Notable design elements include: Roll and Hill Bluff City pendant. Photography: Francesco Bertocci
Small trendy dark wood floor kitchen photo in New York with an integrated sink, flat-panel cabinets, black cabinets, stainless steel countertops, metallic backsplash and no island

The game room was converted to a light industrial sewing room
Example of a large transitional freestanding desk light wood floor and beige floor home studio design in Dallas with white walls and no fireplace

Clarum Homes built the first passive home in San Mateo County & Menlo Park, California. It blends unsurpassed energy-efficient technology and sustainable building materials into a custom home that is gorgeously designed, healthy for occupants, and amazingly comfortable.

A contemporary kitchen featuring custom wood cabinetry, wood table accents, and sleek energy-efficient appliances, blending functionality with organic elegance in this sustainable mountain.

Plumbing work done for other contractors
Inspiration for a mid-sized contemporary master blue tile and porcelain tile laminate floor and brown floor freestanding bathtub remodel in Boston with blue walls

Building Design, Plans, and Interior Finishes by: Fluidesign Studio I Builder: Structural Dimensions Inc. I Photographer: Seth Benn Photography
Mid-sized elegant master gray tile and subway tile mosaic tile floor double shower photo in Minneapolis with furniture-like cabinets, gray cabinets, a two-piece toilet, white walls, an undermount sink and marble countertops

This modern green home offers both a vacation destination on Cape Cod near local family members and an opportunity for rental income. FAMILY ROOTS. A West Coast couple living in the San Francisco Bay Area sought a permanent East Coast vacation home near family members living on Cape Cod. As academic professionals focused on sustainability, they sought a green, energy efficient home that was well-aligned with their values. With no green homes available for sale on Cape Cod, they decided to purchase land near their family and build their own. SLOPED SITE. Comprised of a 3/4 acre lot nestled in the pines, the steeply sloping terrain called for a plan that embraced and took advantage of the slope. Of equal priority was optimizing solar exposure, preserving privacy from abutters, and creating outdoor living space. The design accomplished these goals with a simple, rectilinear form, offering living space on the both entry and lower/basement levels. The stepped foundation allows for a walk-out basement level with light-filled living space on the down-hill side of the home. The traditional basement on the eastern, up-hill side houses mechanical equipment and a home gym. The house welcomes natural light throughout, captures views of the forest, and delivers entertainment space that connects indoor living space to outdoor deck and dining patio. MODERN VISION. The clean building form and uncomplicated finishes pay homage to the modern architectural legacy on the outer Cape. Durable and economical fiber cement panels, fixed with aluminum channels, clad the primary form. Cedar clapboards provide a visual accent at the south-facing living room, which extends a single roof plane to cover the entry porch. SMART USE OF SPACE. On the entry level, the “L”-shaped living, dining, and kitchen space connects to the exterior living, dining, and grilling spaces to effectively double the home’s summertime entertainment area. Placed at the western end of the entry level (where it can retain privacy but still claim expansive downhill views) is the master suite with a built-in study. The lower level has two guest bedrooms, a second full bathroom, and laundry. The flexibility of the space—crucial in a house with a modest footprint—emerges in one of the guest bedrooms, which doubles as home office by opening the barn-style double doors to connect it to the bright, airy open stair leading up to the entry level. Thoughtful design, generous ceiling heights and large windows transform the modest 1,100 sf* footprint into a well-lit, spacious home. *(total finished space is 1800 sf) RENTAL INCOME. The property works for its owners by netting rental income when the owners are home in San Francisco. The house especially caters to vacationers bound for nearby Mayo Beach and includes an outdoor shower adjacent to the lower level entry door. In contrast to the bare bones cottages that are typically available on the Cape, this home offers prospective tenants a modern aesthetic, paired with luxurious and green features. Durable finishes inside and out will ensure longevity with the heavier use that comes with a rental property. COMFORT YEAR-ROUND. The home is super-insulated and air-tight, with mechanical ventilation to provide continuous fresh air from the outside. High performance triple-paned windows complement the building enclosure and maximize passive solar gain while ensuring a warm, draft-free winter, even when sitting close to the glass. A properly sized air source heat pump offers efficient heating & cooling, and includes a carefully designed the duct distribution system to provide even comfort throughout the house. The super-insulated envelope allows us to significantly reduce the equipment capacity, duct size, and airflow quantities, while maintaining unparalleled thermal comfort. ENERGY EFFICIENT. The building’s shell and mechanical systems play instrumental roles in the home’s exceptional performance. The building enclosure reduces the most significant energy glutton: heating. Continuous super-insulation, thorough air sealing, triple-pane windows, and passive solar gain work together to yield a miniscule heating load. All active energy consumers are extremely efficient: an air source heat pump for heating and cooling, a heat pump hot water heater, LED lighting, energy recovery ventilation (ERV), and high efficiency appliances. The result is a home that uses 70% less energy than a similar new home built to code requirements. OVERALL. The home embodies the owners’ goals and values while comprehensively enabling thermal comfort, energy efficiency, a vacation respite, and supplementary income. PROJECT TEAM ZeroEnergy Design - Architect & Mechanical Designer A.F. Hultin & Co. - Contractor Pamet Valley Landscape Design - Landscape & Masonry Lisa Finch - Original Artwork European Architectural Supply - Windows Eric Roth Photography - Photography

Elegant galley dark wood floor kitchen photo in Atlanta with a farmhouse sink, shaker cabinets, blue cabinets, white backsplash, subway tile backsplash, stainless steel appliances, no island and marble countertops

Example of a mid-century modern concrete patio design in San Francisco with a roof extension

Ryann Ford
Example of a tuscan exterior home design in Austin

Example of a trendy black tile and mosaic tile bathroom design in Austin with a hinged shower door

Bathroom - mid-sized coastal master white tile marble floor bathroom idea in New York with a console sink, furniture-like cabinets, white cabinets, marble countertops, a one-piece toilet, white walls and an undermount tub

Photo: Hoi Ning Wong © 2014 Houzz Architect: square three design studios Interior designer: GoGo Creations Builder: Clarum Homes
Entryway - contemporary entryway idea in San Francisco

The architecture of this mid-century ranch in Portland’s West Hills oozes modernism’s core values. We wanted to focus on areas of the home that didn’t maximize the architectural beauty. The Client—a family of three, with Lucy the Great Dane, wanted to improve what was existing and update the kitchen and Jack and Jill Bathrooms, add some cool storage solutions and generally revamp the house. We totally reimagined the entry to provide a “wow” moment for all to enjoy whilst entering the property. A giant pivot door was used to replace the dated solid wood door and side light. We designed and built new open cabinetry in the kitchen allowing for more light in what was a dark spot. The kitchen got a makeover by reconfiguring the key elements and new concrete flooring, new stove, hood, bar, counter top, and a new lighting plan. Our work on the Humphrey House was featured in Dwell Magazine.

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.

Master Closet; Photo Credit: Home Visit Photography
Inspiration for a mid-sized craftsman gender-neutral medium tone wood floor home design remodel in DC Metro with shaker cabinets and white cabinets

Small transitional ceramic tile and gray floor mudroom photo in Toronto with blue walls and a white front door

Inspiration for a mid-sized modern master gray tile and subway tile marble floor and white floor alcove bathtub remodel in Boston with recessed-panel cabinets, black cabinets, marble countertops, white walls and an undermount sink

Example of a huge classic look-out dark wood floor and brown floor family room design in DC Metro with beige walls