Designing and Building Your Own Home Archives - Page 23 of 28

29 06, 2019

A blended home

Noah Bradley2019-06-29T09:47:49+00:00

I have found that homes that are all one thing (log, stone, timber frame, etc) tend to be a bit boring especially as time goes by. I prefer building a blended home, one where several forms of construction are employed… it makes for a better home, and saves money as well.

Log cabins make great dens, dining rooms, and bedrooms.

Timber frame makes for a great family room, kitchen, and bedroom.

Modern stick-built construction, designed and finished properly can handle the above rooms… but really make sense in utility, closet, mudroom, laundry, staircase areas, etc. as it is quick to build and a bargain in price.

I know of no one else that promotes this idea. It seems each industry wants to promote it’s product, it’s form of construction, as “the one and only”.

Originally posted 2016-04-21 13:35:42.

A blended homeNoah Bradley2019-06-29T09:47:49+00:00

29 06, 2019

“Someday” vs “Living the dream”

Noah Bradley2019-06-29T09:47:48+00:00

Over the course of many years in building handmade houses… cabins and farmhouse… I’ve heard so many people tell me “I sure would like to have one just like that”.

I have always listened and assured those folks that one day that they would have one.

It wasn’t just visitors to the construction site that told me this, either. Friends often started the same kind of conversation, about their dreams of having a cabin in the woods and the blessings that that lifestyle would bring.

For every hundred people I’ve heard talk about building a special place of their own, I’d estimate only one ended up doing anything about it. 99 out of 100 did nothing but dream.

I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about that, the people that I helped get their dream home were no different than these other folks… no richer, no more driven, nor talented.

Which made me wonder, what separates the “someday” people from the people who actually do something about their dreams of building that dream home?

Do the “someday people” know all along they’re not going to take action, or does life just get in the way?

The folks who I’ve built cabins for have often told me that their friends are often envious of their homes. These same clients tell me that they just don’t really know how it all came about or know what to tell their friends. They say… “it just sort of happened”.

I’ve had the good fortune of witnessing these miracles happen, over a hundred times, and have observed about a dozen steps that all these people have done which moved them from “someday people” to “living the dream” people.

Over the next week or so I’ll share these small, mostly zero cost, steps with you.

Originally posted 2016-04-19 15:14:49.

“Someday” vs “Living the dream”Noah Bradley2019-06-29T09:47:48+00:00

29 06, 2019

Bathing in style

Noah Bradley2019-06-29T09:47:46+00:00

Nothing finer than having a good bathtub… and a laundry shoot that leads to a basket next to the downstairs washing machine.

Originally posted 2016-04-13 07:59:25.

Bathing in styleNoah Bradley2019-06-29T09:47:46+00:00

29 06, 2019

Once upon a time…

Noah Bradley2019-06-29T09:47:45+00:00

I once built a large farmhouse for a wonderful family.

That was back in 1998.

I do believe she is more attractive today than the day I drove in that last nail.

And that, is the beauty of designing a home based upon historic guidelines.

Originally posted 2016-04-07 14:08:43.

Once upon a time…Noah Bradley2019-06-29T09:47:45+00:00

29 06, 2019

Building your own home in the woods

Noah Bradley2019-06-29T09:47:40+00:00

I want to encourage everyone that a dream home is doable… I built my first home at the age of 20 with little money or experience, and no credit. I worked evenings and got that house far enough along that bankers were impressed enough to loan me the little bit of money it took to finish. It wasn’t a McMansion… but it was nice, and handmade.

I’m planning on building my next home in a couple years at the age of 60, still not much money to be found anywhere around here, and the old body ain’t what it used to be. But I have learned a lot, so it ought to turn out well… slow… but well. I plan on recording the process… I hope you’ll follow along.

I’ve known people in their 70’s who hand-built their home.

I’ve even worked alongside people in wheelchairs.

Originally posted 2016-04-02 12:51:22.

Building your own home in the woodsNoah Bradley2019-06-29T09:47:40+00:00

29 06, 2019

Adding an antique staircase to a new home

Noah Bradley2019-06-29T09:47:39+00:00

I do love old staircases. I’ve been using salvaged ones for several decades now.

The quality of the craftsmanship and materials found in them cannot be replicated today.

It’s seems that each one I find is a one-of-a-kind, unlike newly built ones which can be identical whether they are found in small homes or monstrous manors… from one side of the country to the other.

