Inspiration for a mid-sized traditional full sun backyard stone formal garden in Grand Rapids.

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Inspiration for a rustic brown one-story wood gable roof remodel in Seattle

The comfortable elegance of this French-Country inspired home belies the challenges faced during its conception. The beautiful, wooded site was steeply sloped requiring study of the location, grading, approach, yard and views from and to the rolling Pennsylvania countryside. The client desired an old world look and feel, requiring a sensitive approach to the extensive program. Large, modern spaces could not add bulk to the interior or exterior. Furthermore, it was critical to balance voluminous spaces designed for entertainment with more intimate settings for daily living while maintaining harmonic flow throughout. The result home is wide, approached by a winding drive terminating at a prominent facade embracing the motor court. Stone walls feather grade to the front façade, beginning the masonry theme dressing the structure. A second theme of true Pennsylvania timber-framing is also introduced on the exterior and is subsequently revealed in the formal Great and Dining rooms. Timber-framing adds drama, scales down volume, and adds the warmth of natural hand-wrought materials. The Great Room is literal and figurative center of this master down home, separating casual living areas from the elaborate master suite. The lower level accommodates casual entertaining and an office suite with compelling views. The rear yard, cut from the hillside, is a composition of natural and architectural elements with timber framed porches and terraces accessed from nearly every interior space flowing to a hillside of boulders and waterfalls. The result is a naturally set, livable, truly harmonious, new home radiating old world elegance. This home is powered by a geothermal heating and cooling system and state of the art electronic controls and monitoring systems.

The client was an architect who was so good at rendering that he found a very good earning capacity fresh out of school and got stuck there. The little detached studio was for him to conduct his rendering business away from family activities. The site was a wooded corner lot with numerous mature Oak trees and Sable palms. The plan managed to save almost all the trees. Vertical planes were the key elements in defining space, along with multiple horizontal roof planes. The fireplace and stairs were the main vertical forms around which to compose the horizontal planes. The house had a fire many years later and was subsequently demolished. Read More

To support large-scale commercial site development, land clearing, and earthmoving projects, our team utilizes heavy-duty equipment including track bulldozers with rake attachments and articulated off-road dump trucks. Having this level of heavy machinery in-house allows us to perform extensive excavation, rough grading, brush clearing, and bulk dirt hauling efficiently. Whether prepping a raw lot for development or reshaping challenging terrain, we have the horsepower to tackle demanding land management jobs from start to finish. By operating our own heavy equipment fleet, Pine Valley Turf Management eliminates reliance on third-party subcontractors and rental delays, keeping project timelines tight and costs competitive. From clearing heavy vegetation and rock to hauling hundreds of tons of soil and aggregate, our heavy machinery operations ensure every site is properly excavated, leveled, and stabilized for subsequent construction or landscaping.

To support large-scale commercial site development, land clearing, and earthmoving projects, our team utilizes heavy-duty equipment including track bulldozers with rake attachments and articulated off-road dump trucks. Having this level of heavy machinery in-house allows us to perform extensive excavation, rough grading, brush clearing, and bulk dirt hauling efficiently. Whether prepping a raw lot for development or reshaping challenging terrain, we have the horsepower to tackle demanding land management jobs from start to finish. By operating our own heavy equipment fleet, Pine Valley Turf Management eliminates reliance on third-party subcontractors and rental delays, keeping project timelines tight and costs competitive. From clearing heavy vegetation and rock to hauling hundreds of tons of soil and aggregate, our heavy machinery operations ensure every site is properly excavated, leveled, and stabilized for subsequent construction or landscaping.

Photo: Ten Ten Creative
Wet bar - transitional single-wall dark wood floor and brown floor wet bar idea in Dallas with shaker cabinets, black cabinets, black backsplash, subway tile backsplash and gray countertops

Her son Ed and his partners subsequently purchased a slew of lots down that same street and built 11 mixed use units in an old Florida island style with shops below and condominiums above. My landscape is all native and as laid back and low key as the architecture. All of the parking lots and connecting sidewalks (or better, 'pathways') are topped with compacted 250 sand-shell and graded to hold all rainwater on site for percolation.

