Ali Atri Photography
Inspiration for a contemporary custom-shaped pool remodel in San Francisco

Dressed up white melamine closet with modern brushed handles, rods and toe stop fences. Faces are bullnose RTF. Closet is finished off with melamine finishing moulding top and bottom to utilize the entire space

Jim Yochum Photography
Example of a small country u-shaped enclosed kitchen design in Other with white cabinets, quartzite countertops, white backsplash, subway tile backsplash, stainless steel appliances and a farmhouse sink

farmhouse set in an avocado orchard
Traditional wood exterior home idea in Santa Barbara

North Cove Residence Shelburne, Vermont We worked very closely with the architect to create a multi-generational home for grandparents, their daughter and 2 grandchildren providing both common and private outdoor space for both families. The 12.3 acre site sits facing north on the shore of Lake Champlain and has over 40 feet of grade change from the point of entry down to the lakeshore and contains many beautiful mature trees of hickory, maple, ash and butternut. The site offered opportunities to nestle the two houses into the slope, creating the ability for the architecture to step, providing a logical division of space for the two families to share. The landscape creates private areas for each family while also becoming the common fabric that knits the 2 households together. The natural terrain, sloping east to west, and the views to Lake Champlain became the basis for arranging volumes on the site. Working together the landscape architect and architect chose to locate the houses and outdoor spaces along an arc, emulating the shape of the adjacent bay. The eastern / uphill portion of the site contains a common entry point, pergola, auto court, garage and a one story residence for the grandparents. Given the northern climate this southwest facing alcove provided an ideal setting for pool, utilizing the west house and retaining wall to shield the lake breezes and extending the swimming season well into the fall. Approximately one quarter of the site is classified as wetland and an even larger portion of the site is subject to seasonal flooding. The site program included a swimming pool, large outdoor terrace for entertaining, year-round access to the lakefront and an auto court large enough for guest parking and to serve as a place for grandchildren to ride bikes. In order to provide year-round access to the lake and not disrupt the natural movement of water, an elevated boardwalk was constructed of galvanized steel and cedar. The boardwalk extends the geometry of the lakeside terrace walls out to the lake, creating a sculptural division between natural wetland and lawn area. Architect: Truex Cullins & Partners Architects Image Credit: Westphalen Photography

This LEED Platinum certified house reflects the homeowner's desire for an exceptionally healthy and comfortable living environment, within a traditional neighborhood. INFILL SITE. The family, who moved from another area of Wellesley, sought out this property to be within walking distance of the high school and downtown area. An existing structure on the tight lot was removed to make way for the new home. 84% of the construction waste, from both the previous structure and the new home, was diverted from a landfill. ZED designed to preserve the existing mature trees on the perimeter of the property to minimize site impacts, and to maintain the character of the neighborhood as well as privacy on the site. EXTERIOR EXPRESSION. The street facade of the home relates to the local New England vernacular. The rear uses contemporary language, a nod to the family’s Californian roots, to incorporate a roof deck, solar panels, outdoor living space, and the backyard swimming pool. ZED’s careful planning avoided to the need to face the garage doors towards the street, a common syndrome of a narrow lot. THOUGHTFUL SPACE. Homes with dual entries can often result in duplicate and unused spaces. In this home, the everyday and formal entry areas are one and the same; the front and garage doors share the entry program of coat closets, mudroom storage with bench for removing your shoes, and a laundry room with generous closets for the children's sporting equipment. The entry area leads directly to the living space, encompassing the kitchen, dining and sitting area areas in an L-shaped open plan arrangement. The kitchen is placed at the south-west corner of the space to allow for a strong connection to the dining, sitting and outdoor living spaces. A fire pit on the deck satisfies the family’s desire for an open flame while a sealed gas fireplace is used indoors - ZED’s preference after omitting gas burning appliances completely from an airtight home. A small study, with a window seat, is conveniently located just off of the living space. A first floor guest bedroom includes an accessible bathroom for aging visitors and can be used as a master suite to accommodate aging in place. HEALTHY LIVING. The client requested a home that was easy to clean and would provide a respite from seasonal allergies and common contaminants that are found in many indoor spaces. ZED selected easy to clean solid surface flooring throughout, provided ample space for cleaning supplies on each floor, and designed a mechanical system with ventilation that provides a constant supply of fresh outdoor air. ZED selected durable materials, finishes, cabinetry, and casework with low or no volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and no added urea formaldehyde. YEAR-ROUND COMFORT. The home is super insulated and air-tight, paired with high performance triple-paned windows, to ensure it is draft-free throughout the winter (even when in front of the large windows and doors). ZED designed a right-sized heating and cooling system to pair with the thermally improved building enclosure to ensure year-round comfort. The glazing on the home maximizes passive solar gains, and facilitates cross ventilation and daylighting. ENERGY EFFICIENT. As one of the most energy efficient houses built to date in Wellesley, the home highlights a practical solution for Massachusetts. First, the building enclosure reduces the largest energy requirement for typical houses (heating). Super-insulation, exceptional air sealing, a thermally broken wall assembly, triple pane windows, and passive solar gain combine for a sizable heating load reduction. Second, within the house only efficient systems consume energy. These include an air source heat pump for heating & cooling, a heat pump hot water heater, LED lighting, energy recovery ventilation, and high efficiency appliances. Lastly, photovoltaics provide renewable energy help offset energy consumption. The result is an 89% reduction in energy use compared to a similar brand new home built to code requirements. RESILIENT. The home will fare well in extreme weather events. During a winter power outage, heat loss will be very slow due to the super-insulated and airtight envelope– taking multiple days to drop to 60 degrees even with no heat source. An engineered drainage system, paired with careful the detailing of the foundation, will help to keep the finished basement dry. A generator will provide full operation of the all-electric house during a power outage. OVERALL. The home is a reflection of the family goals and an expression of their values, beautifully enabling health, comfort, safety, resilience, and utility, all while respecting the planet. ZED - Architect & Mechanical Designer Bevilacqua Builders Inc - Contractor Creative Land & Water Engineering - Civil Engineering Barbara Peterson Landscape - Landscape Design Nest & Company - Interior Furnishings Eric Roth Photography - Photography

