A low bay window and a second unnecessary door to the backyard limited options for reworking the layout. The solution was to replace the window with a new unit that would offer a great spot for a new farm sink. Eliminating the unused back door enabled us to locate a large new pantry and fridge in its place. (A second door to the backyard remained intact). Connecting the kitchen to the dining room was also a priority. A wide new cased opening makes the dining and kitchen flow beautifully, allowing the cook to chat with guests. New gourmet appliances and a large island offer all the amenities an avid cook could want. On the seating side of the island, lap drawers keep school supplies handy. A tall “between the studs” cabinet offers dedicated storage for kids snacks and a handy spot for mail and school info, so the counters stay free of papers. A charging drawer also helps keep the kitchen tidy. The palette for the new kitchen features fresh white perimeter cabinets, with a contrasting dark stained island, open shelves, and custom hood. The homeowners could not be happier with their new kitchen, which has gone from almost unusable to being the true heart of their home!

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

This sophisticated Mid-Century modern contemporary is privately situated down a long estate driveway. An open design features an indoor pool with service kitchen and incredible over sized screened porch. An abundance of large windows enable you to enjoy the picturesque natural beauty of four acres. The dining room and spacious living room with vaulted ceiling and an impressive wood fireplace are perfect for gatherings. A tennis court is nestled on the property.

An addition to a historic 1860's farm house enabled the home owners to realize a kitchen with all the features on their wish list. The multi level island holds a warming drawer, pop up mixer shelf, and seating for 8. Decorative corbels and custom turned legs, along with raised panel door detail, accentuate the painted and glazed finish.

Rising amidst the grand homes of North Howe Street, this stately house has more than 6,600 SF. In total, the home has seven bedrooms, six full bathrooms and three powder rooms. Designed with an extra-wide floor plan (21'-2"), achieved through side-yard relief, and an attached garage achieved through rear-yard relief, it is a truly unique home in a truly stunning environment. The centerpiece of the home is its dramatic, 11-foot-diameter circular stair that ascends four floors from the lower level to the roof decks where panoramic windows (and views) infuse the staircase and lower levels with natural light. Public areas include classically-proportioned living and dining rooms, designed in an open-plan concept with architectural distinction enabling them to function individually. A gourmet, eat-in kitchen opens to the home's great room and rear gardens and is connected via its own staircase to the lower level family room, mud room and attached 2-1/2 car, heated garage. The second floor is a dedicated master floor, accessed by the main stair or the home's elevator. Features include a groin-vaulted ceiling; attached sun-room; private balcony; lavishly appointed master bath; tremendous closet space, including a 120 SF walk-in closet, and; an en-suite office. Four family bedrooms and three bathrooms are located on the third floor. This home was sold early in its construction process. Nathan Kirkman

Restoration and remodel of a historic 1901 English Arts & Crafts home in the West Adams neighborhood of Los Angeles by Tim Braseth of ArtCraft Homes, completed in 2013. Space reconfiguration enabled an enlarged vintage-style kitchen and two additional bathrooms for a total of 3. Special features include a pivoting bookcase connecting the library with the kitchen and an expansive deck overlooking the backyard with views to downtown L.A. Renovation by ArtCraft Homes. Staging by Jennifer Giersbrook. Photos by Larry Underhill.

These Silicon Valley homeowners were looking to transform their single family dwelling into a stylish, contemporary living space. Finding the perfect lot in an ideal location, they tore down the existing home and completely rebuilt it from scratch. As part of their must haves, they incorporated an open floor plan into their living space, an essential design feature that would enable them to entertain friends and family for many years to come. Planning for future retirement and longevity in the home, it was also important to incorporate universal design features such as wider doorways, wider hallways, and no threshold or curb-less showers.

Kitchen photo from large first floor remodel. Flush beam enabled prior kitchen size to be doubled. Shown with hickory flooring, built-in cabinetry, industrial lighting, tin backsplash, open shelving. Construction by Murphy General Contractors of South Orange, NJ. Photo by Greg Martz.

With our double wall oven, precise cooking is just the beginning. The ingenious Speed Clean™ feature will have your oven sparkling in only ten minutes using water instead of fumes or high heat. The GlideShut™ Door opens and closes gently with grace and elegance. You can even cook and monitor from any location thanks to our oven being WiFi enabled.

