These medical doctors desired a contemporary home that considered both their young children’s needs as well as their own. The kids had to have space to play and be, well, kids, and the adults required some tranquil details that could serve as a counterweight to their high-impact careers. The crawl space was adapted into a playroom, and the deck and communal outdoor space is the perfect area to host big family get-togethers. However, the private oasis garden off the master bedroom, as well as a large soaker tub and spa-like shower in the master ensuite, could help any hard-working person unwind. Additional Instagram-worthy details include the open vaulted living area, contemporary kitchen with a large island and built-in appliances, open metal and wood staircase, and customized closets and storage. This family also loves the great outdoors. They enjoy skiing, surfing, and everything in between. Good thing their new home, with its stunning views of the ocean and mountains, serve as a daily reminder that nature is just a stone’s throw away. That said, there is still no place quite like home to retreat to after a supreme day in the sun or in the snow.

The update of this 2,200 square foot Upper East Side residence, transformed the former home and art studio of Laurent de Brunhoff of Babar fame, into a comfortable family residence for a young couple and their three children. The addition of a bedroom, laundry room and the conversion of studio and library spaces into communal family space are central to the architectural renovation. The interior design includes an Alvar Aalto-esque column cover, concealing existing utilities and nodding to the apartment’s storied history, with its resemblance to an elephant’s ear. New coffered ceilings, hardwood floors, doors, interior fixtures and furnishings respond to the needs and taste of a modern family while preserving the historical elegance of the 1912 building.

Location: Albuquerque, NM, USA The space was dated - now it has a fresh new look! The dining room was updated with a new cornice and lighting. In addition, a narrow 12" deep cabinet (made for kitchen upper cabinets) was effectively used - with a faux granite laminate top. The cabinets help with much needed storage and as a server. Their children's art was framed and proudly hangs for all to enjoy. Designed by Sandy Schargel Interiors

The update of this 2,200 square foot Upper East Side residence, transformed the former home and art studio of Laurent de Brunhoff of Babar fame, into a comfortable family residence for a young couple and their three children. The addition of a bedroom, laundry room and the conversion of studio and library spaces into communal family space are central to the architectural renovation. The interior design includes an Alvar Aalto-esque column cover, concealing existing utilities and nodding to the apartment’s storied history, with its resemblance to an elephant’s ear. New coffered ceilings, hardwood floors, doors, interior fixtures and furnishings respond to the needs and taste of a modern family while preserving the historical elegance of the 1912 building.

The update of this 2,200 square foot Upper East Side residence, transformed the former home and art studio of Laurent de Brunhoff of Babar fame, into a comfortable family residence for a young couple and their three children. The addition of a bedroom, laundry room and the conversion of studio and library spaces into communal family space are central to the architectural renovation. The interior design includes an Alvar Aalto-esque column cover, concealing existing utilities and nodding to the apartment’s storied history, with its resemblance to an elephant’s ear. New coffered ceilings, hardwood floors, doors, interior fixtures and furnishings respond to the needs and taste of a modern family while preserving the historical elegance of the 1912 building.

The update of this 2,200 square foot Upper East Side residence, transformed the former home and art studio of Laurent de Brunhoff of Babar fame, into a comfortable family residence for a young couple and their three children. The addition of a bedroom, laundry room and the conversion of studio and library spaces into communal family space are central to the architectural renovation. The interior design includes an Alvar Aalto-esque column cover, concealing existing utilities and nodding to the apartment’s storied history, with its resemblance to an elephant’s ear. New coffered ceilings, hardwood floors, doors, interior fixtures and furnishings respond to the needs and taste of a modern family while preserving the historical elegance of the 1912 building.

We reimagined multiple spaces, ensuring every room spoke to each other while maintaining its personality. Their daughters’ bedrooms feel more vibrant and personal, with thoughtful details like new lighting, fresh paint, and furniture that will transition with them as they grow. The nursery became a dreamy retreat featuring cloud-like textures and soft, celestial touches—an enchanting space designed for their newest addition.

The clients had raised their family, a son and a daughter, in a large traditional house on five acres of property. Their plan was to build three houses, one for themselves and one for each of their married children, around a small lake on the back of the property and sell the old house. The small house, basically one bedroom, has an interior tropical garden at the waters edge, on the lower level. The entrance, on the upper level, contains the master bedroom suite, kitchen and dining area, which cantilevers over the garden below. The several roof levels are flat, and a diagonal sloping gable defines the main space. The owner died before the construction was finished and his widow lived there for many years, near her family. Eventually a new owner remodeled including a second floor addition, but the character of the original design remains.

The update of this 2,200 square foot Upper East Side residence, transformed the former home and art studio of Laurent de Brunhoff of Babar fame, into a comfortable family residence for a young couple and their three children. The addition of a bedroom, laundry room and the conversion of studio and library spaces into communal family space are central to the architectural renovation. The interior design includes an Alvar Aalto-esque column cover, concealing existing utilities and nodding to the apartment’s storied history, with its resemblance to an elephant’s ear. New coffered ceilings, hardwood floors, doors, interior fixtures and furnishings respond to the needs and taste of a modern family while preserving the historical elegance of the 1912 building.

