Thank Goodness...it is eggnog and the holidays are here and my casa is finished!!

The house on Henry Street was, miraculously, finished one week before the new (from the ground up) Harris Teeter grocery store opened in Old Town. The ongoing joke was that it would open before my little addition & renovation was complete. 

While I sing praises and will refer my architect, Kim Beasley, to anyone, I will politely refrain from uttering (in profanity laden sentences) my contractor.

Feel free to call me if you are circling the wagons of contractors; I will gladly inform you if the company I used is on your short list. I will strongly urge you to turn away and run as fast as you can. Let me give you two examples and then I will concentrate on all that is good with my casa on Henry Street, which happens to be across the street from Starbucks.  My amazing boyfriend, Jeff, is delighted with that. Score one for me.

Story #1: When the porcelain floors that resemble wood planks were placed in the great room/kitchen/laundry room/pantry/coat closet and grouted, I noticed the grout, Summer Wheat, looked more like Neopolitan ice cream without the strawberry. The conversation went like this:

Homeowner/me: This is not the way the grout looked at Mosaic Tile. It is supposed to blend in with the tile, making it appear seamless.

Contractor from Hades:  That is how it is supposed to look.

Homeowner/me: I don’t think so. Look how this small portion is rich, dark chocolate brown. The entire floor should look like that.

Contractor from Hades: I think you should adjust your expectations.

Fast forward: HB Fuller's grout expert (who knew that position existed?) flew down from NY and with the skeptical contractor at my side, promptly announced after 5 minutes of inspection, “this is totally incorrect. There was a flaw in the grout. It should all be dark brown, so it blends in with the tile.”

I could have given the stink eye to the contractor; rather, I told him I appreciated his inspection and asked how it could be remedied.  The fix was done 2 months later (they were a little slow in their follow up but they also reimbursed me $280 for my grout cost, which was unexpected).  That barely made a dent in the Change Orders that I had to encounter.

Moral: Never doubt your instincts. Do your research. Stand your ground.

Story #2:  The final 10%.

The final bill was sent to me without any detailed documentation.  The work had not been finished; however, the punch list was still being worked on and it was endless.  Dragging their feet, not showing up for over a week, working on other jobs.  My architect, Saint Kim, informed me that I should refuse to pay the final bill until the punch list was complete.  

My new master bathroom shower kept filling up with water. I had used it twice so it wasn’t my hair. There was most likely debris in the drain.  They said it was a warranty issue; I held my ground. I won.

#3: final bill sent again. went over it with the intelligence fitting a Wharton graduate. What did I find? An overcharge in excess of a year’s supply of Teuscher’s chocolate or  4 Eric Javits purses or a day’s purchase of groceries at Whole Foods. You get the picture.  I dug through my detailed notes, sent the contractor my findings, refrained from calling them incompetent and received an apology. Great accounting. I paid the bill and was finished with them…until my new Toto toilet decided to keep “running”.  Now Toto has been called and since this is the 2^nd episode with the master bath wall mounted toilet, they are supposed to expedite a repair or replacement. 

What have I learned?

Keep your sense of humor.

Have 30% in reserve for "change orders". 

Even with the best research, you can still end up with a contractor you don’t like or respect.

Get a great architect.  Buy him gift certificates and give him gift baskets – because he did so much work he didn’t even bill me.

Fight fair and stand firm. Drop the “F bomb” when necessary. I did this one time with the said contractor when I found out they actually installed the  cheap $10 round drain in my new master shower…while the $120 custom drain was sitting in a box downstairs with the other bathroom accessories. Then, they proceeded to use a different color grout. Then, they actually built UP the tile around the drain instead of sloping it TOWARD the drain. Yes, three fixes. The “F Bomb” was warranted and had the effect desired.

Get a great kitchen designer. Dawn Summers, owner of  NVS Kitchen & Bath, was a tiger. She went head-to-head with the contractor and won every time. She reminds me of Melissa McCarthy – hysterical.

Mosaic Tile: excellent products, price, showroom in Chantilly and an incredible designer to guide me through all the different options. Ana Bowyer- genius.

Lighting designer: The BEST ...Alexandria Lighting. 5 minute walk from my house. Joshua is a combo of Amy Pohler, the personality of Mitchell from Modern Family and the king of lighting. Incredible prices and he has so much knowledge. My lighting is the best!! Still thankful I only had to purchase 2 Murano glass pendants for the space above the Island. One more and I would be eating Ramen noodles every night. Well, that isn’t true because my amazing boyfriend, Jeff, is the MOST amazing chef and cooks for me.

