When we were looking to build a home about 15 years ago, I had some photos of some favorite houses, but basically I had no idea where to begin. I had no interest in starting from scratch and designing a custom home... too many choices and decisions. If we could find a basic plan for a home, we felt that we could customize it enough to suit our needs and make it our own. 

My sister-in-law (also obsessed with houses) said she had the perfect house in mind. She had seen an advertisement in a Veranda or Southern Accents, possibly both, and she got out her stack of saved magazines and started searching.

Jack Arnold is one of America's leading architects of French Country style, and this was an advertisement for one of his homes. My sister-in-law rocks.

Too easy, right? We ordered the Jack Arnold portfolio with 30 floor plans of homes, and although we loved several, the photo pictured above is the one we chose to build. I can't imagine this to be a common thing... To find my dream home by way of a casual conversation with a relative and a quick flip through some magazines for a remembered advertisement! 

Our original plan was to build a larger model of this house on a lot we owned. (The house has several floor plan options with different square footage) But we waited to see if a piece of property in a neighborhood we preferred would become available, even though it would mean building a smaller version of the house. We waited for a year, and the preferred lot was ours. We made minor changes to the floor plan and the exterior materials... not always willingly. Living in Omaha, the exterior stone that was available to choose from at that time didn't have the look we were going for, so we used a hand-made brick my husband chose.

Here's what ours looks like today...

The biggest differences are the added shutters at the large dining room window, the brick exterior, and the landscaping. With the trees, it's hard to see some of the similarities, but you can get an idea. We used an old front door that I'm really not in love with today. It's fine, but I wish I had double doors. 

I really wanted the stone and considered painting the brick to get a similar look... wouldn't that be so pretty? My husband and I didn't argue about much during the building process, but this he would not budge on... no painting the brick. Fine, the brick is beautiful and painting is always an option for the future... (although not according to my husband)

While we were in the planning stages, another sister-in-law drove us by the same house in Atlanta just after it was built. It was an even smaller version. Here's what it looked like... love the double doors... why didn't I notice them then??

We moved into our home during the Summer of 1999, so this is our twelfth year.  Recently, I was dropping off my son in a neighborhood I don't drive through very often, and found this house. (Of course, I whipped out my camera, hung out the window, and snapped away... he's used to it.)

Beautiful! They used the stone! The dining room window is on the opposite side (which was an option in the Jack Arnold plan) and there are some other structural differences, but I can definitely see some similarities... I'm not sure if this is a Jack Arnold home, but it sure looks like it. 

A Gift Wrapped Life, an outstanding blog and a favorite of mine, posted this photo of her home during the holiday season... I just noticed it the other day under "you might also like..." 

Obvious differences in building materials, but looks similar, doesn't it? Again, I have no idea if it's a Jack Arnold home... I kind of doubt it considering this home is in Canada... but I wonder where the inspiration came from? 

I imagine there are hundreds of home plans that resemble the Jack Arnold home we fell in love with. It's remarkable to me how different the homes look based on the materials used and the different landscapes, and the front doors!

These are the front doors I wish I had...

I found them on 1st Dibs a few years ago. I'd hang a wreath on each side during the holidays - so, so charming! Getting a new (old) front door is definitely on my list... It will have to be a single as opposed to double doors (I don't think there's room) but I can guarantee you it will be french and it will be charming!

Anyone who has built a home is familiar with the endless choices that need to be made. It can be overwhelming! I'm sure I would make some different choices if I were to start building this home tomorrow, but I can say that I truly enjoyed the process and have no major regrets. One thing's for certain, choosing the home to build could not have been easier!