Steve Henke
Elegant white three-story wood gable roof photo in Minneapolis

Photo credit: Scott McDonald @ Hedrich Blessing 7RR-Ecohome: The design objective was to build a house for a couple recently married who both had kids from previous marriages. How to bridge two families together? The design looks forward in terms of how people live today. The home is an experiment in transparency and solid form; removing borders and edges from outside to inside the house, and to really depict “flowing and endless space”. The house floor plan is derived by pushing and pulling the house’s form to maximize the backyard and minimize the public front yard while welcoming the sun in key rooms by rotating the house 45-degrees to true north. The angular form of the house is a result of the family’s program, the zoning rules, the lot’s attributes, and the sun’s path. We wanted to construct a house that is smart and efficient in terms of construction and energy, both in terms of the building and the user. We could tell a story of how the house is built in terms of the constructability, structure and enclosure, with a nod to Japanese wood construction in the method in which the siding is installed and the exposed interior beams are placed in the double height space. We engineered the house to be smart which not only looks modern but acts modern; every aspect of user control is simplified to a digital touch button, whether lights, shades, blinds, HVAC, communication, audio, video, or security. We developed a planning module based on a 6-foot square room size and a 6-foot wide connector called an interstitial space for hallways, bathrooms, stairs and mechanical, which keeps the rooms pure and uncluttered. The house is 6,200 SF of livable space, plus garage and basement gallery for a total of 9,200 SF. A large formal foyer celebrates the entry and opens up to the living, dining, kitchen and family rooms all focused on the rear garden. The east side of the second floor is the Master wing and a center bridge connects it to the kid’s wing on the west. Second floor terraces and sunscreens provide views and shade in this suburban setting. The playful mathematical grid of the house in the x, y and z axis also extends into the layout of the trees and hard-scapes, all centered on a suburban one-acre lot. Many green attributes were designed into the home; Ipe wood sunscreens and window shades block out unwanted solar gain in summer, but allow winter sun in. Patio door and operable windows provide ample opportunity for natural ventilation throughout the open floor plan. Minimal windows on east and west sides to reduce heat loss in winter and unwanted gains in summer. Open floor plan and large window expanse reduces lighting demands and maximizes available daylight. Skylights provide natural light to the basement rooms. Durable, low-maintenance exterior materials include stone, ipe wood siding and decking, and concrete roof pavers. Design is based on a 2' planning grid to minimize construction waste. Basement foundation walls and slab are highly insulated. FSC-certified walnut wood flooring was used. Light colored concrete roof pavers to reduce cooling loads by as much as 15%. 2x6 framing allows for more insulation and energy savings. Super efficient windows have low-E argon gas filled units, and thermally insulated aluminum frames. Permeable brick and stone pavers reduce the site’s storm-water runoff. Countertops use recycled composite materials. Energy-Star rated furnaces and smart thermostats are located throughout the house to minimize duct runs and avoid energy loss. Energy-Star rated boiler that heats up both radiant floors and domestic hot water. Low-flow toilets and plumbing fixtures are used to conserve water usage. No VOC finish options and direct venting fireplaces maintain a high interior air quality. Smart home system controls lighting, HVAC, and shades to better manage energy use. Plumbing runs through interior walls reducing possibilities of heat loss and freezing problems. A large food pantry was placed next to kitchen to reduce trips to the grocery store. Home office reduces need for automobile transit and associated CO2 footprint. Plan allows for aging in place, with guest suite than can become the master suite, with no need to move as family members mature.

An egress window is elevated to a welcome focal point of the living space. Jon Huelskamp, Landmark Photography
Inspiration for a mid-sized timeless home design remodel in Minneapolis

Corner shower - traditional 3/4 beige tile and porcelain tile ceramic tile, black floor and single-sink corner shower idea in Portland with beige walls, an undermount sink, black countertops and a freestanding vanity

This unusually large unfinished basement was transformed into a bright, airy bedroom, and rec room with a play area and loft style office.
Inspiration for a transitional gender-neutral light wood floor playroom remodel with white walls

Builder: Denali Custom Homes - Architectural Designer: Alexander Design Group - Interior Designer: Studio M Interiors - Photo: Spacecrafting Photography

Joe Fletcher Atop a ridge in the Santa Lucia mountains of Carmel, California, an oak tree stands elevated above the fog and wrapped at its base in this ranch retreat. The weekend home’s design grew around the 100-year-old Valley Oak to form a horseshoe-shaped house that gathers ridgeline views of Oak, Madrone, and Redwood groves at its exterior and nestles around the tree at its center. The home’s orientation offers both the shade of the oak canopy in the courtyard and the sun flowing into the great room at the house’s rear façades. This modern take on a traditional ranch home offers contemporary materials and landscaping to a classic typology. From the main entry in the courtyard, one enters the home’s great room and immediately experiences the dramatic westward views across the 70 foot pool at the house’s rear. In this expansive public area, programmatic needs flow and connect - from the kitchen, whose windows face the courtyard, to the dining room, whose doors slide seamlessly into walls to create an outdoor dining pavilion. The primary circulation axes flank the internal courtyard, anchoring the house to its site and heightening the sense of scale by extending views outward at each of the corridor’s ends. Guest suites, complete with private kitchen and living room, and the garage are housed in auxiliary wings connected to the main house by covered walkways. Building materials including pre-weathered corrugated steel cladding, buff limestone walls, and large aluminum apertures, and the interior palette of cedar-clad ceilings, oil-rubbed steel, and exposed concrete floors soften the modern aesthetics into a refined but rugged ranch home.

Multiuse home gym - mid-sized contemporary carpeted and beige floor multiuse home gym idea in Boston with white walls

Jessica Cain © 2019 Houzz
Inspiration for a mid-sized coastal gray floor utility room remodel in Kansas City with blue cabinets, wood countertops, gray walls and a side-by-side washer/dryer

Sunken home theater with stone fireplace wall and huge windows. Photography by Spacecrafting
Home design - large transitional home design idea in Minneapolis

Trendy freestanding desk gray floor home office photo in Vancouver with gray walls and a standard fireplace

Playroom - transitional carpeted and brown floor playroom idea in Other with beige walls

A close-up of the main floor windows and the three-panel basement window highlights the custom design that defines this home. The large windows bring in natural light, while the decorative stone trim adds a polished, high-end touch, showing that every detail was meticulously planned to create a unique, custom-built home.

Photos by: Angle Eye Photography Interior Decor by: Francesca Rudin
Bathroom - large coastal master marble floor and white floor bathroom idea in New York with gray walls, an undermount sink, marble countertops and white countertops

David Frechette
Example of a transitional basement design in Detroit

nstead of flooding the ice rink, a broken water pipe had been flooding the basement with several inches of water. The pipe was repaired, but all the flooring and carpeting, as well as the lowest two feet of sheetrock and insulation had to be taken out. Fortunately, there was no structural damage. The owners figured that this might be the best time for a total basement renovation. The flooring needed to be replaced. The four basement windows were small, dim, and worthless. The combined bathroom and laundry room had to go, as well as all non-supporting walls and the big bulky soffits. They talked with Rick Jacobson and together they worked out a design. Rick’s solution: Make the space big and bright and functional. Make it a good investment. Make it a good experience.

David Frechette
Example of a transitional basement design in Detroit

How amazing are these gorgeous LDK custom windows?! The natural lighting makes this room beautiful and big!
Inspiration for a huge transitional look-out carpeted basement remodel in Minneapolis with gray walls

David Frechette
Example of a transitional basement design in Detroit