Florida New Build Progress: Part III

Over the past seven months or so, I’ve been sharing the progress of the house we’re building near 30A in Florida. I’ve sprinkled the content throughout many of my Weekend Recaps as well as in more content-specific posts. But today, I’m combining everything that has changed since my last update post in January! Not only that, so much has happened in the last week, I think you’ll be shocked at the progress since that time alone!

This post contains affiliate links for your shopping convenience. You can read my full disclosure policy here.

If you’re new around here, you may find it helpful to read through some of my prior new build posts. They include specifics as to what’s “included” in our home with our builder as well as some of the selections and upgrades we chose to make:

• A Peek At Our Florida New Build: Part I
• Florida New Build Progress: Part II

Today I’ll be focusing on everything that has changed since my Part II post in January. I’m also including some really exciting updates that were made just in the past week alone. It’s really starting to look like a home!

Florida New Build Exterior Progress Photos

Back in January when I shared my last dedicated post with updates, they had just wrapped up framing and closing up the exterior. We didn’t have siding or shingles yet, but much of the Tyvek wrap was up and windows/doors were installed so it was pretty much buttoned up.

In late February, they started our siding.

We traveled to Omaha and Iowa for Easter and while we were away, they also painted most of the exterior. We’re so happy with the Sherwin Williams Greek Villa color we selected!

Recently, they also poured our driveway and paths to the home. They have a technique here where they sprinkle large rock salt in the concrete while it’s wet to create a pattern. The salt eventually disintegrates to reveal the pattern. It’s definitely not something we’ve ever seen before, but I think it’s growing on both of us.

We had to make some decisions on the included pool over the last week. I’ve mentioned before, but most lots here are tiny, with the proximity so close to the gulf. In most cases, it doesn’t leave a ton of room for a pool. But the builder included a 12′ x 24′ pool in our neighborhood for all the houses. If you look super closely below, you’ll see two metal stakes indicating the width and placement of where ours will start. The easiest one to find is near the base of the sawhorse and then go left from there for the other one. It’s definitely a tight fit, but the reality is, we have so many other water access points here we likely won’t be hosting the volume of pool parties we did in the past! You can also see they’ve started to build out the frame for the screened in porch. The cats will be so excited to have a new and improved catio!

Here’s a rough drawing from our sales rep on the pool. We never had a hot tub in Omaha for a host of reasons, but figured we’d be more likely to use one here. So, we gave up some of the pool space to widen the spa the full width of the pool.

Below is how the cabana currently looks. It still needs to be painted and for the metal roof to be installed. The fireplace chimney here and on the house will be covered in a stucco mixed with seashells, in a process called coquina. We’ll then have travertine pavers running in all the areas colored yellow above. Not a lot of room for much grass in this backyard! Side note: you can see the two metal stakes mentioned above in the photo below, as well.

For the pool, we’ve selected the Coastal Blue pebble tec and this tile along the water line. We had limited options to choose from, but think this combo will be really pretty!

Florida New Build Interior Progress Photos

At the end of January when I did our last new build update, we had basically just been framed in. Shortly afterwards, they installed our massive 10’x16′ sliding door. The door opens on the right, and continues to stack all the way to the panel on the left. Essentially it leaves a 10’x12′ opening out to the screened-in porch and outdoor kitchen.

By late March most of our insulation was in. The interior walls and ceiling are a batting style insulation and the exterior walls are a foam insulation (not installed yet in the photo below).

By the first week of April, they had already started on hanging drywall!

Within a week that had most of it taped and mudded.

They also started to install our shiplap and trim.

All of the closet shelves and drawers have now been built-out, as well. This one is one of the upstairs bedrooms.

Our entryway continues to be our favorite spot in the house. This also shows you a closer look at the wood shiplap they installed. I had a lot of questions as to why they are using real wood rather than MDF since it all gets painted. Down here with the humidity, nearly all trim work is done in wood. MDF is a nightmare for humidity and wet spaces as it will swell and never retain its original shape. We actually were encouraged to use real wood in our pool house in Omaha on the shiplap for the same reason! If you look close below, although the boards are 12’ish feet long, you can see it’s actually smaller boards that have been fused together. I don’t think it’s ever intended to be left natural, as it looks very busy when you see it all together.

