Search results for "Distinct strategy" in Home Design Ideas

This residence was a complete gut renovation of a 4-story row house in Park Slope, and included a new rear extension and penthouse addition. The owners wished to create a warm, family home using a modern language that would act as a clean canvas to feature rich textiles and items from their world travels. As with most Brooklyn row houses, the existing house suffered from a lack of natural light and connection to exterior spaces, an issue that Principal Brendan Coburn is acutely aware of from his experience re-imagining historic structures in the New York area. The resulting architecture is designed around moments featuring natural light and views to the exterior, of both the private garden and the sky, throughout the house, and a stripped-down language of detailing and finishes allows for the concept of the modern-natural to shine.
Upon entering the home, the kitchen and dining space draw you in with views beyond through the large glazed opening at the rear of the house. An extension was built to allow for a large sunken living room that provides a family gathering space connected to the kitchen and dining room, but remains distinctly separate, with a strong visual connection to the rear garden. The open sculptural stair tower was designed to function like that of a traditional row house stair, but with a smaller footprint. By extending it up past the original roof level into the new penthouse, the stair becomes an atmospheric shaft for the spaces surrounding the core. All types of weather – sunshine, rain, lightning, can be sensed throughout the home through this unifying vertical environment. The stair space also strives to foster family communication, making open living spaces visible between floors. At the upper-most level, a free-form bench sits suspended over the stair, just by the new roof deck, which provides at-ease entertaining. Oak was used throughout the home as a unifying material element. As one travels upwards within the house, the oak finishes are bleached to further degrees as a nod to how light enters the home.
The owners worked with CWB to add their own personality to the project. The meter of a white oak and blackened steel stair screen was designed by the family to read “I love you” in Morse Code, and tile was selected throughout to reference places that hold special significance to the family. To support the owners’ comfort, the architectural design engages passive house technologies to reduce energy use, while increasing air quality within the home – a strategy which aims to respect the environment while providing a refuge from the harsh elements of urban living.
This project was published by Wendy Goodman as her Space of the Week, part of New York Magazine’s Design Hunting on The Cut.
Photography by Kevin Kunstadt

This residence was a complete gut renovation of a 4-story row house in Park Slope, and included a new rear extension and penthouse addition. The owners wished to create a warm, family home using a modern language that would act as a clean canvas to feature rich textiles and items from their world travels. As with most Brooklyn row houses, the existing house suffered from a lack of natural light and connection to exterior spaces, an issue that Principal Brendan Coburn is acutely aware of from his experience re-imagining historic structures in the New York area. The resulting architecture is designed around moments featuring natural light and views to the exterior, of both the private garden and the sky, throughout the house, and a stripped-down language of detailing and finishes allows for the concept of the modern-natural to shine.
Upon entering the home, the kitchen and dining space draw you in with views beyond through the large glazed opening at the rear of the house. An extension was built to allow for a large sunken living room that provides a family gathering space connected to the kitchen and dining room, but remains distinctly separate, with a strong visual connection to the rear garden. The open sculptural stair tower was designed to function like that of a traditional row house stair, but with a smaller footprint. By extending it up past the original roof level into the new penthouse, the stair becomes an atmospheric shaft for the spaces surrounding the core. All types of weather – sunshine, rain, lightning, can be sensed throughout the home through this unifying vertical environment. The stair space also strives to foster family communication, making open living spaces visible between floors. At the upper-most level, a free-form bench sits suspended over the stair, just by the new roof deck, which provides at-ease entertaining. Oak was used throughout the home as a unifying material element. As one travels upwards within the house, the oak finishes are bleached to further degrees as a nod to how light enters the home.
The owners worked with CWB to add their own personality to the project. The meter of a white oak and blackened steel stair screen was designed by the family to read “I love you” in Morse Code, and tile was selected throughout to reference places that hold special significance to the family. To support the owners’ comfort, the architectural design engages passive house technologies to reduce energy use, while increasing air quality within the home – a strategy which aims to respect the environment while providing a refuge from the harsh elements of urban living.
This project was published by Wendy Goodman as her Space of the Week, part of New York Magazine’s Design Hunting on The Cut.
Photography by Kevin Kunstadt

