The project involved opening the ceiling on the ground floor of a 1930s duplex and replacing the plaster finish with a gypsum ceiling system. Aluminum electrical wiring was also replaced to conform to current standards, and the existing lighting was exchanged for new pot lights in all rooms. Once the ceilings were opened, an acoustic, soundproofing insulation system was installed to absorb interior noise from the second floor of the duplex. The soundproofing system consists of blown wool insulation, padded with a thin layer of air between it and the gypsum ceiling finish, along with the installation of resilient bars.

Rustic and refined meet to give a mountaintop home in Portola Valley, California, classic charm. They say the best things in life come to those who wait. So when a Bay Area couple purchased a rare set of adjoining lots overlooking Windy Hill in Portola Valley, they made frequent visits to the site where they absorbed the views while listening to the land as they contemplated building a home there. The intent: to create a home that would celebrate the scenic beauty of the San Mateo County region. Long before the design process began, the couple committed themselves to preserving as many trees on the land as possible. These trees, two majestic, centuries-old Blue Oaks in particular, ultimately became the impetus for the home’s orientation and the inspiration for its design. Detailed discussions and brainstorming sessions led the owners to discover their own unique tastes: “cozy” and “rustic“ while “contemporary, but not minimal.” The result? Sophisticated style comprised of simple, honest materials.

This kitchen was fabricated by Down East Fabrication! https://www.downeastfab.com The island in this kitchen features Ornamental granite which blends well with both color (cherry and gray) cabinets and floors. Search "ornamental" granite, see more granite of this family or other stone options: http://www.stoneaction.com Learn more about granite to see if it’s right for you: Granite countertops can last a lifetime. It contains no harmful chemicals and do not emit harmful radiation or gasses. Granite is heat resistant and is one of the most heat-resistant countertops on the market. You can place a hot pan out of the oven directly onto the countertop surface. Experts do recommend the use of a trivet when using appliances that emit heat for long periods of time, such as crockpots. Since the material is so dense, there is a small possibility heating one area of the top and not the entire thing, could cause the countertop to crack. Granite is scratch resistant. You can cut on it, but it will dull your knives! Granite scores a seven on Moh’s hardness scale. Granite countertops are considered to be a low maintenance countertop surface. The likelihood of needing to be repaired or resurfaced is low. Granite is a porous material. Most fabricators will apply a sealer to granite countertops before they are installed which will protect them from absorbing liquids too quickly. Many sealers last more than 10 years before needing to be reapplied. When they do need to be reapplied, it is something that most homeowners can do on their own as the process is similar to cleaning. Darker granites are very dense and sometimes don’t even require a sealer. When it comes to pricing, there are a lot of variables such as edge profile, total square footage, backsplash, etc. Don’t be fooled by the stereotype that all granite is expensive. Lower-range granites will cost less than high-range laminate. Though granite countertops are not considered “low range” in pricing, there are a lot of affordable options. If you are looking for something truly unique, consider an exotic granite. Some quarries are not easily accessible and/or only able to be quarried for short periods of time throughout the year. If these circumstances exist in a quarry with gorgeous stone, the price will be driven upward. You won’t find a lot of solid patterns or bright colors, but both do exist. Also, watch for a large range of color and pattern within the same color of stone. It’s always a good idea to view the exact slab(s) that will be fabricated for your kitchen to make sure they are what you expected to see from the sample. Another factor is that many exotic types of granite have huge flowing waves, and a small sample will not be an accurate representation of the whole slab. Granite countertops are very resistant to chemicals. Acids and bases will not harm the material.

Moss Garden: A Living Carpet of Tranquility A moss garden is a serene, low-maintenance landscape feature that evokes a profound sense of calm and natural beauty. Composed of vibrant, velvety mosses that thrive in shaded, humid environments, these gardens offer a soft, carpet-like groundcover that replaces traditional lawns or gravel with rich, green texture. At Westland Design, our moss gardens are thoughtfully integrated into the overall landscape to enhance a feeling of timelessness and stillness. Whether nestled beneath the canopy of trees, edging a stone pathway, or surrounding a tranquil water feature, moss brings subtle movement and color to quiet corners of the garden. Key qualities of a moss garden include: Evergreen softness: Moss provides lush, year-round greenery that requires no mowing or fertilizing. Quiet beauty: It absorbs sound, contributing to a peaceful, contemplative environment. Natural elegance: Ideal for Japanese-style gardens or woodland settings, moss complements stone, water, and wood elements with organic harmony. A moss garden is more than a design choice—it’s an invitation to slow down, observe closely, and appreciate nature’s quiet elegance.