Photos by Mark Lohman and styled by Sunday Henrickson for Tumbleweed & Dandelion.
Enclosed kitchen - shabby-chic style enclosed kitchen idea in Los Angeles with distressed cabinets, white backsplash, subway tile backsplash and white appliances

new construction / builder - cmd corp.
Entryway - large traditional gray floor entryway idea in Boston with beige walls and a dark wood front door

Dan Piassick, PiassickPhoto
Tuscan blue tile powder room photo in San Diego with a drop-in sink, furniture-like cabinets, dark wood cabinets and white walls

The Laurel was a project that required a rigorous lesson in southern architectural vernacular. The site being located in the hot climate of the Carolina shoreline, the client was eager to capture cross breezes and utilize outdoor entertainment spaces. The home was designed with three covered porches, one partially covered courtyard, and one screened porch, all accessed by way of French doors and extra tall double-hung windows. The open main level floor plan centers on common livings spaces, while still leaving room for a luxurious master suite. The upstairs loft includes two individual bed and bath suites, providing ample room for guests. Native materials were used in construction, including a metal roof and local timber.

Sustainable Design Meets Smart Technology This home featured a request from the client to use as many environmentally friendly materials and fabrics as possible. Many common shade manufacturers use materials with PVC plastic, which is known for off-gassing hazardous chemicals that linger in the air in the home for years. The main floor roller shades met the client’s request for an eco-friendly fabric by utilizing motorized shades with GreenScreen fabric. In other rooms, the designer and client wanted the classic look and soft fabrics with roman shades and drapery tracks on several windows in the house. By partnering with the interior designer and fabric workroom, we were able to provide a custom solution for motorization of roman shades and drapery. Lighting Control The client is able control all of the lighting and window treatments in the house with a single control system. This eliminates the need for extra devices on the wall or remote controls that clutter up the space and get lost. By utilizing the custom window treatments, the house is able to conserve energy by keeping the house warmer in the winter, and cooler in the summer by providing insulation and blocking sunlight. The lighting control system further helps to conserve energy by beautifully dimming LED lights as well as using quick buttons that turn off all of the lights in the house, or un-occupied rooms, with the press of a single button. Motorized Window Treatments Motorized window treatments add a high level of convenience to any project, especially those with many windows in hard to reach places. The challenge with many manufacturers is a limitation of style and fabric selection, some may be as basic as only roller shades. Often times these come with un-reliable, wireless controls. On this Birmingham, MI project completed in March 2019, we partnered with the interior designer and drapery workroom to provide a truly unique solution. The homeowner and designer’s requests included many different styles of window treatments including rollers shades, roman shades and motorized draperies. Typically, this would result in a collection of various shade manufacturers with unsightly remotes scattered across each room or stuck to the wall for control. Utilizing standard offerings, coupled with an incredible team effort by the designer and drapery workroom, we provided all of the requested styles of window treatments, and were able to control them all on a single system. This means that each room has a single, elegant keypad built into the wall that controls not only the window treatments, but the lighting as well. When leaving/entering the home, all of the window coverings can be raised or lowered with a single button press. Shades and draperies can also be set to operate based on the time of day for automatic day-to-day operation using sunlight as a guide. In the end, we achieved convenience, function and sophisticated style.

This classically designed French Manor house brings the timeless style of Paris to Texas. Formal courtyard, Landscape design by David Brothers.
Photo of a small traditional gravel formal garden in Dallas.

jeremy bittermann
Living room - contemporary open concept concrete floor living room idea in Portland with white walls

Inspiration for a modern detached guesthouse remodel in Denver

Kitchen - traditional kitchen idea in Other with recessed-panel cabinets, white cabinets, two islands and black countertops

Compact yet charming, this home includes all the details of a much larger home. The European exterior features a stone entrance and copper roofing over the bedroom/study window. The interior consists of tray ceilings in almost every common room, granting a luxurious feel to each. The breakfast room is hugged by a bow window, as is the master bedroom. For entertaining, the breakfast room, great room, kitchen and dining room are all just a step away from one another. The generous utility room is sure to please any homeowner and is just off the garage. Ideal for outdoor entertaining, the sprawling porch and patio are an added bonus, and the fireplace on the porch is a great way to keep warm during cooler months. Perfectly positioned, the bedrooms ensure privacy from one another. Two secondary bedrooms share a bath and the elegant master suite is located in the rear of the home. Built by CVS Builders, LLC: http://www.cvsbuilders.com Photo by G. Frank Hart Photography: http://www.gfrankhartphoto.com/

Custom concrete kitchen countertop with under-mount sink in this kitchen counter project. A large window at tree top level over looked the lake below. A cutting board was fabricated to fit into the under mounted sink opening.

Trendy bathroom photo in Chicago

The Laurel was a project that required a rigorous lesson in southern architectural vernacular. The site being located in the hot climate of the Carolina shoreline, the client was eager to capture cross breezes and utilize outdoor entertainment spaces. The home was designed with three covered porches, one partially covered courtyard, and one screened porch, all accessed by way of French doors and extra tall double-hung windows. The open main level floor plan centers on common livings spaces, while still leaving room for a luxurious master suite. The upstairs loft includes two individual bed and bath suites, providing ample room for guests. Native materials were used in construction, including a metal roof and local timber.