Active Dwelling - Photos & Ideas

A 6,000 square foot 2-story new home complex in Milpitas was designed to facilitate the owners’ large business parties and gatherings, to have rooms for the kids to come back to upstairs, and a ground floor master suite with a huge walk-in closet. Several separate structures make up the dwelling: The main house, 3-car garage with carport for overflow parking, and a separate entertainment and recreation building separated by a courtyard from the main house. The business activities include gatherings in the hundreds of people, so parking was maximized and guests can flow in through a separate gate to party in the courtyard and recreation building. Inside this structure is a wet bar, billiard room, workout gym and home theater. The main house ground floor has formal and informal living rooms, open kitchen and master suite with views and expansive windows in every direction. The house is sited on the crestline of a hill with views of the San Francisco Bay and private golf course below. The indoor-outdoor aspect of the house is further accentuated with outside living and dining areas. High ceilings and expansive glass walls dissolve the sense of enclosure taking advantage of the site’s openness and privacy. The owner’s suite is downstairs in anticipation of aging-in-place, and upstairs there are three bedrooms and four bathrooms plus a sitting area lounge and casual TV loft area. The house sits on one acre at the top of a low hill range overlooking Milpitas. The city was very cognizant of the importance of keeping a low profile at this crestline and required extensive story poles and photo evidence of the proper height and siting so as not to be seen from certain selected vantage points. GENERAL CONTRACTOR: JCD Builders Inc. LANDSCAPE DESIGN: Morf Chang Landscape Architecture / ODS Architecture PHOTOGRAPHS: Paul Dyer Photography

Calera Creek

ODS Architecture

Matching a Modern Home in Richmond

Outdoor Dreams

Example of a mid-sized minimalist backyard stone patio design in Richmond with a fireplace

Find the right local pro for your project

Find top design and renovation professionals on Houzz

SouthEnd RowHome Playroom and Study

ZeroEnergy Design

This renovated brick rowhome in Boston’s South End offers a modern aesthetic within a historic structure, creative use of space, exceptional thermal comfort, a reduced carbon footprint, and a passive stream of income. DESIGN PRIORITIES. The goals for the project were clear - design the primary unit to accommodate the family’s modern lifestyle, rework the layout to create a desirable rental unit, improve thermal comfort and introduce a modern aesthetic. We designed the street-level entry as a shared entrance for both the primary and rental unit. The family uses it as their everyday entrance - we planned for bike storage and an open mudroom with bench and shoe storage to facilitate the change from shoes to slippers or bare feet as they enter their home. On the main level, we expanded the kitchen into the dining room to create an eat-in space with generous counter space and storage, as well as a comfortable connection to the living space. The second floor serves as master suite for the couple - a bedroom with a walk-in-closet and ensuite bathroom, and an adjacent study, with refinished original pumpkin pine floors. The upper floor, aside from a guest bedroom, is the child's domain with interconnected spaces for sleeping, work and play. In the play space, which can be separated from the work space with new translucent sliding doors, we incorporated recreational features inspired by adventurous and competitive television shows, at their son’s request. MODERN MEETS TRADITIONAL. We left the historic front facade of the building largely unchanged - the security bars were removed from the windows and the single pane windows were replaced with higher performing historic replicas. We designed the interior and rear facade with a vision of warm modernism, weaving in the notable period features. Each element was either restored or reinterpreted to blend with the modern aesthetic. The detailed ceiling in the living space, for example, has a new matte monochromatic finish, and the wood stairs are covered in a dark grey floor paint, whereas the mahogany doors were simply refinished. New wide plank wood flooring with a neutral finish, floor-to-ceiling casework, and bold splashes of color in wall paint and tile, and oversized high-performance windows (on the rear facade) round out the modern aesthetic. RENTAL INCOME. The existing rowhome was zoned for a 2-family dwelling but included an undesirable, single-floor studio apartment at the garden level with low ceiling heights and questionable emergency egress. In order to increase the quality and quantity of space in the rental unit, we reimagined it as a two-floor, 1 or 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom apartment with a modern aesthetic, increased ceiling height on the lowest level and provided an in-unit washer/dryer. The apartment was listed with Jackie O'Connor Real Estate and rented immediately, providing the owners with a source of passive income. ENCLOSURE WITH BENEFITS. The homeowners sought a minimal carbon footprint, enabled by their urban location and lifestyle decisions, paired with the benefits of a high-performance home. The extent of the renovation allowed us to implement a deep energy retrofit (DER) to address air tightness, insulation, and high-performance windows. The historic front facade is insulated from the interior, while the rear facade is insulated on the exterior. Together with these building enclosure improvements, we designed an HVAC system comprised of continuous fresh air ventilation, and an efficient, all-electric heating and cooling system to decouple the house from natural gas. This strategy provides optimal thermal comfort and indoor air quality, improved acoustic isolation from street noise and neighbors, as well as a further reduced carbon footprint. We also took measures to prepare the roof for future solar panels, for when the South End neighborhood’s aging electrical infrastructure is upgraded to allow them. URBAN LIVING. The desirable neighborhood location allows the both the homeowners and tenant to walk, bike, and use public transportation to access the city, while each charging their respective plug-in electric cars behind the building to travel greater distances. OVERALL. The understated rowhouse is now ready for another century of urban living, offering the owners comfort and convenience as they live life as an expression of their values. Eric Roth Photo