This residence was a complete gut renovation of a 4-story row house in Park Slope, and included a new rear extension and penthouse addition. The owners wished to create a warm, family home using a modern language that would act as a clean canvas to feature rich textiles and items from their world travels. As with most Brooklyn row houses, the existing house suffered from a lack of natural light and connection to exterior spaces, an issue that Principal Brendan Coburn is acutely aware of from his experience re-imagining historic structures in the New York area. The resulting architecture is designed around moments featuring natural light and views to the exterior, of both the private garden and the sky, throughout the house, and a stripped-down language of detailing and finishes allows for the concept of the modern-natural to shine.
Upon entering the home, the kitchen and dining space draw you in with views beyond through the large glazed opening at the rear of the house. An extension was built to allow for a large sunken living room that provides a family gathering space connected to the kitchen and dining room, but remains distinctly separate, with a strong visual connection to the rear garden. The open sculptural stair tower was designed to function like that of a traditional row house stair, but with a smaller footprint. By extending it up past the original roof level into the new penthouse, the stair becomes an atmospheric shaft for the spaces surrounding the core. All types of weather – sunshine, rain, lightning, can be sensed throughout the home through this unifying vertical environment. The stair space also strives to foster family communication, making open living spaces visible between floors. At the upper-most level, a free-form bench sits suspended over the stair, just by the new roof deck, which provides at-ease entertaining. Oak was used throughout the home as a unifying material element. As one travels upwards within the house, the oak finishes are bleached to further degrees as a nod to how light enters the home.
The owners worked with CWB to add their own personality to the project. The meter of a white oak and blackened steel stair screen was designed by the family to read “I love you” in Morse Code, and tile was selected throughout to reference places that hold special significance to the family. To support the owners’ comfort, the architectural design engages passive house technologies to reduce energy use, while increasing air quality within the home – a strategy which aims to respect the environment while providing a refuge from the harsh elements of urban living.
This project was published by Wendy Goodman as her Space of the Week, part of New York Magazine’s Design Hunting on The Cut.
Photography by Kevin Kunstadt
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This residence was a complete gut renovation of a 4-story row house in Park Slope, and included a new rear extension and penthouse addition. The owners wished to create a warm, family home using a modern language that would act as a clean canvas to feature rich textiles and items from their world travels. As with most Brooklyn row houses, the existing house suffered from a lack of natural light and connection to exterior spaces, an issue that Principal Brendan Coburn is acutely aware of from his experience re-imagining historic structures in the New York area. The resulting architecture is designed around moments featuring natural light and views to the exterior, of both the private garden and the sky, throughout the house, and a stripped-down language of detailing and finishes allows for the concept of the modern-natural to shine.
Upon entering the home, the kitchen and dining space draw you in with views beyond through the large glazed opening at the rear of the house. An extension was built to allow for a large sunken living room that provides a family gathering space connected to the kitchen and dining room, but remains distinctly separate, with a strong visual connection to the rear garden. The open sculptural stair tower was designed to function like that of a traditional row house stair, but with a smaller footprint. By extending it up past the original roof level into the new penthouse, the stair becomes an atmospheric shaft for the spaces surrounding the core. All types of weather – sunshine, rain, lightning, can be sensed throughout the home through this unifying vertical environment. The stair space also strives to foster family communication, making open living spaces visible between floors. At the upper-most level, a free-form bench sits suspended over the stair, just by the new roof deck, which provides at-ease entertaining. Oak was used throughout the home as a unifying material element. As one travels upwards within the house, the oak finishes are bleached to further degrees as a nod to how light enters the home.
The owners worked with CWB to add their own personality to the project. The meter of a white oak and blackened steel stair screen was designed by the family to read “I love you” in Morse Code, and tile was selected throughout to reference places that hold special significance to the family. To support the owners’ comfort, the architectural design engages passive house technologies to reduce energy use, while increasing air quality within the home – a strategy which aims to respect the environment while providing a refuge from the harsh elements of urban living.
This project was published by Wendy Goodman as her Space of the Week, part of New York Magazine’s Design Hunting on The Cut.
Photography by Kevin Kunstadt

We used: Custom cherry cabinetry in Arts & Crafts Shaker style by Kabinart in Boulder and Espresso stains. Liberty Hardware Venetian bronze 1-1/2" cabinet knobs. KitchenAid Architect II Series 22 CF counter-depth French door refrigerator. KitchenAid Architect Series II 27" convection single wall oven. KitchenAid 36" 6-burner dual fuel freestanding commercial-style range. KitchenAid Architect II Series 24" dishwasher. Sharp Insight Pro Series 24" built-in microwave drawer (Model #KB6524PS). Crystorama Solaris 12" wide pendant lights in English bronze. Granite countertops in Brown Fantasy. 3"x6" polished marble backsplash.
Paint colors:
Walls: Glidden Silver Cloud 30YY 63/024
Ceilings/Trims/Doors: Glidden Swan White GLC23
Robert B. Narod Photography

D-14 Residence, Rohtak
One of the significant characteristics of traditional Indian homes has been their connection to the outdoors, that is often mediated through spaces like the verandah. Located in Rohtak, Haryana, the design of the D-14 Residence illustrates an optimal use of the verandah in the contemporary Indian bungalow context and modern living. Occupying a corner plot in a township called the Suncity, the residence is designed for an elderly couple who loves spending time in nature.
The clients aspired to have a house with excellent connectivity to the outside, and shaded landscaped sit-outs. The design intent hence focuses on creating outdoor seating and expansive openings to make the interiors feel open, bringing in natural light and ventilation. The house is planned in a manner that all the significant spaces open onto a verandah on the southwestern edge, bringing in maximum sunlight. The verandah overlooks a wide 15 feet green bed with lush landscaping; this design strategy enables an excellent mediation between the interior and exterior spaces, where the verandah acts as a buffer to curb the harsh sun and exposure to dust.
On the ground floor, a spacious entrance lobby leads one to a double-height family lounge interconnected with the dining space, both of which open out onto the verandah through an extensive opening. Together they form a lively, interactive node in the house which becomes the central point of activity. The verandah, central to the house's layout, is also overlooked by the living room and the master bedroom. It is enclosed with 30ft wide M.S sliding gatesMS grill, ensuring all the doors in these rooms can stay open without worrying about security. The plan allows seamless movement and flow of interaction that is highly interconnected with the outdoors.
A minimalist and artful staircase leads to the first floor of the house. Topped with grey Kharad stone and a railing made up of bent 12 mm dia Mild Steel rods, the staircase opens into another lounge for family seating, which overlooks the double-height lounge on the ground floor. The first floor further accommodates a study, a bedroom for visiting children and grandchildern and the servant's quarter creating an independent unit. An external spiral staircase at the rear end is provisioned as a separate access to the servant's quarters.
Designed in locally-made exposed brick which were sourced from a brick kiln 50km from the site, the house evokes simplicity and rawness of character. Patterned brick jaalis enclose the balconies and open decks, lending a distinctive identity to the facade. Together with the warm grey Kota stone and the landscaped lawns, the house evokes a sense of an earthy and rustic charm.
True to the identity of its inhabitants and surroundings, the D-14 Residence is a creative expression of its cultural and material context. With the verandah as the central planning feature, it is a contemporary reflection of traditional Indian homes and their inherent affinity for the outdoors.