The update of this 2,200 square foot Upper East Side residence, transformed the former home and art studio of Laurent de Brunhoff of Babar fame, into a comfortable family residence for a young couple and their three children. The addition of a bedroom, laundry room and the conversion of studio and library spaces into communal family space are central to the architectural renovation. The interior design includes an Alvar Aalto-esque column cover, concealing existing utilities and nodding to the apartment’s storied history, with its resemblance to an elephant’s ear. New coffered ceilings, hardwood floors, doors, interior fixtures and furnishings respond to the needs and taste of a modern family while preserving the historical elegance of the 1912 building.

This modern prairie-style home blends traditional aesthetics with contemporary geometric shapes, offering a perfect retreat for a single-family. With a spacious entertainment floor plan, it features a screened front porch and a monolithic slab base. The open-plan kitchen seamlessly connects to the living and dining areas, extending to an outdoor convention space with seating and a fireplace. Downstairs, there's a guest bed with a terrace, ideal for elderly parents or children. Upstairs, the master bedroom boasts a luxurious bathroom, walk-in wardrobe, and balcony. Additional amenities include three-car garages, multiple bathrooms, a family living space, den room, powder room, and laundry area. The box gable roof adds to its charm, making this modern house design both functional and visually appealing.

The Owners approached their new project with the thought that it should be a quiet addition, have an appropriate scale, and use the same architectural language as the existing house. What the Owners wanted was a more functional family space for their older children and needed a large kitchen and back entry for this original Myers Park home. The new family room would need to include the antique wood paneling the Owners had acquired. The new kitchen would need to incorporate antique wood beams, a large family table and access to a new pool deck. The back entry would need to have a place for sports bags, coats and charging station. A new landscape plan would be provided which would have a new pool requiring a renovation of an existing guest house.

This couple has raised two children in their home of nearly 25 years. With their children off to college and work, their hall bathroom, only occasionally used by guests, went primarily unnoticed for several years. During COVID, one of their adult children moved back home, and they decided the space needed to be updated for their next phase of life. The space generally worked okay for the family so they weren't interested in a significant overhaul. Instead, we focused on several small improvements to tailor the space to their needs. Primarily, they wanted an updated aesthetic. They are drawn to high-contrast contemporary interiors, and we used that as inspiration for this room. We also needed to focus on improving storage. The bathroom already had sufficient storage, but most of it was hard to access and underutilized. They wanted to incorporate double sinks, and we needed to modify the sunken bathtub to accommodate easily washing their grandchildren during visits. The storage closet was unusually deep at nearly three feet, so we included a storage cabinet with large roll-out trays instead. We used the rest of the additional space to incorporate a concealed shower niche, perfect for family members to all have their own shelf. We raised the tub to sit on top of the floor tile and selected a double swing door shower enclosure, which can be opened to provide clear access to the tub while bathing small children. We included a decorative shower niche with a bold geometric tile to add contrast to the space. We opted for double sinks at the vanity with wall-mounted faucets and recessed medicine cabinets. Wide drawers and vanity pull-outs were incorporated into the base cabinetry, while large black wall sconces flank the medicine cabinets to create balance along the wall. Two-tone metals are included throughout the space to emphasize the use of light and dark finishes. Deep charcoal large floor tiles juxtapose the light, horizontally veined wall tiles cladding the entire room. Similarly, light gray cabinets were paired with a suede-finished black countertop to round out the visually striking design.

Exterior shot of screened porch overlooking the swimming pond

This brownstone, located in Harlem, consists of five stories which had been duplexed to create a two story rental unit and a 3 story home for the owners. The owner hired us to do a modern renovation of their home and rear garden. The garden was under utilized, barely visible from the interior and could only be accessed via a small steel stair at the rear of the second floor. We enlarged the owner’s home to include the rear third of the floor below which had walk out access to the garden. The additional square footage became a new family room connected to the living room and kitchen on the floor above via a double height space and a new sculptural stair. The rear facade was completely restructured to allow us to install a wall to wall two story window and door system within the new double height space creating a connection not only between the two floors but with the outside. The garden itself was terraced into two levels, the bottom level of which is directly accessed from the new family room space, the upper level accessed via a few stone clad steps. The upper level of the garden features a playful interplay of stone pavers with wood decking adjacent to a large seating area and a new planting bed. Wet bar cabinetry at the family room level is mirrored by an outside cabinetry/grill configuration as another way to visually tie inside to out. The second floor features the dining room, kitchen and living room in a large open space. Wall to wall builtins from the front to the rear transition from storage to dining display to kitchen; ending at an open shelf display with a fireplace feature in the base. The third floor serves as the children’s floor with two bedrooms and two ensuite baths. The fourth floor is a master suite with a large bedroom and a large bathroom bridged by a walnut clad hall that conceals a closet system and features a built in desk. The master bath consists of a tiled partition wall dividing the space to create a large walkthrough shower for two on one side and showcasing a free standing tub on the other. The house is full of custom modern details such as the recessed, lit handrail at the house’s main stair, floor to ceiling glass partitions separating the halls from the stairs and a whimsical builtin bench in the entry.

