The ground floor volumes wrapped in an elongated hand-fired brick, emphasizing the horizontality of the architecture that lays solidly on the land. (Photography by: Matthew Millman)

This modern green home offers both a vacation destination on Cape Cod near local family members and an opportunity for rental income. FAMILY ROOTS. A West Coast couple living in the San Francisco Bay Area sought a permanent East Coast vacation home near family members living on Cape Cod. As academic professionals focused on sustainability, they sought a green, energy efficient home that was well-aligned with their values. With no green homes available for sale on Cape Cod, they decided to purchase land near their family and build their own. SLOPED SITE. Comprised of a 3/4 acre lot nestled in the pines, the steeply sloping terrain called for a plan that embraced and took advantage of the slope. Of equal priority was optimizing solar exposure, preserving privacy from abutters, and creating outdoor living space. The design accomplished these goals with a simple, rectilinear form, offering living space on the both entry and lower/basement levels. The stepped foundation allows for a walk-out basement level with light-filled living space on the down-hill side of the home. The traditional basement on the eastern, up-hill side houses mechanical equipment and a home gym. The house welcomes natural light throughout, captures views of the forest, and delivers entertainment space that connects indoor living space to outdoor deck and dining patio. MODERN VISION. The clean building form and uncomplicated finishes pay homage to the modern architectural legacy on the outer Cape. Durable and economical fiber cement panels, fixed with aluminum channels, clad the primary form. Cedar clapboards provide a visual accent at the south-facing living room, which extends a single roof plane to cover the entry porch. SMART USE OF SPACE. On the entry level, the “L”-shaped living, dining, and kitchen space connects to the exterior living, dining, and grilling spaces to effectively double the home’s summertime entertainment area. Placed at the western end of the entry level (where it can retain privacy but still claim expansive downhill views) is the master suite with a built-in study. The lower level has two guest bedrooms, a second full bathroom, and laundry. The flexibility of the space—crucial in a house with a modest footprint—emerges in one of the guest bedrooms, which doubles as home office by opening the barn-style double doors to connect it to the bright, airy open stair leading up to the entry level. Thoughtful design, generous ceiling heights and large windows transform the modest 1,100 sf* footprint into a well-lit, spacious home. *(total finished space is 1800 sf) RENTAL INCOME. The property works for its owners by netting rental income when the owners are home in San Francisco. The house especially caters to vacationers bound for nearby Mayo Beach and includes an outdoor shower adjacent to the lower level entry door. In contrast to the bare bones cottages that are typically available on the Cape, this home offers prospective tenants a modern aesthetic, paired with luxurious and green features. Durable finishes inside and out will ensure longevity with the heavier use that comes with a rental property. COMFORT YEAR-ROUND. The home is super-insulated and air-tight, with mechanical ventilation to provide continuous fresh air from the outside. High performance triple-paned windows complement the building enclosure and maximize passive solar gain while ensuring a warm, draft-free winter, even when sitting close to the glass. A properly sized air source heat pump offers efficient heating & cooling, and includes a carefully designed the duct distribution system to provide even comfort throughout the house. The super-insulated envelope allows us to significantly reduce the equipment capacity, duct size, and airflow quantities, while maintaining unparalleled thermal comfort. ENERGY EFFICIENT. The building’s shell and mechanical systems play instrumental roles in the home’s exceptional performance. The building enclosure reduces the most significant energy glutton: heating. Continuous super-insulation, thorough air sealing, triple-pane windows, and passive solar gain work together to yield a miniscule heating load. All active energy consumers are extremely efficient: an air source heat pump for heating and cooling, a heat pump hot water heater, LED lighting, energy recovery ventilation (ERV), and high efficiency appliances. The result is a home that uses 70% less energy than a similar new home built to code requirements. OVERALL. The home embodies the owners’ goals and values while comprehensively enabling thermal comfort, energy efficiency, a vacation respite, and supplementary income. PROJECT TEAM ZeroEnergy Design - Architect & Mechanical Designer A.F. Hultin & Co. - Contractor Pamet Valley Landscape Design - Landscape & Masonry Lisa Finch - Original Artwork European Architectural Supply - Windows Eric Roth Photography - Photography

A fabulous Art Deco sconce in chrome, dating from the 1920's, and found in a home in Charleston, SC. The sconce features a ribbed, rectangular backplate; a streamlined arm extends from the bottom of the backplate to support an unusual shade. The curved white glass shade is surrounded by a chrome framework with skyscraper detailing; a single light is perches within it. This wall light has been professionally rewired and comes with all the necessary attachments for modern installation. We kept the original non-functioning turn switch for nostalgia’s sake; however, we will gladly replace it with a new one if desired. The sconce measures 9-5/8” tall, 4-1/2” wide, and projects 4” from the wall. NSP998

This Columbia, Missouri home’s master bathroom was a full gut remodel. Dimensions In Wood’s expert team handled everything including plumbing, electrical, tile work, cabinets, and more! Electric, Heated Tile Floor Starting at the bottom, this beautiful bathroom sports electrical radiant, in-floor heating beneath the wood styled non-slip tile. With the style of a hardwood and none of the drawbacks, this tile will always be warm, look beautiful, and be completely waterproof. The tile was also carried up onto the walls of the walk in shower. Full Tile Low Profile Shower with all the comforts A low profile Cloud Onyx shower base is very low maintenance and incredibly durable compared to plastic inserts. Running the full length of the wall is an Onyx shelf shower niche for shampoo bottles, soap and more. Inside a new shower system was installed including a shower head, hand sprayer, water controls, an in-shower safety grab bar for accessibility and a fold-down wooden bench seat. Make-Up Cabinet On your left upon entering this renovated bathroom a Make-Up Cabinet with seating makes getting ready easy. A full height mirror has light fixtures installed seamlessly for the best lighting possible. Finally, outlets were installed in the cabinets to hide away small appliances. Every Master Bath needs a Dual Sink Vanity The dual sink Onyx countertop vanity leaves plenty of space for two to get ready. The durable smooth finish is very easy to clean and will stand up to daily use without complaint. Two new faucets in black match the black hardware adorning Bridgewood factory cabinets. Robern medicine cabinets were installed in both walls, providing additional mirrors and storage. Contact Us Today to discuss Translating Your Master Bathroom Vision into a Reality.

Custom Surface Solutions (www.css-tile.com) - Owner Craig Thompson (512) 430-1215. This project shows new 12 x 24 tile installed vertically with offset layout pattern on wall and floor. Includes shower box with linear glass accent tile back and vertical glass accent band. Tile edges are finished with Schluter Jolly satin aluminum profile edge trim.

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