Indy Homearama house tour

October 22, 2013

I’m back today with a couple fun house tours for you – one of my very favorite things to do is walk through model homes. I even have my boy hooked on it. We’ll be driving through a random neighborhood and he’ll ask if we can “walk through the houses.” Yes, I am raising him right.

The Indianapolis area used to have a Home-a-Rama tour every year that my friend and I would attend, but for the past few years I haven’t heard of anything. It was a major bummer. Maybe they had been happening and we just didn’t hear, but I even searched online a couple years back and couldn’t find any shows.

So I was thrilled when I picked up our local magazine last week and saw there was a new one going on. I thought I’d share some of the houses with you! There were four but I took a ton of pics, so I think I’ll break this up into two posts.

Thing is, the old home tours (years ago) were extremely elaborate. I’m talking huge, gorgeous, over-the-top homes. Man I wish I still had pictures of some of those. I could tell this year that things are just changing – these homes were still big square-footage wise, much bigger than our house, but the floor plans didn’t make them feel huge. And the decor was beautiful and well done but just wasn’t as elaborate as the old shows.

The first home was an all brick exterior in what they called an Italian Renaissance style:

It felt very imposing to me – not my favorite. The brickwork was beautiful though.

I tried to cut down on the pics so bear with me here. I loved the bright kitchen with the dark gray kitchen island:

white cabinets gray island

This look is one I’ve probably pinned a hundred times. :) I adore it but would need to add more color in my own house.

I find the layout is generally the same in a lot of these homes – but the difference in houses in this price bracket is in the details. The doors are heavy solid wood, the cabinets are soft close. The hardware is heavy and HUGE:

large hardware drawers

Check it out – those handles are massive!

I loved the brick flooring look in the mud room and the wood tile in the basement:

brick tile wood tile

That brick look is actually a tumbled stone, not brick. So it was smooth to the touch – easy to clean! I really loved it! It brought a lot of character to the space. That wood tile in the basement is definitely cool – but also a little too cool for me. Literally. ;) I love the warmth of wood (on my feet).

Usually the basements on these tours are spectacular, and these were still fun but not crazy decked out like years back.

I LOVED the brick walls with the holes for the wine in this basement:

wine storage in wall

How cool is that? Not sure that could be DIY’d but I dug it. I liked the black cabinet and gray subway tile combo too.

I thought this multi-purpose room with the chalkboard wall was cute:

chalkboard wall

I loved the bright colored poufs with the black wall.

I noticed that all of the master bedrooms were surprisingly small. Seems to the trend too:

large tufted headboard

I do think some of the masters in new construction over the past ten years or so are ridiculously big, but these felt a little cramped to me, even with just a few pieces of furniture.

I loved the big shower in this house:

Loved the tub too, but the placement was odd to me. It was just kind of out in the middle of the room. Very exposed. ;)

The second house had a much more traditional look:

And yet the inside was more contemporary – I expected it to have a warmer feel:

I did love this nook in the kitchen – they had it built out as a homework/crafting station:

office nook in kitchen

I thought this clipboard idea was adorable!:

clipboard wall

Just secure them to the wall and you can easily clip new stuff to each board.

This idea was pretty darn cute too:

pumpkin patch craft

Your very own pumpkin patch! ;)

I loved the black cabinets in the kitchen – they added to the contemporary feel:

black cabinets light counters

The kitchen table and chairs and stools were all dark too, so it did get a little heavy in there. But the multiple huge windows made up for that. ;)

The family room area was done in gray and orange:

decorating with orange and gray

The rug was super cool, loved it.

I thought this art in the basement was such a fun idea!: 

Instagram art

It looks like Instagram art, right? They used graphics but I thought this would be SO cool with Instagram pics. Each square was a little piece of wood that was velcroed on, so you could change them out. You could do this with wood and photos printed on paper then mod podge them on.

Now I’m trying to think of where I could do this. :)

One of the rooms upstairs had a super cool bunk wall built in:

built in bunk beds

The Bub LOVED this room. There were little cubbies complete with outlets in each bunk. Although there would need to be a bar up there on that top bunk to help me sleep at night. (These ceilings were high!!) I keep debating bunk beds for my son’s room – I think they’d give him so much more space but they freak me out a little. :)

The master bathroom had a REALLY cool tile used as an accent:

bubble tile

It was like a bubble tile – the circles were raised and we couldn’t stop touching it. SO much fun.

This bathroom also had a little something else I loved – a little coffee/kitchenette station: 

coffee station bathroom

Certainly makes me wish we liked/drank coffee. Would a hot chocolate station be over the top? Maybe.

Well there’s the first two! I’ll share the last two soon. (The very last house was my favorite!) I think the show is still going next weekend if you’d like to attend. I didn’t even scratch the surface with these pics of course – there’s SO much more to see.