Furniture: can’t afford much right now. Have a couch and table in the great room and a new bed & mattress in the new master. The new side tables are coming from Boyle’s Furniture in NC. Great prices and great choices.

New project: yes. A new project.The fencing and back 'yard' and landscaping.

Groff Design is a lifesaver. The 3D color renderings and the creative design options blew me away.   White PVC fence with little maintenance. Gutters that would feed underground and surface elsewhere – no unsightly gutter guards on the ground. Low maintenance and low kill plantings, including a Japanese Maple! 

I also have a motion detector light in the back of the house. I was surprised my mom didn’t want barbed wire circling the fence posts. She still may put a “guard dog on premises” sign as a further warning.

I am living exactly where I am supposed to live – in Old Town, close to shopping, metro, church, restaurants and the bike / running trail. I am blessed beyond words can express.

  

I couldn’t have done this without my mom, who oversaw the project for 9 months. She had a heart attack in August. She is recovering and will be moving up to Old Town Alexandria soon – she will thrive up here. She jokes that the contractor gave her a heart attack…she might be right!

My middle name must be..."That will be a Change Order:

Side of the house with the new Hardiplank

picture #2: one of my two Murano glass pendants for the kitchen.

I can actually see the end of the tunnel and it has been paved with sweat, sleepless nights and costly errors...errors that my contractor has fixed at their cost. Yes, I am up to six change orders; however, they are all (always ending in two or three "zeros") issues that were unforseen. A few tears here and there, a few less splurges on dresses and pedicures. Today, I just realized that I am going to be getting standard white plastic wall and electrical outlet switches. So tonight, I spent 2 hours on the internet and found the coolest switches that don't have screws in them. Who knew? Why would I want to spend the extra money? I guess it is because I am actually celebrating the fact that my ex-husband isn't around any more to spend my bonus money. That is reason enough, believe me.

Mastic....a word I learned from my mom, who continues to amaze me with her vast knowledge of countless home construction terms. She also has a list of 60 (yes, that is right) items I need to review and check off with my contractor, who is most likely wishing he never took on my job. Seriously, how many home owners have someone on sight every day of the construction process? That was my mom...for 5 months. Fortunately, I have been here most of the time. I'm still worried that my washer & dryer won't fit into the new laundry room and more than sad that my dream item: the drop down ironing board won't fit. Remember, this is the same girl who is over the moon about her wall mounted Toto toilets...Life begins at 50 I tell ya....

I think a sinkhole has developed in my back parking space. the massive truck that comes in to remove the trash container is so heavy that it crushed the cement square where I park. I fear that my car will disappear down the hole. My contractor said they will fix it.

I'm inhaling too much dust and I'm too lazy to dust. Pathetic. I wash out my yogurt dishes in the bathtub. For those Seinfeld fanatics, there was an episode with Kramer about this.

My boyfriend has cooked for me more times than I can count. I bring him Ketel Vodka. I do my laundry over there as well. I tried doing it at the Laundromat a while back but it used 10,000 quarters.

My sub contractors are really nice and when I buy them lunch at the Chinese restaurant and Dominos, I know they appreciate it...that is, until I made them take down all the crown moulding. My painter informed me that the walls were never primed before the crown moulding and caulking was done. My architect came over, the owner of the contractor business came over...they are very accommodating but what if my painter hadn't told me the damage it would  have caused down the road. UGH!!! So now when they see me, they run to a corner of the room. Bottom line: it's my money. It has to be done right the first time. No apologies. Did I tell you my architect is so amazing? He's so smart and so direct and professional. He has stood by my side throughout the process and when so many things have gone wrong and I've had issues, he is there to make sure it gets done right.

One of my other favorite splurges: mini blinds built INTO the glass panes of  my French doors on the lower level and on the sliding glass doors in the Master Bedroom? No dusting! No installation of blinds into the doors, no clanging of the blinds when I open the doors - a very clean look.

picture above is my master bath (still unfinished) that has two gorgeous glass niches.

