BlackSand's Builds ... and Remodels for Hidden Springs

2 East Ancestors Hills Lot

Enjoy the outdoors...






and Relax betweem Adventures in Tombs ...

Nice builds. You've captured the beachy feel on the Gulf Coast house and your other lot looks very tranquil and relaxing.

very nice, I've seen your china one on blewis' thread, awesome work, and I love your beach house!! rec'd, great job! :D



couldn't find the latter link to rec.

http://www.thesims3.com/assetDetail.html?assetId=5457998

Typical Gulf Coast Beach House ...

Rolling sand dunes, and elevated to protect against the altering tides and storms, this 2 bedroom, 1 bath house mimics a lot that can be seen along the Gulf Coast. Not too fancy nor expensive, but everything you need to start off a happy family. All appliances have been upgraded to either self-cleaning or unbreakable.









The Kitchen and Living Room butt up against each other for an open flow and clean design.





The room with outside access downstairs is equipped as a work-out space.



The house is completely CC free … No Exceptions … and Fully Tested.

Bridgeport Advanced Trainer Home

Built For: 223 Windsor Lot – Bridgeport

http://www.thesims3.com/assetDetail.html?assetId=4428218

Tested On: 223 Windsor - Bridgeport, 500 and 477 Sunnyside - Sunset Valley and the open Greenbelt Lot – Egypt

*The build and lot are slightly different in size … so the Greenbelt Lot is listed separately in my studio.



The build has a large yard and ample space for any desired activities, as well as the fact it comes with a planted garden including all the fruits cultivated to “perfect” grade.



The Bathroom is full-sized and Fully enclosed. All fixtures are Up-Graded to Self-Cleaning. The roof area above the Bathroom allows for a wonderful place to work on Skills Advancement.







The Kitchen, Dining Room and Livingroom … although not completely enclosed, allows for open air entertainment and stunning views of Downtown Bridgeport or the Sea in Sunset Valley.



The Bedroom and its Sitting Area have equally awesome views … regardless of where the build is placed among the mentioned Testing Sites.





The Basement is also well equipped to handle somewhat large parties. The Large Party Room includes a bar, a stage with all of the instruments for a band, a hot tub (up-graded to Unbreakable) and plenty of room for seating or dancing. The basement also includes a Nectar producing workspace (complete with 2 up-graded Nectar makers and a Fridge) … as well as a “built-in” Teleporter Room for easy access to the surrounding area.





*Note that the basements vary a little between the Normal Lot and the Greenbelt Lot ... I don't suspect that you will be throwing huge parties when traveling to Egypt.

Dig In … and Enjoy the Process of Taking Your Sims to the Top,

BlackSand

*Any models appearing in the pictures are all part of my Testing Staff and are not included with the download ... Just a sign of how "tested" the builds actually are!

Large Occupancy House with Mother-in-Law's Apartment.

Built For: 500 Sunnyside Lot - Sunset Valley

http://www.thesims3.com/assetDetail.html?assetId=4566334

Tested On: 500 Sunnyside - Sunset Valley and 223 Windsor Lot – Bridgeport



This is one of my only “Traditional Builds” ... includes 4 Bedrooms and 4.5 Baths counting the Mother-in-Law's apartment in the basement. The house and grounds offers an abundance of space for a growing family, and also provides for all sorts of entertainment and skills advancement. First off … the house actually has two fronts … on facing the road and the other facing the bay and Lighthouse area.



The Living and Entry Room is large and well equipped to handle a good sized family. All electronics have been upgraded to Unbreakable. The bookshelves spread throughout the area already contain any book you may desire to purchase from the bookstore … and multiple copies of those that are designated and “single-use” (recipes and sheet music).



The Kitchen is well apportioned to the same use by a considerably large family and hosts upgraded appliances as well (most are upgraded to Unbreakable). The kitchen also contains the entry to the Basement.