With two small children and a third on the way, the owners of an original eighteenth century Cape were quickly out-growing it, but they had no desire to move away from the Cape Cod home and location they loved. They simply needed a reconfigured layout and more space. Their goals included repurposing some existing rooms, adding a new kitchen/family area plus screen porch on the first level, and creating a master suite and roof deck with an outdoor shower on the second level, connected by a new stair. Our challenge was to improve the flow between existing spaces, and design the two-story addition without overwhelming the pint-sized original Cape. We took advantage of the lower grade at the rear of the property to step the first floor of the addition down two steps from the existing main level. This allowed us to align the second floor in the addition with the existing second floor, while gaining ceiling height in the new first-floor kitchen/family area. We composed a cross-gabled form for the addition to improve the second floor headroom, while maintaining the existing eave line. We then extended some existing shed dormers to gain headroom and enhance function. We also expanded the outdoor living area with privacy walls along the roof deck. New, larger, double–hung windows that match the lite configuration of the existing windows, along with new side-wall shingles and trim which resemble the existing exterior treatment help to tie the new addition to the old Cape. Though there’s no mistaking the new for the old, the two are simpatico. Katie Hutchison Studio collaborated with Geoffrey Koper Architect of Yarmouth Port, Mass. on the Yarmouth Port Antique Cape Renovation and Addition. Kitchen fit-out and interior finishes, fixtures, and furnishings by others. photo by Katie Hutchison

This growing family of six was struggling with a dysfunctional kitchen design. The center island had been installed at an odd angle that limited accessibility and traffic flow. Additionally, storage space was limited by poor cabinet design. Finally, doorways in and out of the kitchen were narrow and poorly located, especially for children dashing in and out. Other design challenges included how to better use a 10’ x 12’ room for children’s jackets and toys and how to add a professional-quality gas range in a neighborhood were natural gas wasn’t available. The new design would address all of these issues. DESIGN SOLUTIONS The new kitchen design revolves around a more proportional island. Carefully placed in the center of the new space with seating for four, it includes a prep sink, a second dishwasher and a beverage center. The distressed ebony-stained island and hutch provides a brilliant contrast between the white color cabinetry. White Carrera marble countertops and backsplash top both island and perimeter cabinets. Tall, double stacked cabinetry lines two walls to maximize storage space. Across the room there was an unused wall that now contains a 36” tower fridge and freezer, both covered with matching panels, and a tall cabinet that contains a microwave, steam unit and warming drawer. A propane tank was buried in the back yard to provide gas to a new 60” professional range and cooktop. A custom-made wood mantel hood blends perfectly with the cabinet style. The old laundry room was reconfigured to have lots of locker space for all kids and added cabinetry for storage. A double entry door separated the new mudroom from the rest of the back hall. In the back hall the back windows were replaced with a set of French door and added decking to create a direct access to deck and backyard. The end result is an open floor plan, high-end appliances, great traffic flow and pleasing colors. The homeowner calls it the “kitchen of her dreams.”

The genesis of design for this desert retreat was the informal dining area in which the clients, along with family and friends, would gather. Located in north Scottsdale’s prestigious Silverleaf, this ranch hacienda offers 6,500 square feet of gracious hospitality for family and friends. Focused around the informal dining area, the home’s living spaces, both indoor and outdoor, offer warmth of materials and proximity for expansion of the casual dining space that the owners envisioned for hosting gatherings to include their two grown children, parents, and many friends. The kitchen, adjacent to the informal dining, serves as the functioning heart of the home and is open to the great room, informal dining room, and office, and is mere steps away from the outdoor patio lounge and poolside guest casita. Additionally, the main house master suite enjoys spectacular vistas of the adjacent McDowell mountains and distant Phoenix city lights. The clients, who desired ample guest quarters for their visiting adult children, decided on a detached guest casita featuring two bedroom suites, a living area, and a small kitchen. The guest casita’s spectacular bedroom mountain views are surpassed only by the living area views of distant mountains seen beyond the spectacular pool and outdoor living spaces. Project Details | Desert Retreat, Silverleaf – Scottsdale, AZ Architect: C.P. Drewett, AIA, NCARB; Drewett Works, Scottsdale, AZ Builder: Sonora West Development, Scottsdale, AZ Photographer: Dino Tonn Featured in Phoenix Home and Garden, May 2015, “Sporting Style: Golf Enthusiast Christie Austin Earns Top Scores on the Home Front” See more of this project here: http://drewettworks.com/desert-retreat-at-silverleaf/

This project was very particular because there were many items to consider prior to the design taking flight. Items to consider were; matching existing cabinetry style and color, functionality and spacing as there were two obstacles to work around; a window and a main entrance to the kitchen. The clients needs were the following: - More storage for children's craft / school supplies - More counter top surface - An area for casual dining - An area where the kids can do homework - Seating for 5 people I met with the clients today and they are very happy with this addition. It works great for their lifestyle and all their needs! We can see the transformation from the black and white drawing, to the 3D color rendering, to the finished product.