zennifer Why not counter depth fridge? It looks like it might save you precious inches for the island you want?

zennifer Price out counter depth and sales before saying no. We just bought a counter depth that had only .5 cubic foot less of storage space than our old standard, in the same width. It's taller, but that's ok. We bought it as a floor model for $1100...and it's a mid rabgeC not the bottom if the counter depth price range. Our whole kitchen to the studs remodel is $10k and we are building those cabinets, etc; we decided that in our small space those 4 inches were very precious.

Upholstery Club's Shelly Leer mountainglory Like many things--professionals could do it faster, but there are those of us hopeless DIY-ers who enjoy the process of learning how to do stuff and make stuff. My motto "The Process is the Product". We get a sense of satisfaction learning how it's done (or made). The world needs all kinds.

astraea I wonder how many average contractors have 3D design capability, or whether wanting it forces you to go to an architect first.

Capistrano Homes and Landscaping, LLC. Our market in Prescott, AZ is very competitive. The focus of my company Capistrano Homes and Landscaping, www.capistranohomes.com, is to be the industry leader in design, innovations, and energy efficient homes. We also do high-end landscape design and installs.

Eight years ago we made the switch to build healthier, tighter, more energy efficient homes without sacrificing any quality or craftsmanship; striving to achieve a "Net Zero" energy performances. Slowly, my top competitors made the switch and have crept into my niche. So to stay ahead, five years ago I started really pushing my in-house 3D design work. DING! DING! DING! DING!, overnight my work tripled. Sketchup is the perfect tool to start with. Send me a ping on my website and I will share the tool needed to take your 3D model to the next level. I have had clients ask me, "Is that real or animated."....now we're talking....:)

With these powerful tools we can demonstrate solar orientation, shading, implement corrective passive solar design, exterior elements, did I mention the actual view. I have had many meetings with clients that point to a 2D siteplan page and say I want the house facing that way! Only to show them in the 3D model video the large obstruction of trees from the view of their kitchen sink window. Ya, 3D is here to stay. My favorite part of 3D is when I am competing against five builders for one extreme home. The client lines up all the builders on a chosen day and you have two hours to present your offer and impress them with the hopes they choose you. Now Capistrano Homes gets creative, we will design and render one aspect of the home, say the great-room fireplace or the rear patio. When we present our offer and go through our price, allowances and selections,,,, we usually move ourselves into the top two positions. Then we unveil our 3D color renderings on glossy foam-core board and "click" the start button on our video animation. I love showing off the exterior elements of a home with "fly-by" shots. I usually do two or three of them, each one displaying changes in the rock veneer, siding, or roof tile. Clients are blown away!

Now that I have shared some of my hard earned secrets,,, it is just a matter of time until my competitors catch on.

.... Who knows, with the advancements in technology, it will be no time short when our clients will come into our office, walk into a sound booth and strap on a helmet to view a complete video animation of their home or design. This is where we are headed!

Regards,
Caesar

Capistrano Homes and Landscaping, LLC. Did I mention I love Houzz. Within the last six months my referrals from Houzz have tripled

scaloot like the idea of the built out drywall so the tile 'flows' evenly. Alas I finally got the walls in the bath last week - and didn't do this! and no I am not going to put another layer on - small room full of 'stuff' that has to be cut out.
Now a question - tape & mud the drywall before I start the tile? seems like this will protect my lovely tile (except for paint!)

John Whipple - By Any Design ltd. Scaloot you can do it either way. One thing I like about tiling first is that you install the tile the way you want. if the tile is set a little to far out you can switch out 1/2" drywall for 5/8" drywall.

Keeping the drywall dust out of the grout is the hardest part. Make sure to tape off the tile install before sanding.

I like the Ram Board down way before the drywall crews show up. Many times these crews are messy so make sure they do not trash the floors. If you can get most of the drywall done first this is best. We drywall'd the entire bathroom and just left off the L-Beads where the tile meet the drywall. I set the bead flush with the tile and then feathered out the drywall mud.

I like my tile installs to cure out for 1-3 weeks before grouting so we often set the tile and then fine tune the drywall, prime and paint. Grout last.

If you are worried about drywall dust wrecking your grout try using Laticrete's Spectra Lock Pro epoxy grout. The stuff is almost bullet proof. With regular grout (cementious) you can really make it look bad if the drywall dust gets worked into the grout joints. JW

smittycdm Laura, you have such great taste! I used Ballet White on the walls throughout my first floor (one of those continuous flow floor plans.) If you use a good quality paint, such as BM Aura, Ballet White is more than 'white with cream', it has a slight undertone of gray. Beautiful color. ;-) I tried F&B for my front door and fences, but instead went with BM Black Tar 2126-10. Beautiful.
Please advise your readers, NEVER allow their painters to substitute another brand of paint when they (the homeowner) specify the color. For example, BM Ballet White, but the painters use Vista’s BM Ballet White (the worst, I'm sorry to have to name names. It's mainly used in apartments.) I learned that the hard way; I thought if I said, “Ben Moore Ballet White OC-9” I’d get…you understand.

jdmh I want to hear more comments about quartz vs granite too. I put granite in my kitchen and love it. I like the natural stone look and feel over the artificial product of silestone/quartz. Also, friends who have been talked into quartz say that they wish they had granite. Why are designers talking up quartz so much? I am hearing from kitchen planners that quartz is to be preferred now. Please elaborate. Thanks.

prockmrs Michelle, what is the counter top made of in your picture?

Michelle Brown I think it is caesarstone or essastone.

jeniferjordan Can we please get an answer to the question?.....how do you make the circles on the fence and what grows on them????