The upstairs Bedrooms all support wonderful views accenting the surrounding area. They all have upgraded electronics and plenty of room to move around. I tried to keep the colors bright to match the openess of the rooms, but that can easily be changed if you so choose.

Master Bedroom ...





Children's Bedrooms …





The Children's Bedrooms also open onto a small porch that overlooks the backyard and the bay when placed in Sunset Valley, or the downtown in Bridgeport.



Now to the Basement … Lolz!

Get ready to have your socks blown off by the abundance of wood in the basement. I personally don't like a lot of the other available wall coverings, and the end user may choose to alter anything as they see fit. Coming down the stairs into the Basement, the first room you enter is the Nectary. Fully equipped for the Production and Storage (built-in shelving), the room also includes ample space for the testing and enjoyment of Nectar, and is equipped with a stereo as well.



There are two doors leading out of the Nectary … one to the Mother-in-Law's Apartment, and the other to the Pool Room and Skill's Advancement Area.



There is a hallway that leads from the Nectary to the Pool Room and Skill's Advancement Area.



The Skill's Advancement Area has everything you need to work on projects like Drawing, Inventing and Sculpting. If my memory serves me correctly … there is also a teleporter included in this room.





Right down the hall from the Skill's Room is the underground Pool and Game Room. Equipped with all sorts of games, a stage and associated instruments, full equipped bar … it also sports a large pool complete with an island for dancing or just lounging around during a party. The Pool Room also has a complete Bathroom to service the community rooms downstairs.





Last … But not least, if you take the other direction out of the Nectary, you get to the Mother-in Law's Apartment. Many people end up with the Sims having to take on some of the In-Laws … either to help their parents or get help with the children. This build allows for you to jump ahead of the details … and actually get right to sticking your Mother-in-Law in the ground … Lolz!

There is plenty of room in the apartment and enough stuff for them to do if they don't feel like getting involved upstairs. It has a complete Kitchen and Dining Area, as well as a Sitting and Entertainment Area in the large room.





There is a Bedroom complete with two full-sized beds and a Dressing Area … just in case both sets of In-laws decide to come leech off of you. From the Bedroom, they can access a complete and private Bathroom specifically designated for Apartment use.



*Note that any Models that may appear in pictures, are part of the Testing Staff and not included in the download you pervs … lolz!

Dig In and Enjoy the Build,

BlackSand

I really like your houses. They ARE very different. Will download them and rec. Thank you for sharing.

Is it a House, Vineyard, Nectary, Dance Club or Gym …?
The more you investigate, you will find out it is all of the above.

The Sunnyside Mega Trainer

http://www.thesims3.com/assetDetail.html?assetId=5503361

Built On:
500 Sunnyside Lot - Sunset Valley

Tested On:
500 Sunnyside Lot - Sunset Valley

This build is an aggressive build that combines many aspects of my smaller builds into one large Training Facility for young Sims. It provides everything a Sim needs to Live, Work, Train and Party like no tomorrow. Manned with a suitable Tutor, 3 Young Adult Sims can get into the best shape of their lives, while working and putting away enough money to eventually get out there and start a family with more than a book full of knowledge and a pocketful of change.

Above ground, the establishment has a rustic feel, but accesses an Open Air design.
In short … if your Sim Hates the Outdoors, this is not the place for you.







The Vineyard contains 102 fruit bearing plants and trees, all cultivated and fertilized, as well as already produced to Perfect Grade. Its is not that hard to manage the vineyard with 3 residents, but almost impossible to have any free-time if you try it with one. Unlike most vineyard designs, I didn't crowd the plants unreasonably, to allow for a more relaxed look. There are no large blanketed areas of straight rows.



If the question ever comes up as to what the cash end of the vineyard is about, there is a full-scale Nectary in the cellar. With enough room to store 1500 bottles of nectar, you may be surprised to know that the download comes with two thirds of the storage capacity filled already. All nectars Included in the download are between 2,000 and 20,000 simoleons a bottle (you can find some good recipes if you read the bottle descriptions). The are two upgraded nectar makers, separated by a fridge to keep your produce fresh.





