Architect | Fine Construction

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Sep 25

Remodel Home Tour, October 16 & 17, Fine Construction Shows West Seattle Remodel

The MBA’s (Master Builders Association) Remodel Home Tour is once a year and features 19 remodeled homes throughout King and Snohomish counties. We at Fine Construction, Inc. have participated in the Remodel Home Tours and the Remodel Kitchen and Bath Tour. This is a chance for contractors to show the public the craftsmanship and great materials used to renovate these homes.

Metal Stair System with Stainless Steel Cables

This is a chance for you to meet and talk with contractors like myself and see, touch and feel the finishes. We have a project in West Seattle. This home was just recently renovated, we added a third story addition

This project consists of renovations to multiple areas of the house. The project was developed by the Fine Construction Design Team and the Homeowners. Our design meetings are simple, we meet to discuss the clients needs and requirements, then we discuss their dreams and wish-list. From this we start off in the right direction, instead of us just designing something to see if the clients like it. We designed the addition to the clients desires.

For these clients they had 3 bedrooms and needed 4 bedrooms. So it made sense to add a new suite for the parents with a new bathroom. The home sits on top of a hill with views to the south and southwest.

It made sense to do an addition to the house by adding a third floor for the new master suite. The position of the addition is great providing incredible views from the bedroom and bathroom. Of course we put a window int he shower and at the soaking tub. As you walk from the main floor to the master suite the stair treads are Tigerwood hardwood flooring, rich colors come out from the wood flooring and the Tigerwood runs through the master suite and into the master closet. The handrail is a black powder coated metal handrail with stainless steel cables running horizontally. For the new windows we applied a mirrored glazing on the exterior to minimize the heat gain, minimizing the heat that comes into t e rooms.

The master bathroom has oval tiles running down the wall, giving the faux look of water running down the wall to the floor with more oval tiles. On the west wall there is a window (obscure glass of course) in the shower, it’s great that they can stand in the shower and open the window and enjoy the incredible views. What a great way to start your day! The bathroom floor is comfortable during the cold mornings with the heated floor under your feet. There are two vanities, with one vanity that has a sink and faucet and the other is setup for makeup. It’s nice that there is plenty of storage with both. On the mirrors are strip fluorescent light fixtures.

The entry is a open space with room to great guest, family and friends. The front door is a Fir, 5 panel door with opaque glass and a custom door lever with a remote entry lock. You can be in your car and unlock the front door. Also at the front door is a video camera and on each floor inside the house are video monitors. For the main floor we added Tech lighting and 7.1 surround sound system for the enjoyment of the living room music system and large flat screen TV. It’s nice having the music going while relaxing in the living room. Tech lighting is a favorite of the owners and we installed several new Tech fixtures throughout the house.

The new concrete walkway to the front door had a dark gray color added tot he concrete and large pavers where placed in a random pattern. A curved retaining wall was built and we installed LED walkway lights in the wall.

The exterior front of the house has a trellis made of clear cedar which is the left of the garage doors. The garage doors are black aluminum with opaque glass panels. The Trellis is made of clear cedar and large timber. In addition to the front of the house, all new siding was installed due tot he installation of plywood to the framing, (the house had no plywood or and shear walls, the siding was nailed right to the siding) we used Hardie Plank siding. With the building of the third floor master suite, this made part of the the deck on the second floor covered for a good portion of it. Now they can cook on the grill and even eat outside under the covered deck and enjoy eating outside. The new deck has Trex decking that was installed with hidden fasteners and a aluminum railing with glass panels, so this doesn’t block any of the view and also cuts down some of the wind.

We thoroughly enjoyed working with these clients, the kids liked having our carpenters see them off to school and their activities. The design provides a nice flow through the house and the addition looks like it was originally part of the house. They will have a great place to entertain and relax. If you would like to discuss your dreams an ideas, contact Fine Construction today to begin making your dreams come to reality.

