Ok M & M my new year's resolution is to catch up on this thread, but um.. I seem to be quite a bit behind now.
I am not in the position to take on a full build, but I do need some help with a few touch ups and customizations on lots once in a while so I think this will be the perfect place to learn the tricks.
This may not be the right place, but it's killing me right now. All of my swimming pools are black and useless. I keep trying to delete them and use the pool tool to recreate the pools but that creates new black pools. I'm not sure if there is a trick to using the pool tools, or if I'm just doomed now. Currently this is the most immediate building crisis I am facing.
In the meantime, I'm heading back to page one. See you all in a few days once I work my way back here
Min!
You help me take better pictures and I'll help you with building, well... The best I can LOL!
Go in to your options and see if you can check "Advanced Rendering".. I don't have any black pools and can make them with the pool tool no problem.
If that doesn't fix it...
What OS are you using?
What game version are you running?
What's your video card and which versions of DirectX and Shader is it using?
Hopefully, just ticking that box might fix it though
Hey merry and magician aswell as everyone else... please read on
Built with top-notch facilities such as majestic gardens and a wide, elaborate pool. Beautiful wood and marble kitchen with barstools and stainless steel appliances, both indoor and outdoor dining areas, two master bedrooms, Large bathroom, Modern Loungeroom, Grand entrance, Split level stairs and rooms. This house is an outdoor entertainers dream with a lot of effort put into exterior livability and well as interior. Designed with efficency and functionallity with a 100% playable guarantee If you like ti please take the time to thank me by commenting, recing and download.
P.S. there will be a video for the lot out soon, uploaded to youtube, i'll post a link when me and my friend justin finish it
CFE is driving me nuts. Mainly because I don't understand what I am trying to do. I understand the garage with no foundation and house with then itall goes fuzzy. So let me pick your brains and see if you can add something I am so not getting. I am trying to do Darksides tutorial.
1. Lay down square of foundation.
2. Turn cfe to false, knock our one foundation square and the corner rises.
3 Turn cfe to true, level the foundation, so you know have a wall height of foundation.
4. Raise ground in front of foundation to same height as your foundation
Why?
Knock out squares of foundation to accomodate doors etc.. so that is straight back to terrain level right? Darkside looks as if he only has four steps in his stairs.
Help. please! I think I have read every tutorial on this and I still don't get it. The penny must drop eventually!
Ok I'm stagnant... I'm pretty sure the interior is ok, I'm getting decorated or better moodlets... There isnt much room along the left side or back of the house. The dustbin is funtional in that little nook. The pond is stocked with all 5 basic lake spawners. Not much furniture outside as it's on the "Sundeck" so any and all ground level landscaping I feel should be more decorative than truely functional.
Wicked,
May I suggest some cattails and rocks around your pond.
CFE is driving me nuts. Mainly because I don't understand what I am trying to do. I understand the garage with no foundation and house with then itall goes fuzzy. So let me pick your brains and see if you can add something I am so not getting. I am trying to do Darksides tutorial.
1. Lay down square of foundation.
2. Turn cfe to false, knock our one foundation square and the corner rises.
3 Turn cfe to true, level the foundation, so you know have a wall height of foundation.
4. Raise ground in front of foundation to same height as your foundation
Why?
Knock out squares of foundation to accomodate doors etc.. so that is straight back to terrain level right? Darkside looks as if he only has four steps in his stairs.
Help. please! I think I have read every tutorial on this and I still don't get it. The penny must drop eventually!
Smoky..i raised the level of the home to a full wall height to accomodate a garage in basement...basement could have been underground for anyone else...now because of what i was doing.i raised the ground so that my foyer wasnt a full wall height to get into main living area...so that way the stairs from entry to main living area would only be 3-4 steps instead of 8.knocking out the sections of foundation are for the entry foyer and yes your right,that does put it at ground level...in the event someone does not want a walk out basement.they can just ommit step #2 about raising the foundation and just have an underground basement.I'm not sure if i am explaining this well..but it is all just about creating an illusion and giving the homes a little more character since real homes do have all these extra features,such as the sunken areas,raised areas split level foundations..etc.I wish you the best and if anyone else can help explain it all better.please feel free to do so.
well i have been working on a new cabin.Simtweek this is the one you suggested.As of now.i havent done very much CASing.just tring to get layouts and placement right.Then i'll come back and decorate accordingly.
