The Rogers expressed a preference for both Tuscan and Southwestern décor, so Fisher came up with a blend of the two styles. Throughout the house, she specified rounded corners for the drywall and chose to cover walls with textured paint that resembles stucco. She used wrought iron light fixtures and railings, and a copper light above the pool table, and added built-in shelving and a fireplace with a stucco-look finish. Fisher does not believe in buying a family of products, such as lighting fixtures, for a house. “You can buy things that are similar or complement each other. It should relate, but not be matchy-matchy,” she says. Although the light over the pool table has long straight lines and stained glass, it also features rustic copper that ties in with the old-world look of the other wrought iron fixtures. She says that the ceiling fixture in the family room and the wall sconces have similar curves, but feature different metal finishes and glass shades.
Fisher added wood elements by using rugged pine doors, windows with stained wood interior frames, and recycled barn beams for the floors and for cladding the new posts. She found doors made of reclaimed lumber by searching on the Internet, and even ordered a single door to install in the Fisher Group offices to evaluate how it would stand up to continual use. “We were installing many doors,” she says, “and we couldn’t just put it in their house without knowing the quality.”
Fisher likes to choose products at the beginning of the remodeling process because, she says, “Then we can do a fixed-cost construction contract and not use allowances.” She handles this by taking clients on a “guided tour” to choose products. “You need to narrow the universe of products to eliminate confusion,” Fisher says. She also asks clients to look at a range of items within a limited period of time (usually a few hours) so that they will be better able to compare how the products will look together.
Rogers says that he and Terri liked having Fisher’s guidance. “If we had started from scratch, it would have been more difficult. Doing it all in one day took a lot off our minds in terms of decision-making.”
Room To Grow Michael Rogers says that having one company take care of the entire project “soup to nuts” was worth the small premium the couple paid. “Overall, the process went more smoothly than everyone said it would,” he adds.
The renovation grew from a cost of $150,000, which the Rogers were originally going to spend, to $360,000. Now the couple has decided to wait a few years before working with the Fisher Group on the next phase of the remodel. That proposed project would include making one bay of the existing garage into a solarium and adding another garage bay. The Rogers also want a new master bedroom above the garage that includes a rear balcony with a view of and access to the pool.
To be prepared for this, the Fisher Group’s crew framed the windows on the side of the house above the garage so that they can be removed and replaced with doors. They also installed the infrastructure for a second HVAC zone. During the first phase, the remodeler offered the homeowner the option of wireless custom lighting and wiring for a stereo system. The owners turned down the offer for budgetary reasons, but may add these control systems in the future.
Off Again, On Again For this project, Ken Fisher, the Fisher Group’s production manager, chose to take off the existing roof and install the new prefabricated roof in one day using a crane. “Prefabricating makes sense for a second-story addition because it minimizes the amount of time where the roof is exposed to the weather, which is one of the greater stresses of remodeling,” Fisher says. He has experience both in using prefabricated sections built in a factory and using sections built on site by framing subcontractors.
For factory builds, contractors have to know exact measurements because when the sections are placed, they must fit. The advantage, Fisher says, is that they are built in controlled conditions.
Alternatively, the good thing about building the sections on site, he says, is that the crew can more carefully confirm measurements and make adjustments. “The carpenters would notice any idiosyncrasies,” Fisher says. The disadvantage is that it only works for projects where there is space on site to build and store the sections, and it takes more time in the field.
For this project, Fisher chose site-built sections and worked with framing subcontractor Dan Smith of DTS Construction in Luray, Va. They both agree that planning ahead and being prepared for a full workday makes this process go smoothly.