I do love the old hand-tooled marks. and the wear patterns that come about through much use… treads that have been worn by a century or more of climbing, railings worn smooth by hands of both young and old alike. I wonder about those who might have slid down those railings laughing all the way, or the children that might have sneaked down the stairs to see what Santa might have brought, or perhaps a young daughter on her way to her first date as her father anxiously looks on.

Some of my clients love the squeaks that seem to come with and old staircase. I do my best to get rid of them during the install, but it seems no matter what I do at least one will reappear. I had a kind client thank me deeply for “creating that lovely squeak”. I accepted the compliment, not wanting to confess how much effort I had put into removing it, and had failed.

I have spent over 30 years reusing salvaged materials in newer homes. Of all of the materials that I find available staircases are quite often the most numerous, and often the greatest bargain. Part of the reason for the abundance, and the low price, is because of a staircases massive size… they are huge and tough to manage, and struggle to put into place. Another reason is because they were often built for a very particular location, every staircase needs to start at a certain exact point and end at one as well. Another issue, and this is a big one, Building Codes often specify that a each rise height can vary no more than a very small amount… the risers on some old staircases vary a good bit… it’s smart to measure each one before buying. And keep in mind that the distance from the top of the first floor to the top of the second floor needs to match the height of the staircase exactly… you can’t have half a step left over at the top!!!

With all of the above kept in mind. When I build a new home and I know that I want to use an old salvaged staircase, I often start by finding and procuring the staircase first and then designing and building the home with those dimensions in mind.

I did rebuild an old house once that had a precious staircase in it that I knew it would not pass code due to varying dimensions in the risers. I went ahead with it hoping that somehow I could get it to pass. The building inspector did notice it, but had a talk with the owners of the home, pointing out the “imperfection” but then passing it on their acceptance. We were all tickled.

Originally posted 2016-04-02 12:31:39.

Adding an antique staircase to a new homeNoah Bradley2019-06-29T09:47:39+00:00

29 06, 2019

Strive to improve the landscape with your home

Noah Bradley2019-06-29T09:47:37+00:00

Quite often when we look for land to purchase, a view is top priority. We want to enjoy scenic mountains or a rolling countryside when we kick back on our front porch.
It’s important to remember that when we build, our new home becomes part of that view.
Sometimes, if we build well, our homes can become “the view”… like this wonderful cabin.

Originally posted 2016-03-25 15:12:26.

Strive to improve the landscape with your homeNoah Bradley2019-06-29T09:47:37+00:00

29 06, 2019

Natural or painted finish… maybe both?

Noah Bradley2019-06-29T09:47:34+00:00

Originally posted 2016-03-25 14:46:40.

Natural or painted finish… maybe both?Noah Bradley2019-06-29T09:47:34+00:00

29 06, 2019

The perfect porch roof

Noah Bradley2019-06-29T09:47:30+00:00

Such a wonderful cabin isn’t it?

One unique feature of this cabin is the combination of a metal roof on the main cabin… and a wood shake roof over the porch. I’ve seen plenty of cabins with metal roofing installed all over, and just as many with nothing but wood shingles. I’ve also seen (and built) quite a few homes with a shake roof on the cabin and a metal one over the porch. But I don’t ever recall seeing this reversed combination.

Both forms of roofing (metal or wood shingle) work well, and look great, on the steep pitch roof of a cabin like this. But on the shallower pitch roof of a porch, wood shakes can be prone to leaking. In many areas of the country a roof pitched as shallow as this, covered in wood shingles, would be forbidden by the building code for that very reason.

So, one has to ask… other than code considerations… and aesthetics… and roof leakage issues… is there any other reason to consider having, or not having, a wood shake roof over a porch?

Yes.. there is one… metal roofs are loud… really loud, when you are outside under them during a heavy rain. The rain is all you will hear, unlike a wood roof which will be pleasantly quiet.

But, on the flip side of that coin, a lot of people like to hear the rain striking a metal roof and are often disappointed to find that by putting a metal roof on their well-insulated home that they don’t hear the rain at all. Whereas if they put a metal roof over the non-insulated porch, well, it might be loud outside under it… but inside the home the homeowners would experience the perfect volume level to hear that summer rainfall coming in from the porch area.

What’s my recommendation? Metal, for sure. But then again…

Originally posted 2016-03-18 16:54:58.

The perfect porch roofNoah Bradley2019-06-29T09:47:30+00:00

29 06, 2019