CFE is driving me nuts. Mainly because I don't understand what I am trying to do. I understand the garage with no foundation and house with then itall goes fuzzy. So let me pick your brains and see if you can add something I am so not getting. I am trying to do Darksides tutorial.
1. Lay down square of foundation.
2. Turn cfe to false, knock our one foundation square and the corner rises.
3 Turn cfe to true, level the foundation, so you know have a wall height of foundation.
4. Raise ground in front of foundation to same height as your foundation
Why?
Knock out squares of foundation to accomodate doors etc.. so that is straight back to terrain level right? Darkside looks as if he only has four steps in his stairs.
Help. please! I think I have read every tutorial on this and I still don't get it. The penny must drop eventually!
Okay, I will try to answer your questions.
First of all, you delete the square of foundation so that it pops up to wall height...this will make your foundation as big as an entire floor, so that if you delete the center of it it's like walls...when you level it, you are just making sure it is all the same. When you turn off cfe (constrainfloorelevation true) then you are telling the game that no matter what you do with the ground, it is not to change your walls and floors. When you turn it on, you are telling the game that the walls and floor can be moved also.
When you raise the ground level to the top of the foundation, you are making the foundation area "underground" so it can be a basement. When you use foundation as walls, you cannot place doors or windows (or pictures unless you use moo) since the game doesn't recognize it as walls, so you need to remove some and replace them with real walls if you want a door or window. If your foundation has been "popped up" then the walls should be the exact same height as the foundation.
Am I making any sense? I hope I am helping...
Have you checked out my tutorial? I have tried to explain the basics of CFE in very simple terms in it so that the concept can be understood in addition to the "tricks".
Good luck.
Thank you Darkside, I knowthat I am a pain, I have spent two afternoons trying to get this, I just don't get the raised ground level, the programme won't let me build a wall over to it or floor tiles - with cfe or not. Is the raised ground level the same height as the wall height foundation? I love the idea of creating the illusion, but at the moment I creating a mess. I think your tutorial is great, I just need to play more till it suddenly falls into place and I really see why.
I looked at that cabin too and thought I would just like to move in there. Perhaps I just need to stretch my building skills a little. I only really recently realised you need pillars to build floors on but when your done, the floors stay. hmm well mostly!
oh thank you too Nam, I have read your turorial too more than once. They are all very clear, until I try it, believe me it is more my technophobia than understanding the principle.
If I tell you that once and only once have I managed to click and drag floor tiles to my shower to match my decor, you may understand how much of a dimwit I can be. I was so surprised, I forgot what I did.
In time, and with a lot of trial and error I will understand.
I finished my surf dudes house! (ok I played as well), later I will show you some piccys!
Thank you Darkside, I knowthat I am a pain, I have spent two afternoons trying to get this, I just don't get the raised ground level, the programme won't let me build a wall over to it or floor tiles - with cfe or not. Is the raised ground level the same height as the wall height foundation? I love the idea of creating the illusion, but at the moment I creating a mess. I think your tutorial is great, I just need to play more till it suddenly falls into place and I really see why.
I looked at that cabin too and thought I would just like to move in there. Perhaps I just need to stretch my building skills a little. I only really recently realised you need pillars to build floors on but when your done, the floors stay. hmm well mostly!
As Magician says, keep on learning!
Smoky..with CFE turned off...it should only let you raise the ground level to a specific height...its basically the same as if you were building on a flat lot and placed foundation..the ground wont go any higher there until you turn ON cfe..anyway,i raised the ground..busted out the needed amount of foundation for that tutorial.you can remove as much as you need for a foyer though,maybe your using a larger door.so you will need more removed..then i laid down the floor tiles and then i made the exterior wall that i had to manipulate for a front door.If you try to place stairs before the floor tile..sometimes it will try going deeper in the ground than you want it to..while i needed mine to only be 3 steps...without floortiles..it may have tried to go 6 steps or more.
You just keep trying and if you can show us some pics of your mistakes and maybe we can help you figure it all out.sometimes that what it takes fo r me to see the problem that needs a solution..just like steph showed her mistakes..so i was able to make the tutorial to show her the way to fix it.