Which one was your favorite? Anything you loved? I think that kitchen in the first house is my favorite room so far. :)

House one was built by Brookshire Homes, decorated by Luxe Home Interiors.
House two was built by DB Klain Contruction, decorated by Savvy Decor.

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Comments

  1. Don't know how the economy is in Indiana, but I live in the "recessionproof" DC area and new home builders pretty much closed up shop when the economy tanked in 2008. Now 5 years later, I'm just beginning to see new home signs popping up again.I wish there were more builders in my area who would build one story homes - the population is getting older and there is a niche to fill - but instead we keep getting mcmansions.

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  2. Here in the Twin Cities, at the height of the house 9-10 yrs ago, the Parade of Homes home tour that goes on every spring and every fall had over 1200 homes in it. Now, maybe 300 if you are lucky. There are still some big, elaborate homes, just not as many. I have been hopping the home tour for over 20 years. My father was a builder, so it is in my blood. My kids love it too. They ask all the time to walk through model homes. I love walking through for ideas. I am a Parade of Home junkie. :) I also don't trick or treat in my own neighborhood. LOL I go up to the next town in this one development... new houses but kind of that older styled home feel. There is a home in there that is reminiscent of the bungalows that were popular here in the 40's, but it is brand new, and GORGEOUS! We go up there trick or treating just so we can get a peek inside the houses (and it is so much more friendlier and reminds us of trick or treating when we were kids... lots of kids out, lots of families visiting with all of their neighbors.. there is such a sense of community and togetherness that is most definitely lacking in my development).

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  3. Oh wow! I love this!! We've been trying to figure out how to set up the pedestal tub and tile shower in our master bathroom...I love the way they are connected above! And that wood tile is to die for!

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  4. Oooh! I hope you post Part II soon. I'm planning on going this weekend. Thanks for the preview!

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  5. Interesting how things have come along. I really liked the overall feel of the kitchen in the first house. I think the outside of the home looked like it could be a bank or commercial business. What is interesting is how (although staged) they have added alot of things that you DIY'ers do--the photos, clipboard wall. (Hey, a cool idea I saw in a magazine--curtain rings with the clips, holding artwork!) It is nice to see the desk areas and the mudrooms--hopefully more of a standard nowadays. However, extras like the bar, coffee bar do nothing for me. Please tell me both these homes were NOT in the same neighborhood! If I could choose a great looking neighborhood (built recently) it would be Layla's neighborhood from The Letttered Cottage--hands down :)

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  6. I love the breakfast bar shown in this post. Very nice! I'd love to add one to my home's open-concept kitchen.

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  7. I love model home tours! I am also one of those freaks that likes to see inside people's homes at night. Hey! If they have the blinds open and the lights on, I am gonna LOOK! One New Year's Eve night after a lovely dinner we went walking. In a private home, I saw the most gorgeous library with red walls. It has been my "dream" room ever since!

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    1. i do this too!!! I love when a house is pretty but I hate when all you see clutter...lol...I obsess over other peoples houses that I see for 2.5 seconds as I am driving by!

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  8. We are extending at the moment and then the whole house will be painted. Thing is, the roof is dark green, and I can't change that. (Those tiles that already come in a colour and lasts for ever.) I was back and forth between white and a putty colour, but that second house solved the problem for me! I love the white accent with the other colour. I'm going to go for that.... I hope :)

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  9. I would love to start taking house tours! We have an atrium ranch and are limited in what we can do with our kitchen. It would be so helpful to look at what other people have done with their atrium ranch! :)

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  10. I love it . Somethings in some of the houses I might change..>BUT not much LOVED the wine wall. TOO fun and the bunk beds for the kids ...LOVED it. I love touring the houses. BUT now I am stuck on touring the ones that need WORK to put my own spin on them LOL old farm houses etc.. LOVED the tour sister. HUGS and blessings your way

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  11. Fun - thanks for the tour! My hubs and I have been talking about putting a coffee bar in our master for years! oh well, maybe one of these days haha

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  12. wow these are gorgeous. were these both newer builds? i like the idea of a newer house so there would be less maintenance but i love the character of older homes. and i would love to have either of those basements!
    -- jackie @ jade and oak

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  13. For the brick wine wall: What if you did faux brick like Katie Bower did in Weston's room here (http://www.bowerpowerblog.com/2013/09/shes-a-brick-house/) and then pvc pipe or the like into the wall?

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  14. LOVE that wine wall! whoa...amazing. I am trying to think where I could put that in my house...I think a lot of wine racks look tacky or flimsy...they just always seem to be "in the way" but THAT wall was like LEGIT!

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  15. That is a super cool rug! And the oversized ottoman/table pretty much rocks too!

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  16. It's amazing how the trends are so different depending on what area of the country you live in. I love model homes, but my town is almost built out. :( I love the kitchen in the first home. The white and gray is speaking to me, lol.