The comfortable elegance of this French-Country inspired home belies the challenges faced during its conception. The beautiful, wooded site was steeply sloped requiring study of the location, grading, approach, yard and views from and to the rolling Pennsylvania countryside. The client desired an old world look and feel, requiring a sensitive approach to the extensive program. Large, modern spaces could not add bulk to the interior or exterior. Furthermore, it was critical to balance voluminous spaces designed for entertainment with more intimate settings for daily living while maintaining harmonic flow throughout. The result home is wide, approached by a winding drive terminating at a prominent facade embracing the motor court. Stone walls feather grade to the front façade, beginning the masonry theme dressing the structure. A second theme of true Pennsylvania timber-framing is also introduced on the exterior and is subsequently revealed in the formal Great and Dining rooms. Timber-framing adds drama, scales down volume, and adds the warmth of natural hand-wrought materials. The Great Room is literal and figurative center of this master down home, separating casual living areas from the elaborate master suite. The lower level accommodates casual entertaining and an office suite with compelling views. The rear yard, cut from the hillside, is a composition of natural and architectural elements with timber framed porches and terraces accessed from nearly every interior space flowing to a hillside of boulders and waterfalls. The result is a naturally set, livable, truly harmonious, new home radiating old world elegance. This home is powered by a geothermal heating and cooling system and state of the art electronic controls and monitoring systems.

The comfortable elegance of this French-Country inspired home belies the challenges faced during its conception. The beautiful, wooded site was steeply sloped requiring study of the location, grading, approach, yard and views from and to the rolling Pennsylvania countryside. The client desired an old world look and feel, requiring a sensitive approach to the extensive program. Large, modern spaces could not add bulk to the interior or exterior. Furthermore, it was critical to balance voluminous spaces designed for entertainment with more intimate settings for daily living while maintaining harmonic flow throughout. The result home is wide, approached by a winding drive terminating at a prominent facade embracing the motor court. Stone walls feather grade to the front façade, beginning the masonry theme dressing the structure. A second theme of true Pennsylvania timber-framing is also introduced on the exterior and is subsequently revealed in the formal Great and Dining rooms. Timber-framing adds drama, scales down volume, and adds the warmth of natural hand-wrought materials. The Great Room is literal and figurative center of this master down home, separating casual living areas from the elaborate master suite. The lower level accommodates casual entertaining and an office suite with compelling views. The rear yard, cut from the hillside, is a composition of natural and architectural elements with timber framed porches and terraces accessed from nearly every interior space flowing to a hillside of boulders and waterfalls. The result is a naturally set, livable, truly harmonious, new home radiating old world elegance. This home is powered by a geothermal heating and cooling system and state of the art electronic controls and monitoring systems. Roof is simulated slate made from recycled materials. The company for this home is no longer in business but today we specify Inspire by Boral https://www.boralroof.com/product-profile/composite/classic-slate/4IFUE5205/

The comfortable elegance of this French-Country inspired home belies the challenges faced during its conception. The beautiful, wooded site was steeply sloped requiring study of the location, grading, approach, yard and views from and to the rolling Pennsylvania countryside. The client desired an old world look and feel, requiring a sensitive approach to the extensive program. Large, modern spaces could not add bulk to the interior or exterior. Furthermore, it was critical to balance voluminous spaces designed for entertainment with more intimate settings for daily living while maintaining harmonic flow throughout. The result home is wide, approached by a winding drive terminating at a prominent facade embracing the motor court. Stone walls feather grade to the front façade, beginning the masonry theme dressing the structure. A second theme of true Pennsylvania timber-framing is also introduced on the exterior and is subsequently revealed in the formal Great and Dining rooms. Timber-framing adds drama, scales down volume, and adds the warmth of natural hand-wrought materials. The Great Room is literal and figurative center of this master down home, separating casual living areas from the elaborate master suite. The lower level accommodates casual entertaining and an office suite with compelling views. The rear yard, cut from the hillside, is a composition of natural and architectural elements with timber framed porches and terraces accessed from nearly every interior space flowing to a hillside of boulders and waterfalls. The result is a naturally set, livable, truly harmonious, new home radiating old world elegance. This home is powered by a geothermal heating and cooling system and state of the art electronic controls and monitoring systems. The roof is simulated slate made from recycled materials. The company for this home is no longer in business but today we specify Inspire by Boral https://www.boralroof.com/product-profile/composite/classic-slate/4IFUE5205/

