Powder room - small marble floor and blue floor powder room idea in Salt Lake City with recessed-panel cabinets, light wood cabinets, a two-piece toilet, an undermount sink, marble countertops, white countertops and a built-in vanity

Bathroom - mid-sized mediterranean master white tile and ceramic tile ceramic tile, blue floor and double-sink bathroom idea in Los Angeles with flat-panel cabinets, brown cabinets, a wall-mount toilet, white walls, a vessel sink, quartz countertops, a hinged shower door, gray countertops and a floating vanity

Simple and elegant shower with white subway tile walls and marble herringbone niche with quartz shelving. Photo by VLG Photography
Example of a mid-sized transitional master white tile and subway tile marble floor, white floor and double-sink alcove shower design in Newark with shaker cabinets, black cabinets, a two-piece toilet, white walls, an undermount sink, quartz countertops, a hinged shower door, white countertops, a niche and a built-in vanity

Inspiration for a small modern 3/4 black and white tile, multicolored tile and matchstick tile porcelain tile and gray floor bathroom remodel in New York with flat-panel cabinets, white cabinets, a bidet, multicolored walls, an integrated sink, solid surface countertops and white countertops

A local Houston art collector hired us to create a low maintenance, sophisticated, contemporary landscape design. She wanted her property to compliment her eclectic taste in architecture, outdoor sculpture, and modern art. Her house was built with a minimalist approach to decoration, emphasizing right angles and windows instead of architectural keynotes. The west wing of the house was only one story, while the east wing was two-story. The windows in both wings were larger than usual, so that visitors could see her art collection from the home’s exterior. Near one of the large rear windows, there was an abstract metal sculpture designed in the form of a spiral. When she initially contacted us, the surrounding property had only a few trees and indigenous grass as vegetation. This was actually a good beginning point with us, because it allowed us to develop a contemporary landscape design that featured a very linear, crisp look supportive of the home and its contents. We began by planting a garden around the large contemporary sculpture near the window. Landscape designers planted horsetail reed under windows, along the sides of the home, and around the corners. This vegetation is very resilient and hardy, and requires little trimming, weeding, or mulching. This helped unite the diverse elements of sculpture, contemporary architecture, and landscape design into a more fluid harmony that preserved the proportions of each unique element, but eliminated any tendency for the elements to clash with one another. We then added two stonework designs to the landscape surrounding the contemporary art collection and home. The first was a linear walkway we build from concrete pads purchased through a retail vendor as a cost-saving benefit to our client. We created this walkway to follow the perimeter of the home so that visitors could walk around the entire property and admire the outdoor sculptures and the collections of modern art visible through the windows. This was especially enjoyable at night, when the entire home was brightly lit from within. To add a touch of tranquility and quite repose to the stark right angles of the home and surrounding contemporary landscape, we designed a special seating area toward the northwest corner of the property. We wanted to create a sense of contemplation in this area, so we departed from the linear and angular designs of the surrounding landscape and established a theme of circular geometry. We laid down gravel as ground cover, then placed large, circular pads arranged like giant stepping stones that led up to a stone patio filled with chairs. The shape of the granite pads and the contours of the graveled area further complimented the spirals and turns in the outdoor metal sculpture, and balanced the entire contemporary landscape design with proportional geometric forms of lines, angles, and curves. This particular contemporary landscape design also has a sense of movement attached to it. All stonework leads to a destination of some sort. The linear pathway provides a guided tour around the home, garden, and modern art collection. The granite pathway stones create movement toward separate space where the entire experience of art, vegetation, and architecture can be viewed and experienced as a unity. Contemporary landscaping designs like create form out of feeling by using basic geometric forms and variations of forms. Sometimes very stark forms are used to create a sense of absolutism or contrast. At other times, forms are blended, or even distorted to suggest a sense of complex emotion, or a sense of multi-dimensional reality. The exact nature of the design is always highly subjective, and developed on a case-by-case basis with the client.

Elegant sunroom photo in DC Metro

Duralife Siesta Decking, Golden Teak
Example of a large transitional backyard outdoor kitchen deck design in Other with no cover

This remodel went from a tiny story-and-a-half Cape Cod, to a charming full two-story home. The mudroom features a bench with cubbies underneath, and a shelf with hooks for additional storage. The full glass back door provides natural light while opening to the backyard for quick access to the detached garage. The wall color in this room is Benjamin Moore HC-170 Stonington Gray. The cabinets are also Ben Moore, in Simply White OC-117. Space Plans, Building Design, Interior & Exterior Finishes by Anchor Builders. Photography by Alyssa Lee Photography.

