Degrees West - Photos & Ideas

Klopf Architecture, Arterra Landscape Architects and Henry Calvert of Calvert Ventures Designed and built a new warm, modern, Eichler-inspired, open, indoor-outdoor home on a deeper-than-usual San Mateo Highlands property where an original Eichler house had burned to the ground. The owners wanted multi-generational living and larger spaces than the original home offered, but all parties agreed that the house should respect the neighborhood and blend in stylistically with the other Eichlers. At first the Klopf team considered re-using what little was left of the original home and expanding on it. But after discussions with the owner and builder, all parties agreed that the last few remaining elements of the house were not practical to re-use, so Klopf Architecture designed a new home that pushes the Eichler approach in new directions. One disadvantage of Eichler production homes is that the house designs were not optimized for each specific lot. A new custom home offered the team a chance to start over. In this case, a longer house that opens up sideways to the south fit the lot better than the original square-ish house that used to open to the rear (west). Accordingly, the Klopf team designed an L-shaped “bar” house with a large glass wall with large sliding glass doors that faces sideways instead of to the rear like a typical Eichler. This glass wall opens to a pool and landscaped yard designed by Arterra Landscape Architects. Driving by the house, one might assume at first glance it is an Eichler because of the horizontality, the overhanging flat roof eaves, the dark gray vertical siding, and orange solid panel front door, but the house is designed for the 21st Century and is not meant to be a “Likeler.” You won't see any posts and beams in this home. Instead, the ceiling decking is a western red cedar that covers over all the beams. Like Eichlers, this cedar runs continuously from inside to out, enhancing the indoor / outdoor feeling of the house, but unlike Eichlers it conceals a cavity for lighting, wiring, and insulation. Ceilings are higher, rooms are larger and more open, the master bathroom is light-filled and more generous, with a separate tub and shower and a separate toilet compartment, and there is plenty of storage. The garage even easily fits two of today's vehicles with room to spare. A massive 49-foot by 12-foot wall of glass and the continuity of materials from inside to outside enhance the inside-outside living concept, so the owners and their guests can flow freely from house to pool deck to BBQ to pool and back. During construction in the rough framing stage, Klopf thought the front of the house appeared too tall even though the house had looked right in the design renderings (probably because the house is uphill from the street). So Klopf Architecture paid the framer to change the roofline from how we had designed it to be lower along the front, allowing the home to blend in better with the neighborhood. One project goal was for people driving up the street to pass the home without immediately noticing there is an "imposter" on this lot, and making that change was essential to achieve that goal. This 2,606 square foot, 3 bedroom, 3 bathroom Eichler-inspired new house is located in San Mateo in the heart of the Silicon Valley. Klopf Architecture Project Team: John Klopf, AIA, Klara Kevane Landscape Architect: Arterra Landscape Architects Contractor: Henry Calvert of Calvert Ventures Photography ©2016 Mariko Reed Location: San Mateo, CA Year completed: 2016

Riverview Pergola

Steve's Home Repair And Remodel

All of the rafters, as well as this west facing lattice shade wall were covered with rated solar screen material. This process blocked about 90% of the suns UV rays and lowered the summer temps on the house wall buy as much as 15 degrees

Gingrich Residence, Rooftop Patio Addition

New West Partners

Great 360-degree mountain views greet visitors to this Breckenridge, Colorado rooftop, an addition to a ski-in, ski-out home at Breckenridge Ski Resort. The rooftop addition project was built by New West Partners.

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Creating New Spaces

Chester County Kitchen & Bath

This kitchen renovation started when the ceiling light began to flicker on and off. Realizing the age of that light fixture brought the homeowners to wonder just how long the rest of their appliances would last. The kitchen was more than fifteen years old. Remodeling the kitchen was the opportunity they needed to create the space they desperately wanted. First on the list was an area to entertain and cook, second was that is be Kid friendly for their grandchildren, and third, they wanted the kitchen to open up to their adjacent living room. All new appliances, quality Fieldstone cabinets, and new hardwood flooring throughout the first floor brought this kitchen up to speed. They liked the idea of extending the counter to create a large seating area. This turned out to be the best loved feature of their new kitchen. Working with the designer and the granite company, they made a unique “tear drop” extension of the counter for seating. The old “breakfast” table moved out! Bright, airy and beautiful- the homeowners are thrilled.

Southwestern Plants

Noelle Johnson Landscape Consulting

This is an example of a southwestern landscaping in Phoenix.

Aqualane Shores Residence

Design West

Nightime view from the upstairs Sundeck, overlooking the downstairs outdoor living area, pool and a 180 degree view of the florida inter-coastal.
Large beach style rooftop balcony deck photo in Miami with no cover

Creek Bed Backyard

Southwest Fence & Deck, Inc.

Transitional backyard deck photo in Dallas with no cover and a bbq area

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Columbus, OH

Hope Restoration & General Contracting35 Reviews

Columbus Design-Build, Kitchen & Bath Remodeling, Historic Renovations

BIG-TOOTH MAPLE

Bryant Olsen

Big-tooth Maple / Acer gradidentatum

Private Residence, Back Patio - Caulfield, West Vancouver, BC

Romex Canada West

After 15-20 minutes, the mixture begins to set up - note the bread crumb-like texture it has become. Simply sweep up the excess at a 45 degree angle to the joints.

Magnolia virginiana

Donald Pell - Gardens

Inspiration for a modern landscaping in Philadelphia.

Lafayette Street

Meet West Studio

American Elderberry in Bloom

Photo: F. D. Richards, via Flickr, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic American Elderberry / Sambucus nigra ssp. canadensis

Light-Filled Modern

AOME Architects

Stacking doors roll entirely away, blending the open floor plan with outdoor living areas // Image : John Granen Photography, Inc.
Family room - contemporary open concept wood ceiling family room idea in Seattle with black walls, a ribbon fireplace, a metal fireplace and a media wall

7RR-Ecohome

Thomas Roszak Architecture, LLC

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.