Color, structure and movement create a fluid, rhythmic garden. A keyhole driveway is anchored by a majestic Japanese maple and seasonal under plantings. The curved retaining wall is highlighted by masses of purple tulips that complement the allee of saucer magnolias and gently direct one up the hill to a ‘hidden children’s garden. Below, mature cherries and dogwoods frame a garden bed of moisture-loving dawn redwoods, twiggy dogwoods and iteas. A dry river-bed absorbs excess water.

Photographer: Jon Miller Architectural Photography What we refer to as the 'Music Room' is more commonly known in a traditional home as the Family Room. This room is the home for a regular brass quintet. Acoustic ceiling 'clouds', oblique wall angles, and sound absorbing bookcase and window treatments help to control the sound characteristics of the Music Room.

air conditionor

jordi Miralles
Example of a danish family room design in Barcelona

This project started as a kitchen remodel but evolved into a partial redesign and home refresh. Both interiors and exteriors were reimagined to update this traditional Spanish home into a transitional retreat. The common area floorplan was redesigned to absorb the previously underutilized formal spaces into everyday areas. A large walk-in pantry was added while the kitchen flows from the family room to the dining area, with sightlines from the front and back of the home. Architectural elements such as ceiling details and the central staircase were redesigned to fit the home's original character while still feeling updated. The bedrooms and bathrooms were revitalized upstairs with all-new finishes, making the entire home feel fresh and new. An overall neutral color scheme means this home will remain timeless and continue to serve this family for years to come. Simple elegance defines this home. It's the perfect mix of subtle details, ornate craftsmanship, and contemporary elegance.

dining set is in the perfect spot to absorb this perfect bridge view
Dining room - contemporary dining room idea in New York

The Snow Leopard. Beautiful, marble-cut snow leopard. 4,685 pieces of precisely cut French and Italian marble, surrounded by an Onyx border to create this beautiful piece. This project absorbed an outstanding 800 hours of labour.