The photograph is constructed as a deliberate act of framing — an enfilade view captured through a threshold, in which the aperture of a doorway becomes both proscenium and compositional device. The image is organized around a strong vertical tripartite division: a dark stile of paneled millwork at the left edge, the luminous rectangle of the adjacent sitting room at center, and a substantial pier of figured hardwood joinery at right, terminating in a plinth-like pedestal. This asymmetrical clamping of the bright volume between two dark masses produces a pronounced sense of compression and release, a Wrightian sequencing in which the constricted, wood-lined passage funnels the eye toward the softer, higher-key room beyond. The architectural vocabulary within that inner volume is restrained and orthogonal: crisp painted plaster planes, a shallow soffit or dropped beam crossing the ceiling to modulate the overhead datum, and a simple flat-stock baseboard that reads as a quiet ground line rather than an ornamental flourish. The sightline is layered and telescopic — foreground jamb, mid-ground seating group, background artwork on the far wall — establishing depth through overlapping planes rather than perspectival theatrics. Underfoot, a herringbone-laid oak parquet in the passage gives way to a large-format sisal rug bound in linen tape, its rectilinear geometry reinforcing the axis while softening the transition between circulation and repose.
The material argument here is one of calibrated opposition: dense, saturated hardwood against pale, absorptive plaster and textile. The framing joinery — most plausibly a rich mahogany or stained cherry, its cathedral grain and ribbon figure fully legible under raking light — carries a deep oxblood-to-umber tonality and a satin, hand-rubbed sheen that lends the passage a library-like gravity. Against this, the interior room is rendered in a warm off-white with distinctly yellow-ochre undertones, avoiding the clinical chill of a true cool white and instead reading as parchment or unbleached linen. The upholstery — a rolled-arm wing chair and matching ottoman in a camel or buff-toned cotton velvet — supplies the tactile fulcrum of the composition: a napped, light-absorbing pile that contrasts against the coarse, tightly woven boucle of the sisal below and the smooth lacquer of the vertical joinery. Accent notes are sparing and precise: a pale celadon embroidered cushion introduces the only cool chromatic interruption; a rectilinear bench in blond ash with a woven black leather strap deck delivers a graphic, near-Nordic counterpoint; and a monolithic white ceramic vessel atop the pedestal provides a hard, matte punctuation. The abstract work on paper — a gestural monochrome in charcoal, ink and Payne's grey, generously matted behind glass — functions as the room's tonal anchor, its cool achromatics preventing the warm palette from tipping into sentimentality. Sprays of yellow oncidium orchid supply the single high-chroma gesture, echoing the ochre undertone of the walls.
The lighting strategy is layered, low-lumen and unapologetically warm, eschewing ambient wash in favor of discrete pools of illumination. A slim linear picture light, bronze-finished and cantilevered from the wall, grazes the artwork with a scalloped throw that reveals the tooth of the paper and establishes the far wall as the room's luminous terminus. A chrome-shaded articulating floor lamp — a modernist task fixture with a distinctly mid-century pedigree — provides a secondary, reflective glint and introduces the only cool metallic in the palette. Daylight enters obliquely and unseen from the left, softly modeling the plaster and the velvet nap without ever flattening the composition; the foreground joinery, meanwhile, sits in deep shadow, its grain caught only in a slow, specular gradient. The cumulative atmosphere is one of hushed, crepuscular intimacy — a room calibrated for reading and retreat rather than reception. Stylistically, the project resolves into a form of Transitional Warm Modernism: the classical proportioning, paneled millwork and rolled-arm seating are drawn from a traditional American vocabulary, yet they are stripped of applied ornament, edited to essentials, and disciplined by the graphic austerity of the abstract art and the blond-and-black bench. It is a sensibility best characterized as quiet luxury — tonal, textural, and materially honest, deriving its authority from the resonance of grain, nap and light rather than from any declarative gesture.

