The Continental

Really quick! While taking some interior shots the other night, our photographer captured this cool image from the deck of home #403. Cool, huh?

Night Life!

For those of us who’ve lived and worked in Bellevue for years and years, it’s pretty amazing to stop and look at what our little bedroom community has blossomed into over the past decade. Bellevue’s skyline is beginning to rival Seattle’s, and with the addition of dozens for new shops and restaurants, it seems we have just about everything tucked neatly into downtown. There is so much to do, see and experience!

Have you seen Bellevue.com? Dedicated to all things Bellevue, this site is packed with great information perfect for those who call Bellevue home.

In addition to sharing with you about Bellevue.com, we want to extend a big THANK YOU for to Tom Nguyen, the founder of Bellevue.com for sharing the article from the Seattle Times about our grand opening. We are grateful for the shout out.

Jason Reese from the Eastside Condo Report came by for a sneak peek right before our Grand Opening, and braved the dust, the dirt and noise to see what the heck has been going on here all these many months. Here’s a snippet of what he had to say…

“I was immediately thankful of the extra wide hallways with luxury carpets. “This place has pizazz”, I was thinking. A unique feature for all of the units in this project is the large storage areas seamlessly integrated into the outside of each home. Very convenient for my bicycle and Christmas decorations. Guess which one I use more.

The first unit was a one bedroom decked out to the nines. Large and roomy, this unit had what I have come to expect from new condos on the Eastside, Bellevue to be more specific. The granite and marble choices are smart and rich. The kitchen slab has these uber-blue iridescent discs in it. I can’t remember what it was actually called, but I hadn’t seen it before. The bedroom is big too, with enough room for my king bed. Everything in these condos is new. You cannot tell from the inside that this is a conversion.”

Read the full post here. Jason, thank you for coming by!

It’s pretty easy to toot your own horn (especially when you’ve created a community you are proud to be a part of), but isn’t there something fabulous when others toot it for you?

And, the good news is there’s been a fair amount of tooting going on around here! Here’s what Cherie Lang from The Bellevue Block has to say about The Continental.

“Affordability and High End finishes in downtown bellevue? This may be what you have been waiting for! Washington Square, Bellevue Towers, move over! This precious little gem is about to steal your heart, (and maybe even your buyer’s.)” Read more by clicking here…. And thanks Cherie!

Here we are, looking across 100th Ave NE to the west.

Ok, so our interiors have been getting lots of attention from the agents and future residents… but one of the biggest surprises that we LOVE to share with people is the view from our rooftop deck. Who knew that you could see all of downtown Bellevue from our over here on 100th AVE NE!

Well, not only is the view amazing morning and night… but oh my, you should see it when the sun is setting. Words can’t quite capture the light show that happens as the setting sun reflects off the Bellevue skyline. It’s really something to see.

Looking East at the Bellevue Skyline

This smart one bedroom home has an outrageously large kitchen, welcoming living spaces and a bedroom fit for a queen (and a king). The bathroom is supersized as well, making this home perfect for a busy, active professional looking for a sanctuary space of their own. Not shown is the huge (and I mean huge) deck. Stainless steel appliances, a home for a stacking washer/dryer and a secure storage room for off-season clothes, your gear and other goodies are also included making this home super livable. And remember, it’s all steps away from everything downtown Bellevue has to offer.

Slab granite, walnut floors, charming glass pendants.

Fit for a queen (or a king)

Yes, that's a slab countertop.

You might have noticed that we’ve dropped the ball on blogging lately. I think you’ll understand why. For the past couple of months we’ve been rocking and rolling on getting our ‘best dress on’… that is, we’ve been planning for the day we’d open our doors show the world what we’ve been doing over here. Great news. The response was overwhelming.

Over the weekend we held our Grand Opening. It was a hit. Finally we got to show off our slab granite counters, charming blown glass pendant lights, and the slightly over the top (but seriously fabulous) marble floors in our bathrooms.

Photos and testimonials coming soon. But really, they won’t do it justice. Seeing it in person is the way to go!

You see the word everywhere in our marketing. Are we just trying to sound different? Are we just trying to sound special? The answer is yes and yes. We are different and special. Not only is the location special, but the interior design and livability details of each home we think you will find a cut above.

For example, our smaller homes have large kitchens and bathrooms – so each home feels and lives much bigger than it really is. Each bedroom and living area has a wall mounted fully programmable thermostat – so every room will feel just right. Most closets have their own internal light – so you can find that special coat. Sconces in each home add taste – so you can feel the style. Even the front door of each home has a sense of arrival and flair because they are recessed from the hallway and finished like an expensive boutique hotel.

There is that word again, boutique. We are different and special in so many important ways. Come see what everyone is talking about.

For those of you that have shopped for kitchen cabinets, perhaps you will have some sympathy for the one that has to choose the cabinet type, construction, style and finish for a new home. For example, today’s modern manufacturing technology allows one to select just about any cabinet finish you can think of: stained, laminate, foil, paint, lacquer, varnish, urethane…. It’s enough to make your head swim. So how did we do it? How did we pick just the right cabinets for the Continental, a boutique Bellevue condominium?

We knew our overall goal was to have a classic contemporary design. This meant we wanted a style that would be current, but not look trendy ten years from now. That pointed us in the direction of wood with a clean classic design. Flush panel would be a great approach, but it needed some special style added to it. We specified a rift sawn oak finish, giving it texture and richness a Bellevue condo deserves and used two different stains: clear stain to bring out the natural beauty of the special wood and a dark stain that took many attempts to perfect. The end result is something extraordinary that we are very proud of. You have to see our cabinets to truly appreciate them.

Things are moving quickly at the construction site.  The fourth floor is the farthest along in the process with 401 and 402 cabinets and New Venetian Gold slab granite kitchen countertops in place.  Kitchen track lighting and artisan glass pendants are in place as well.  In contrast, the first floor dry wall was recently finished and the painting process started.  Both the water and electrical systems are scheduled to be turned on for the first time next week.  This will be a welcome improvement, given that we have lived without an elevator for five months and the city took our garage parking away until the sprinkler system is pressurized.  We are on schedule to have our new owners move into our Bellevue Condos by the end of July!