Built for the Bluff, A Sea Ranch Home is Remade from the Inside Out The house had always been grounded, on an ocean bluff at The Sea Ranch. It sits unencumbered, adjacent to one of the most dramatic stretches of the Sonoma coast with protected commons meadow to the east, uninterrupted Pacific views to the west, and a bluff trail running alongside. What it lacked was the feeling of home, one that could hold up its own against the natural landscape. The owners are entrepreneurs with deep involvement across tech, real estate, and development and they know how things are built. The Sea Ranch house had been in their lives for years, a second residence and a place for family to gather. Built for a different time, it felt more compromising than comfortable. Sitting in a closed off nook, the kitchen fit one cook at a time and turned its back on the rest of the house. The entry was dim and compressed, divided by a structural column that presented itself at exactly the wrong moment. The primary suite was small relative to the view outside it. A large rear bedroom sat behind a lowered ceiling with a bathroom that had never been added. The house was certainly worth the trouble of doing it right. What followed was not one project but four, each with its own design challenge, each addressed over a period of time. Where the House Meets the Ocean The most complex piece of the project, in both structural and spatial terms, was the kitchen expansion. The existing room was a single-person galley squeezed in as an afterthought with no meaningful connection to the dining room, the living space, or the deck outside. To make it useful for a family that cooks and gathers, it needed to grow outward into an existing patio and flow into the rooms around it. A big challenge was the roofline. Several planes at different pitches and angles converged directly where additional volume was needed. A new form had to join that geometry without reading as a correction. The solution found the simplest possible connection between the existing angles, a roofline that from outside the structure, appears entirely original. From the bluff trail where the addition is visible, there is no discernible seam. Inside, the kitchen is now open to the living and dining rooms without interruption. A large sliding glass door connects the space onto the rear deck. The deck itself was expanded and oriented so that the body of the house shields it from the coastal wind which is a common consideration that determines whether outdoor space at The Sea Ranch actually gets used. The result is a room that works for large family gatherings where no one feels cutoff, and one that makes the boundary between being inside and outside easy to ignore. Welcoming Light A structural column stood at the convergence of eight distinct roof planes in the entry. It was load-bearing, but it was also the reason the entry had always felt like a hallway rather than a welcoming arrival. With the structural engineer, a custom steel connector was designed to receive beams from six separate directions, redistributing the load through a single new continuous beam. The column was surgically removed. Three triangular skylights were then cut into the roof above, their shapes drawn from the existing geometry of the planes around them. The entry is now bright and open. The skylights feel native to the structure because they follow the logic already present in the roof. Two Suites, Two Views At opposite ends of the house, the two bedroom suites were each reconfigured, and each found a different way to introduce more of the landscape into the room. An addition to the primary suite extended the structure outward to create a wraparound plan with a loop from the bedroom through bath and closet that had not been possible before. The expansion opened a slot view from the tub and shower toward the ocean. The view is precise and private. The ocean view is present and deliberate. The rear bedroom absorbed an adjacent storage room to transform it into a full second suite with a vaulted ceiling, a large bathroom with a tub, a shower, and a sauna. A private fenced garden courtyard sits just beyond the glass bringing the outdoors inside. The tub was placed so that, looking past the courtyard and through the bedroom beyond, the ocean is visible at the far end. It is a long view and it makes the room feel larger and more settled than its footprint would suggest. Glass on Four Sides, Fire at the Center The main living and gathering room had always been caught between two competing facts: glass on four sides meant exceptional views but at The Sea Ranch, it also meant a cold room. A 360-degree cylindrical fireplace was added at the center on a raised stone base, providing radiant heat in every direction and giving the room a focal point around which a group naturally orients itself, whether that means two people at the end of the day or the whole family after dinner. Owners Who Picked Up the Tools The owner was not a passive client. they came with construction knowledge, specific ideas, and the desire to be an active part of the process, a dynamic that other architects may had found difficult, which Klopf Architecture accepted as an asset. They took it upon themselves to complete some of the work during construction, including the installation of a new radiant heating system beneath the floors. The radiant system added to the older and less-desirable forced-air setup. At The Sea Ranch, that change matters as the house sits close enough to the ocean and moving air competes with the sound of it, where radiant heat does not. Solar panels were added to the roof as part of the new system. Insulation was upgraded throughout the walls, roof, and crawl space. The house that had always had the right setting now holds warmth the way a house on the bluff should. They were also deeply involved in the design and selections throughout, and the finished house reflects both of them in ways that are specific rather than generic. The process took longer and moved through more iterations than a more arms-length relationship might have allowed. The result is more defined and personal because of it. The Landscape Holds Priority Every exterior decision was shaped by The Sea Ranch Design Standards, which require that buildings defer to the landscape around them rather than compete with it. Because this house sits on the bluff and is visible from the public trail, the additions faced a close review. Existing materials were matched. Geometries were resolved. The additions had to become indistinguishable from the original building. From the trail, the house reads exactly as it always has — low, cedar-clad, secondary to the meadow and the water. The setting holds priority. Inside, the house has been remade. Klopf Architecture Project Team: Geoff Campen and Trenton Jewett
Contractor: Shawn Bettega Construction
Photography: ©2025 Mariko Reed
Year Completed: 2023
Location: The Sea Ranch, CA

Cambrian Black granite is shown in this project! Search the specific granite name, see more granite or other stone options: http://www.stoneaction.com Learn more about granite to see if it’s right for you: Granite countertops can last a lifetime. It contains no harmful chemicals and do not emit harmful radiation or gasses. Granite is heat resistant and is one of the most heat-resistant countertops on the market. You can place a hot pan out of the oven directly onto the countertop surface. Experts do recommend the use of a trivet when using appliances that emit heat for long periods of time, such as crockpots. Since the material is so dense, there is a small possibility heating one area of the top and not the entire thing, could cause the countertop to crack. Granite is scratch resistant. You can cut on it, but it will dull your knives! Granite scores a seven on Moh’s hardness scale. Granite countertops are considered to be a low maintenance countertop surface. The likelihood of needing to be repaired or resurfaced is low. Granite is a porous material. Most fabricators will apply a sealer to granite countertops before they are installed which will protect them from absorbing liquids too quickly. Many sealers last more than 10 years before needing to be reapplied. When they do need to be reapplied, it is something that most homeowners can do on their own as the process is similar to cleaning. Darker granites are very dense and sometimes don’t even require a sealer. When it comes to pricing, there are a lot of variables such as edge profile, total square footage, backsplash, etc. Don’t be fooled by the stereotype that all granite is expensive. Lower-range granites will cost less than high-range laminate. Though granite countertops are not considered “low range” in pricing, there are a lot of affordable options. If you are looking for something truly unique, consider an exotic granite. Some quarries are not easily accessible and/or only able to be quarried for short periods of time throughout the year. If these circumstances exist in a quarry with gorgeous stone, the price will be driven upward You won’t find a lot of solid patterns or bright colors, but both do exist. Also, watch for a large range of color and pattern within the same color of stone. It’s always a good idea to view the exact slab(s) that will be fabricated for your kitchen to make sure they are what you expected to see from the sample. Another factor is that many exotic types of granite have huge flowing waves, and a small sample will not be an accurate representation of the whole slab. Granite countertops are very resistant to chemicals. Acids and bases will not harm the material.