AK4002: "The Pour" Skinny Rain
DESCRIPTION:
The light installation is a teardrop-shaped chandelier with deliciously unique lights that celebrate the fascinating nature of raindrops, where no drop is the same as the next. Each drop is hand-blown by artisans and intricately engineered to house the lighting strategy for the chandelier. When you see a light sculpture designed to increase the visual appeal of a room and define its luminous character, you stop on your way to admire it. It’s the case of the Raindrop chandelier known as “The Pour”, a modern light sculpture meant to illuminate and beautify its chosen location to create an architectural relationship with space. The drop itself is constructed of two parts: the brass screw cap, which houses the light, and the hand-blown crystal reflecting the light to create puddles on the floor below. To replicate the nature of raindrops, no two drops are blown identical. The name “The Pour” derives from the distinctive shape that the chandelier forms: an exaggeration of the dramatic motion of water pouring out of a carafe. Designed by forming a grid mimicking how puddles ripple outward in concentric circles, each teardrop is hung to brass pipes of varying lengths. Placed strategically on the grid, the teardrops lock into the mirrored base that fits seamlessly between the two existing columns. The mirrored base reflects the teardrops endlessly into the sky above and when lit. The chandelier echoes rain frozen in time with ephemeral puddles overlaid on the floor below.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Collection: Organic
Size: 58” Long x 13” Width x 72” Height (112 Lights)
Shape: Rectangular
Frame Finish: Patina Dark Bronze
Materials: Metal, Glass
Extension: 12' feet adjustable wiring available in black or silver
Glass: Hand-blown glass
Bulbs: 112 Bulbs 110V USA/220V Europe 40 W candelabra bulbs (included)
Weight: 135 lbs. (for the 58" L)
Assembly: Some Assembly
Dimmer Switch Compatible: Optional
Rush Order: 4-6 Weeks; 15% added to the total
Regular Lead Time: 8-12 Weeks
Warranty: 5 Years Full Coverage (includes parts replacement)
SIZE OPTIONS:
Size: Price:
30” Long x 13” Width x 66” Height (69 Lights) $3,360.00
36” Long x 13” Width x 66” Height (79 Lights) $4,660.00
42” Long x 13” Width x 66” Height (89 Lights) $6,470.00
58” Long x 16” Width x 72” Height (112 Lights) $7,670.00
71” Long x 20" Width x 82” Height (242 Lights) $9,820.00
Custom Sizes, Finishes, Colors Available Upon Request
Additional Info- Handblown Glass: 2" Width x 4" Height

This residence was a complete gut renovation of a 4-story row house in Park Slope, and included a new rear extension and penthouse addition. The owners wished to create a warm, family home using a modern language that would act as a clean canvas to feature rich textiles and items from their world travels. As with most Brooklyn row houses, the existing house suffered from a lack of natural light and connection to exterior spaces, an issue that Principal Brendan Coburn is acutely aware of from his experience re-imagining historic structures in the New York area. The resulting architecture is designed around moments featuring natural light and views to the exterior, of both the private garden and the sky, throughout the house, and a stripped-down language of detailing and finishes allows for the concept of the modern-natural to shine.
Upon entering the home, the kitchen and dining space draw you in with views beyond through the large glazed opening at the rear of the house. An extension was built to allow for a large sunken living room that provides a family gathering space connected to the kitchen and dining room, but remains distinctly separate, with a strong visual connection to the rear garden. The open sculptural stair tower was designed to function like that of a traditional row house stair, but with a smaller footprint. By extending it up past the original roof level into the new penthouse, the stair becomes an atmospheric shaft for the spaces surrounding the core. All types of weather – sunshine, rain, lightning, can be sensed throughout the home through this unifying vertical environment. The stair space also strives to foster family communication, making open living spaces visible between floors. At the upper-most level, a free-form bench sits suspended over the stair, just by the new roof deck, which provides at-ease entertaining. Oak was used throughout the home as a unifying material element. As one travels upwards within the house, the oak finishes are bleached to further degrees as a nod to how light enters the home.
The owners worked with CWB to add their own personality to the project. The meter of a white oak and blackened steel stair screen was designed by the family to read “I love you” in Morse Code, and tile was selected throughout to reference places that hold special significance to the family. To support the owners’ comfort, the architectural design engages passive house technologies to reduce energy use, while increasing air quality within the home – a strategy which aims to respect the environment while providing a refuge from the harsh elements of urban living.
This project was published by Wendy Goodman as her Space of the Week, part of New York Magazine’s Design Hunting on The Cut.
Photography by Kevin Kunstadt

