Siding is a fantastic way to take total control over the look of your home. Twin Cities Siding is made from various materials goes over the exterior of your home and covers it in its entirety. While there are many types of siding materials, one of the most popular is vinyl siding. This is because vinyl is extremely durable, weatherproof, termite proof and affordable. With the many color options you simply decide which style of siding you like best, and then have it installed and almost overnight your home looks like a new house. Blackbrook Construction is the siding expert in the Twin Cities area. We have the right tools and the proper training to quickly and efficiently install the siding of your choice. With siding from Blackbrook Construction you’ll add curb appeal to your home at an affordable cost, which is why we are the Twin Cities’ number one choice for siding contractor.

Completed a full roof replacement in Covington, GA after storm damage. This insurance claim project included removal of the old roof and installation of a new architectural shingle system. Built for long-lasting protection and curb appeal.

Located on a narrow site between a local access road and Lake Washington, this three-level home is designed to take full advantage its lakefront views. Built on an undersized lot, quality of space was a priority over a large footprint. With an integrated garage, living, dining, master suite, guestrooms and office areas are compact into one-half floors. Most of the third level is designed to be multi-use. The ground floor level contains storage and a mother-in-law suite. Modern in style, with touches of traditional forms and materials of Tuscany, the home features a double height living/dining with a slide-fold door allowing the exterior deck to become an extension of the interior living room. A custom designed interior tile floor inlaid with re-claimed wood creates a warm, well-crafted feel to the interior. Owner designed and built barn doors extends that same sensibility to the upper level. Exterior landscape design incorporates a large outdoor ground level patio with a beautiful pervious paver system, plantings designed to enhance the shoreline, integrates existing access to the boat dock and lake.

Re-Roofing after hail damage to the roof and other exterior components.
Exterior home idea in Minneapolis with a shingle roof and a brown roof

This was actually a custom home remodel after mold damage for an insurance claim. We were able to get approval to remodel the kitchen, bathroom, and dining room to include a shower with speakers, lighting, and multiple shower heads for an amazing experience.

Located on a narrow site between a local access road and Lake Washington, this three-level home is designed to take full advantage its lakefront views. Built on an undersized lot, quality of space was a priority over a large footprint. With an integrated garage, living, dining, master suite, guestrooms and office areas are compact into one-half floors. Most of the third level is designed to be multi-use. The ground floor level contains storage and a mother-in-law suite. Modern in style, with touches of traditional forms and materials of Tuscany, the home features a double height living/dining with a slide-fold door allowing the exterior deck to become an extension of the interior living room. A custom designed interior tile floor inlaid with re-claimed wood creates a warm, well-crafted feel to the interior. Owner designed and built barn doors extends that same sensibility to the upper level. Exterior landscape design incorporates a large outdoor ground level patio with a beautiful pervious paver system, plantings designed to enhance the shoreline, integrates existing access to the boat dock and lake.

Located on a narrow site between a local access road and Lake Washington, this three-level home is designed to take full advantage its lakefront views. Built on an undersized lot, quality of space was a priority over a large footprint. With an integrated garage, living, dining, master suite, guestrooms and office areas are compact into one-half floors. Most of the third level is designed to be multi-use. The ground floor level contains storage and a mother-in-law suite. Modern in style, with touches of traditional forms and materials of Tuscany, the home features a double height living/dining with a slide-fold door allowing the exterior deck to become an extension of the interior living room. A custom designed interior tile floor inlaid with re-claimed wood creates a warm, well-crafted feel to the interior. Owner designed and built barn doors extends that same sensibility to the upper level. Exterior landscape design incorporates a large outdoor ground level patio with a beautiful pervious paver system, plantings designed to enhance the shoreline, integrates existing access to the boat dock and lake.