Sep 22

Seattle Home Show 2

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Come and see us at the Seattle Home Show 2 coming up starting October 8, Friday thru Sunday the 10th. We are excited being back at the Qwest Field Event Center.

Fine Construction participated for years with the Home Show,take a look at our first Home Show Booth, from 2003. It’s great seeing the progression in booths. I bought a trade show display booth off eBay and I posted pictures on the display, I used a sink and for people that signed up to discuss their project had a chance in wining a gift certificate. The item that made my booth stick out was the robot from Lost in Space. My brother was into Lost in Space so i borrowed it for the show. It was interesting the group of visitors that where really interested in the robot. Some of the guys, their eye’s lite up and a smile came on their face and all they wanted to talk about was the robot. It worked! It brought people into my booth to talk about the robot and what they wanted to remodel.

The next Seattle Home Show was the 2004 and I hooked up with Windsor One who offers a great line of high quality millwork for the interior and exterior for your home. We received materials and we put together a great booth.

We used this booth for 4 years and ti was great that visitors to the Seattle Home Show can actually see the finished product, they could come up close to touch and feel the millwork and joinery. Brian Kemly of Kemly Electric provided the lighting consulting and recess light installation for the booth.

Not only did we get the brothers and father involved with the Home Show’s but Kathryn, (Tom’s Oldest Daughter) is featured in a video about a project completed on the Fine house. Kate’s love for acting show’s in the video. Sit back and enjoy the Fine Construction Thanksgiving 2006 Video

Click on this link to see Kathryn Fine showing a bathroom remodel MVI_1029_xvid

I look forward to seeing you at the Seattle Home Show 2

The MBA Remodel Homes Tour is coming October 16th & 17th, come and see our renovated project located in West Seattle.

Sep 09

Renovation in West Seattle, Arroyos is Underway

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We’ve got the next renovation underway and a deadline in mind. This renovation consists of expanding the house to the North increasing the size of two bedrooms, relocating one bathroom and adding another. With this addition we are reconfiguring the front of the house for better street appeal, so friends and family members know where to go tot he front door. The last project had the same problem.

I love the front of the house, why change it?

The homeowners had ideas of what they wanted and we sat down and started drawing. it didn’t take long to take their needs and put it on paper and then refine their ideas and our suggestions to come up with a nice flowing addition. Thee design process went well. We produced a simple expansion so we could spend money on other parts of the house. Stand by for Phase II coming up soon.

What I am enjoying right now is working with wonderful people. It’s nice when we communicate and keep the channels open and discuss what is coming and how it’s going to happen and what the impact will be for the clients so thy know what to expect. The homeowners asked if they could stay int he house during the renovation and I said yes, but you will most likely be uncomfortable. Dust, inconvenience, interruption of utilities during the day, especially for the husband who works from home.

Out of my way, I've got concrete in my shovel

We excavated out the foundation and used Pacific Rim Equipment, Lee Forte is great and I’m glad he’s back in the game. We hauled out 30 yards of soil and for Phase II coming up shortly, we are looking at 40 yards and the only access is a small buggy, oh that’s going to be labor intensive.

Jeffery's On-site and Checking that everything is neat and organized

The Floor is framed and ready for walls

of We’ve got the trailer on-site, I’m so glad I made that investment, misc. parts are keep in it, in addition to some items being saved, especially for Seattle a place to keep things out of the rain.

The walls will be going up next and the following week we’ll get the trusses installed and ready for a roof.

Stay tuned for updates on this project, and watch for the next project, we’ve got in design. It’s a cute brick Tudor with a client that is organized and ready to make her dreams come true.

Aug 11

3rd Story Addition in West Seattle, Completed and Goergous!

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Brazilian Cherry landing and Stairs

This project was a great project from start to finish. The client were great to deal with and we exceeded their expectations.