AK4002: "The Pour" Skinny Rain
DESCRIPTION:
The light installation is a teardrop-shaped chandelier with deliciously unique lights that celebrate the fascinating nature of raindrops, where no drop is the same as the next. Each drop is hand-blown by artisans and intricately engineered to house the lighting strategy for the chandelier. When you see a light sculpture designed to increase the visual appeal of a room and define its luminous character, you stop on your way to admire it. It’s the case of the Raindrop chandelier known as “The Pour”, a modern light sculpture meant to illuminate and beautify its chosen location to create an architectural relationship with space. The drop itself is constructed of two parts: the brass screw cap, which houses the light, and the hand-blown crystal reflecting the light to create puddles on the floor below. To replicate the nature of raindrops, no two drops are blown identical. The name “The Pour” derives from the distinctive shape that the chandelier forms: an exaggeration of the dramatic motion of water pouring out of a carafe. Designed by forming a grid mimicking how puddles ripple outward in concentric circles, each teardrop is hung to brass pipes of varying lengths. Placed strategically on the grid, the teardrops lock into the mirrored base that fits seamlessly between the two existing columns. The mirrored base reflects the teardrops endlessly into the sky above and when lit. The chandelier echoes rain frozen in time with ephemeral puddles overlaid on the floor below.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Collection: Organic
Size: 58” Long x 13” Width x 72” Height (112 Lights)
Shape: Rectangular
Frame Finish: Patina Dark Bronze
Materials: Metal, Glass
Extension: 12' feet adjustable wiring available in black or silver
Glass: Hand-blown glass
Bulbs: 112 Bulbs 110V USA/220V Europe 40 W candelabra bulbs (included)
Weight: 135 lbs. (for the 58" L)
Assembly: Some Assembly
Dimmer Switch Compatible: Optional
Rush Order: 4-6 Weeks; 15% added to the total
Regular Lead Time: 8-12 Weeks
Warranty: 5 Years Full Coverage (includes parts replacement)
SIZE OPTIONS:
Size: Price:
30” Long x 13” Width x 66” Height (69 Lights) $3,360.00
36” Long x 13” Width x 66” Height (79 Lights) $4,660.00
42” Long x 13” Width x 66” Height (89 Lights) $6,470.00
58” Long x 16” Width x 72” Height (112 Lights) $7,670.00
71” Long x 20" Width x 82” Height (242 Lights) $9,820.00
Custom Sizes, Finishes, Colors Available Upon Request
Additional Info- Handblown Glass: 2" Width x 4" Height

AK4002: "The Pour" Skinny Rain
DESCRIPTION:
The light installation is a teardrop-shaped chandelier with deliciously unique lights that celebrate the fascinating nature of raindrops, where no drop is the same as the next. Each drop is hand-blown by artisans and intricately engineered to house the lighting strategy for the chandelier. When you see a light sculpture designed to increase the visual appeal of a room and define its luminous character, you stop on your way to admire it. It’s the case of the Raindrop chandelier known as “The Pour”, a modern light sculpture meant to illuminate and beautify its chosen location to create an architectural relationship with space. The drop itself is constructed of two parts: the brass screw cap, which houses the light, and the hand-blown crystal reflecting the light to create puddles on the floor below. To replicate the nature of raindrops, no two drops are blown identical. The name “The Pour” derives from the distinctive shape that the chandelier forms: an exaggeration of the dramatic motion of water pouring out of a carafe. Designed by forming a grid mimicking how puddles ripple outward in concentric circles, each teardrop is hung to brass pipes of varying lengths. Placed strategically on the grid, the teardrops lock into the mirrored base that fits seamlessly between the two existing columns. The mirrored base reflects the teardrops endlessly into the sky above and when lit. The chandelier echoes rain frozen in time with ephemeral puddles overlaid on the floor below.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Collection: Organic
Size: 58” Long x 13” Width x 72” Height (112 Lights)
Shape: Rectangular
Frame Finish: Patina Dark Bronze
Materials: Metal, Glass
Extension: 12' feet adjustable wiring available in black or silver
Glass: Hand-blown glass
Bulbs: 112 Bulbs 110V USA/220V Europe 40 W candelabra bulbs (included)
Weight: 135 lbs. (for the 58" L)
Assembly: Some Assembly
Dimmer Switch Compatible: Optional
Rush Order: 4-6 Weeks; 15% added to the total
Regular Lead Time: 8-12 Weeks
Warranty: 5 Years Full Coverage (includes parts replacement)
SIZE OPTIONS:
Size: Price:
30” Long x 13” Width x 66” Height (69 Lights) $3,360.00
36” Long x 13” Width x 66” Height (79 Lights) $4,660.00
42” Long x 13” Width x 66” Height (89 Lights) $6,470.00
58” Long x 16” Width x 72” Height (112 Lights) $7,670.00
71” Long x 20" Width x 82” Height (242 Lights) $9,820.00
Custom Sizes, Finishes, Colors Available Upon Request
Additional Info- Handblown Glass: 2" Width x 4" Height

This residence was a complete gut renovation of a 4-story row house in Park Slope, and included a new rear extension and penthouse addition. The owners wished to create a warm, family home using a modern language that would act as a clean canvas to feature rich textiles and items from their world travels. As with most Brooklyn row houses, the existing house suffered from a lack of natural light and connection to exterior spaces, an issue that Principal Brendan Coburn is acutely aware of from his experience re-imagining historic structures in the New York area. The resulting architecture is designed around moments featuring natural light and views to the exterior, of both the private garden and the sky, throughout the house, and a stripped-down language of detailing and finishes allows for the concept of the modern-natural to shine.
Upon entering the home, the kitchen and dining space draw you in with views beyond through the large glazed opening at the rear of the house. An extension was built to allow for a large sunken living room that provides a family gathering space connected to the kitchen and dining room, but remains distinctly separate, with a strong visual connection to the rear garden. The open sculptural stair tower was designed to function like that of a traditional row house stair, but with a smaller footprint. By extending it up past the original roof level into the new penthouse, the stair becomes an atmospheric shaft for the spaces surrounding the core. All types of weather – sunshine, rain, lightning, can be sensed throughout the home through this unifying vertical environment. The stair space also strives to foster family communication, making open living spaces visible between floors. At the upper-most level, a free-form bench sits suspended over the stair, just by the new roof deck, which provides at-ease entertaining. Oak was used throughout the home as a unifying material element. As one travels upwards within the house, the oak finishes are bleached to further degrees as a nod to how light enters the home.
The owners worked with CWB to add their own personality to the project. The meter of a white oak and blackened steel stair screen was designed by the family to read “I love you” in Morse Code, and tile was selected throughout to reference places that hold special significance to the family. To support the owners’ comfort, the architectural design engages passive house technologies to reduce energy use, while increasing air quality within the home – a strategy which aims to respect the environment while providing a refuge from the harsh elements of urban living.
This project was published by Wendy Goodman as her Space of the Week, part of New York Magazine’s Design Hunting on The Cut.
Photography by Kevin Kunstadt