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  17. Call me crazy, but feel free to share as many photos as you like of these home tours - I can't get enough! We had to drive a wee bit south this year to catch Homearama, but it was worth the drive! :-)

    I love that first kitchen too, and the bunk beds are fab! And that little study/craft area is something I would love in my own home. Can't wait to see the rest!

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  18. I adore the brick wall with holes for the wines! It's really awesome!

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  19. Love the light fixtures in the first house's kitchen. I don't know why, but the second house looked like a giant Pinterest project to me. :)

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  20. You went without me?!?! You gotta take me to that house with the wine basement!

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  21. We came really close to buying a house in this development when we moved here five years ago - it was so fabulous, if not quite right for our family. I was debating whether or not to go to this one, but now I'm intrigued. Thanks for the peek!

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  22. I love model home tours. Aren't they terrific? Both houses are beautiful. I loved the kitchen in the first home and I loved the traditional exterior of the second home. However, both homes had some permanent features that I think are too trendy and will go out of style quickly, leaving whoever buys them some large, expensive renovations down the road. For instance the bubble tile in the second homes bath. While cute or super cool now, probably not so cool in five years and changing it out would be expensive and a big pain in the hiney. LIke you, I did love the diy artwork ideas though. Can't wait to see the other two houses.

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  23. GAH! I am in LOVE w/ that brick wine wall. I think it may be time to call up my trust contractor and see how to make that beauty a reality!

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  24. Well that was fun. When I saw the pic of the bunk bed room, I kind of went; "uh oh, Bub is going to want that........" and then you said he LOVED that room. hee hee.

    A few of the pics reminded me of your place, such as the long counter thing under the instagram ish photo wall, & the master bedroom [sort of.]

    The "Italian Renaissance" home reminds me of a schoolhouse or other building turned into a home.

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  25. I made a small version of the clipboard wall (that was shown in the 2nd kitchen) for my grandson's bedroom. He was in the stage of creating artwork and wanting to display it and this is perfect. He has his clipboards that he can change out and we're not putting holes all over for each paper.

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  26. Do you have any idea where the orange square ottoman is from or where I could get that? So beautiful!

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  27. My old, creaky, worn-out knees say "Thank-you" for the home tour. Like the others, I will look at as many pictures as you will show us. In my area, videos and photos of any kind, for any purpose were strictly forbidden at these types of new builder home showcase shows. I agree with one of the other commenters, the first home reminds me of an old elementary school house that has been remodeled for a private home. The most striking feature that adds to this impression is the lack of a visible garage. Were there side-load or back-load garages attached to these homes?. Were they 2-3- or 4 car garages? Thanks again for letting us see what you saw.

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  28. Hi,
    Though I liked the inside of House #1 I prefer the outside of House #2.
    I live in London, ON in Canada and it's very much a city with lots of retirees. The building here is still going strong - mcmansions and lots of town homes. I'm like the 1st commenter - the population is getting older but builders still do the big homes. Don't know where the money is coming from in this economy but someone has it.
    There are bungalows being built, though. Most of them have cathedral ceilings; not a favourite of mine. To me they're a waste of warm air and a major pain to decorate. I like to change paint colours usually on accent walls and would definitely not want to be climbing a huge ladder to reach the ceiling. I do like tall ceilings, though, just not cathedral.
    Can't wait to see the next two homes. Thanks for sharing.
    Cathy

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  29. I loved Home-A-Rama!!! I like pretending that I could afford the homes. LOL Missed seeing the advert for this one though, dangit! Good thing you saw it and I follow your posts! Thank you.

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  30. OK...where have I been? I just saw the ad on Channel 13...duh! LOL It's 23-27!!!

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  31. That sunburst mirror in the last photo is so gorgeous! Want. WANT! Does anyone know the source for it?

    Sue

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  32. We did a reno on our bathroom recently. I saw those circle tiles and like you kept on having to feel them. They had some in greens, there was also lilliacs and red to choose from. I would have loved to have them but they just didn't suit the style of our house. Louise Australia

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  33. What stuck out for me was the wine wall, great idea and I loved the grey sofa in the family room of the second house. But other than that, these houses are just too modern, too dark and just not worn and cozy enough for me....everything is so new, and I kinda like old ;-)

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  34. This is such a great blog article! I love the master bathroom in the second house. The accent tiles are beautiful. The brick wall with the holes for the wine is stunning. I love the idea of a little kitchen in the basement. This is very inspiring to me. I plan to remodel my kitchen backsplash and I already bought Bondera TileMatSet - tile adhesive sheets (to avoid the mess and because it has no time limit). I will use white subway tiles because I love them. I can’t wait to redo the bathroom. I really got inspired by those tile accents.

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  35. Thanks for this post! All the photos look great and they give me ideas on how to improve the looks of my own home :) 'Wondering how it feels like to live in house this huge. I could be installing all sorts of alarm systems and intercoms just to ensure the security of my whole family.

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