Leader Cinema Systems, Inc (C) All World Rights Reserved Just beyond the credenza shown in the open plan 2800 sq ft / 260 sq meters Living Room is the open-plan 600 sq ft / 56 sq meters area which contains the LHF(tm) studio class theater with its 3.5 ton / 3182 Kgs 9 channel sound system. The pool is also equipped with a dedicated underwater sound system. The Leader Acoustic Labs design enables this system to easily reach disco sound pressure levels only experienced while under water. This is the same technique applied for Olympic synchronized swimmers. This residence features the finest underwater sound system to be found anywhere throughout all of the Hawaiian Islands including the major hotels and resorts.

Hand-crafted of the finest undyed and natural wools, the Super Indo-Natural Collection by Couristan offers the perfect decorating solution for those who are looking to add a breadth of comfort and relaxation to an already casual interior. This extra heavy luxurious area rug collection features bold brush stroke patterns and incorporates a unique cut and loop pile for added textural interest and quality. Tone on tone colorations of Natural Taupe and Brown enables Super Indo-Natural to lend itself to any environment and to those seeking a casual lifestyle

Curbless shower
Freestanding bathtub - large modern master gray tile and wood-look tile gray floor and double-sink freestanding bathtub idea in Orange County with flat-panel cabinets, light wood cabinets, quartz countertops, a hinged shower door, gray countertops and a floating vanity

The kitchen island has walnut cabinets which artistically complement the rest of the painted kitchen cabinetry. The hallway, leading into the dining room, includes two large cabinet panels that each flank a side-by-side refrigerator and a freezer. This cabinetry design enables large appliances to visually “disappear into the woodwork” so that more interesting kitchen features are visually brought forward. Kitchen products include a 36” Dual-Fuel Wolf Range, Shaker cabinetry, quartz countertops and floating walnut shelves. The hood has a custom stucco finish.

The kitchen island has walnut cabinets which artistically complement the rest of the painted kitchen cabinetry. The hallway, leading into the dining room, includes two large cabinet panels that each flank a side-by-side refrigerator and a freezer. This cabinetry design enables large appliances to visually “disappear into the woodwork” so that more interesting kitchen features are visually brought forward. Kitchen products include a 36” Dual-Fuel Wolf Range, Shaker cabinetry, quartz countertops and floating walnut shelves. The hood has a custom stucco finish.

Restoration and remodel of a historic 1901 English Arts & Crafts home in the West Adams neighborhood of Los Angeles by Tim Braseth of ArtCraft Homes, completed in 2013. Space reconfiguration enabled an enlarged vintage-style kitchen and two additional bathrooms for a total of 3. Special features include a pivoting bookcase connecting the library with the kitchen and an expansive deck overlooking the backyard with views to downtown L.A. Renovation by ArtCraft Homes. Staging by Jennifer Giersbrook. Photos by Larry Underhill.

Restoration and remodel of a historic 1901 English Arts & Crafts home in the West Adams neighborhood of Los Angeles by Tim Braseth of ArtCraft Homes, completed in 2013. Space reconfiguration enabled an enlarged vintage-style kitchen and two additional bathrooms for a total of 3. Special features include a pivoting bookcase connecting the library with the kitchen and an expansive deck overlooking the backyard with views to downtown L.A. Renovation by ArtCraft Homes. Staging by Jennifer Giersbrook. Photos by Larry Underhill.

These Silicon Valley homeowners were looking to transform their single family dwelling into a stylish, contemporary living space. Finding the perfect lot in an ideal location, they tore down the existing home and completely rebuilt it from scratch. As part of their must haves, they incorporated an open floor plan into their living space, an essential design feature that would enable them to entertain friends and family for many years to come. Planning for future retirement and longevity in the home, it was also important to incorporate universal design features such as wider doorways, wider hallways, and no threshold or curb-less showers.

These Silicon Valley homeowners were looking to transform their single family dwelling into a stylish, contemporary living space. Finding the perfect lot in an ideal location, they tore down the existing home and completely rebuilt it from scratch. As part of their must haves, they incorporated an open floor plan into their living space, an essential design feature that would enable them to entertain friends and family for many years to come. Planning for future retirement and longevity in the home, it was also important to incorporate universal design features such as wider doorways, wider hallways, and no threshold or curb-less showers.

Home design - contemporary home design idea in DC Metro