Shelby Wood Design & Southland & Building co.

SM Herrick
Farmhouse porch photo in Minneapolis with a glass front door and white walls

Cabana with Murphy beds down. Photography by Lucas Henning.
Example of a small trendy guest concrete floor and gray floor bedroom design in Seattle with brown walls

Brian Thomas Jones
Inspiration for a contemporary backyard stone patio remodel in Los Angeles with a fire pit and no cover

Project by Studio H:T principal in charge Brad Tomecek (now with Tomecek Studio Architecture). This project tests the theory of bringing high quality design to a prefabricated factory setting. Enrolled in the LEED-Home Pilot, this residence completed certification. The modular home was conceived as two boxes that slide above one another to create outdoor living space and a lower covered rear entry. The passive solar design invites large amounts of light from the south while minimizing openings to the east and west. Factory construction saves both time and costs while reducing waste and using a controlled labor force. Built in a factory north of Denver, the home arrived by flatbed truck in two pieces and was craned into place in about 4 hours providing a fast, sustainable, cost effective alternative to traditional homebuilding techniques. Upgraded lighting fixtures, plumbing fixtures, doors, door hardware, windows, tile and bamboo flooring were incorporated into the design. 80% of the residence was completed in the factory in less than 3 weeks and other items were finished on site including the exterior stucco, garage, metal railing and stair. Stack-Slide-Stitch describes the conceptual process of how to tie together two distinct modular boxes. Stack refers to setting one modular directly on top of the other. Slide refers to the action that creates an upper southern deck area while simultaneously providing a covered rear entry area. The stitching or interlocking occurs with the upward extension of the lower volume with the front deck walls and with the rear two story vertical.

Allison Cartwright - Twist Tours
Inspiration for a mid-sized eclectic backyard concrete paver drought-tolerant patio remodel in Austin with no cover

Casey Dunn
Inspiration for a contemporary pool remodel in Austin

The original home had an addition on the side that served as the primary access for the family. The addition incorporated a new private entry that complements the existing front porch. The private entry is planned to accept an access ramp in the future should mobility issues occur.

Photo: Lisa Petrole
Inspiration for a huge modern backyard concrete patio remodel in San Francisco with a fire pit and no cover

Trendy entryway photo in Atlanta

Several sizes of hardware were chosen to break up the monotony that can occur when so many handles are needed.

Estrela Waterjet Jade glass mosaic tile pattern features four point star with 3-D like effect inspired by a classic cement tile design. | Variations might occur due to factors like color & textural diversity in Jade Glass.

Modern Farmhouse Bathroom Photo by: Leslie Goodwin Photography
Example of a farmhouse bathroom design in Toronto

This is an organic Lime Wash done with a true lime wash product as opposed to a brick mortar or concrete that is often seen on new houses. This product can be applied as a solid coating making the surface completely white, or can be applied and "washed off" in many artistic ways, as seen here. If you hate your brick or just want something unique this is a great option! Photo credit: Jeff Murrey

This Washington Park Residence sits on a bluff with easterly views of Lake Washington and the Cascades beyond. The house has a restrained presence on the street side and opens to the views with floor to ceiling windows looking east. A limited palette of concrete, steel, wood and stone create a serenity in the home and on its terraces. The house features a ground source heat pump system for cooling and a green roof to manage storm water runoff. Photo by Aaron Leitz

Inspiration for a contemporary outdoor patio shower remodel in New York

Stucco is a popular building material that is mainly used in residential exterior siding. It is a combination of sand, Portland cement, limestone and sometimes water. Plaster can be applied to wood, block and concrete. When applying stucco to wood framing, it is usually attached to a wire lath that is attached to the structural framing. Wood framing must be protected by a water resistant moisture barrier such as, asphalt building paper or different types of building wraps before the wire lath and stucco are applied. New stucco should cure for thirty days before prime and paint are applied. A common problem found in stucco due to the trapped moisture that migrates towards the stucco surface, it sometimes carries mineral deposits within it. This can cause a discoloration and sometimes adhesion problems. New stucco can sometimes develop cracks during the curing process. As water is eliminated and the stucco hardens, hairline cracks tend to occur. Once you apply the primer and paint with a paint roller it typically fills the narrow cracks. The roller helps push the paint into the cracks. Larger stucco cracks require a stucco patch filler to bridge the gap. When painting new you must include a primer coat and one or two finishing coats. All paints and primers should be used for exterior surfaces.

I’m often asked if you should seal a tile before grouting and the answer is a definite yes, and this Encaustic Cement tiled bathroom floor installation in Stockport is a great example as to why. The tiles had not been sealed before grouting and then, once the tiler went to grout the newly installed tiles with a grey grout, the colour ran into the tiles, staining them and leaving them looking grubby and dirty. Had the tiles been sealed it would of made the process of removing the grout from the surface of the tile much easier. If you haven’t come across them before Encaustic cement tiles are often hand painted and are available in a range of beautifully artistic patterns, so it was a real shame that these tiles were allowed to be spoilt by an avoidable mistake. As you can imagine, the property owner was keen to have the tiles professionally restored, and she contacted me to get the job done. I took some photographs but I’m not sure that they do justice to the problem. Rather than use a liquid cleaning product, I opted to use diamond encrusted handheld burnishing pads to remove the grout stains. Our burnishing system comprises four pads of varying grits. I started with the Coarse grit burnishing pads applying to the tiles it with a small amount of water as lubricant to grind down the grubby marks. Following this I worked my way through the system, applying Medium, Fine and Very Fine pads to gradually restore the appearance of the floor. Once the burnishing process has been completed I rinsed the tiles and then accelerated the drying process using a heat gun to prepare them to be sealed. Removing any excess moisture before sealing is essential as even a small amount can cloud the sealer and prevent it from properly protecting the tiles from dirt and stains. Once satisfied that the floor was dry, I proceeded to seal it using Tile Doctor Colour Grow. As an impregnating sealer Colour Grow penetrates deep into the pores of the stone to fill them and thus prevent dirt from becoming ingrained. Colour Grow’s colour intensifying properties also really accentuated the patterns of the Encaustic Cement tiles. Now that these fantastic tiles have been properly sealed it will be far easier for the customer to keep them clean in future. Needless to say, she was very happy with the result. We recommend topping up your sealer on a regular basis to ensure problems like those which occurred here do not damage the appearance of your tiles. Steve Keary Greater Manchester Tile Doctor