We sold our dream house a few years back. It was in a neighborhood that when Nick and I first got married, we would walk through it and say to one another, this was the place. This was where we wanted to settle down and raise our family. What is funny sometimes about dreaming, is that once you get there you realize there is always more…more dreaming, more hoping, and for us more moving. We packed up everything and gave the keys away, and decided we’d have a little faith that new dreams were on the way.

We lived in our camper for a year and decided to build a new home with WCI. This was not a custom build but there were a few items they allowed us to customize and so I thought I’d share a few of our choices that I feel confident were good along the way as we built our home.

There were a few “upgrades” that we felt were both financially sound and convenient to do during construction versus waiting and doing it ourselves after. One of those was to upgrade all the cabinetry to white. I love the trending cabinet colors, but I also know that homes with white cabinetry sell faster and maintain their value for longer. We refaced our cabinets in past homes and that can always be an option later too. The second option that we did through the builder was to have them install the wood flooring. Although their options had limits, for the convenience and price point this was better to do with them during the construction process. We have done new flooring in both of our previous homes, and it is a challenge with a family. (I guess we were already in the camper and could have just stayed a bit longer, but 100sqft for a little longer was a hard sell.)

The other item that we didn’t do through the builder but began prior to closing was closet organization. Organization is a design element that stays behind the shadows but is key to function and beauty. “Everything has a place, and there is a place for every.” We have worked with a closet designer in a few homes and so we began this process prior to closing and attempted to time it well that the closets would go in very soon after we moved in. One item that we very much enjoy in a custom closet are deep drawers. It saves space in the rooms, not needing dressers in the bedrooms and you can fold things that don’t typically do well on a hanger (sweaters, jeans, shorts, etc.) Having these ready very soon after we moved in was so helpful in setting up our home and routines for how we plan to live our home.

The last little ditty to share with you is our decision to do some of the upgrading ourselves after construction. We added our upper (second layer) of cabinets after construction. All cabinetry has the branding from the maker inside and so we knew exactly the types of cabinets we had. We weren’t able to purchase them straight from the company so we had to find a local company that sold the brand and ordered and installed through them. This saved us a ton of money and allowed us to choose the layout and cabinet faces we wanted. We also waited to pick our backsplash. We just installed this about a week ago. Took us over two years to decide. A backsplash, although a small feature in the home, in our open floor plan felt like it would ultimately carry the vibe of our home. It also, helped make our home special in a neighborhood with duplicates of many of the homes.

We are two years into this home and still working, finishing, styling and restyling. I don’t think we have any room finished. Budget and time are normal limitations for everyone and probably keep us at a good pace for making some decisions in our space. A slower pace gives you time to think, live and get inspired with what you want from your home. There are always things you look back on and would do differently but these little tips I would pass along with good confidence. Cheers to new adventures and old ones…since that’s where all the lessons come from.