The entry was very important to the clients. In the original design of the house, when you arrived at the front of the house you didn’t know where the front door was. We moved the front door towards the front of the house by 25′. The exterior has colored concrete with large slate pieces laid in the concrete walkway. In addition to the walkway, we poured a curved concrete wall with LED lights in the concrete wall.

Beautiful Fir Stained Doors and Slate Floor

The entry is so sweet! There is a lot of room in this entryway to comfortably remove your coat, shoes, hat, backpack, skies, snowshoes and roller blades. Now you are ready to stroll thru what we’ve completed. The entry has Fir doors a with clear coat. The floors are a slate 12″ x 24″ tiles. The door has a remote entry so all you do is come near the door and it unlocks. A great feature is the mail slot located outside (of course, better outside than inside) and we made a custom metal chute for the mail to slide to a convenient out of site place for the mail. Another great feature is the video camera the front door with video monitors on each floor so the homeowners can see who is at he front door and communicate with whom ever is at the front door.

A stairway to relaxation

The railing was a great part of this project, we brought the railing design to the clients and together the team approach developed a beautiful piece of art. The top rail is Brazilian cherry mounted to black powder coated steel and stainless steel cables integrated horizontally.

A great place to relax and get reinvigorated

The Soaking tub in this master is just what the homeowners were looking for when we designed this master bath. The added benefit is the window, they can open the window a little and have a view of the sound and the Olympic mountains, soaking doesn’t get any better than that. Quartz counter top with under mount sink and the in-wall faucets set this bathroom apart form your typical bathroom.

Showering in Style, Custom Glass Panel on the Right Wall

The shower provides an experience on it’s own with the tiles on the wall cascading down tot he floor giving the illusion of a waterfall. But look to your left and out the window and you’ll see the Puget Sound waterway and beyond that the Olympic mountains. Showering doesn’t get any better than this.

This project was a true pleasure form the design to the end and now the our clients get to enjoy these wonderful spaces with their family and friends.

Feb 23

West Seattle 3rd Story Master Suite Addition With Incredible Views, Update

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This West Seattle remodel is sweet! Here is the update on this project, we are all framed up, the addition is in the process of getting inspections for plumbing and electrical. We are also expanding the entry by adding a vaulted foyer, adding a heat pump unit to not only help on the heating side but to help provide cooling for the summer days.

The Insulation and drywall will be starting in just a couple of weeks. The interior of this project is going t be beautiful, you don’t have to take my word for it, just wait and see. The stair system will be an cable system. The living room will have 7.1 surround sound system.

The owners get to wake up to this great view!

One nice featured that was added is the intercom system, from any one of the 3 locations (one location per floor) the homeowners will be able to view and communicate with whom may be at the front door and unlock the door.

Walking up the stairs to the master looking at the vaulted ceiling in the master bedroom

The partially covered deck is a great feature for the owners to BBQ and even eat outside all year long and not have to worry about that Seattle rain.

Sketch of the Exterior, Adding Trellis, Smaller Trim Details, Columns Boxed Out Larger

Feb 22

Beacon Hill Project Gets Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs) for 2nd Floor Addition–a Green Process

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The structural engineer set forth requirements to accept the SIPs (Structural Insulated Panels) on this Beacon Hill project. The existing frame had to be able to handle the additional load of the second floor. This is normal whether you have SIPs or standard framing methods (2×6’s)

SIP being lowered in place

This photo illustrates what a typical SIP looks like as it is lowered into place. On Wednesday morning, a truck will arrive at the Beacon Hill site and a forklift will take the panels from the flatbed truck on the street, up a narrow street, to a crane that has been setup and waiting for the panels. Then the crane will set the panels in place to the Fine Constructions awaiting framing crew.

GG brings donuts to the roof crew

I explained to GG (my daughter) that yes, donuts are great treat for the guys on the jobsite, the sugar gives the guys energy. Then she asked why she could only have one.

The great thing about this location, and Beacon Hill, is the transit system. The new light rail has been installed, and I hope that they continue to make progress on expanding the light rail system.