We are almost there!

We went for the "Walk-thru" today and learnt a whole lot about our new home. For example, during a power outage, we are not supposed to use the basement bathroom, or the sump pump might give us a nasty surprise. We were told where the circuit breakers were, where the pipes led, how to change the air-conditioning filters...etc. It was hard to not be distracted as there was so much "new" stuff to see. Everything looked different without that layer of dust. It also helped that there were no holes in the walls. Here are some of the things that truly made our day!

1. They got the color RIGHT!

The painters changed out the white and what a world of difference it makes.

This is a picture of our house taken from the main gated entrance.

2. We LOVE the hardwood floors that we picked!

(The protective covering has finally come off!)

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3. We love the kitchen + bathroom tiles too!

4. We are finally signing the documents tomorrow! The word "finally" comes up a lot. I think we're just glad that it's "finally" happening! That means we'll get the keys next Monday or Tuesday? Moving day is next Sat , two days prior to our one year wedding anniversary and what a journey it has been. =)

Please check back within the next two weeks for more pictures. It will take some time to furnish the house, and most parts will be left unfurnished for a while. We'll add pictures whenever we get new additions.

Have a great weekend!

On the Right Track...

Our new carpets are FINALLY accurately installed and we cannot be happier! They feel so clean and comfortable under our feet, I was this close to rolling around on the ground.

Here's Jien in the master bedroom....taking measurements?

Another picture of Jien in the furthest corner of the Office.

Jien: "My TV better fits up here!"

Another picture of Jien, carefully studying the wiring. In case you were to wonder why Jien's in every picture, as he usually is, that's because I'm usually behind the camera. He doesn't seem to have any qualms being my model.

Here's a random picture of our base molding. We're pretty happy with the effect.

As we're getting closer and closer to our closing date, (that's a mouthful - let's hope it will happen next week), we've unleashed our excitement in furniture stores. Yes, the damage has been done, but it hasn't been too bad. =) We bought our Simmons mattress, Bed frame, Bookshelves..and of course the couch with the infamous, but non-binding, no food and drinks policy.

Here's the bed frame at the store. It's a dark Wenge wood with cream color leather cushion inset. Another highly anticipated addition to our home!

That's all the updates for now. We are supposed to get the outside of the house re-painted next week. I hope to be able to post new pictures then.

In the meantime, I have some final projects to finish for school, and then we can focus on the house for the whole summer. Looking forward to it!

Minor Hiccups

As to be expected with all construction, perfection is hard to achieve. We've encountered minor hiccups but are relatively unscathed. Let's get the not-so-great parts out of the way first.

1. The wrong carpet was installed. We feel bad for the installers, but it was definitely not what we picked nor what we paid for. The right carpet is on its way and will be installed by next week. So that's a relief. I just hope they find a way to recycle the ones they'll have to rip out.

2. The exterior colors were painted wrongly. Instead of our white/grey combination, they gave us more of a eggshell yellow and moss green.

I've attached a picture of our neighbor's house just to show what color our house was supposed to be. I hope they do not mind!!

We are trying to get the builders to give us the colors we requested. We really do not want to be stuck with a Yellow/Green house.

The rest however is all good...

1. Our hardwood floors have been installed, correctly this time. We peeled back the covers in one corner and they look great. We don't have a fabulous photo of this yet, but we will when the cleaning crew is done with the house, possibly in 2 weeks.

Protective covering on the floor

2. The tiles in the kitchen and bathroom are in as well, and they too look good. Again, I'll post pictures once the protective covering is removed.

3. The wall reinforcement above the fire place is done. Ready for mounting our tv.

4. We now have our rain maker Kohler showerheads!!! This part's extremely exciting!

It seemed like we had to take 2 steps back to move 3 steps forward, but I suppose that's the way these things work. Of course with all the delays, we will probably be getting our keys around June 12th instead. That's not too bad, all things considered. Check back in 2 weeks for better pictures!

