Art consists of limitation. The most beautiful part
of every picture is the frame.
- Gilbert K. Chesterton -
Everyone told us that framing was the most fun part of the process. We could not wait for it to begin...then WHAM! The house we had only seen on paper came to life. The speed yet precision in which Neese Construction, JS Robinson's framing subcontractor, framed the house was truly inspiring.
Whether building a spec/model home or a custom home, the quality of the wood and accuracy of the build will be the skeleton that supports the house. With a model/spec home, you would expect that the framing crew get familiar with the framing plan and, in the process of building the same design repeatedly, would work out all the little details. I know that I was nervous...with a one-of-a-kind house, how many mistakes were going to get made? Compounding this worry was the reality that I literally have no clue what makes framing good or bad. None. Zip. Zero.
While I know we sound like a broken record, I truly feel so lucky that we are building with JS Robinson. Not only does a first rate and experienced builder know the process, I now realize that (perhaps more importantly), they have the best subcontractors.
And as such, we hit the jackpot. Whitney Neese is the owner of Neese Construction (the smiling guy in the picture below), our framing guru with a top notch crew of craftsmen.
I'm not sure what I expected, perhaps a skilled crew that just hammered boards together? Whitney was a breath of fresh air, always smiling when I saw him. He spotted problems before they got expensive, offered fantastic ideas to help enhance an already incredible design, and really made us feel welcome when we swung by (daily) to see the progress. Whitney was so great about not only presenting an issue/idea, but also giving his practical and experienced take on it. I didn't quite appreciate the unending series of decisions that are required when building a custom house, so having Whitney say "If it were me, I would do ___" was so invaluable.
Check this out...a framer's to-do list! Makes sense after all the rain we received that it is written out on wood :) I asked Whitney to leave it...I am sure that I can find a cool place for it!
So, what makes framing awesome? As I mentioned earlier, I had no idea. We are lucky to have a longtime friend of Matt's, Evan, who is an extremely experienced commercial general contractor. He swung by the house and started pointing out a couple things that we never knew or considered.
Quality of Lumber - the amount of wood used in the house is immense, and as such, not every piece of wood is perfect. Evan pointed out that it is a lot more important to look at the proportion of not-perfect wood to perfect wood. As soon as he walked in, Evan smiled and said "Wow, they are clearly buying from a high quality lumber yard." Embarrassed that I didn't realize until that moment that wood varied that much!
Tee-Pees - Okay, so this is a new term I learned. Apparently when there are bolts on the foundation that pop up, like this:
...framers can either just kick-and-splice the protruding bolts off or, as with Whitney's crew, cut perfectly sized "tee-pees" to preserve the bolts integrity. As you can see, this amazing crew took the time to cut the tee-pees.
But really, how do you know whether the framing crew is going to be good or not until you are already underway? This is where selecting the right general contractor comes into place. You can ask to see homes that are in the framing process to see your impressions or ask your general contractor about their selected framing subcontractor.
Through each step of this incredibly complex process, JS Robinson has continued to deliver on their promise of great work and amazing subcontractors. I mean, I believed them at the time, but wow were they right. Enjoy the progress pictures!
The process started with the steel beams getting placed and wood being bolted to the top of the concrete foundation. You can see those bolts sticking up that were eventually "tee-pee"-ed around (look at that, I made up a new verb!)
The three basement windows being framed!
Now we are talking! Floor joists (is that the right term?) getting installed!
Master closet with the wrap-around porch around it (the dirt-filled area will become the concrete wrap around when it is done).
Eventually the pond will fill up, right?
Matt's workshop doors are framed!
And we are starting to have floors...
That little recessed square is one of the two zero-entry showers!
On a dreary day, the crew started to go vertical!
Our project manager extraordinaire, Mitch (and proud Dad to Katie)
Raising the walls!
And when the skies cleared (and a couple days passed)...
Sunshine and framing continues!
This is our great room windows and dining room windows (set of three on the left)
I am not sure what I expected, but I thought it was so interesting that the framers built each wall on the ground, then raised it into place. The above picture is of the north stair tower wall.
And now it is up!
The upstairs catwalk is installed!
The stair tower is taking shape!
Smiling on a dreary day...my parents' front porch is getting framed!
It didn't occur to me that our framing crew would also install the exterior siding. It was so cool to drive up and see the details of the house taking shape...
Okay, had to include a picture of Charlie climbing a gravel pile!
Okay, why did I not know that the framers also put the windows/door in? Seriously, is there anything these guys CAN'T DO?!? You can see that the concrete crew also poured the porches...
The back is really taking shape! We also got the three retaining walls installed...
Charlie approves!
The wrap around still makes my heart skip a beat...
My parents' garages (to the left) and the entry is really coming together. The three windows form their clerestory!
The french doors open from the downstairs guest room to the screened-in lanai.
One of the two ways our houses are connected...through the lanai. My parents' door opens to it as well.
Rear view of the house. You can see the wrap around porch to the left, the covered back deck in the middle, and the soon-to-be-screened-in lanai in the middle. Oh yeah, and that pond slowly filling with water at the bottom (about 1/3 full at 4 feet deep right now).
The two awnings are installed over our garage and stair tower, GAH! I'm in love! Speaking of the upstairs, here is the upstairs landing. Head straight over the catwalk to the girls' bedrooms, left for playroom/loft, and behind you is the upstairs guest room. Come for a visit!
Seriously, the craftsmanship of the framing crew was so impressive. Look at the intricacies of the stair tower ceiling.
The clerestory entry ceiling on my parents' side.
Cheers!
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