Some of you may remember (but I bet most of you won't, because who would want to!) this is what our great room looked like when we moved in almost a year and a half ago.
I am pulling this picture out of the archives because it was during this walk through that we thought we wanted to add another window to the left of the door leading out to the patio. From the very beginning, it felt off balance to us. However, it wasn't until last summer, July to be exact, that it became a must-have. Our home doesn't have air conditioning, which isn't uncommon around here. I would say 60%+ homes don't because it is only hot 2 months out of the year, and even then it cools off by a good 30 degrees at night due to the desert climate. So every evening around 7, everyone opens all of their windows and by morning it's a chilly 60 degrees in the house. Although AC is on our to-do list in a year or so, most of the windows in our house (besides the bedrooms) are picture windows--they don't open at all! While all of these picture windows have been great in the colder months at keeping our heating bill super low, we desperately knew we needed at least one large window in the great room to catch a breeze in the warmer months.
We knew when we hung the engineer prints of the girls there, they would be temporary--maybe you saw them in yesterday's post in the stairwell?--but we didn't expect them to be moved quite as quickly as we ended up doing. As it turns out, a lot of contractors will give you a discount for cutting a big hole in the side of your house in the winter or off-season when work is slower. So, uhhhh we jumped on that.
We wanted to get as close as we could to the size of the other window without having to get a custom one made. And luckily, we're only an inch off in one direction. The window will be about a 5'x6' and slide open. What a difference that will make in light and in keeping the house cooler in the summer. Ah, we can't wait.
The window is ordered, and our contractor is on standby to cut our house open and install it as soon as it gets here. We'll definitely be hanging out elsewhere on that sure-to-be-freezing-in-the-house day. But we're so glad it will be in place before it gets warmer. Can you just see it now?
Leave a Reply
WE'RE CHRIS + JULIA
Portfolio
Projects
I can't wait to see how this goes! I've wanted to add a second window to Brynn's bedroom for YEARS. Because of the way our house was sited, the best view of Pike's Peak is through her bedroom wall where there's no window! Plus I'd love for her to have a cross-breeze in the summer -- we don't have A/C here either.
I'm storing this nugget of information away for later use! We're renters now but next time I own, I'll save window additions for winter for the discounts!
The light will be amazing! One issue I'm having with my great room is window treatments. I've got a large window in the living room, a sliding glass door next to the dining table and then a window above the sink in the kitchen. I just can't seem to settle on the look for each window because they're different sizes and serve different functions. What are you plans?
We plan on putting matching drapes on the two large windows but will likely keep the windows in the kitchen bare or do some roman shades. We like the doors clean lined, ourselves.
It's going to look so amazing! I can't wait to see it!
It's going to be gorgeous! And bring the girls over here for a play date on construction day, we can have cookies and cocoa!
done!!
Fun! Looking forward to seeing it. Good tip about the contractor!
Hooray! Let the light in! (Can't wait to see the drapes.)
Ahhh! Narrowing down some options right now!
We had solar screens put on our windows during the cooler months for the same reason - much better price! As a Texas native, I can't imagine living without an AC haha, so I can see why you are so excited about the window! It's going to be a beautiful addition.
I can absolutely see it now! Light! A summer breeze!? What a dream. That is one thing I really miss. Here in Florida, you CAN'T open your windows. And the ac is pumping 11 months out of the year. Yuck.
The light is going to be amazing! Naps on that toasty couch on a cold day, yum!
AAAAH!!!! So exciting! When I saw one of the large prints moved to the hallway I wondered... but I never thought of this. So excited! I wish my husband and I were as motivated as you guys to get things done around the house. Can't wait to see how it looks!