And how much is THAT going to cost?



side of house framing continues



the framing goes up! back of house.

the tear down shows all the original flaws-surprised the house actually stands!

new front door

Let me cue up the 1986 movie  "The Money Pit", starring Tom Hanks and Shelley Long.
This house is...old...and the unexpected does happen. There were some issues that resulted in an additional $10K charge that could not be helped. Does that mean I should stop buying new clothes and cute boots? Yes. Does that mean I should stop drinking wine and eating cheese? No.

Thank goodness my mom, here forward known lovingly as "The Hawk", is here overseeing the project. She has the most amazing sense of construction and knows to ask questions that even the owners of the contractor business were surprised. Took them aback too. Like the time she questioned the sub about the way he was laying the foundation and how it was off by 2"...my architect came by and found out this particular sub had disregarded everything he had been instructed to do. My architect made it very clear that he would not do business with them if this particular sub remained on my job or any future jobs. The sub was fired. Even though they said this sub had done numerous other "good" jobs for them, you can bet the homeowners were not home during the construction. The Hawk was home every minute and nothing...I mean nothing...gets by her. She knows the life stories of the subs and the project manager. The Hawk is also a mom too!

There hasn't been any heat in the house for over 2 weeks and it has started to get cold. We have a space heater and my boyfriend brought over another space heater and has offered up his house for mom to stay. She loves my boyfriend almost as much as I do!

Trying to save $12K on custom French doors on the ground  & second level, now that I had to shell out $10K extra. May opt to whittle down the size a bit and use standard doors. The upstairs French doors will now have a transom above instead of a custom half moon window. Little cuts here & there....but you can guar-an-tee that the wine cooler in the new kitchen is still on order as are the  Toto wall mounted toilets with dual flush!

About a month behind schedule. Snow may fall. Heat will have to come on soon. Oh...when the contractor brought back my unit that has the coils in it for the furnace, I noticed that three of the four sides were dented! and the cover was missing...! It appears that it was dropped at the construction warehouse. The solution: they could "bang it back into shape and use touch up paint" or "order a new one, at their cost". The Hawk didn't raise a dumb daughter. Of course I want a new one! And who loses the furnace cover? I can understand losing the Halloween candy that you hide somewhere in the house but a furnace cover?

The process has been exciting, expensive and challenging. The process is NOT for the faint of heart. Luckily (or maybe not), we are still living in the house. Dust everywhere. A college size frig. No washer/dryer. Went to the local laundromat and spent too  many quarters in lousy machines. Now I take all my laundry to my boyfriend's house. More fun that way too.

 Next step: meeting with electrical contractor, kitchen designer and my therapist...only kidding. Picking out the light fixtures, kitchen pendant, ceiling fan and outdoor lighting soon. Like I said, I am the luckiest girl in the world to be able to do this project. Love Old Town, love my neighborhood and love my mom!

We're not in Kansas anymore Toto....

Demolition officially began on Thursday, August 15. This was after paying Alexandria $2,117 for the construction permit. It is exciting watching the process unfold. The dumpster was delivered on August 14 amidst challenges. A dangling Verizon telephone wire precluded the large truck from backing into my small space. I volunteered to stand atop the cab and use a piece of wood to lift it. The driver got a kick out of that. Eventually, the dumpster found its way to the back of my property. As of last night, it has already been filled with one full load.

Construction Company: Advanced Construction Group in Old Town Alexandria. Great guys, well organized, accessible and after a 2 hour pre-construction meeting recently, I knew I was in great hands for this five month process.

My  mom, a/k/a Project Manager from here forward, arrived from Bluffton SC 2 weeks ago. She has lost 14 pounds already, blaming me for starving her and climbing the stairs 30 times a day, walking to the Post Office daily to pick up my mail. By her account, she estimates a 40 pound weight loss by December!

Who knew picking our fixtures could be so fun...and expensive? I have "invested" in two Japanese Toto toilets, dual flush, wall mount. Space saver, efficient and way cool. Never mind my toilet allowance was $200 per toilet... I won't even tell you how much they cost but I do recall that the toiilet seat was actually an additional cost. Really?

My home office has been officially been moved from the "shack-in-the-back" (area demolished already) to the back bedroom. Much better!!

Next step: the water will be turned off and I should expect some cold showers but not for long. The dishwasher, dryer and stove are now resting in my dining room. The frig is being donated to make room for a new one and I bought a college dorm size frig from Craig's List for $40 ! My  mom is already freaking out because that means even less food in the house!