Things really started to get exciting once they primed the shiplap, and then later painted it. Here is the entryway with just the primer.

And here’s how it looked last week after they painted the shiplap and trim. AND THE FLOORS! We’re using Sherwin Williams Snowbound on the walls, trim and shiplap. I believe the ceiling has still only been primed but it will also be painted Snowbound. The handrail and treads on the stairs will be stained to match the floors. Using the wide-angle lens here again to show the space in full, so it makes it appear larger than it is. But we still love the design of the entryway!

 

This view in the upstairs hallway (coming from the room we’ll likely use as our bedroom) is another favorite. There are so many windows and you can see the glow from the sun in the “lighthouse” entryway most times of day.

And here’s the main floor bedroom that we’ll likely be using as my office. This is another wide angle shot. The room is a decent size, but we didn’t love the idea of our bedroom right off the entryway and the front porch. Since Kurtis decided to take the back office we had added, we decided this may be the best spot for my office! There’s a small bedroom upstairs with a vaulted ceiling that we’ll likely use for our bedroom and we think that setup will work a lot better for us.

Here’s the room I mentioned above that we’ll likely use for our bedroom. It’s small, but the vaulted ceilings make it feel more grand. This is with the wide-angle on my phone so that gives you an idea of the size. I think it’s just over 10′ wide, but plenty of room for a king size bed and nightstands!

Since I know I’ll get questions, here are the details on the floors. I took a picture of the actual box when they were delivered! I’m having a hard time finding it online (it was one of the few options the builder let us choose from and he ordered it), but we’re really happy with how it all turned out! The flooring is from Mohawk and their Coastal Couture line in the Beachwood Oak color. It’s an engineered hardwood in 7″ wide planks.

Here’s a peek at the main living space all painted, but after the hardwood floors were starting to be covered. They’re having a difficult time finding someone to install our vented fireplace, so that project has been sitting idle. But we’re so happy we opted to close in the screen-in porch to the right and create a little dining nook and office for Kurtis! There is zero chance we would have used a side porch (with one in both the back and front). This now opens up the living area so much to not have to also have a dining table behind the peninsula before you get to the living area! The original square footage of the house was around 2,900, so this gives us a bit more total square footage, as well (I believe the addition of the two small rooms added another 250ish total).

The first week of May they also started on the bathroom tile. It hasn’t been completed yet, due to other trades being in the house. But I believe they’re working on it this week or next. I had to use my wide-angle lens for the image below so things look a little skewed. Our tile options were very small, so we opted for a white subway and will do a very lot, non-contrasting grout in the upstairs showers.

AND….Drumroll please… they started installing our cabinets two days ago! When I checked yesterday around lunch time, they had finished the kitchen and were working on the pantry/laundry room. We didn’t get to pick the endcap style, but I’m really happy with how it turned out!

In a last-minute panic decision, I decided to not have them install the “free” hardware that we picked for the cabinets originally. I say free even though I know it was built-in to the price somewhere, but we didn’t actually have to pay anything for them out of pocket nor were they an upcharge. They were all pulls of different lengths and although we really like the style, I started wishing I had mixed in some knobs like I have in the past. Unfortunately the line they had ordered doesn’t come with knobs. I was worried once they drilled two holes in all the doors there was no turning back, and I’d always be stuck with those sizes.

So, I ended up ordering all new hardware for the house and will then just sell the stuff they were planning to install. Rejuvenation had the hardware I wanted in stock and available for overnight shipping so I dropped it off yesterday. I ended up ordering the hardware we had in the pool house (with some appliance pulls mixed in) since we loved it so much and didn’t get to enjoy it that long. We dropped it off yesterday and I can already tell I’m going to love it so much more than what we originally picked.