With an open floor plan, unifying the aesthetic was very important. The blue-upholstered chairs tie in with the nearby kitchen island. The white sofa blends with the walls, and does not break up the space. The use of natural pieces and tones…the woven rug, wooden coffee table, leather chaise, add an organic feel to a modern room. Retractable doors really bring the outside in. Photo Credit - Jenn Verrier Photography @jennverrier

This spacious kitchen in Westchester County is flooded with light from huge windows on 3 sides of the kitchen plus two skylights in the vaulted ceiling. The dated kitchen was gutted and reconfigured to accommodate this large kitchen with crisp white cabinets and walls. Ship lap paneling on both walls and ceiling lends a casual-modern charm while stainless steel toe kicks, walnut accents and Pietra Cardosa limestone bring both cool and warm tones to this clean aesthetic. Kitchen design and custom cabinetry, built ins, walnut countertops and paneling by Studio Dearborn. Architect Frank Marsella. Interior design finishes by Tami Wassong Interior Design. Pietra cardosa limestone countertops and backsplash by Marble America. Appliances by Subzero; range hood insert by Best. Cabinetry color: Benjamin Moore Super White. Hardware by Top Knobs. Photography Adam Macchia.

Example of a huge transitional light wood floor eat-in kitchen design in Seattle with an undermount sink, white cabinets, stainless steel appliances, an island, gray countertops, shaker cabinets, multicolored backsplash and stone slab backsplash

Mountain style brown two-story mixed siding house exterior photo in Sacramento with a shed roof

Photo: Lisa Petrole
Huge trendy porcelain tile and gray floor entryway photo in San Francisco with a medium wood front door and white walls

Modern farmhouse fireplace with stacked stone and a distressed raw edge beam for the mantle.
Example of a large country open concept medium tone wood floor and brown floor family room design in Detroit with gray walls, a corner fireplace and a stacked stone fireplace

Living room - contemporary medium tone wood floor, brown floor and wood wall living room idea in Boston with gray walls, a ribbon fireplace, a wood fireplace surround and a wall-mounted tv

The Gold Fork is a contemporary mid-century design with clean lines, large windows, and the perfect mix of stone and wood. Taking that design aesthetic to an open floor plan offers great opportunities for functional living spaces, smart storage solutions, and beautifully appointed finishes. With a nod to modern lifestyle, the tech room is centrally located to create an exciting mixed-use space for the ability to work and live. Always the heart of the home, the kitchen is sleek in design with a full-service butler pantry complete with a refrigerator and loads of storage space.

Inspiration for a transitional kitchen remodel in Los Angeles

  Download our free ebook, Creating the Ideal Kitchen. DOWNLOAD NOW   The homeowners came to us looking to update the kitchen in their historic 1897 home. The home had gone through an extensive renovation several years earlier that added a master bedroom suite and updates to the front façade. The kitchen however was not part of that update and a prior 1990’s update had left much to be desired. The client is an avid cook, and it was just not very functional for the family. The original kitchen was very choppy and included a large eat in area that took up more than its fair share of the space. On the wish list was a place where the family could comfortably congregate, that was easy and to cook in, that feels lived in and in check with the rest of the home’s décor. They also wanted a space that was not cluttered and dark – a happy, light and airy room. A small powder room off the space also needed some attention so we set out to include that in the remodel as well. See that arch in the neighboring dining room? The homeowner really wanted to make the opening to the dining room an arch to match, so we incorporated that into the design. Another unfortunate eyesore was the state of the ceiling and soffits. Turns out it was just a series of shortcuts from the prior renovation, and we were surprised and delighted that we were easily able to flatten out almost the entire ceiling with a couple of little reworks. Other changes we made were to add new windows that were appropriate to the new design, which included moving the sink window over slightly to give the work zone more breathing room. We also adjusted the height of the windows in what was previously the eat-in area that were too low for a countertop to work. We tried to keep an old island in the plan since it was a well-loved vintage find, but the tradeoff for the function of the new island was not worth it in the end. We hope the old found a new home, perhaps as a potting table. Designed by: Susan Klimala, CKD, CBD Photography by: Michael Kaskel For more information on kitchen and bath design ideas go to: www.kitchenstudio-ge.com

Home Office with built-in laminate desk, and white oak floating shelves
Mid-sized danish built-in desk light wood floor and brown floor study room photo in San Francisco with white walls