Here is another reason to hire an architect: my permit was being held up at City Hall, due to the self-importance one official had placed on himself. Left to me, I would have jeapordized the process by getting very angry. Kim, my architect, was at City Hall waiting for this guy to come to work. He made sure the permit was granted and done so before he left. It still delayed the start date by 4 days. All is good though.

I'm so excited about the process, my private life, my upcoming Ironman Triathlon and even my hair is looking good these days (but only when it gets a blow-out). I am so blessed to have such great friends & family.

Next installment: the addition is taking shape. Stay tuned!

The Gas Man cometh...and other unexpected surprises

There are some things cupcakes just will not accomplish...it was determined that a new expense would require me to sell some more company stock. It became evident that I needed an estimate to relocate/offset the existing Washington Gas natural gas service to my home. Washington Gas needed to  inspect the home. J.R.'s appointment was set and my architect joined us as well. He and his team received a dozen cupcakes from me for his Perry Mason skills at City Hall. Kim, my architect, loves cupcakes.

There are many new requirements for moving a gas meter, which include just some of the following: 10 feet from any powered air intakes; 3 feet from any door; 3 feet from an operable window; 3 feet from dryer vents; 3 feet from ignition sources (i get that one). you get the picture. J.R.'s fee for the visit was $78, which was acceptable. Then, he had to write up his estimate. The yellow piece of paper said it all. I now hate yellow.Cost of work, including labor but not the plumbing costs, is $1,699.00. Just say $1,700 because we all know that any type of work on a home has two zeros at the end of the work order anyway. Cupcakes could not fix this unexpected expense.

Depressed, I went for a run afterward and felt better. Thank goodness I don't have to clothe or feed a child.

Other unexpected expenses: my seemingly respectable budget for the addition & renovation must have seemed to be a STARTING point for the contractors. Two of them responded with estimates $13K and $28K over my budget. One contractor decided to verbalize his cost to my architect...no written document. Bye bye. The other contractor has not responded and has four other proposals in the queue. Bye bye. Fortunately, my boyfriend and one of his business partners will be reviewing the two bids and assisting me with the process. This is their area of expertise. I see cupcakes for their office.

Last night, I had the pleasure of working with my bathroom designer to help choose my tiles and flooring. She asked me what my "style" was. After looking like a deer in the headlights, we determined I was a "transitional" gal...a cross between contemporary and clean lines. Yes, I am going for the "spa" look in my master and bolder colors in the half bath. This will be fun. I promised you a picture of my current "half-bath", which shares the space with my HVAC and golf clubs. It will be such a joy to have a bathroom that has a pocket door and cool flooring and a Duravit toilet!

Stay tuned. The next blog should be after I have chosen my contractor. My mom will be flying up from SC to assist during the entire project. She will have a blast and I am going to get her a hard hat too.

Public Hearing for construction....should I bring cupcakes to sway the vote?

How is it that my previously married name shows up on the City Of Alexandria public hearing posters (two of them!) when I purchased the home as a single woman? Breathe, drink some wine, breathe, drink a little more. The evening of April 11, my incredible architect, Kim Beasley, was a master and wizard  presenting my home plans to the City of Alexandria. Last month, when we met with  City Officials, for which I paid an additional $600 to my architect, the Alexandria city architect wanted my house to have a FLAT ROOF. Horrors. Numerous homes around me have pitched roofs and I need that style roof to play hide and seek. Actually, it is required to house the HVAC. Attractive as those mechanical items are, they don't belong in plain sight. Just like Hammer pants, some things should stay hidden.

My biggest concern tonight was...what to wear? Should I bring cupcakes? According to Kim, "this should be a slam dunk. It has already been rubber stamped." Friends, beware those words. Nothing is ever final until it's officially signed. This was being televised because, for some reason, people watch this on local tv. Bizarre. Glad I wore a dress but I did notice my OPI toe polish had chipped. Kim asked me if I wanted to speak. Uh...that would be a no.

There was a full quorom: six people, including the Chairman. I was introduced to most of them and had already met one of the officials at our previous meeting. I think my hands were clammy.

Kim flawlessly presented the plans, modest addition and improvements. My next door neighbor was even present for support as well. I was sitting up straight, looking them in the eye, iphone turned off. The Board asked  a few questions and Kim responded in a manner that resulted in affirmative nods. Wow...this is a slam dunk....until...some suit behind me got up to speak.