The comfortable elegance of this French-Country inspired home belies the challenges faced during its conception. The beautiful, wooded site was steeply sloped requiring study of the location, grading, approach, yard and views from and to the rolling Pennsylvania countryside. The client desired an old world look and feel, requiring a sensitive approach to the extensive program. Large, modern spaces could not add bulk to the interior or exterior. Furthermore, it was critical to balance voluminous spaces designed for entertainment with more intimate settings for daily living while maintaining harmonic flow throughout. The result home is wide, approached by a winding drive terminating at a prominent facade embracing the motor court. Stone walls feather grade to the front façade, beginning the masonry theme dressing the structure. A second theme of true Pennsylvania timber-framing is also introduced on the exterior and is subsequently revealed in the formal Great and Dining rooms. Timber-framing adds drama, scales down volume, and adds the warmth of natural hand-wrought materials. The Great Room is literal and figurative center of this master down home, separating casual living areas from the elaborate master suite. The lower level accommodates casual entertaining and an office suite with compelling views. The rear yard, cut from the hillside, is a composition of natural and architectural elements with timber framed porches and terraces accessed from nearly every interior space flowing to a hillside of boulders and waterfalls. The result is a naturally set, livable, truly harmonious, new home radiating old world elegance. This home is powered by a geothermal heating and cooling system and state of the art electronic controls and monitoring systems.

Trapezoid shaped site, hill range towards the north and the access road are the elements that form the character that the building takes on. At ground level, two stand-alone blocks taper towards the narrow end of the site; but on the two subsequent floors, the blocks are connected by communal spaces to form a “U” shaped building and creating generous open courtyard between the blocks. Residents are provided with spaces for formal and social activities. The second floor of the communal area features a gym, a small lounge and a plunge pool that overlooks the courtyard and the distant hills. The development is designed to read as a composition of simple lines, framing full height glass and textured finished elements that quietly animate the elevations. The goal of the development is to create a series of townhouses, where the sense of place is strong and expressed with a series of playful interactions between all the dwellings. The building’s facades appear homogeneous with terraces and planes used to highlight each apartment. Zigzagging terraces and stone cladded screen walls are dominant features used in the scheme to echo the ridges and texture of the hills beyond.

The corten house demonstrates how jurisdictionally imposed restraints can create hardships which (no matter how intimidating) cannot, however, deny a property owner their legally established right-to-build and, subsequently, the corten house demonstrates how those hardships, through proper planning and perseverance, can be overcome. For the McLendon Av. house, the true challenge became how to build responsibly, economically and sustainably on an extremely difficult site. The streets of the neighborhood were originally surveyed as a few separate developments and were incorporated into the City of Atlanta one by one in the 1910’s. Although some developers built groups of houses, much of Lake Claire was sold as empty lots, with individuals constructing their own homes. The neighborhood of approximately 1,200 homes is, thus, an eclectic mix from Victorian to Tudor revival to more modern periods (Craftsman bungalows, 1950s salt box cottages, mid-century ranch styles, contemporary folk styles). Given the neighborhood’s unique character, the McLendon house was introduced to the site while maintaining and then restoring as much of the native ecological habitat as possible. For example, the site’s tree frogs and stream’s bullfrogs happily remain.

