To Mullion or Not to Mullion

What happened to me? I distinctly remember being organized and on top of my To-Do List in my younger years. Now, not so much; this blog has been one of the casualties of my lack of organization. Let's see if we can change that going forward.

Speaking of going forward, I'm going to include a "What I've learned" quotation at the beginning of all future blog posts. Because let's face it; this building-a-home-process is nothing short of an education in patience, resolve and perseverance!

So what have we learned through this point in our build? We've learned that having an on-the-job contractor who has our best interest in mind is key to the build process going smoothly. And, that having a behind the scenes contractor - in our case, our architect, who's also our friend, who's worked closely with the contractor for years - overseeing the build has proven INVALUABLE to us and the house getting built without much issue. For us, it's a family affair, our "labour of love", and together decisions get made, fires get put out without much hoopla, and COMMUNICATION rules. Because at the end of the day, my husband and I have to live in the house we built determined by the decisions and choices we ultimately made. So let's see how far we've come to date!

One of the big decisions we made was style of the windows. Our vision for this house is a modern take on the traditional Hamptons-Style Shingle. Note, the modern part wasn't always our vision, at least not at the beginning, to the dismay of our architect. But that's a story for another day…let's just say it added a few minor design complications - one being style of window.

To mullion or not to mullion? See for yourself below. We looked at two window manufacturers, Lincoln Windows and Marvin Windows. Different price points, different quality, both high-end; but knowing we wanted a more modern look to our otherwise traditional house, we settled on custom designed Marvin Windows: double hung, single mullion in upper half. And it was the right decision. We love them.

Rear of our Home. We chose French Swinging Doors without grilles to not obstruct the view. 

 Here's the front view. Love the wait looks! Super happy we splurged on the custom windows. It makes a huge difference aesthetically. 

A few of the windows are casement style; for instance, in my kitchen and breakfast room. 

This is looking into my kitchen from the breakfast room. Note the casement windows above what will be my main sink/fridge/freezer wall. The French Doors lead out to the back yard. 

 Breakfast Room and it's casement windows. The morning light shines in both rooms which is precisely why we put the kitchen in this rear corner of the house! How many more months until it's ready??!