What I Didn't See

Normally we get to draw our plans on paper and then ship them off to a builder, never to be heard from again.  But a recent purchase of the Arleta 2850 was being built a couple of hours away and we just happened to be driving through very recently.  The house is very nearly done just needing final trim and landscaping.  It looks nice.  But not what we pictured...

The house was built in a fairly lax jurisdiction so the builder was able to change some windows and structural issues without much fuss.  Unfortunately the effect of replacing sets of single hungs with gigantic sliding windows killed some of the period effects.  As did the rounded sheetrock corners, lack of wood trim, casing, and floors.  Now it's understood that most people these days prefer carpet in bedrooms but we find it unappealing.  The front porch was unfinished but at this point we're not holding out for a miracle.

Lesson learned?  Not quite sure yet.  While our plans are purposefully Spartan on details, we do get disappointed when our vision isn't matched.  Perhaps a set of SketchUp images showing our vision for the plan would be in order.  In fact this plan has some rough sketches ready, they just need some refining and uploading.  Perhaps that's the rub.

If ever you purchase an Istockhouseplans house plan and would like some direction towards creating a Craftsman or period look, please let us know and we'll be happy to put together a 3-d image for you.  Just one more service that we offer.

From Paper to Sticks

We were recently invited to an open house for a custom design we did.  Actually, we didn't design so much as we did draft.  The homeowners were very gracious but also very particular about what they wanted in a home.  The result was a 2200sf plus beautiful one story home.  Neighbors in the development quipped that they wished they had seen this plan in the builder's catalog.  Even the builder himself was impressed with the final product.  The development consists primarily of mid-priced builder specials with the customary 2 car garage, 2 story, 3 bed plus bonus, 2.5 bath.  Our home was a little more subtle.  We went for 3 car garage (partial tandem), 1 story (with nice steep roof for aesthetics), 3 bed plus office, and 2 bath.

While this is not a home that we would normally put in our catalog we were pleased with the results.  So were the homeowners.  Throughout the process we kept telling them that this will be THEIR home.  The builder or subs will not be living in it for the next 10-50 years.  THEY will.  So don't get pushed around and be sure to get what you want.  The homeowners kept a set of final plans, a 3-ring binder, and the builder on speed dial for the whole time.  Every day they were on site checking progress.  This was more out of excitement and available time than anything but scrutiny was also prevalent.  When something was not done per plans a query was put out and it was quickly made right.  Though our client probably did not read this previous post beforehand, they took it to heart.

The bad news of the whole deal?  The washer and dryer were moved on-site and now partially obscure a passage.  The good news?  The homeowners were in by Christmas and the builder's crew got the week off.

Massive Influx of Plans

In what might be described as an heroic maneuver, we at Istockhouseplans just cleared out a bunch of backlog and loaded more than a handful of plans.  The final damage?  Seven in one blow!  Listed below is the latest additions to the lineup:

The Wilsada A 1416A joins her brother the Wilsada 1416.  This tiny house duo are each a whopping 200sf.  The bed is in its own nook, the rest of the space being open save for a bathroom.  Therein is the difference.  Wilsada has a narrow 4x6 bath while the A is a slightly more spacious 5x5.  Otherwise the plans are very similar with their multitude of windows.

The Cottage in the Grove C2042 was a joint project with our builder friend last year.  We finally got around to creating the artwork and writing the text for this one.  This was a narrow 1356sf house that has the most charm of any of our offerings yet.  Two suites each with bathrooms and a large open downstairs space.

The Houston A 2448A steps in with a slightly larger footprint than his predecessor.  The numbering belies his true width of 25'.  Other than an even 1200sf, not much changed from the prior version.  The roof line was modified to maintain the 16' roof plane.

Three Edgewoods were finally put on display.  A few years ago we spent alot of time with the original version creating several spin offs for our builder friend.  The Edgewood C C2552C and The Edgewood D C2552D offer variations on the 25'-28' wide 3 bed 2 bath story-and-a-half theme.  Rounding out the triad is the The Edgewood D2 C2552D-2 mashup.  Not only is it a lot of width, it's also a lot of characters in the numerical coding!