Hehe. Here are the finished pictures for Assignment 1. I may tweak somethings as I go so I will include to include pictures =D
Arial View, Roof Down
Front View
Side View
Back View
Side View
What do you think?
I glad Evergreen that you were able to get some feedback while I was away from the thread. You have managed to come up with a great look. I would say it's time to move on to assignment 2. Great job.
:shock: Darkside, I just saw your cabin!!!!!!! It is absolutely awesome- you know of course that as soon as you're done, I will be downloading it into my Up North land!!!
Right now, I've put the building projects on hold in order to work on my sims project- arrrggghhh I have to admit that it is just as hard- probably harder than the building! I only have one of them done so far, three more to go! Then when they move into town, I will be eventually building them each their own personalized accomodations!!
Here is my first finished one... I started with a pic for referance then went from there-
George Harrison
Hahahaha I know it's not a building project but as I said, when they're done, they will all be getting custom homes!
I tell you there time I hate this website. I just spent the last 1 1/2 hrs making a step by step tutorial for a Tri-level CFE home and when I clicked save...poof gone disappear got the create a story beginning blank page. :evil:
So Smokey give me another 1 or 2 and hopefully I will have the step by step easy to understand tut for you. Provided EA doesn't eat it again.
Nam: I love the wallpaper in the upstairs hall. I'm not sure about the balcony behind the front gabled roof. It looks like the purpose of the balcony is defeated by the wall there. I love the layout so far. That is a good idea of all of the bookshelves around the sunken room. They will not be usable though so I hope you have a usable one somewhere. It looks great so far.
My condolences with the passing of your Nana. Hugs!
Smokey: So sorry to hear you lost you build. Now you can do it better the next time.
Steph: Good luck with your SAT's. Pop in whenever you can.
blunote00: This is a wonderful build. I love the colours you have used. You have done a wonderful job of creating the Sims 3 version of this log cabin. I rec'd the lot for you. The only suggestion that I have is that you check out the 2nd post on this thread for changing your cover picture. Good luck!
Knight: I agree. Post your pictures. That's what this thread is all about. I see you have. I agree some cattails would look good around the pond and also maybe a couple of rocks. And a bench under the tree looking toward the pond. Great place for reading.
Lil: Great idea for the treasure room. There is room to add as the collection grows. I love the grey walls in the bathroom. The colours really pop against it. The landscaping looks wonderful so far. It has a kinda formal feel to it.
I find that for stories on this site it is best to start the story with just a couple of pictures and save private. Then edit to add the rest of the pics etc. This method has always helped me.
Minraed: I didn't recognize you. Love your new avatar. I see Knight is helping you with your problem.
Jason: You're doing quite well on this build I see. I've rec'd it also. Your builds always give me ideas. I love the 3 textures together. Love the interior garden. Great job and I'm looking forward to the movie.
Darkside: Your WIP looks great so far. I love the layout of the furniture around the fireplace and the kitchen layout.
Evergreen: I love forest walks. It has a built in contrast colour and I love the peach and orange sorbet colours with the greens.
Hey guys. Ive just recently started taking time to build and am looking for some input, advice, or any other comments from others who try their hand at this stuff.
Merry, thanks!! I am really pleased with the way he turned out and already thinking ahead to the type of home he will need! I think I will have to go outside of my comfort zone for this build when I get to it! Paul's will be relatively easy for me... I am going to take my oldstone creamery cottage and expand on it for him so it will resemble the farm he lived on while raising his family! I am going to have do a bit more research on their homes through the years to get a better idea of what to build!!
Right -lor this forum takes forever to load! Anyway as well as my non productive attempts at cfe, I WILL get there, I redid my surfer dudes apartment/studio whatever... no walkthrough stuff available yet as I forgot to save to the libary! But some piccys, oh the whole thing was influenced by finding surf boads on TSR!
It was fun, and part of my ambition to rebuild the entire town!
Tomorrow - I will try the cfe again. I think my biggest prob is which buttons to select, I will get there.
Lil: Great idea for the treasure room. There is room to add as the collection grows. I love the grey walls in the bathroom. The colours really pop against it. The landscaping looks wonderful so far. It has a kinda formal feel to it.
I find that for stories on this site it is best to start the story with just a couple of pictures and save private. Then edit to add the rest of the pics etc. This method has always helped me.