AK4002RD "The Pour" Skinny Rain
DESCRIPTION:
The light installation is a teardrop-shaped chandelier with deliciously unique lights that celebrate the fascinating nature of raindrops, where no drop is the same as the next. Each drop is hand-blown by artisans and intricately engineered to house the lighting strategy for the chandelier. When you see a light sculpture designed to increase the visual appeal of a room and define its luminous character, you stop on your way to admire it. It’s the case of the Raindrop chandelier known as “The Pour”, a modern light sculpture meant to illuminate and beautify its chosen location to create an architectural relationship with space. The drop itself is constructed of two parts: the brass screw cap, which houses the light, and the hand-blown crystal reflecting the light to create puddles on the floor below. To replicate the nature of raindrops, no two drops are blown identical. The name “The Pour” derives from the distinctive shape that the chandelier forms: an exaggeration of the dramatic motion of water pouring out of a carafe. Designed by forming a grid mimicking how puddles ripple outward in concentric circles, each teardrop is hung to brass pipes of varying lengths. Placed strategically on the grid, the teardrops lock into the mirrored base that fits seamlessly between the two existing columns. The mirrored base reflects the teardrops endlessly into the sky above and when lit. The chandelier echoes rain frozen in time with ephemeral puddles overlaid on the floor below.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Collection: Organic
Size: 42" Wide x 89" Height
Shape: Pendant
Frame Finish: Brushed Brass
Materials: Stainless Steel and Glass
Extension: 12 ft adjustable Cables/ or Metal Rods Available in any finish upon Request,
Glass: Hand-blown glass
Bulbs: 162 L Bulbs 25 W USA/220V Europe 40 W candelabra bulbs (included)
Weight: 144 lbs
Assembly: Some Assembly required. Each piece comes with easy to understand assembly instructions for your convenience.
Dimmer Switch Compatible: Optional
Rush Order: 4-6 Weeks; 15% added to total
Regular Lead Time: 6-10 Weeks
Warranty: 5 Years Full Coverage (includes replacement parts)
SIZE OPTION:
Size: Price:
24" Wide x 89" Height $3,260.00
30" Wide x 89" Height $4,870.00
36" Wide x 89" Height $6,260.00
42" Wide x 89" Height (as shown) $7,890.00
48" Wide x 89" Height $9,550.00
54" Wide x 89" Height $12,880.00
60" Wide x 89" Height $14,980.00
Custom Sizes, Finishes, Colors Available Upon Request

AK4002: "The Pour" Skinny Rain
DESCRIPTION:
The light installation is a teardrop-shaped chandelier with deliciously unique lights that celebrate the fascinating nature of raindrops, where no drop is the same as the next. Each drop is hand-blown by artisans and intricately engineered to house the lighting strategy for the chandelier. When you see a light sculpture designed to increase the visual appeal of a room and define its luminous character, you stop on your way to admire it. It’s the case of the Raindrop chandelier known as “The Pour”, a modern light sculpture meant to illuminate and beautify its chosen location to create an architectural relationship with space. The drop itself is constructed of two parts: the brass screw cap, which houses the light, and the hand-blown crystal reflecting the light to create puddles on the floor below. To replicate the nature of raindrops, no two drops are blown identical. The name “The Pour” derives from the distinctive shape that the chandelier forms: an exaggeration of the dramatic motion of water pouring out of a carafe. Designed by forming a grid mimicking how puddles ripple outward in concentric circles, each teardrop is hung to brass pipes of varying lengths. Placed strategically on the grid, the teardrops lock into the mirrored base that fits seamlessly between the two existing columns. The mirrored base reflects the teardrops endlessly into the sky above and when lit. The chandelier echoes rain frozen in time with ephemeral puddles overlaid on the floor below.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Collection: Organic
Size: 58” Long x 13” Width x 72” Height (112 Lights)
Shape: Rectangular
Frame Finish: Patina Dark Bronze
Materials: Metal, Glass
Extension: 12' feet adjustable wiring available in black or silver
Glass: Hand-blown glass
Bulbs: 112 Bulbs 110V USA/220V Europe 40 W candelabra bulbs (included)
Weight: 135 lbs. (for the 58" L)
Assembly: Some Assembly
Dimmer Switch Compatible: Optional
Rush Order: 4-6 Weeks; 15% added to the total
Regular Lead Time: 8-12 Weeks
Warranty: 5 Years Full Coverage (includes parts replacement)
SIZE OPTIONS:
Size: Price:
30” Long x 13” Width x 66” Height (69 Lights) $3,360.00
36” Long x 13” Width x 66” Height (79 Lights) $4,660.00
42” Long x 13” Width x 66” Height (89 Lights) $6,470.00
58” Long x 16” Width x 72” Height (112 Lights) $7,670.00
71” Long x 20" Width x 82” Height (242 Lights) $9,820.00
Custom Sizes, Finishes, Colors Available Upon Request
Additional Info- Handblown Glass: 2" Width x 4" Height