Fingers Crossed

Just received word that they (aka the builder) will begin work on our house next week, while we are in Singapore. That's exciting news as there had been no new additions since the last time we were there. By the time we return, the exterior paint and interior flooring should be done. We should be ready to close escrow by the end of May and finally get our keys!

New pictures will be posted when we return from Singapore! =)

Our First Piece of Furniture!

After an arduous search(mostly by Elaine), we have finally found and purchased our first piece of furniture! What's awesome about it is that both of us really love it and can't stop thinking about how well it will fit in our new place!

More about our couch:


With exquisite Italian design , this full white leather piece manufactured by Italsofa (a division of the better known Natuzzi brand) includes: a sectional 3-piece leather sofa set with headrests + Recliner armchair (MINE (:")!).

We are very delighted with this selection as it delivered the perfect blend of comfort (me) and modernistic look we (again mostly Elaine) were going for. The other options we looked at maybe could match in terms of apperance but were not up to par when my ass was parked on it.

I already picture myself on the recliner armchair, cold beer in one hand and remote in the other! Can't wait for the games to begin!

Enough about me...please take a peek at our couch to judge for yourself.


Bet you'd want a margarita in your hand and just lounge lazily on it too!


For guests please read important instructions below:











DEAR GUESTS,

NO FOOD OR DRINKS NEAR COUCH!

Blue Skies

Reflecting.....

Decisions and Indecisions

We've finally confirmed the flooring options. Changed the Berber carpet to a less yellowish looking one. We just have to wait for all of it to get installed!

SPECS:

We've been debating on window treatments. I had the grand idea of sewing all my curtains, although I haven't sewn anything since Sec. One for Home Ec. Well, they're just curtains right? Straight seams all around? Then again, I know too well what happens when I underestimate a project. We would probably end up with funky looking draperies. In the end, we felt curtains might take away from the general style of the house and we wanted the windows to be unobstructed, so we're probably going to go with shades instead. (It's too bad since I even ordered the swatches for the curtains.)

Possible Flooring Options

We went to Holiday Carpet last Saturday to choose our flooring. Here are the potential choices.

We absolutely love the Maple Java hardwood flooring!



We will most probably go with a promotionally-priced Berber carpet instead of the regular cut pile. They seem to be priced about the same.







Hardwood flooring is going into the main level (Living Room, Dining Room, Main Entry)

Tile is going into all the 3 bathrooms and 1 powder room. The kitchen and laundry room will be tiled as well.

Finally, the following rooms will have carpets:
- Master bedroom (upstairs)
- Guest bedroom 1 (upstairs)
- Guest bedroom 2 (downstairs)
- Office/ family room (downstairs)
- Stairs (all 3 levels)

These are the plans for now. We will get a better picture once everything is approved and installed. More photos to come.

After about 2.5 years of searching, and after viewing more than 50 homes, we finally found one that takes our breath away. We thank our lucky stars and are EXTREMELY grateful for all the help from our parents. This blog was started to chart our exciting journey through the whole process. We are ECSTATIC!

Right now it's 2 shades of pink. After painting, we hope it'll look more like this on the right.

Welcome in!

The living room has a beautiful hill top view looking out.

The flooring is not in yet. The kitchen floor will be tiled and the living room will have dark hardwood flooring.

Partial views of the dining room/ Staircase.

Endless blue skies from the master bedroom patio.

On the left are other houses in the Como Circle community. Skyscrapers on the right make up Warner Center.

This is the master bathroom with jetted tub and separate standing shower.

Views from the balcony off the living room on the main floor.

This is our office/study downstairs. Another bedroom suite with attached bathroom is located on this level as well. Even on the hottest day, this part of the house is always shaded and the temperature is always pleasant.

This is the balcony attached to the downstairs office/study. It leads to the back yards on both the left and right sides of the house. Yeah, we have a funky but cool back yard that's sort of a "C" shape.

This is the yard on the right. Needs a bit of work. We are thinking of putting in composite decking, It's durable and is low maintenance. Let's hope the HOA approves! We're looking forward to holding BBQs out here!

There will be more pictures to come, so check back often for updates!