Have fun!
MerryWiddow
MW I really liked the grey wall myself. If the landscaping has a formal feel to it then I am on the right track to what the requester wants.
Thanks for the tip about the stories. I will try it the next time I do one.
Hey guys. Ive just recently started taking time to build and am looking for some input, advice, or any other comments from others who try their hand at this stuff.
Hello and welcome bergcrys. I hope you will stay and have some fun with us. The homework assignments are designed for the novice builder. You can find a link to them on page 1 of this thread. They will help you with learning to build from a house plan and on to the uploading and promotion of your lot.
Your current WIP is a good start. The pictures are a little dark, but that can be remedied with a little extra temporary lighting. You show a talent with interior design. Practice with CAS will help you to hone that talent. I hope to see more of your pictures as you progress through this build.
Thank you LilS - very clear. This time I took an age and printed the whole thing out - for instant reference! Tomorrow I will build a split level home, then when I get some ink I will print out Darksides and try one with a basment garage!
This is in addition to the link I posted before. If you have suggestions please let me know
Hi bergcrys, I love the brick you have used behind the fireplace. A reminder, don't forget to place a fire alarm somewhere in the same room as the fireplace. You can hide it behind a painting or even behind the fireplace itself by using MOO (MoveObjects on). It might just be my taste, but I think the curtains clash a little with the wall. Your sofas might look good in that same print as it will not be right next to the wall and then make your curtains the same as the sofas are now. I suppose I could have just said trade your patterns on the sofas and curtains. LOL!
I suggest a rug under the dining room table. There is a link to an instructive tutorial by Fidlerten on page 1 of this thread. There you will find some great ideas. I love your kitchen. Yellow and green go so well together, however, your counter top is so dark, it disappears. Might I suggest a little yellow mixed into the counter top. Just a very little splash.
For your landscaping, I would suggest a little terrain paint around the pond. There is a good one called something 'Pond' that would be perfect. I would also suggest that you keep your walkway and your driveway the same stone. The formal garden is lovely. I do think your chimney doesn't go high enough. To fix this grab a hold of the chimney and place it again. This should extend the chimney to above roof height. You will have to remove one of those windows on the top floor or it will look funny. Again I suggest that the stone around the formal garden and the pool match.
The overall layout is interest and I like it. Great job.
Comments
Min!
You help me take better pictures and I'll help you with building, well... The best I can LOL!
Go in to your options and see if you can check "Advanced Rendering".. I don't have any black pools and can make them with the pool tool no problem.
If that doesn't fix it...
What OS are you using?
What game version are you running?
What's your video card and which versions of DirectX and Shader is it using?
Hopefully, just ticking that box might fix it though
Built with top-notch facilities such as majestic gardens and a wide, elaborate pool. Beautiful wood and marble kitchen with barstools and stainless steel appliances, both indoor and outdoor dining areas, two master bedrooms, Large bathroom, Modern Loungeroom, Grand entrance, Split level stairs and rooms. This house is an outdoor entertainers dream with a lot of effort put into exterior livability and well as interior. Designed with efficency and functionallity with a 100% playable guarantee
P.S. there will be a video for the lot out soon, uploaded to youtube, i'll post a link when me and my friend justin finish it
Link: http://www.thesims3.com/assetDetail.html?assetId=1752824
1. Lay down square of foundation.
2. Turn cfe to false, knock our one foundation square and the corner rises.
3 Turn cfe to true, level the foundation, so you know have a wall height of foundation.
4. Raise ground in front of foundation to same height as your foundation
Why?
Knock out squares of foundation to accomodate doors etc.. so that is straight back to terrain level right? Darkside looks as if he only has four steps in his stairs.
Help. please! I think I have read every tutorial on this and I still don't get it. The penny must drop eventually!
Wicked,
May I suggest some cattails and rocks around your pond.
Lil
Smoky..i raised the level of the home to a full wall height to accomodate a garage in basement...basement could have been underground for anyone else...now because of what i was doing.i raised the ground so that my foyer wasnt a full wall height to get into main living area...so that way the stairs from entry to main living area would only be 3-4 steps instead of 8.knocking out the sections of foundation are for the entry foyer and yes your right,that does put it at ground level...in the event someone does not want a walk out basement.they can just ommit step #2 about raising the foundation and just have an underground basement.I'm not sure if i am explaining this well..but it is all just about creating an illusion and giving the homes a little more character since real homes do have all these extra features,such as the sunken areas,raised areas split level foundations..etc.I wish you the best and if anyone else can help explain it all better.please feel free to do so.