Finally is a brand new plan inspired from a century ago.  The Arleta 2850 adds a third true single story full size plan to our lineup (right behind the Houstons).  At only 1353sf, this little charmer is guaranteed to be a winner in the new downsized home movement.  Three beds, two baths, lots of closets, and both material and energy efficiency just enforce her future position in the marketplace.  We're very excited about this one and hope to see it built soon.

Check out our full catalog for all plans.

Century Post!

Congratulations to us for our 100th post.  Our first post was in June 2007, 3 years, 7 and one half months ago.  At the time we wondered how we might fill up bandwidth with meaningful discussions.  Maybe it hasn't been 100% quality but we're still looking for that sweet spot anyway.

So what do we have to say for ourselves?  Well first of all receipts have been low.  We attribute this to the economy.  Second, we have found a groove regarding small homes and intend to stick with it.  We have one more large home design that is almost done.  We will release that beast and then focus most of our drafting efforts towards 1500sf homes and under.  All the charm with 1/3 less fat.  And finally we have decided to branch out and use our hands for additional uses.

With T-squares in one hand and hammers in the other, we will begin designing and building tiny travel trailers for sale.  We have become so obsessed with tiny living spaces that we just have to try some out.  Possibilities include vardos, teardrops, canned hams, etc.  Maximum size is about 7'x12'.  We considered mimicking Tumbleweed Tiny Homes but want less house-y looking for now.  We want you to be able to tow one of these behind your station wagon and park it in the garage, not have it sitting on a parking pad behind your F-350.

The goal is to begin building by March 1st and have it ready for camping by June 1st.  We'll post updates as we go so that the tiny travel trailer community can share in whatever ideas we have to offer.  If you are interested in being the owner of our first 4'x8' ledge vardo prototype, contact us and we'll customize it for you.  Amenities include sleeping for 2, tiny pullout table, 12V wiring and stationary 120V hookup, and fully insulated to R-10.  We plan on a craftsman sort of aesthetic but if you get in early enough you can have a say in paint colors or take delivery (and a price reduction) of a primed trailer ready for your artistic eye.

Happy trailers and here's hoping we get hitched soon!

Hey baby, what's your... sign?

One of our local builders that we team up with, Cutting Edge Homes, is in the process of building some of our latest drawings.  Clackamas County is showcasing his homes for energy efficiency and has invited commissioners, legislators, and the general public.  The idea is to show off some energy efficiency measures and help folks understand what they should expect in new homes.  In this case is improved air sealing, improved insulation, tankless hot water heaters, and one unit with ducts inside the conditioned space.

We thought the event made perfect sense to flash a little leg, as it were.  After all, SOMEbody had to design the energy efficiency into these things and make sure they were going to exceed code.  So we had some lawn signs made up and stabbed them into the dirt on the jobsite.  You can see that our design prowess is not just limited to buildings, but advertising as well.  Perhaps.

The event will be November 10th at 3p at 14848 SE Arista Dr. Milwaukie, OR.  Come out and see what things are happening and to introduce yourself.

I Build House Plans

Well, not us specifically, but one of our house plans was recently purchased and is undergoing a bid process.  Samanns Construction is building the Lombard 1558-2 in Ambler, PA.  His website, http://www.203locustst.com is currently soliciting bids for every part of the construction process.  If you are able to conduct business in Ambler (north a bit of Philly), contact them to submit your bid.

Only two things disappoint us about this build.  The first is that they removed the bay windows, especially the inset bay in the dining room.  While we can understand the desire for an easy square build, it feels like the character is being removed.  Second, that they offer carpet in the basement as an upgrade.  This is almost always a sure-fire way to get mold unless you are meticulous about your specifications.  We bid you a sincere good luck.

Thanks for purchasing from Istockhouseplans and we look forward to seeing the final product!