Calera Creek

ODS Architecture

Accessible Daylight Basement ADU

McCabe By Design LLC

A Ruvati single bowl undermount work station sink with multiple accessories, makes meal prep efficient and convenient. The code-compliant egress window brings in a lot of desired natural light into the kitchen. The tile backsplash runs from countertop to ceiling adding to the cheerful nature of the space.

Example of a trendy detached studio / workshop shed design in Boston

Calera Creek

ODS Architecture

Floating Home Santa Barbara Harbor

CJ Paone AIA | Archipelago Workshop

This early-70’s floating home was purchased by a recently returned Santa Barbara native looking for a home that would mesh with his active and creative lifestyle. However, weakened by over 50 years of exposure to a marine environment, the craft needed significant updates to its flotation system, structural framing, walls, and interior. Inspired by the dwellings of coastal Swedish towns, Archipelago Workshop provided iterative design concepts, structural engineering guidance, technical drawings, and no small amount of moral support as the owner and his father addressed 40-plus years of deferred maintenance. The fully redesigned two-story dwelling is highly crafted using a ship builder’s mindset. At the center core of the plan’s pinwheel design, a stairwell creates vertical circulation and delineates the long axes that define the highly rectilinear design. Mindfully placed windows enhance both privacy and views and capitalize on prevailing winds. With a first-floor design studio that also houses his surfboard collection, it is now the perfect live-work space for its adventuresome owner and guests.

