a GFCI outlet, I think) and it comes in white. Perfect!
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Art, Art: modern design, Art: new home build | Tagged: electricity, lighting, new home build, programmable light switch | 
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Posted by mahlbrandt
05/17/2012
I wish I had more exciting news to report. I was really hopeful that we’d be breaking ground this week. We’re working things out with the bank, trying some different options to see who/what/where will be a good fit to finance our new home. In the meantime, our contractors have the building permit in hand and are ready to go as soon as we close on the construction loan…which could be a few more weeks. Boo. We’re really eager to start moving forward.
I have some samples of countertops and wood flooring on my desk. This is honed granite, which is an option we’re considering for the kitchen countertop. The wood sample is hickory. Jason picked it up at the hardware store because he likes the fine, straight grain and the variation of colors. I do too. We’re still quite a ways away from needing to make those decisions but we’re looking at options as much as possible now so we can decide quickly later on.
Leave a Comment » | Art, Art: interior design, Art: modern design, Art: new home build | Tagged: construction, countertops, dream home, flooring, granite, hickory, house, kitchen, new home | Permalink
Posted by mahlbrandt
04/26/2012
Our new home exterior will have cedar siding, as well as concrete block on most of the front, and hardie plank accents around the side and back. I was having trouble visualizing the cedar so I did some homework and looked for images on Pinterest.
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Here is what I DON’T want it to look like!
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Or like this. Too rustic for my taste.
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I stumbled upon this image, also. This house has several elements similar to ours. Concrete facade, cedar siding, courtyard entrance, glass store front style door. I also really love the unexpected pop of blue.
1 Comment | Art, Art: modern design, Art: new home build | Tagged: cedar siding, construction, dream house, modern, new house | Permalink
Posted by mahlbrandt
04/18/2012
For the past five years—ever since we bought our mid-century modern ranch—Jason and I have been buying old things to replace our new things. We found a set of vintage end tables at a thrift store, came home and put our new-ish IKEA tables on craigslist. We found an old dresser on the side of the road and gave our new-ish dresser away to some friends. And we kept going and going. Most recently we traded in our new-ish sofa and bed frame for 1950s sofa and bed frame replacements. It’s not just because we love the style of the vintage replacements; but also because of the quality. Things from that era were made to last. Why buy new, more expensive furniture that doesn’t stand up over time when we can spend less on vintage wares that just need refinished or cleaned up?
Well, I’m afraid we’ve taken our philosophy one step further…we’ve entered into the realm of classic cars.
It’s not a mid-century car. We’re not that brave yet. (Maybe someday we’ll have something as sweet as this 1963 Falcon!) We got ourselves a 1988 Mercedes-Benz 300SE. Quite a contrast to the all practical suburban workhorse we bought last spring, our Silver Bullet.
Fun fact: when this car was new, it cost 3x as much as the home Jason’s parents bought in the 80s. And much like furniture from the golden age, this car was built to last with style and quality would couldn’t find in a new-ish car…at least not for the same price.
I’m not going to lie…we were sort of wooed by the design. We love the boxy navy blue exterior and the tan leather interior—and it’s in amazing condition for the age. It has all kinds of fun buttons that we’re still figuring out, a huge sunroof, a thermostat climate control dial, ashtrays and cigarette lighters in the back doors.
In with the old…that means it was time to kick out our new (10 year old) Ford Focus. It’s a little bit sad to say goodbye to the ole’ Green Meanie. It’s taken us a lot of places in the 8 years that we owned it and it’s been a good little car, but it is time to move on. We’ll let someone else eek the last couple years out of it.
2 Comments | Art, Art: modern design | Tagged: car, classic, mercedes-benz, new, old | Permalink
Posted by mahlbrandt
03/29/2012
Good news: Pinterest has some practical real life applications! Last week I was pinning pictures of kitchens for inspiration for our new home. Our architect emailed us and said, “I noticed you’ve been looking at soapstone countertops. Do you want us to get some prices together for soapstone counters in the kitchen?” Jason said, “How did he know that?!” Because he follows my boards on Pinterest, of course!
It’s true. We’ve been thinking about putting black soapstone countertops with high gloss white cabinets and stainless appliances in our new kitchen. We like the solid dark color, the soft feel, the heat resistance and the matte finish of soapstone. And supposedly it’s quite a bit cheaper than granite. Here are some inspiration pictures I pinned on Pinterest. Some are pinned because of the cabinets, some the counter tops, some the configuration.
3 Comments | Art, Art: interior design, Art: modern design, Art: new home build | Tagged: cabinets, countertops, dream house, interior design, kitchen, modern, new home | Permalink
Posted by mahlbrandt
03/14/2012
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Jason and I just finished watching Eames: The Architect and the Painter on Netflix, and it was totally inspiring. What I love most about the husband and wife duo of Charles and Ray Eames is that they never limited their creative interests and business endeavors to just one field. Charles was trained as an architect though he never graduated from college or got a license. Ray was trained as a painter but never made her living that way. Together they took on the challenge of creating an ergonomic chair made of bent plywood—completely innovative in their day.
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From there, they went on to produce tons of furniture designs out of their studio in California with a team of designers working for them. But the couple also dabbled in film production and toy making. Everything they did was as a team. I loved seeing the letters they sent back and forth while they were separated for work, each updating the other on progress at the studio, what shops to visit in Paris, where to buy shoes, where to get a great deal on perfume—complete with whimsical drawings and love notes. It reminds me a lot of the kind of texts, emails and phone calls Jason and I exchange throughout the day. What a cool couple (minus the whole infidelity thing…eh hem), pictured below in the home they designed together.
1 Comment | Art, Art: interior design, Art: mid-century design, Art: modern design | Tagged: architecture, design, eames, interior design, mid-century modern, modern design | Permalink
Posted by mahlbrandt
03/13/2012
I saw this article about red refrigerators on Retro Renovation and it got me thinking… would I ever put a colored fridge in my kitchen? Red is my least favorite color but I started looking at Pam’s links and imagining the possibilities. Maybe a minty green refrigerator?
Or a sky blue?
What about a white vintage style? White would be kind of sexy alongside glossy white cabinets, dark countertops and other stainless appliances.
I have a feeling we’ll end up with stainless but it’s fun to dream. (The above models are around $3500. Yikes!) Here are some inspiring photos:
3 Comments | Art, Art: interior design, Art: mid-century design, Art: modern design, Art: new home build | Tagged: appliances, color, home, interior design, refrigerator, retro, vintage | Permalink
Posted by mahlbrandt
02/23/2012
We’re waiting for our architect to finish up the construction documents so we can find the perfect contractor and get started on our new house. In the meantime, I decided I’d take Ryan’s front elevation drawing into Photoshop and have some fun with it. I used a photo of the property from October (when the trees had leaves) and then added colors, textures and landscaping.
I don’t know how accurate this mock up will end up being but it sure does get Jason and me excited!
Leave a Comment » | Art, Art: graphic design, Art: mid-century design, Art: modern design, Art: new home build | Tagged: architecture, mid-century, mock up, modern, new home, photoshop, plans | Permalink
Posted by mahlbrandt
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