*Note … Not shown in the picture above, but included in the download, there is a red treasure chest located in the Nectary that contains a decent amount of fruit … including some kinds I did not plat, and a good deal of applicable fertilizer to get started with while you settle in.



Okay … up until now we have covered the work aspect of the build, but who wants to be all work no play? To help train your Sims as athletes, the build has a state-of art Workout Facility in the basement. The facility includes 4 elliptical runners, and 2 workout benches. Televisions and a stereo are available for enjoyment as you work out. To the right-hand side of the Workout Area, a hallway leads to two full bathrooms complete with showers and shared access to the Club Area. The left-hand side of the Workout Area leads to 2 hot tubs in a separate room, complete with their own entertainment center, and also with shared access to the Club Area.



The club has 2 bars, table seating as well, a stage with instruments, club lighting and a dance floor. The soothing light and deco style provide everything you need to entertain friends or advance your music skill. There are also 2 "built-in" Teleporter Rooms along the outside wall of the Club Area not occupied by the stage.



All in all, there are 18 upgradeable appliances or electronics included in the download, and the Testing Team has already upgraded them all to one specification or another. As mentioned before, the vineyard is planted, fertilized and already producing fruit for your immediate use. Fruits planted include Life Plants, Flame Bushes, Watermelon Vines, and all the available grapes in the game. Fruit bearing trees included in the build grow Plums, Pomelos, Pomegranates and Cherries. All plants are Perfect Grade.

There is NO Custom Content in this build!

All I can say is that the testing staff seemed to enjoy themselves with this build.



Have Fun … Happy Simming,

BlackSand

Hello BlackSand,

you have some really lovely homes there. I've left recs for you :)
Are you familiar with the UIC (upload image changer) - it would be worth looking into as your creations definately deserve more attention.

yote <3

UIC link: http://www.zindasgoldensims.com/

Thanks YOTEAMO … I really need to look into the suggested (UIC) you mentioned. I haven't looked into using it before because I thought is was a Mod you have to add to the game. I have gotten by so far without having to use Mods and was kind of sketchy on whether I wanted to since my game works fine. Reading the info at the link you provided, it seems to suggest that you use the program to adjust the images only … before you Upload to the Exchange … Thanks Again.

Looking around though, and investigating the builds of some truly talented people here ... most of my builds are not what you would consider “Family Friendly”. When you look through my lots available in the Studio, you will notice that a few have “Trainer” in the name. Most of the lots that I build are made for the purpose of a Sim living in luxury and comfort as they train up in skills and levels.

Since I have a serious distaste for pre-made homes provided by EA (as well as most of the pre-made Sims), I spend a lot of time in-game developing Sims and building houses. I only add one of my builds to the Studio, if my Testing Crew and the appropriate Trainees have what I consider to be a wonderful time split between style and function while on the Lot.

I guess what I am getting at is that the lots I make are not just for Style, but are likewise as much for Function. I am not building a Lot that sits there and looks pretty … but one that does everything it can to “spike-out” and max positive Moodlets for Sims training there, so it is easier to keep them in a good mood and earn more Lifetime Reward Points while they are in training (just from being on the lot).



I have to say that it has been rather hard to get the Trainees and Tutors on the Testing Crew to leave this last build, and go on to another. I mean it when I say “Extensively Tested” … and I am always surprised at the tiny details that can be missed in the initial build.



You are correct though YOTEAMO, and presentation means a lot as far as visibility is concerned. If I ever start building Houses designed more for the general user, and more family oriented, I will certainly have to look into another means by which to present them.

Right Now … I am just Thankful for all the support I have received from the plethora of awesome builders around here.

You All Have Very Good Work!

BlackSand