Three Little Birds

Custom Home Carillon Beach FL

This house was built in Carillon Beach for a family out of Birmingham Alabama. They were looking for an investment property but could not find what they were looking for, with the limited lots on the market in Carillon Beach. So they chose a lot with an existing guest house and decided to build. It all worked out great! With a few interior and exterior improvements, they were able to put the guest house on the rental market and start earning some immediate cash on this investment!

Design challenges

The owners’ wanted to maximizing the “sleepability” of the house, with the goal of putting it on the rental market, having more bedrooms means a higher daily rental price. The owner’s wish list also included exterior amenities, such as an outdoor fireplace and sitting area along with an outdoor kitchen and the challenge was to find a place to fit them all cohesively on site. The selected lot was a corner lot and had potential views of the gulf and Lake Carillon. Some creativity and careful placement was essential to maximize the views of the tower and upper porches. Not all vacationing families need or can afford both a main and guest house, so it was important to provide space for each house. This would allow the rental guests to enjoy the amenities without losing their privacy and relaxation of their vacation, while giving the owners the best potential income of a rental property.

Building Challenges

Custom Home Carillon Beach FL with Outdoor Kitchen - How to find custom home builders in North Florida

Outdoor Kitchen

The owners were anxious to get the house on the rental market and take advantage of the busy summer season, so breaking ground in October of 2014 left only 8 months to complete the project and renovate the guest house. It was all finished by June, but the owners had to quickly get it set up and ready for the first reservation.
The open floor plan on the first story is a great gathering place but building-wise, created long framing spans that required some extra engineering ingenuity. To maximize the views, the tower was placed in the center of the house, over heated and cooled area, and this required large beams that transversed the entire width of the building. This design left an open deck on the roof, over conditioned space. To make sure this area was completely waterproof, the carpenters built a dam and filled it with water and checked for any leaks. It was watertight! We also built a floating deck system on top so it can be pulled up every decade to check the waterproofing system.

Find Home builders Carillon Beach FL

Shutters

Description

This two story house located on a corner lot is wood frame with double porch and a tower to capture views of the gulf and lake. It has ten foot ceilings with two master bedrooms, one up and one on the first floor, and two guest bedrooms and a bunkroom. The exterior siding has Hardiboard planks on the first story and Hardiboard shingles on the rest of the exterior.

The entry stairs to the front door, jets out from the house, as a grand welcoming gesture to visitors. As you open the front door, you immediately notice all of the antique wood touches in this great room of space, encompassing the living, dining and kitchen area. The owners found some beautiful salvaged flooring from the exterior siding off an old barn in Indiana. The wood was custom milled into six inch long lengths of flooring. Then it was finished by lightly sanding the wood with an orbital sander and then staining with grey antiquing and then three coats of flat polyurethane. The inset cabinets were custom built of solid maple with recessed panel doors. They were field painted to match the trim and make it easier for occasional touch ups, from the wear and tear of renters. The upper kitchen cabinets were made into shelves using antiqued wood blocks suspended from the ceiling with stainless steel all-tread nuts and washers. The backsplash reaches to the ceiling with subway tile, turning this highly visible wall into a statement piece, seen as soon as you entry the home. The powder bath is tucked behind the staircase by the walk in pantry area. It has a quaint custom built vanity table that features a sink and faucet that is reminiscence of an old farmhouse bathroom. At the end of the hall, you will find the first master bedroom with a beautiful bathroom of double pedestal sinks and a soaking tub. Many of the walls in the bath are covered in tile to keep the bathes easy to clean and maintenance free. The side porch is screened in and has a huge swing bed that was made by the owner’s father. This side entry also has an enclosed outdoor shower and a built in nook in the sand/mud room to keep all the beach towels and accessories neatly and conveniently stored.