Okay, I will try to answer your questions.
First of all, you delete the square of foundation so that it pops up to wall height...this will make your foundation as big as an entire floor, so that if you delete the center of it it's like walls...when you level it, you are just making sure it is all the same. When you turn off cfe (constrainfloorelevation true) then you are telling the game that no matter what you do with the ground, it is not to change your walls and floors. When you turn it on, you are telling the game that the walls and floor can be moved also.
When you raise the ground level to the top of the foundation, you are making the foundation area "underground" so it can be a basement. When you use foundation as walls, you cannot place doors or windows (or pictures unless you use moo) since the game doesn't recognize it as walls, so you need to remove some and replace them with real walls if you want a door or window. If your foundation has been "popped up" then the walls should be the exact same height as the foundation.
Am I making any sense? I hope I am helping...
Have you checked out my tutorial? I have tried to explain the basics of CFE in very simple terms in it so that the concept can be understood in addition to the "tricks".
Good luck.
I looked at that cabin too and thought I would just like to move in there. Perhaps I just need to stretch my building skills a little. I only really recently realised you need pillars to build floors on but when your done, the floors stay. hmm well mostly!
As Magician says, keep on learning!
If I tell you that once and only once have I managed to click and drag floor tiles to my shower to match my decor, you may understand how much of a dimwit I can be. I was so surprised, I forgot what I did.
In time, and with a lot of trial and error I will understand.
I finished my surf dudes house! (ok I played as well), later I will show you some piccys!
Smoky..with CFE turned off...it should only let you raise the ground level to a specific height...its basically the same as if you were building on a flat lot and placed foundation..the ground wont go any higher there until you turn ON cfe..anyway,i raised the ground..busted out the needed amount of foundation for that tutorial.you can remove as much as you need for a foyer though,maybe your using a larger door.so you will need more removed..then i laid down the floor tiles and then i made the exterior wall that i had to manipulate for a front door.If you try to place stairs before the floor tile..sometimes it will try going deeper in the ground than you want it to..while i needed mine to only be 3 steps...without floortiles..it may have tried to go 6 steps or more.
You just keep trying and if you can show us some pics of your mistakes and maybe we can help you figure it all out.sometimes that what it takes fo r me to see the problem that needs a solution..just like steph showed her mistakes..so i was able to make the tutorial to show her the way to fix it.
I glad Evergreen that you were able to get some feedback while I was away from the thread. You have managed to come up with a great look. I would say it's time to move on to assignment 2. Great job.
Have fun!
MerryWiddow
A?
http://www.colourlovers.com/palette/1044982/forest_walks
B?
http://www.colourlovers.com/palette/670949/Forest_Zen
C?
http://www.colourlovers.com/palette/71649/Whispers_of_Fear
D?
http://www.colourlovers.com/palette/91155/Forest_of_Nostgaard
Pick your favorite!!
Right now, I've put the building projects on hold in order to work on my sims project- arrrggghhh I have to admit that it is just as hard- probably harder than the building! I only have one of them done so far, three more to go! Then when they move into town, I will be eventually building them each their own personalized accomodations!!
Here is my first finished one... I started with a pic for referance then went from there-
George Harrison
Hahahaha I know it's not a building project but as I said, when they're done, they will all be getting custom homes!
I tell you there time I hate this website. I just spent the last 1 1/2 hrs making a step by step tutorial for a Tri-level CFE home and when I clicked save...poof gone disappear got the create a story beginning blank page. :evil:
So Smokey give me another 1 or 2 and hopefully I will have the step by step easy to understand tut for you. Provided EA doesn't eat it again.
Lil
I hope you all had a wonderful holiday.
Nam: I love the wallpaper in the upstairs hall. I'm not sure about the balcony behind the front gabled roof. It looks like the purpose of the balcony is defeated by the wall there. I love the layout so far. That is a good idea of all of the bookshelves around the sunken room. They will not be usable though so I hope you have a usable one somewhere. It looks great so far.