This bathroom was basically built from scratch. All the items you see here - ceiling and spot lights, doors, shelving and storage units, towel holders, toilet, shower cubicle, sink unit and adjoining mirror, wall tiles etc. were sourced and installed on site after removal of initial/old components. We used a lot of brown and nudes with white being the predominant colour - since we wanted to bring space into the compact room. We needed to make it not only beautiful but functional as well. * The other items mentioned in this narrative that are not in the picture shall be displayed in subsequent picture slides.

This is an organic Lime Wash done with a true lime wash product as opposed to a brick mortar or concrete that is often seen on new houses. This product can be applied as a solid coating making the surface completely white, or can be applied and "washed off" in many artistic ways, as seen here. If you hate your brick or just want something unique this is a great option! Photo credit: Jeff Murrey

The comfortable elegance of this French-Country inspired home belies the challenges faced during its conception. The beautiful, wooded site was steeply sloped requiring study of the location, grading, approach, yard and views from and to the rolling Pennsylvania countryside. The client desired an old world look and feel, requiring a sensitive approach to the extensive program. Large, modern spaces could not add bulk to the interior or exterior. Furthermore, it was critical to balance voluminous spaces designed for entertainment with more intimate settings for daily living while maintaining harmonic flow throughout. The result home is wide, approached by a winding drive terminating at a prominent facade embracing the motor court. Stone walls feather grade to the front façade, beginning the masonry theme dressing the structure. A second theme of true Pennsylvania timber-framing is also introduced on the exterior and is subsequently revealed in the formal Great and Dining rooms. Timber-framing adds drama, scales down volume, and adds the warmth of natural hand-wrought materials. The Great Room is literal and figurative center of this master down home, separating casual living areas from the elaborate master suite. The lower level accommodates casual entertaining and an office suite with compelling views. The rear yard, cut from the hillside, is a composition of natural and architectural elements with timber framed porches and terraces accessed from nearly every interior space flowing to a hillside of boulders and waterfalls. The result is a naturally set, livable, truly harmonious, new home radiating old world elegance. This home is powered by a geothermal heating and cooling system and state of the art electronic controls and monitoring systems. The roof is simulated slate made from recycled materials. The company for this home is no longer in business but today we specify Inspire by Boral https://www.boralroof.com/product-profile/composite/classic-slate/4IFUE5205/

The comfortable elegance of this French-Country inspired home belies the challenges faced during its conception. The beautiful, wooded site was steeply sloped requiring study of the location, grading, approach, yard and views from and to the rolling Pennsylvania countryside. The client desired an old world look and feel, requiring a sensitive approach to the extensive program. Large, modern spaces could not add bulk to the interior or exterior. Furthermore, it was critical to balance voluminous spaces designed for entertainment with more intimate settings for daily living while maintaining harmonic flow throughout. The result home is wide, approached by a winding drive terminating at a prominent facade embracing the motor court. Stone walls feather grade to the front façade, beginning the masonry theme dressing the structure. A second theme of true Pennsylvania timber-framing is also introduced on the exterior and is subsequently revealed in the formal Great and Dining rooms. Timber-framing adds drama, scales down volume, and adds the warmth of natural hand-wrought materials. The Great Room is literal and figurative center of this master down home, separating casual living areas from the elaborate master suite. The lower level accommodates casual entertaining and an office suite with compelling views. The rear yard, cut from the hillside, is a composition of natural and architectural elements with timber framed porches and terraces accessed from nearly every interior space flowing to a hillside of boulders and waterfalls. The result is a naturally set, livable, truly harmonious, new home radiating old world elegance. This home is powered by a geothermal heating and cooling system and state of the art electronic controls and monitoring systems. The roof is simulated slate made from recycled materials. The company for this home is no longer in business but today we specify Inspire by Boral https://www.boralroof.com/product-profile/composite/classic-slate/4IFUE5205/