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

Creating cutting edge Pool designs requires a fine attention to detail, and the All Seasons design team’s attention to detail is unmatched. We take great care in every step of the Pool building process – no matter how big or small the project may be. Sometimes, it’s the seemingly insignificant elements of the project that, when done correctly, make the pool really shine – and make the pool owner really happy!

The Bergen St renovation includes a few unique details and features. Unique in design and outstanding in concepts, the project included a bedroom and bath combo. The concept may look simple but required careful planning of pipping and plumbing relocation. The renovation work also included retiling of the bathroom, paint and plumbing fixtures.

This deck in Brushy Creek is built from beautiful and strong IPE hardwood decking. Archadeck of Austin also installed a complimentary black iron railing made by Fortress. We oiled the decking planks following installation because Ipe requires oil so it can penetrate the wood surface. Frequent oiling is recommended to maintain the rich wood look Ipe is known for, or it may be left untreated allowing it to turn a silvered patina look. Photos courtesy Archadeck of Austin.

Benjamin Benschneider A Seattle family was expecting their third child and hoping to find space for an additional bedroom within their existing one-story home. A small second floor addition was considered but the cost and disruption to the family living space presented serious drawbacks. A new detached garage and DADU (Detached Accessory Dwelling Unit), to be located in the backyard, was proposed to free up the existing basement garage for the new bedroom. The new building is modest and simple, designed with a scale and character to complement the existing house and neighborhood.

Carolina Allspice (Calycanthus floridus). Photo: Flickr user Dendroica cerulea, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution- 2.0 Generic

Creating cutting edge Pool designs requires a fine attention to detail, and the All Seasons design team’s attention to detail is unmatched. We take great care in every step of the Pool building process – no matter how big or small the project may be. Sometimes, it’s the seemingly insignificant elements of the project that, when done correctly, make the pool really shine – and make the pool owner really happy!

Creating cutting edge Pool designs requires a fine attention to detail, and the All Seasons design team’s attention to detail is unmatched. We take great care in every step of the Pool building process – no matter how big or small the project may be. Sometimes, it’s the seemingly insignificant elements of the project that, when done correctly, make the pool really shine – and make the pool owner really happy!

Creating cutting edge Pool designs requires a fine attention to detail, and the All Seasons design team’s attention to detail is unmatched. We take great care in every step of the Pool building process – no matter how big or small the project may be. Sometimes, it’s the seemingly insignificant elements of the project that, when done correctly, make the pool really shine – and make the pool owner really happy!

Creating cutting edge Pool designs requires a fine attention to detail, and the All Seasons design team’s attention to detail is unmatched. We take great care in every step of the Pool building process – no matter how big or small the project may be. Sometimes, it’s the seemingly insignificant elements of the project that, when done correctly, make the pool really shine – and make the pool owner really happy!

Photo: Atwater Garden on the Theodore Payne 2016 Native Plant Garden Tour

Another shot of the family room that looks into the kitchen. Oversized, worn leather chairs enhance the cozy, well-lived-in feel.
Living room - large country open concept dark wood floor and brown floor living room idea in New York with red walls, a stone fireplace and a wall-mounted tv

Creating cutting edge Pool designs requires a fine attention to detail, and the All Seasons design team’s attention to detail is unmatched. We take great care in every step of the Pool building process – no matter how big or small the project may be. Sometimes, it’s the seemingly insignificant elements of the project that, when done correctly, make the pool really shine – and make the pool owner really happy!

Inspiration for a mid-century modern bathroom remodel in San Francisco

A full view of the ensuite bathroom showing the hex tile detail, curb less shower, custom vanity and fixtures
Example of a mid-century modern 3/4 black tile, black and white tile, multicolored tile, white tile and mosaic tile white floor bathroom design in Calgary with medium tone wood cabinets, white walls, a vessel sink, white countertops and flat-panel cabinets

Photos courtesy of BrazelBerries Blueberry Glaze patio pot by Brazelberries

A historic Howard Van Doren Shaw house from 1896, located on a 5.4 acre bluff overlooking Lake Michigan. Craig Bergmann Landscape Design was asked to design extensive formal gardens within the remnants of a walled garden originally designed by Ellen Biddle Shipman. Photography by Linda Oyama Bryan

1950s kitchen photo in San Francisco

Architect YamaMar Design Photo by Bruce Damonte
Balcony - small 1950s balcony balcony idea in San Francisco with a roof extension