AK4002: "The Pour" Skinny Rain
DESCRIPTION:
The light installation is a teardrop-shaped chandelier with deliciously unique lights that celebrate the fascinating nature of raindrops, where no drop is the same as the next. Each drop is hand-blown by artisans and intricately engineered to house the lighting strategy for the chandelier. When you see a light sculpture designed to increase the visual appeal of a room and define its luminous character, you stop on your way to admire it. It’s the case of the Raindrop chandelier known as “The Pour”, a modern light sculpture meant to illuminate and beautify its chosen location to create an architectural relationship with space. The drop itself is constructed of two parts: the brass screw cap, which houses the light, and the hand-blown crystal reflecting the light to create puddles on the floor below. To replicate the nature of raindrops, no two drops are blown identical. The name “The Pour” derives from the distinctive shape that the chandelier forms: an exaggeration of the dramatic motion of water pouring out of a carafe. Designed by forming a grid mimicking how puddles ripple outward in concentric circles, each teardrop is hung to brass pipes of varying lengths. Placed strategically on the grid, the teardrops lock into the mirrored base that fits seamlessly between the two existing columns. The mirrored base reflects the teardrops endlessly into the sky above and when lit. The chandelier echoes rain frozen in time with ephemeral puddles overlaid on the floor below.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Collection: Organic
Size: 58” Long x 13” Width x 72” Height (112 Lights)
Shape: Rectangular
Frame Finish: Patina Dark Bronze
Materials: Metal, Glass
Extension: 12' feet adjustable wiring available in black or silver
Glass: Hand-blown glass
Bulbs: 112 Bulbs 110V USA/220V Europe 40 W candelabra bulbs (included)
Weight: 135 lbs. (for the 58" L)
Assembly: Some Assembly
Dimmer Switch Compatible: Optional
Rush Order: 4-6 Weeks; 15% added to the total
Regular Lead Time: 8-12 Weeks
Warranty: 5 Years Full Coverage (includes parts replacement)
SIZE OPTIONS:
Size: Price:
30” Long x 13” Width x 66” Height (69 Lights) $3,360.00
36” Long x 13” Width x 66” Height (79 Lights) $4,660.00
42” Long x 13” Width x 66” Height (89 Lights) $6,470.00
58” Long x 16” Width x 72” Height (112 Lights) $7,670.00
71” Long x 20" Width x 82” Height (242 Lights) $9,820.00
Custom Sizes, Finishes, Colors Available Upon Request
Additional Info- Handblown Glass: 2" Width x 4" Height

Eichler X-100: A Nationally Recognized Architectural Landmark
The Eichler X-100 holds a rare distinction in residential real estate—it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, recognizing it as a property of exceptional architectural and cultural significance in the United States.
This designation places the X-100 among a select group of homes that have not only endured over time, but have helped define the evolution of modern living.
What the National Register Means
The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the nation’s most important historic resources—properties that embody significant contributions to architecture, history, and culture.
For the Eichler X-100, this recognition affirms:
Its role as a groundbreaking experimental prototype
Its importance within the broader movement of California Modernism
Its association with visionary figures like Joseph Eichler, A. Quincy Jones, and Frederick Emmons
It is not simply a well-designed home—it is a documented piece of architectural history.
A Rare Level of Integrity
One of the key factors in the X-100’s designation is its remarkable level of preservation. Over the decades, the home has been carefully maintained and thoughtfully updated to respect its original vision.
Important defining features remain intact, including:
The steel-frame structural system
The open, garden-centered floor plan
Skylights and natural light strategies
Signature material palette of steel, glass, and laminate
This continuity allows the home to be experienced today much as it was in 1956.
Preservation Without Limitation
A common misconception is that National Register status restricts ownership—but for private residences, this is not the case.
The designation:
Does not limit private ownership or resale
Does not impose federal restrictions on modifications (unless federal funding is involved)
May offer potential incentives or recognition for preservation efforts
Instead, it serves primarily as a recognition of significance, elevating the property’s status in both cultural and real estate contexts.
A Collector-Level Opportunity
For buyers, National Register status adds a layer of meaning that goes beyond square footage or location. It signals that the property is:
Architecturally important
Historically documented
Extremely rare within the marketplace
Homes like the Eichler X-100 are often viewed as “trophy properties”—assets that combine lifestyle, design, and long-term cultural value.
Stewardship of a Legacy
Owning a National Register home like the Eichler X-100 is not just about possession—it’s about participation in a larger story.
It means becoming part of a lineage of stewards who understand the importance of:
Preserving architectural intent
Respecting design integrity
Carrying forward a vision that helped shape modern living
The Significance Today
Nearly 70 years after its debut, the Eichler X-100 continues to stand as a symbol of innovation, optimism, and design excellence.
Its listing on the National Register of Historic Places ensures that its story is recognized—but its future will always depend on those who choose to own and care for it.
The Eichler X-100 is not just a home on a list.
It is a recognized landmark of modern architecture—now ready for its next chapter. Image Sabrina Huang