Fish Creek Compound Guest House

CLB Architects

David Swift
Example of a trendy exterior home design in Other

Calera Creek

ODS Architecture

Ellijay Georgia Custom Homes

Envision Web

Stuart Wade, Envision Virtual Tours Envision Virtual Tours and High Resolution Photography is your best choice to find just what you are looking for in the Ellijay, Ga. area .Ellijay, Georgia, known as the “Apple Capital” of Georgia, is located between the Ellijay and Cartecay Rivers where they join to make the Coosawattee River and is the county seat of Gilmer County, Georgia. The origin of the city’s name is not certain but thought to be the English derivative of an Indian word(s) meaning “many waters”, “place of green things” or “new ground”. Some histories say it may have been named for an Indian chief. Inhabited for countless years by the Cherokee people indigenous to the North Georgia, the area was first mentioned as a village and trade center before the onslaught of white settlers inhabited the region. During the 1830’s both white settlers and Indians occupied Ellijay. During the original land lottery in 1832, Martin Scalf acquired the 160 acre lot where the town now stands. In 1833, Clemonds Quinland bought 10 acres from Scalf, retained one acre for himself and donated the rest of the purchase to the County. A plan for twenty town lots, streets and a public square was created and the streets were oriented to allow maximum sunlight exposure to the buildings. Proceeds from lot sales were used to build a jail and courthouse and pay other city expenses. During this same year, Gilmer County was appropriated $800.00 from the State to build a school, and a three-acre lot was donated for the city cemetery. On December 29, l834, Ellijay was incorporated and designated as the County seat of Gilmer County. By 1837, the town had twenty dwellings, three stores and one attorney. Most of these early buildings were of log construction. Many roads led to Ellijay by 1849. The population had grown to 150 by 1850 and the town at five stores. Some wood-frame buildings were being constructed at this time and in 1854, a new courthouse was built in the center of the square, replacing the earlier building. The County’s first newspaper was the Ellijay Courier, started in 1875, and during this time period, Ellijay was a stop on the stagecoach line. The railroad bridge over the Cartecay River was completed in 1884 and the town now had rail service. With the arrival of the railroad and subsequent tracks to White Path, Ellijay began to grow much faster. Many hotels were constructed and land was donated for a depot east of town. More industries, such as a cheese factory and the Shippen Brothers Lumber Mill, located in Ellijay. By 1898, the city had expanded its limits in every direction and now included the depot. By 1900, all the buildings on the town square were brick. This included the recently completed Hyatt Hotel. Most of the other buildings in town were still of log construction, but new wood-frame buildings were being built. The Shippen Brothers Lumber Company production was expanding and exporting their lumber to Europe. Within the next few decades, this company grew to be one of the largest employers in Ellijay, often with five to six million feet of lumber in the yard at one time. The population of Ellijay grew to 659 by 1910, and began to acquire many new modern conveniences such as electric lights and power, a telephone company and many new businesses. Then in 1912, a fire ravaged the city, destroying 23 buildings. As a result, many new buildings were constructed under new and stricter fire and safety guidelines. The population, however, decreased slightly at this time to 632 in 1920. During the 1920’s the town’s population began to grow again and, by this time, apples were being shipped out of the county and new storage facilities were built. Chickens were also shipped to markets outside of Ellijay and Gilmer County. From the mid 1930’s to 1950, Ellijay received much assistance from the Federal WPA Programs. The old courthouse was removed from the center of town square and the Hyatt Hotel was remodeled to be the new courthouse. A park was created on the site of the old courthouse and the streets around the square were paved. A new street was built at this time entering town from the northeast. Other new roads, bridges, sidewalks and gutters were constructed to improve the city. A school and gymnasium were also built and other structures improved. This growth began to impact the city’s infrastructure and in the l950’s and l960’s, a period of upgrading water systems, roads, and power supplies began. New low-rent housing appeared in l960 and a new hospital was built in l957. Georgia Highway 5 was widened in l962, new buildings around the square replaced old ones and some were remodeled. In 1974, the hospital was enlarged. Currently, Ellijay attracts tourists who love the small-town feel and friendly atmosphere. Hotels and restaurants, unique shops, antiques and art galleries lend their charms to those who visit. A new courthouse constructed to resemble the old one, new streetscaping, family-oriented downtown events and the beautification of the square have stepped up the social and economic activity and have made Ellijay a popular destination.

The Screen | Sustainable ADU

Propel Studio Architecture

Design - Propel Studio Architecture - https://www.propelstudio.com/eliot-sustainable-adu Structural - Michael Daubenberger - https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-daubenberger-5b1a5421/ Construction - JLTB Construction - http://www.jltbconstruction.com/ Photography - Josh Partee - http://www.joshpartee.com

Cozy Colonial Family Room with Navy Built-in and a Symphony of Color

Jennifer A. Emmer/Feng Shui Style

We Feng Shui'ed and designed this cozy Family Room right off the kitchen in this 1930s Colonial in Winchester, MA. We added this custom Navy built-in to house the client's antique clock collection. Coral accents repeat throughout the home bringing harmony and activating wealth. The black and blue in the room draw Helpful People and Travel to the residents. The colorful Schumacher fabric ties the color scheme together. We kept the original beams and highlighted them with beadboard and star chandeliers.