Well it has been appliance week and all I can say is that it doesn’t seem to matter what you spend you still end up with crap. I keep reading these horror stories like “did 10k worth of damage to my floors and cabinets” I believe that was about a kitchen aid dishwasher. Also what the hell is up with appliances only lasting a few years? If I spend those kind of bucks I want them to last.  Anyway the best reviewed dishwashers seem to be the bosch. So We’re going to go with one of those. I’m not sure of the model yet since I need to go compare them more closely in person this weekend. However any of them should be fine and they are incredibly affordable compared to kitchen aid. Like half the price and should be cheap as hell to run. For the fridge I’m thinking the samsung still. It got good reviews on the sears site and they ALL seem prone to breaking so I figure I might as well get the one I like.  Except then of course I read again about the horror stories and think maybe I should put in an All bosch kitchen. Sure my houses price point doesn’t warrant it, sure it means I won’t get the floors I want. But damnit…. I want something that at least people don’t hate.  I also would like something that won’t randomly catch fire.

In other news I got more floor samples and am waiting 17 more later today.

Yesterday we had to get a tough box so Justin can pack up for his overseas trip, luckily we had to go to lowes so I was able to get his take on a few items. We settled the style of Fridge (side by side). Checked out carpet and tile a bit but mostly looked at the wood/wood laminates. I’m not sure I can bring myself to put in wood laminate. It’s so hideously ugly most of it. It just looks so fake. Anyway really justin likes hand scraped with ‘interesting grain’ So I went back through Lumbar Liquidators and picked out some more.

1.1/2″ x 4-3/4″ Rustic Maple Handscraped Engineered Flooring

Comments: Love the look might be too red.

2. Natural 1/2″ x 5″ Virginia Millworks Prefinished Yorktown Plank Flooring

Comments: I really love this. Nice deep brown. Nice grain. Not too red.

3. 1/2″ x 5″ Handscraped Colonial Plank Flooring

Comments: Justin really likes this one. I like it but not quite as much as the one above.

4. 1/2″ x 4-3/4″ Smoke Ash Handscraped Engineered Flooring

Comments: Nice and lack of red.

5. 1/2″ x 4-3/4″ Tobacco Oak Handscraped Engineered Flooring

Comments: More of a medium which I do like.

6. Natural 1/2″ x 5″ Virginia Mill Works Prefinished Jamestown Plank Flooring

Comments: Lovely but could be way too red.

7. 3/4″ x 4-3/4″ Cambridge Oak Handscraped Flooring

Comments: This could be it.

8. Natural 3/4″x 4-3/4″ Virginia Millworks Prefinished Hand Scraped Solid Old World Oak Flooring

Comments: I think this one has a bit too much texture maybe.

Like I said yesterday this week I am concentrating on flooring. Since all other choices do need to go with the floors. It makes sense to me to sort of start there. So after I got home from knitting last night I was graced with the husband not being totally distracted so we went to lumber liquidators site to check out what they had. I know that’s probably not where we’ll get the flooring but I wanted to see what sorts of floors he liked. The only real shocker was he really liked this cork floor. Of course I’d never let him put in cork except perhaps in a kids play room or art studio and even then I think I’d try and do a cork ‘rug’ Anyway it turns out we like mostly the same things, dark, hand scraped, interesting grain. So that’s a bonus. So we weeded it down to 9 choices.

1. 1/2″ x 5″ Potomac Plank Handscraped Engineered Flooring

Comments: Most expensive of the ones we picked but I love the texture. Nice not quite too dark color.

2. 7/16″ X 4″ Nocturnal Maple Quick Clic Floating Engineered Flooring

Comments: Might be too dark but its nice because its not super red like a lot of the other ones. Also on the “most expensive’ list.

3. 7/16″ x 4″ Yukon Oak Quick Clic Engineered Floating Flooring

Comments: Love the grain. But I love dark oak.

4.Kahlua Maple Handscraped Engineered Flooring

Comments: Might be a tad too red for me.

5. 1/2″ x 4-3/4″ Tobacco Oak Handscraped Engineered Flooring

Comments: Love the oak, love the lack of red.

6. 5/16″ x 2-1/4″ Select Brazilian Redwood Flooring Prefinished

Comments: a bit too red for me. But for a not as dark as the others choice it’s not bad.

7. Select 3/8″ x 3″ Casa de Colour Prefinished Aztec Cherry Stained Flooring

Comments: too red I think.

8. 12MM Bond Street Teak High Gloss Laminate

Comments: I like it and it is economical however reviews said footprints showed because it was so high gloss.

9.Dream Home – Nirvana V3 8mm x 3″ Havana Mahogany Laminate Flooring (Single Strip)

Comments: This is my favorite of the not really dark ones and hey I think it might be the cheapest.

Also we decided that we’re going to go with one flooring option in the downstairs. So wood in the kitchen for me. I just think the house will flow better if its not chopped up with different floors. Later on I’m going to look at some other sites and see if I find anything else I like.

So I called the builder and he claims the lot is clear but at least now I’m sure of which one it is. I’m going to go out there today and check it. I think it is from what I remember so I’ll have an updated lot picture tomorrow. In the meantime I’ve been trying to decide on metal for the fixtures. I rather like bronze but nickel might be a better selling option. As much as possible I want this place to look high end. I think it will I have a good eye and I’m good at decorating. So it should be fantastic. I found a rug I quite like except I’m not sure where to put it. We have two rugs currently. A room sized one that my inlaws gave us and a smaller one I picked up at target way back when. The both need cleaning and I’m not quite sure how I want to do that except perhaps in the last week before we move I’ll manage it. Ideally I’d like to keep them in the garage and clean them before we move them into the house so they can be pristine and dry. Anyway our 1st floor will be all hard surfaces so I need a rug for the living room, one of the dining room, one for the entry and a smallish one or two for the kitchen. I like to have a rug in front of the sink and the stove. Also we might end up putting a hard surface up in the bonus room. So we have two and need at least two more. I found one that I think would be perfect for up in the bonus room. I don’t quite see it as entry way or dining room material.

Justin even likes it. I think it is probably a bit too dark for the living room since our furniture is so dark. Also on the agenda at some point is getting that chair I bought recovered. My slip cover experiments didn’t work so well. I might try doing it myself but I think I’m going to price having it reupholstered. If it’s cheap enough I’ll just go that route. Although I’m not quite sure what fabric to go with. I mean I know what type of thing I would like but it might be cost prohibitive. I just checked and yeah a hundred or higher a sq yard is way out of my budget. Especially for a chair I don’t even particularly care for. I mean I like the chair but I got it mostly cause I wanted a chair and it was a good brand and it was cheap. Perhaps the better option is just to stick that chair as is upstairs in my yarn room or office and get new for the living room? I already know what I want in the living room. I’m thinking a brown leather settle and morris chairs. Now see if I do that the rug above would totally work. I just have to convince Justin that’s the way to decorate. He has a thing about furniture for slouching as opposed to furniture for sitting.

I’m kind of all over the place with the design stuff I really need to focus on one thing at a time. So I think this week will be flooring. I have to decide if I’m going to tile the kitchen or do wood/laminate. Since from the flooring will depend all the other choices I make downstairs. I think the house would flow better if all the downstairs had one flooring. Its mostly open anyway. However I am sure tile would be better in case of any water accidents. Oh decisions decisions.