This 1925 Denver home received an impressive kitchen makeover - both in size and design. By absorbing an existing bedroom into the space and moving the basement staircase to the side, the room is now brighter and more open. The Simply White Crystal Cabinets, contrasted by the custom walnut slat panel range hood and island detail, along with other carefully curated items throughout, really make this kitchen pop. Design by Jennifer Rogers, BKC Kitchen and Bath RangeFinder Photography

In this front view, you get an overview of the K-Style aluminum gutter system on both the top and bottom levels of the house. Here, you can see how we positioned the downspout to carry and disperse water through the rockery. Stones absorb a lot of water, but this position also provides the shrubs with water at the same time.

Complementing the Home This homeowner approached the experts at Braen Supply to help him select materials for his newly constructed home. The style and design of the house was already completed, therefore, the selected materials needed to complement the features of the home. The homeowner’s one request was to find a patio stone that would emulate a bluestone; however, it would not absorb as much heat as bluestone, allowing swimmers to comfortably move from the pool to the patio without having to worry about shoes. Working With the Experts The experts at Braen Supply were able to find the perfect material to meet the homeowner’s needs and then used that to find materials for the façade, fireplace and outdoor kitchen, while still maintaining a concise look throughout the home. The materials that were selected gave the home a unique, yet classic look.

Slipped Shed Studio South Dartmouth Builder: Scoop Jones design team: Tim Hess, Design Principal Nathan Sawyer, Justin Mellow all for DSA Architects photographs: Tim Hess This simple painting studio includes living quarters for an artist and frequent weekend guests. A familiar vocabulary of traditional forms and materials slants gently toward the sun and views up the Slocum River. The cantilevered roof and upper story shelter the glass from high summer sun.The concrete floor absorbs energy from low winter sun during the daytime to release it at night. Walls of exposed studs inside are wrapped and sealed with a continuous plane of insulation applied outside the structural sheathing.

THE SETUP “You have to figure out how to rebuild a life worth living,” Basia Kozub’s client says. Her husband passed away suddenly three years ago. Holidays with family became more important, and she found herself struggling with a 37-year old kitchen that was falling apart. “I made a decision to move forward,” she says. “I went, ‘You know what? I’m redoing the kitchen.'” The big task of getting started was as easy as having a conversation – literally. Basia was on the job, helping the client sort through priorities, wishes and ideas. Basia’s client is 5′ 4″, likes keeping an eye on the kiddoes in the backyard and wanted certain things to have their own place. THE REMODEL The objectives were: Enlarge and open the space Find a classic look that incorporates blues Upgrade to easy-to-use appliances Hide an office space within the space Ample storage for dishes Design challenges: Uneven window alignment on the back wall Original kitchen smaller than desired, stuctural concerns if walls to be moved Keep folks close – figure out seating for entertaining Main sink in corner is ideal, but windows are hard to reach Lots of storage needed for dishes, glass collection, pantry items, bar bottles and office supplies Specific storage needs for oft-used spices and utensils THE RENEWED SPACE Design solutions: Replace back wall windows, establish window size continuity Take out two walls to open up the space, tall shallow cabinet and a tall filler added to conceal a new header Large island that seats six easily Custom corner sink cabinet with recessed edge allows vertically challenged homeowner to reach the windows Mindful storage planning features: plenty of cabinets, pull-out bar bottle storage, file drawers & cubbies with pocket doors for office appliances, magic corner pullouts, and appliance garages with pocket doors Shelf behind range for easy access to daily-use spices and oils. Also: spice and utensil pullouts on either side of range The clients says every priority and wish box got checked. The highly functional design absorbed everything that used to be in that area of the house, but now those things are out of the way. “In the past, we were all spread out when we gathered for the holidays, because we had to spread out. Now, we’re all in here together, including my 92-year old mother. We’re visiting, cooking, laughing… everyone is here. And I’m really learning how to use these appliances. This kitchen has given me a whole new life.”

Inspiration for a contemporary bedroom remodel in Toronto