908 Oakwood Finished

I've been a bit delinquent in posting, but that's because I've been busy! After working really hard on another house over the spring, I got 908 Oakwood done, then went on vacation to Peru and hiked the Inca trail. I moved into this house in early August and LOVE living back in the 'hood.

908 and 906 have a different floor plan and are larger than 910-916. That is because the original footprint was wider - closer to a square, so there was a bit more design flexibility. This house has 3 bedrooms plus a loft/office area and 3 1/2 bathrooms.

I am really enjoying the backard - when I'm not on the front porch! The back yard is a small area but very nicely landscaped. When the shrubs grow it will have some very nice natural privacy screens.

The living room is really cozy - not too big, but big enough and open to the dining area and kitchen - great floor plan for entertaining. I love the gas logs too! This house was spray-foam insulated, so it takes very little energy. My peak power bill (with A/C running full blast this summer) was $51. Not bad for a 1500 sq ft house. Last month the heat started cranking and I thought the bill might be a bit higher - $23!!! YEAH! GREEN BABY!

Speaking of Green, I did some other green things too. Bamboo floors, no VOC paint, low VOC woods in the cabinets, a paver-stone driveway with little runoff, of course Energy Star light fixtures, windows and doors, and CF bulbs and a Rinnai tankless water heater ($12 gas bills - cooking and water heating).

I like having a dining room table - missed that while living in 912 Oakwood. I like having folks over to eat.

The kitchen is significantly larger since this is a 3 br home. I used granite in this house rather than concrete - just because I didn't have time to make concrete counters again.

It's nice having an office with lots of natural light and a view of the DTR skyline!

The master BR has access to the 2nd floor porch on the street side - overlooking the cemetary - very pretty.

The TV is upstairs on the 3rd floor with a full bathroom - the roofline makes it cozy, and skylights keep it bright during the day. Very relaxing room.

So, at this point, there is one more house to go as far as renovation - 906 Oakwood, and we have just broken ground on 316 Seawell - but they are topics for separate posts!