Chuck Carver- Photographer Brickhouse- Architect Beth Hanson- Interior Designer
Inspiration for a rustic galley brown floor open concept kitchen remodel in Minneapolis with dark wood cabinets, multicolored backsplash and stainless steel appliances

Example of a tuscan kitchen design in San Francisco

Elegant master gray tile alcove shower photo with an undermount sink, shaker cabinets, dark wood cabinets, an undermount tub and white walls

The client’s request was quite common - a typical 2800 sf builder home with 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, living space, and den. However, their desire was for this to be “anything but common.” The result is an innovative update on the production home for the modern era, and serves as a direct counterpoint to the neighborhood and its more conventional suburban housing stock, which focus views to the backyard and seeks to nullify the unique qualities and challenges of topography and the natural environment. The Terraced House cautiously steps down the site’s steep topography, resulting in a more nuanced approach to site development than cutting and filling that is so common in the builder homes of the area. The compact house opens up in very focused views that capture the natural wooded setting, while masking the sounds and views of the directly adjacent roadway. The main living spaces face this major roadway, effectively flipping the typical orientation of a suburban home, and the main entrance pulls visitors up to the second floor and halfway through the site, providing a sense of procession and privacy absent in the typical suburban home. Clad in a custom rain screen that reflects the wood of the surrounding landscape - while providing a glimpse into the interior tones that are used. The stepping “wood boxes” rest on a series of concrete walls that organize the site, retain the earth, and - in conjunction with the wood veneer panels - provide a subtle organic texture to the composition. The interior spaces wrap around an interior knuckle that houses public zones and vertical circulation - allowing more private spaces to exist at the edges of the building. The windows get larger and more frequent as they ascend the building, culminating in the upstairs bedrooms that occupy the site like a tree house - giving views in all directions. The Terraced House imports urban qualities to the suburban neighborhood and seeks to elevate the typical approach to production home construction, while being more in tune with modern family living patterns. Overview: Elm Grove Size: 2,800 sf, 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms Completion Date: September 2014 Services: Architecture, Landscape Architecture Interior Consultants: Amy Carman Design

Greg Premru
Large beach style formal and open concept medium tone wood floor living room photo in Boston with a standard fireplace, white walls and a concrete fireplace

Eclectic u-shaped enclosed kitchen photo in Orange County with a farmhouse sink, flat-panel cabinets, white cabinets, stainless steel appliances and marble countertops

A few rare vintage 1950s pieces here along with a custom bone inlay starburst table, hand silk-screened draperies, and sofas designed by Melina Copass & Preston Sharp. Due to the challenging long and narrow shape of this room, custom designed sofas, especially a Tete-a-Tete style, were needed to create combination seating for around the fireplace and the adjacent TV wall. To know more about this makeover, please read the "Houzz Tour" feature article here: http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/32975037/list/houzz-tour-midcentury-meets-mediterranean-in-california

Gibeon Photography
Great room - contemporary concrete floor great room idea with a ribbon fireplace

Photography by: Adeline Ray Design Studio
Inspiration for a small timeless 3/4 white tile and mosaic tile ceramic tile and white floor doorless shower remodel in Houston with open cabinets, white cabinets, marble countertops, a one-piece toilet, an undermount sink and beige walls

Inspiration for a tropical dark wood floor living room remodel in Miami with white walls

Treve Johnson Photography
Example of a mid-sized trendy tile patio design in San Francisco with no cover and a fireplace

Jeri Koegel
Trendy living room photo in Orange County with white walls, a ribbon fireplace and a stone fireplace

Mid-sized elegant detached garage photo in Atlanta

A transitional kitchen in University Park, Dallas, Texas designed by AVID Associates. Dan Piassick
Mid-sized transitional u-shaped porcelain tile eat-in kitchen photo in Dallas with an undermount sink, shaker cabinets, white cabinets, quartzite countertops, white backsplash, porcelain backsplash, stainless steel appliances and an island

Our Scottsdale interior design studio created this luxurious Santa Fe new build for a retired couple with sophisticated tastes. We centered the furnishings and fabrics around their contemporary Southwestern art collection, choosing complementary colors. The house includes a large patio with a fireplace, a beautiful great room with a home bar, a lively family room, and a bright home office with plenty of cabinets. All of the spaces reflect elegance, comfort, and thoughtful planning. --- Project designed by Susie Hersker’s Scottsdale interior design firm Design Directives. Design Directives is active in Phoenix, Paradise Valley, Cave Creek, Carefree, Sedona, and beyond. For more about Design Directives, click here: https://susanherskerasid.com/

Example of a classic carpeted bedroom design in Phoenix with beige walls

Lissa Gotwals Photography
Freestanding bathtub - large traditional master gray tile and subway tile freestanding bathtub idea in Raleigh with an undermount sink, shaker cabinets, white cabinets, white walls and quartz countertops

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

Ansel Olson
Living room - large rustic medium tone wood floor living room idea in Richmond with beige walls, a standard fireplace and a stone fireplace