Governor's House Entry by Lisa Tharp. 2019 Bulfinch Award - Interior Design. Photo by Michael J. Lee
Transitional painted wood floor foyer photo with white walls and a black front door
Transitional painted wood floor foyer photo with white walls and a black front door

**Spatial Composition & Architectural Volume**
This is a room conceived as a stage for a single object, and the architecture obligingly recedes into the role of proscenium. The plan reads as a generous, laterally-oriented salon — likely a piano room carved from the corner of a metropolitan penthouse — organized around an L-shaped glazing sequence that turns the corner and dissolves two of the four enclosing planes. A dropped soffit tray, articulated as a crisply mitred perimeter reveal with an integrated cove, floats above the seating and instrument zone, its shadow-gap detailing lowering the apparent datum and conferring intimacy on an otherwise expansive volume. The plaster ceiling reads as a single continuous membrane, its recessed channels doubling as concealed curtain tracks and linear light slots, thereby suppressing any surface-mounted apparatus. On the left, a full-height run of hand-carved, ripple-textured oak millwork operates as both threshold and tectonic bookend — a vertical mass that anchors the composition against the weightlessness of the fenestration opposite. The pier between the two window bays is clad in pale ribbed limestone or fluted plaster, functioning as a quiet pilaster that structures the sightlines rather than interrupting them. Circulation is centrifugal: the herringbone-laid oak parquet establishes a diagonal grain that pulls the eye toward the terrace, while the rug's rectilinear footprint carves out a defined *piano nobile* island within the open field. The grand piano, positioned obliquely with its raised lid oriented back into the room, becomes the volume's sculptural fulcrum — its cabriole-derived silhouette and blade-thin tapered legs (a distinctly contemporary reinterpretation, likely a designer-authored instrument) providing curvilinear counterpoint to the room's orthogonal discipline.
**Materiality, Color & Texture**
The palette is a study in monochromatic warmth punctuated by a single decisive act of contrast. Nearly every surface resides within a narrow chromatic band of oatmeal, bone, greige and pale honey — undertones consistently warm-neutral, veering toward the sandy rather than the grey, which prevents the minimalism from reading as clinical. The floor's white-oak herringbone is finished with a matte, lightly limed patina that keeps the grain legible without gloss; the field rug in silk-and-viscose introduces a lustrous, cloud-like abraded pattern, its mineral-grey striations reading almost as sumi-e wash or weathered concrete, and providing the room's only tonal modulation at floor level. The drapery — a densely woven linen or linen-blend in a slubbed sand tone, hung with tightly gathered, full-height pinch pleats — carries a subtle vertical stripe or ribbed jacquard that catches raking light and animates the perimeter. Against this, the carved oak volume at left is the tactile protagonist: a low-relief, chiselled facetting that reads as adze-worked or gouged, generating a shifting moiré of micro-shadow and elevating a utilitarian storage wall into applied art. The piano's satin-black lacquer is the compositional anchor — deep, absorbent, and deliberately non-reflective on its exterior case while its interior lid reveals a mottled, patinated bronze-brown, a warm secret held within the black. Brass appears with real restraint: the lid hinges, the harp and action, the sabot-like disc on the bench flank. Nature supplies the only saturated chroma — the emerald ivy hedge framed in the left window and the topiary beyond the right — treated as living tapestry, effectively a curated *borrowed landscape*.
**Lighting, Atmosphere & Style Profile**
The lighting strategy is almost entirely subtractive: daylight is admitted in broad, low-glare sheets through minimal-sightline steel or slim-profile aluminium glazing, then softened and diffused by the sheer-adjacent linen and the pale, light-returning plaster envelope. The result is a high-key, shadowless luminosity with a distinctly diffuse northern quality, in which form is described by gradient rather than by hard contrast — note how the piano's black mass reads as silhouette against the terrace glare, while its curved bentwood rim catches a single soft specular highlight. Artificial illumination is entirely concealed within the ceiling reveals and coves, ensuring that after dark the room will be washed rather than punctured; the deliberate absence of decorative pendants or table lamps in this frame reinforces the reading of the instrument as the sole permitted ornament. Atmospherically the room is contemplative, acoustically soft, and tuned to a single activity — a *musica da camera* interior in the truest sense. Stylistically it synthesizes into what might best be termed **Soft Minimalism with a couture-craft inflection**: the rigour and reductive detailing of late-modernist practice, warmed by the tactile, hand-worked surfaces and neutral tonalities of Japandi and Belgian-inflected quiet luxury. The governing thesis is one of *sublimated luxury* — value expressed through millwork tolerance, drapery yardage, plaster craft and the confident emptiness of the plan, rather than through pattern, colour or accumulation.

Gorgeous master bath finished with Dal-Tile's Fabrique porcelain tile in the color Noir Linen polished. Tile size is 12"x24" installed in a brick joint pattern. The floor boasts underfloor heating on a timed thermostat.

Example of a small classic 3/4 white tile and stone tile mosaic tile floor alcove shower design in Chicago with an undermount sink, recessed-panel cabinets, black cabinets, quartzite countertops, a two-piece toilet and gray walls
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