This article is posted here with the consent of the author. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy, position, view, or opinion of Crestron Electronics, Inc., or of any of its employees. Crestron Electronics is not responsible for, and does not verify the accuracy of, any of the information contained in this article. By Jeff Singer The “smart” revolution began several years ago with smartphones (a.k.a phones) and has extended in recent years to thermostats, doorbells, alarm systems, and kitchen appliances. Smart devices are so ubiquitous that the term “smart” is overused to the point that it is almost meaningless. Companies are eager to jump on the bandwagon and claim their products are “smart,” and consumers proudly claim they have a smart home because they have lighting control. Misconceptions about smart homes are prevalent and create confusion in the marketplace. This can have deleterious effects on businesses and underserve consumers. Here are seven of the most popular misconceptions about smart homes: 1. Apps are smart Apps are convenient and easy to use. Yes, it seems there’s an app for everything. People expect to be able to download an app and do just about anything. App developers and many companies do not disavow consumers of this myth. On the contrary, they promote this idea with carefully worded descriptions. The promise of having the world at your fingertips for $1.99 is very enticing. Although it sounds too good to be true, it is also too good to pass up for many people. This leads to undervaluing home control and disappointment when the apps don’t work, which undermines confidence in our industry. The fact is that apps are not smart. They do not control anything. They must connect to and communicate with a control system or cloud service that processes, prioritizes, and executes commands. That’s the real magic and what most people do not understand. 2. Smart devices work together With so many smart appliances and devices on the market today, it’s understandable that the average consumer might think that they actually communicate and work together. This is simply not the case. Smart devices are not that smart. They are designed and manufactured by different, often competing, companies. There are no national or industry standards governing these products. Even if they all operate using Wi-Fi® communications, that doesn’t mean they work together. Some companies promote a home control platform, which unites different devices from different companies – in theory. The platform is yet another third-party software totally dependent on other companies developing APIs and writing control modules for their hardware to run on that piece of software. The devices are not independently compatible. Also, when updates are made to either the hardware or the software, functionality may be affected for some period. That’s a nice way of saying the device or system won’t work and there’s no way of knowing for how long. 3. It’s a DIY project Which brings us to the next myth, which is that the average person can do it themselves. Unless you are a skilled professional, I would not advise taking on a smart home project. You want to make a light turn on and off with your Alexa® or Google Assistant™ virtual assistant software, go for it. A smart home takes much more planning and expertise. I have no problem changing a light bulb or hanging a light fixture in my dining room; however, I am not going to rewire my house. I may change the flush valve in my toilet, but I’m not going to replace the pipes in my house. You get it. Integrating devices and systems, establishing different zones, creating scenes, designing the UI with a balance between control, feedback, and simplicity – all takes experience and skill. 4. Need a programmer to make changes Early adopters may have experienced the pain of trying to make a simple change or update to their home control system. Years ago, if the cable provider changed the channel line-up, the homeowner would have to call the dealer or programmer to make an appointment for them to come out to the house to reprogram the system. The system wouldn’t work as expected until it was updated, which often took several days and beaucoup bucks. Not anymore. Technology has evolved so now it’s easy for system owners to change favorite channels, create scenes, rename buttons, update images, and more. While a professional is needed for the initial installation and setup, the system is easy to manage once it’s up and running. This makes life so much easier for both dealer and customer. 5. Tech becomes obsolete quickly Similar to updating the UI, updating firmware or hardware used to be a stressful process. A smart home should be intelligent enough to update itself. Apps don’t become obsolete. Updates are constantly pushed out from the cloud, making them better all the time. The same is true for a good smart home system. New features, functions, and device support gets added in the background consistently, so the system you installed (or purchased) yesterday gets better over time. Swapping out decorative elements, such as keypads, dimmers, and touch screens is also seamless. When a new device is added, all the settings are pulled down from the cloud and it just works. No system interruptions. No sunk costs. No imposing house calls. No surprise bills. 6. Lighting control saves energy and money Lighting control is one of the most popular smart systems, but it takes more than just one system to make a home smart. On the surface, it makes sense that if you dim the lights ten percent, then you save ten percent of energy costs. If the shades are raised during the day to take advantage of sunlight so the lights don’t need to be on (or at least not 100%), but that causes the room temperature to rise a few degrees, which triggers the air conditioner to run longer and more often, was energy usage (or cost) reduced? A smart home integrates all the various systems and technology to optimize comfort, convenience, safety, and sometimes energy. 7. Home technology is easy to hack Security is at the forefront of people’s minds these days. Personal identities are stolen; email accounts hacked; private photos publicized; and more. A smart home must outsmart those who don’t respect privacy. Crestron control systems adhere to the strictest security standards. The same Crestron control system that goes into a home is also installed in secure government and military facilities, global banking institutions, hospitals, and other mission critical applications. When installed correctly by a trained professional, a Crestron smart home is the gold standard for security, comfort, and convenience.

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A lower and more intimate reading lounge under the mezzanine.
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Inspiration for a landscaping in Seattle.

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Example of a mountain style living room design in Burlington

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Mid-sized country shed photo in Little Rock

Contemporary floating shelves keep everyday dishes close at hand. Photo by Crown Point Cabinetry
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A central island has 4 stools to sit for homework, art or snacktime, and houses drawers for each of the kids to drop their keys, with a USB charger for phones and iPads.

In this remodel of a very small kitchen, we designed it to claim every bit of space. The kitchen was opened up to the dining room and windows were added toward the back yard for a sense of a larger space. https://saikleyarchitects.com/portfolio/cottage-kitchen/

Carolyn Bates Photography
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