The staircase was custom built to match the salvaged wood flooring and we used square painted newels with one and a quarter balustrades, and built a three inch diameter antique oak cap rail with a natural finish. As you climb to the second floor you reach the hallway that captures the bunkroom and laundry area in a nice cozy spot under the stairs. The bunkbeds were site built by the carpenters. The hall also leads to the second story master suite and two other bedrooms and a hall bath. If you continue up the stairs to the tower, you will see the upper walls are flanked with windows and direct sunlight, which final open up to the outside tower porch.

Shane’s favorite feature

“I love the wood flooring and how the final finish turned out, but my favorite features is definitely the open tower looking over the gulf and lake. Most towers in Carillon are enclosed with windows and some offer a very small balcony that opens up to the outside, but this tower is probably the biggest tower in Carillon beach has the best layout with the wet-bar, porch decking and even some open air space to get some sun!

new construction homes in Carillon Beach FLA

Master Bedroom

Lisa’s favorite feature

“First of all, the owners did a great job of decorating and styling the house but my favorite part is the second story master suite with a spa like bathroom filled with Carrera marble and a soaking tub with a view. The carpenters created, using the leftovers from the salvaged wood, a full wall, antique wood backboard for the King size bed along with matching bedside tables. This room has beautiful views of the gulf and has a sweeping porch that is perfect for passing a lazy afternoon reading and snoozing!”

Brooks

Custom Homes Rosemary Beach FL

Shingle Oasis

Watersound FL Custom Home

This house was built in WaterSound Beach for a couple from Atlanta. The wife was a sales executive for a large media company and the husband was a financial planner. They wanted to build a large home for family gatherings for their two children, extended family and friends to enjoy their beach vacations.

Design challenges

Find custom homes in Watersound FloridaThe owners wanted a three story house that would sleep 16 people, and their lot was on a corner, requiring extended setbacks.

While we were maxing out the square footage of the house, the owners taste in finish fixtures and features challenged the team to stay on budget.

Building Challenges

Three story home with lots of intersecting roof lines and a square cupola in the middle, sided with four windows made for an interesting framing job, but this grand design feature, in a somewhat dark attic area, lifted this hidden gem into a great spot designated just for the kids.

Description

home builders WaterSound FL - where to find builders of homes like this oneThis three story wood frame cedar and shake sided, Martha Vineyards style home, fits perfectly in the community of WaterSound Beach. The numerous porches, screen rooms, the all brick fireplace finished in coquina plaster like the St Augustine Tabby stone, blends the East coast charm with this modern New Urbanism development. The flooring was salvage antique pine, milled in rough sawn, painted white then sanded to a smooth finish. This technique leaves traces of white in the grains and crevices, making the floors look weathered from years past. The whole interior of the house is filled with wood, wainscoting, ceilings, and exposed beams, there is no drywall. The cabinets are inset with recessed panels, that were custom built and the appliances were covered with paneling to match cabinets. The countertops are a mix of soapstone and granite on island. As you wander through the house, you see lots of built in niches and cabinets galore. The master bedroom has a private porch nestled into one of the gables and the bath is done in Carrera marble with Waterworks exposed plumbing fixtures.

Shane’s favorite feature

How to find new home construction in WaterSound FLA“Without a doubt, the kitchen / island area turned out incredible! This kitchen makes for a comfortable area and a perfect place to linger, while entertaining and cooking. The overall architectural design and quality of materials and workmanship gives this house a warm and homey feel that you would swear it was a 100 year old home that had just been completely restored to its original splendor.”

Lisa’s favorite feature

“I love Shingle style homes with a loft tucked into the gabled attic area, but the feature of the squared cupola with the windows, made this area glow with the perfect amount of direct sunlight. Using the loft area as a kid’s zone was a fantastic idea and the entertainment center with a built in snack fridge, sleeping bunks, the bathroom, and free standing, claw foot tub with a view, made me want to be a kid again!”

Kea Lani

Home Construction Carillon Beach

Sea Change

Cottage Construction Carillon Beach FL