These clients came to my office looking for an architect who could design their "empty nest" home that would be the focus of their soon to be extended family. A place where the kids and grand kids would want to hang out: with a pool, open family room/ kitchen, garden; but also one-story so there wouldn't be any unnecessary stairs to climb. They wanted the design to feel like "old Pasadena" with the coziness and attention to detail that the era embraced. My sensibilities led me to recall the wonderful classic mansions of San Marino, so I designed a manor house clad in trim Bluestone with a steep French slate roof and clean white entry, eave and dormer moldings that would blend organically with the future hardscape plan and thoughtfully landscaped grounds. The site was a deep, flat lot that had been half of the old Joan Crawford estate; the part that had an abandoned swimming pool and small cabana. I envisioned a pavilion filled with natural light set in a beautifully planted park with garden views from all sides. Having a one-story house allowed for tall and interesting shaped ceilings that carved into the sheer angles of the roof. The most private area of the house would be the central loggia with skylights ensconced in a deep woodwork lattice grid and would be reminiscent of the outdoor “Salas” found in early Californian homes. The family would soon gather there and enjoy warm afternoons and the wonderfully cool evening hours together. Working with interior designer Jeffrey Hitchcock, we designed an open family room/kitchen with high dark wood beamed ceilings, dormer windows for daylight, custom raised panel cabinetry, granite counters and a textured glass tile splash. Natural light and gentle breezes flow through the many French doors and windows located to accommodate not only the garden views, but the prevailing sun and wind as well. The graceful living room features a dramatic vaulted white painted wood ceiling and grand fireplace flanked by generous double hung French windows and elegant drapery. A deeply cased opening draws one into the wainscot paneled dining room that is highlighted by hand painted scenic wallpaper and a barrel vaulted ceiling. The walnut paneled library opens up to reveal the waterfall feature in the back garden. Equally picturesque and restful is the view from the rotunda in the master bedroom suite. Architect: Ward Jewell Architect, AIA Interior Design: Jeffrey Hitchcock Enterprises Contractor: Synergy General Contractors, Inc. Landscape Design: LZ Design Group, Inc. Photography: Laura Hull

Beach style formal and open concept medium tone wood floor living room photo with beige walls, a standard fireplace and a wall-mounted tv

LittleBig
Bedroom - coastal guest light wood floor and beige floor bedroom idea in New York with white walls and no fireplace

Master bathroom with large walk-in custom certamic tile shower, freestanding tub with cultured stone, separate vanities, oversized closet, in-law suite. https://www.hibbshomes.com/new-home-in-development-at-the-forest-at-pevely-farms-in-eureka

Small transitional kitchen photo in Vancouver with green backsplash and an island

Joe Fletcher Atop a ridge in the Santa Lucia mountains of Carmel, California, an oak tree stands elevated above the fog and wrapped at its base in this ranch retreat. The weekend home’s design grew around the 100-year-old Valley Oak to form a horseshoe-shaped house that gathers ridgeline views of Oak, Madrone, and Redwood groves at its exterior and nestles around the tree at its center. The home’s orientation offers both the shade of the oak canopy in the courtyard and the sun flowing into the great room at the house’s rear façades. This modern take on a traditional ranch home offers contemporary materials and landscaping to a classic typology. From the main entry in the courtyard, one enters the home’s great room and immediately experiences the dramatic westward views across the 70 foot pool at the house’s rear. In this expansive public area, programmatic needs flow and connect - from the kitchen, whose windows face the courtyard, to the dining room, whose doors slide seamlessly into walls to create an outdoor dining pavilion. The primary circulation axes flank the internal courtyard, anchoring the house to its site and heightening the sense of scale by extending views outward at each of the corridor’s ends. Guest suites, complete with private kitchen and living room, and the garage are housed in auxiliary wings connected to the main house by covered walkways. Building materials including pre-weathered corrugated steel cladding, buff limestone walls, and large aluminum apertures, and the interior palette of cedar-clad ceilings, oil-rubbed steel, and exposed concrete floors soften the modern aesthetics into a refined but rugged ranch home.

Neutral palette Master Bedroom with custom bedside tables and spindle bench. Large bronze lantern hangs off of tongue and groove ceilings.
Example of a mid-sized classic master dark wood floor bedroom design in Los Angeles with white walls

Photo: Adrienne DeRosa © 2015 Houzz Save for a few refinements, the layout of the space took shape exactly as Weiss had envisioned it from day one. Knowing that they were looking to design a loft-like environment, the couple kept to an open layout for the majority of the living space. One of the most fantastic features of the space is a bank of clerestory windows that flood the interior with seemingly endless amounts of daylight. Originally added back when the building served as an artist studio, Weiss and Carpenter agreed that keeping them was a must. "The only original part of the house is the ceiling and the existing skylights and clerestory," Weiss describes. "We basically changed everything else." The ceiling compliments the contents of the environment, but also continues the story of the homeowners' design philosophy. "We loved the original wood and steel ceiling, including steel beams forged at the Carnegie Steel Works," Carpenter explains. "In coming up with our design approach, we wanted to reflect some of the previous uses of the structure ... Keeping elements from the past not only interested us aesthetically." he says, "It was important to us to reuse structures and objects in ways that are close to their originally intended use."

Chris Bradley
Inspiration for a small timeless wine cellar remodel in Chicago with display racks

Photograph showing the beautiful lightly colored travertine paver tiles on the rear porch of this Awendaw beach home retreat. The clear coat wood stained cypress ceiling is gorgeous.

Kitchen with granite countertops, wooden cabinetry, stainless steel appliances, and custom tilework
Elegant l-shaped medium tone wood floor kitchen photo in Chicago with a farmhouse sink, recessed-panel cabinets, gray backsplash and an island

Jagoe Homes, Inc. Project: Creekside at Deer Valley, Mulberry Craftsman Model Home. Location: Owensboro, Kentucky. Elevation: Craftsman-C1, Site Number: CSDV 81.

A Modern Farmhouse Kitchen with ebonized oak cabinets, stainless steel appliances, silestone counters and natural white oak floors.
Mid-sized trendy l-shaped light wood floor open concept kitchen photo in Dallas with a farmhouse sink, flat-panel cabinets, black cabinets, quartz countertops, white backsplash, porcelain backsplash, stainless steel appliances and an island

Inspiration for a coastal light wood floor bedroom remodel in Miami with blue walls

Entryway design with blue door from Osmond Designs.
Hallway - transitional light wood floor and beige floor hallway idea in Salt Lake City with beige walls

Our Indianapolis design studio designed a gut renovation of this home which opened up the floorplan and radically changed the functioning of the footprint. It features an array of patterned wallpaper, tiles, and floors complemented with a fresh palette, and statement lights. Photographer - Sarah Shields --- Project completed by Wendy Langston's Everything Home interior design firm, which serves Carmel, Zionsville, Fishers, Westfield, Noblesville, and Indianapolis. For more about Everything Home, click here: https://everythinghomedesigns.com/ To learn more about this project, click here: https://everythinghomedesigns.com/portfolio/country-estate-transformation/

Randall Perry
Bedroom - traditional medium tone wood floor bedroom idea in Boston with blue walls

Inspiration for a large country medium tone wood floor eat-in kitchen remodel in San Francisco with an island, an undermount sink, flat-panel cabinets, light wood cabinets, wood countertops, white backsplash, subway tile backsplash and stainless steel appliances

Embossed medallion in a LusterStone finish
Dining room - mid-sized mediterranean dining room idea in Raleigh