After messing around with it for ages and getting really dodgy, uneven results I suddenly had an idea that made it really easy, lol. Was kicking myself for not thinking of it sooner. Oh, well, here's the results. Actually I changed a lot since my last pics including the paint scheme which I'm now a lot happier with (but still maybe only 90% ) and I'm now at the point where I can start concentrating on the interior and landscaping (phew, I'm cutting it fine!)


I know it could do with a bit of colour but I'm hoping it'll look better once it's landscaped

PS Gaminannie....Wow. Kinda glad we're not competing against you

Wow, looks awesome, missroxor, and suitably nautical!

missroxor...What a fantastic idea-love it!

I had trouble choosing between a day and night shot of the pond. I played around with the fog effect thing and made a trickling waterfall in the rocks, whic shows better at night. But the woohoo hearts under the cherry blossom tree, and the butterflies showed up better in the day. So I decided to post my night shot here just because I like it.

This contest sure has challenged me to think outside the box. And I am getting so many ideas from the other houses that I can use in the future!

Thanks :lovestruc

I wish I could go with you... I've visited London only once, when I'm about the same age as you... over 20 years ago! Boy, that makes me feel old. But London is halfway across the world from where I live, visiting there today would be very, very expensive. Consider yourselves lucky if you could visit such a lovely city relatively affordably and easily. Or even live there!

And as for busy, I live in a busier, far more crowded city than London ever be. People's just everywhere, and so many of them. So London seems not at all busy or crowded to me. At least at the time of my visit anyway, which is probably far less busy than it is today, though.

I wholeheartedly agree lol

You have no idea how many times I messed around with the colours. That grey actually started off blueish but I just couldn't get it to look right...I might give it another go because I think my initial thought was the same as yours...waves are blue

missroxor - your roof is so neat. I agree that it looks effortless but I know I would not have had the patience.

I've enjoyed building so much for TS3 that I decided to build the house for one of the fictional characters I am working on at the moment. Ugh...I thought I had learned so much. This house is driving me bonkers! Still fun though. I love that this contest has renewed my interest in this game. Now I just need something to renew my interest in actually playing.

I actually watched some youtube building tutorials the other day like attaching a garage to a foundation and such I just haven't yet built anything and used what I learned.

By the time I try I'll probably have forgotten a step somewhere or something.

There are so many things that EA messed up with building that they should have known by version 3. For example: matching build sets. WTF EA? I mean, there should be windows that are 1 and 2 tiles and counter height and full length, sit in one tile or centered between two and should have matching doors!!! Or just figure out how to let us slide it like you did with the stairs this time. Speaking of...why do we still not functioning split level stairs and where did the spiral stairs go? I hate how CFE messes up my walls so I have to choose a wall paper that makes it less noticeable. Screws up my design. And chimneys - still not recolorable EA? Really? We can color pretty much everything else you stuck in that game but not chimneys. So I have to build walls and cheat to make my houses match.

Okay, my rant is over. But Greenlea, I know what you are talking about. I've made attached garages bunches of times but sometimes, I still have to look it up because I do something out of order. I'm still trying to figure out how to use the basement tool with a foundation. I'm probably just going to cheat and do it the old way but then I can't have cute little windows peeking out of my foundation.

I second your rant about the functioning split level stairs and the spiral stairs.

Yeah, even though I enjoy the challenge of making split level stairs, it'd be so much nicer if they were just built into the game in the first place and we didn't have to go through all that trouble with the walls. It can be such a pain to deal with.

I'm having such a terrible time with this foundation, it's awful.

I think most of us have been screaming that rant again and again in our minds, sometimes out loud, and I fear we will keep at it for a long time to come. I find that rant worthy of this quote and if it wasn't for the fact that it would not come over as nice I would re-quote it again and again...and again!

The main reason I was looking forward to TS3 so much was the building, I figured that the TS2 expansions had shown that they have learned a lot, how wrong I was...

About the basements with foundations, what exactly is not working for you? The only thing I can think off is the stairs which is sadly (as far as I know) impossible to do straight down in 1 go. You can fake it though and have the second stairs start where the other ended so it seems as 1 stairs. First you have to delete a part of the foundation so you can add stairs to the ground level and from there you add the stairs to the basement.

However if your problem is not related or just different than this...just ignore me.

I know how to delete around 1 tile in and dig down from there to make a basement. I just can't seem to actually use the basement tool. The house I am building doesn't actually look like that but it's an example I can think of. My foundation is almost twice the height of a normal foundation. I am trying to put a basement in with the ceiling as the floor of the first level using the basement tool. I can put in a basement but it is completely below ground with that extra foundation height inbetween.

The Chimneys bug me too - I end up deleting the nasty red one and build a fake with wall pieces, but the smoke always look odd.

Is it foolishly optimistic to hope the Night expansion (or whatever it's called) fixes at least one of these issues?



yes, yes it probably is

I've never really cared about the chimneys. They look fine to me. And honestly, the only thing I miss from TS2 that isn't in TS3 are the automatic dormer windows.

My entry has been posted! The backstory is almost finished and will be properly written up before tomorrow morning! Woo!

The Brokenshire Mansion Bed and Breakfast

I'm not sure it will work and I doubt it will let you add windows in the basement wall, but one option that might work is this:

Make it so the floor of the first level is at the same level as the ground, then add the basement which will be as you say all underground. Then use "constrainfloorelevation false" and lower the ground to the level you want it to be a few tiles away from your house and then use the flatten ground tool to lower to the house from that point. It should work, but I have never tried to add windows to the basement walls so not sure you can.

Heck, gonna start up the game and try it now, you got me curious!

edit: nevermind, does not work.

Thanks Fyendiar. I think, for this house at least, he will just have to do without a basement. His target range (or whatever it would be in the Sims) and gym can be somewhere else. Maybe with a detached garage. I'll try that with another lot though!

I don't think you can do this with WA basements - I don't think they can have windows except with the pool aquarium. Might be worth checking out tutorials though to make sure. You can, however do that with the old method of making basements. With the old way you can choose how high you want it and even add windows but you can't have both the interior wall and the window flush with the exterior wall. Plasticbox's weebarnoids have a lot of really good examples of what I mean.

It was a longshot, but sadly it didn't work. The ground didn't agree with me since it slices through the basement area messing everything up.

Thank you for attempting Fyendiar. It was a really good idea at least! (By the way, love the turtle :giggler

Unfortunately, Roarke is just going to have to do without a basement. And missroxor - thank you for the direction. I have a basic idea of how to do it the old way but I'll check out PlasticBox for a more complete understanding.

A lot of plasticbox's seem to be the type where the windows are hidden or set back....I'm sure she's done some that aren't but can't see them. Out of laziness on my part, if you wanna see an example of a basement with windows flush with the outside wall I have done that with one of my uploads (I swear I'm not just trying to advertise ). I don't think you can see th windows from the outside because I hid them with bushes but from the plan view you can get an idea of what you have to do.

http://www.thesimsresource.com/downloads/959671

Want to buy: More picture allowance