My condolences with the passing of your Nana. Hugs!
Smokey: So sorry to hear you lost you build. Now you can do it better the next time.
Steph: Good luck with your SAT's. Pop in whenever you can.
blunote00: This is a wonderful build. I love the colours you have used. You have done a wonderful job of creating the Sims 3 version of this log cabin. I rec'd the lot for you. The only suggestion that I have is that you check out the 2nd post on this thread for changing your cover picture. Good luck!
Knight: I agree. Post your pictures. That's what this thread is all about. I see you have. I agree some cattails would look good around the pond and also maybe a couple of rocks. And a bench under the tree looking toward the pond. Great place for reading.
Lil: Great idea for the treasure room. There is room to add as the collection grows. I love the grey walls in the bathroom. The colours really pop against it. The landscaping looks wonderful so far. It has a kinda formal feel to it.
I find that for stories on this site it is best to start the story with just a couple of pictures and save private. Then edit to add the rest of the pics etc. This method has always helped me.
Minraed: I didn't recognize you. Love your new avatar. I see Knight is helping you with your problem.
Jason: You're doing quite well on this build I see. I've rec'd it also. Your builds always give me ideas. I love the 3 textures together. Love the interior garden. Great job and I'm looking forward to the movie.
Darkside: Your WIP looks great so far. I love the layout of the furniture around the fireplace and the kitchen layout.
Evergreen: I love forest walks. It has a built in contrast colour and I love the peach and orange sorbet colours with the greens.
Judy: Your George Harrison looks fantastic.
Have fun!
MerryWiddow
http://forum.thesims3.com/jforum/posts/list/149669.page
Thanks
It was fun, and part of my ambition to rebuild the entire town!
Tomorrow - I will try the cfe again. I think my biggest prob is which buttons to select, I will get there.
I proudly present the CFE Tri-Level Step by Step Instructions tutorial.
I hope it will help those struggling with the CFE concept.
http://www.thesims3.com/contentDetail.html?contentId=148634
Lil
MW I really liked the grey wall myself. If the landscaping has a formal feel to it then I am on the right track to what the requester wants.
Thanks for the tip about the stories. I will try it the next time I do one.
Keep building and Laughing
Lil
Hello and welcome bergcrys. I hope you will stay and have some fun with us. The homework assignments are designed for the novice builder. You can find a link to them on page 1 of this thread. They will help you with learning to build from a house plan and on to the uploading and promotion of your lot.
Your current WIP is a good start. The pictures are a little dark, but that can be remedied with a little extra temporary lighting. You show a talent with interior design. Practice with CAS will help you to hone that talent. I hope to see more of your pictures as you progress through this build.
Have fun!
MerryWiddow
That's a great tutorial Lil. I recommended it and added it to page 1.
Have fun!
MerryWiddow
I tired now.
Night.
Dining Room and Kitchen
Upstairs hall
Outside Yard
Full Floor plan
This is in addition to the link I posted before. If you have suggestions please let me know
Hi bergcrys, I love the brick you have used behind the fireplace. A reminder, don't forget to place a fire alarm somewhere in the same room as the fireplace. You can hide it behind a painting or even behind the fireplace itself by using MOO (MoveObjects on). It might just be my taste, but I think the curtains clash a little with the wall. Your sofas might look good in that same print as it will not be right next to the wall and then make your curtains the same as the sofas are now. I suppose I could have just said trade your patterns on the sofas and curtains. LOL!
I suggest a rug under the dining room table. There is a link to an instructive tutorial by Fidlerten on page 1 of this thread. There you will find some great ideas. I love your kitchen. Yellow and green go so well together, however, your counter top is so dark, it disappears. Might I suggest a little yellow mixed into the counter top. Just a very little splash.
For your landscaping, I would suggest a little terrain paint around the pond. There is a good one called something 'Pond' that would be perfect. I would also suggest that you keep your walkway and your driveway the same stone. The formal garden is lovely. I do think your chimney doesn't go high enough. To fix this grab a hold of the chimney and place it again. This should extend the chimney to above roof height. You will have to remove one of those windows on the top floor or it will look funny. Again I suggest that the stone around the formal garden and the pool match.
The overall layout is interest and I like it. Great job.
Have fun!
MerryWiddow