POOL HOUSE KITCHEN SOURCES: Cabinet Ball Knobs | Drawer Bin Pulls | Basket Pendant Lights | Aged Brass Star Sconces | Striped Runner Rug | Backless Counter Stools | Faucet | Counter Depth Fridge | Beverage Fridges | LVP Floors | Blue Serving Board | Similar Faux Fan Palms | Blue Vase | Cabinet Colors: BM Simply White (perimeter) & BM Santorini Blue (island) | Countertops: White Macaubas Quartzite

Here’s a wider look at the kitchen. I believe the peninsula is 13.5′ long, so it’s a big one! We opted to upgrade the standard shiplap on the back of the peninsula to be 12″ cabinets the whole length. Not only does this provide a lot of storage, but it also extends the width of the peninsula countertop another foot. It looks a little plain right now without the countertop and stools, but once my two 36″ pendant lights are installed, I don’t think anyone will be looking down here 😉 Side note: there is still another stack of cabinets that goes on the back wall. They will be glass front with lights. And while they don’t go to the ceiling (thanks to the 12′ ceiling height), they easily go up another foot or two to fill more of that space. The center will have a large range hood that will be built to the ceiling.

After much deliberation (and having to switch countertop companies after our prior final decision), we have picked our new slabs! Originally we were going with marble but have switched to a quartzite with the new slab yard. The tag says it is Via Venato Quartzite and we are doing a leather finish. We’re excited to try something that isn’t polished, especially with so much light in the kitchen! It reminds us a lot of the White Macaubus quartzite we used and loved in the pool house.

I can’t remember if I mentioned this previously, but we decided to go blue in basically every room other than the kitchen! It’s a stock cabinet color so I don’t have a paint color match for you, but once I can get it tested, I’ll be sure to pass along a comparable color. Right now if I had to guess, it would be close to being between Benjamin Moore Santorini Blue and Water’s Edge. We have so much white in the house, especially with such tall ceilings, so the addition of some coastal colors is going to be really fun. Side note: they hadn’t adjusted any of the cabinet doors yet, so they were still looking a little wonky from transport 😉

The blue is definitely a chameleon based on lighting conditions. It definitely looks much more saturated in darker rooms, and I think it will actually look pretty light in the carriage house kitchen! Here is how that space looked yesterday when we stopped by. They had just finished the floors out here, and I’m guessing the cabinets will be installed today!

Speaking of carriage house, here’s the living space (standing in the spot that would be the far left of the photo above). They added the Trex to the deck and built the railings for the Juliet balcony. They have lots of painting yet to do out here, but it’s really coming together! The floors almost look like a totally different color because of how much the back trees cast a green glow on everything!

That about wraps up the latest changes! I am guessing they will start digging the pool by month’s end and around that time, we may start seeing the light fixtures and countertops going in. Lots of exciting activity! I filmed a quick walking tour here a week or so back before the floors were covered if you want to check it out.

I think I’m finally at the stage where I’m ready to start ordering a few things we’ll need once we move in. It’s a bit challenging timing the delivery so we don’t have to store it too long here or wait for it too long there. But, now that I’m starting to finalize a few of the design plans, I’ll be sharing more of those soon as well. We plan to take our time decorating each of the rooms, but there are a few places like the kitchen and living room I’d like to have ready as soon as possible.

We’re very much looking forward to our (likely) August move-in date!

Additional New Build Details & Design Inspo

Following are some additional posts I’ve written about some of the new build details as well as some design inspo for the direction we’ll be heading in several rooms. Tap any of the titles below to read more.

• Coastal Counter Stools
• How Many Stools Fit At My Kitchen Island?
• Modern Coastal Backless Counter Stools
• Serena & Lily Riviera Counter Stool Review
• Various Kitchen Countertops: Pros & Cons
• How To Organize Kitchen Cabinets & Drawers
• Modern Coastal Round Dining Tables
• Modern Coastal Cottage Dining Chairs
• Coastal Kitchen Reveal
• Coastal Kitchen Remodel FAQs

If you would like to follow along on more of my home decor, DIY, lifestyle, travel and other posts, I’d love to have you follow me on any of the below channels:

Pinterest | Instagram | Facebook | LTK