It was an attorney that represented the empty lot (I call it a dog park) adjacent to my home. Two trustees from the church were also present. What was this? Kim had attempted no less than six times to meet with them and explain the plans. Three different people, countless unreturned calls, a certified letter even sent to the church.

My shoulders sagged, I started to slump...the attorney stated that he had only been contacted two days prior by the church and asked to speak on their behalf. They wanted a continuance to review the plans as they had concerns. Unfortunately, the attorney said he could not be specific about the church's concerns and that was all he was at liberty to say at this time. A continuance??? This had already been delayed one time. The Chairman asked Kim if he wanted to respond.

Naturally, I wanted to jump up and make a fool out of myself, whip my head around and yell, "What are you doing? We've been planning this for ages. I even had wine and food at my neighborhood meetings when the plans were discussed. Where were you??" That is why I didn't speak.

Kim mentioned that he had made contact with three different people at the Church, offered to present the plans and answer any questions. His offers had been met with silence. Now, he said, his client ( that's moi) would suffer a hardship due to another delay and this would cost me more money. No...not that ...more money??? This could cut into my wine & beer budget.

The Board and three members chimed in. They said that although they sympathized with the Church, they had ample time to meet with Kim. They said that Kim and I had gone "over and above" in communicating the plans to the neighbors and due to the fact that no one in the 'hood objected, that spoke highly of the plans to improve the residence.

They also added that another delay would be costly to the homeowner and would present a hardship. I started sitting up straight again. The decision was made unanimously to approve the plans. Just like that! Maybe I should have brought cupcakes.

Next step: Kim will send out the plans to his pool of contractors. Then, they present their bids to me and I make a decision. Stay tuned. All is good.

New life , new (old) house
2011 and 2012 were my "age of awakening" years. Shouldn't that have happened in my 30s? Regardless, I am so blessed to be living where I want. That is in Old Town Alexandria VA. Life brimming with shops, local restaurants, cupcake stores, consignment stores, running and bike paths, parks filled with adorable dogs.

I was fortunate to purchase a 112 year old home less than a month after the Falls Church VA house finally sold. Wood floors throughout, a narrow staircase leading upstairs, a very strange half bath (photo to follow later) and 3 bedrooms. Bonus: two reserved parking spaces behind the house! For those of you who revel in your two and three car garages, it is difficult to comprehend that two open air gravel pits could evoke so much emotion. Trust me, it's a big deal, especially in Old Town.

I immediately set my sights on finding a qualified architect who could do an addition and a renovation. City Hall steered me to the most amazing man: Kim Beasley of Beasley Architectural Group LLC. He has personally designed over 200 homes in the Washington DC area. He began his residential design practice in 1975. On a really cool note, in 1989, Kim invented an adaptable stadium seat for persons with disabilities. From 1986-2000, he served as National Architecture Director for the Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA) in Washington DC.

The plans have been designed and the checks have been written, money well spent. My new addition/renovation will include a Great Room at the rear ground floor, a reconfigured and enlarged kitchen, a powder room and a second floor Master Bedroom Suite. A second staircase will be built in the back of the house to access the upstairs master suite. A gas fireplace was also added into the plans as well. Pinch me.

Next step: March 14, Kim presents the plans to City Hall for approval. The contractors will all present to me and just like The Dating Game, I will choose one for a short term relationship.

My mom, lovingly here-to-fore named Opie, (she is overprotective and I'm 53 years old!!) will fly up from Bluffton SC to oversee the project since I travel quite a bit for business. She will receive a special hard hat to wear, since I have a feeling she will be working quite closely with the guys!

Anticipated start date is May and the project is expected to take five months.

Oh...that little sliver of green grass alongside my casa...that doesn't belong to me. It belongs to a church. It could be mine if I wanted to make an offer. I made the mistake of looking at the land value: $335K. I am glad I didn't make my $30K offer. When I get my little shelter dog, I have a built in dog park though; can't beat that!

Emotions at this time: excited, joyous.

We'll do a check when the actual construction begins. My dad kindly sent me the real estate guide from Tulsa, where he and his wife, Ruth live. I learned that I could have bought a 4,000 square foot home there with a three car garage, media room, swimming pool for less than that sliver of church land price.

Stay tuned. Next Friday, the neighbors are coming over. Kim will review the plans with them and answer any questions. I'm a bit nervous because two attorneys live next door to me and I've had some issues with attorneys. Breathe...breathe...I plan on having alcohol at this little gathering, don't ya know?