A kitchen corner cabinet opens to reveal sliding wire storage baskets in this Scarborough renovation. This close view focuses on the metal runners and basket arrangement, showing how the mechanism brings stored items out from the deeper cabinet space. Part of Cedarstone Group Inc.’s 2024 whole-home renovation and second-storey addition in Scarborough, Toronto. This custom kitchen is part of a complete main-floor renovation and whole-home remodel. Coordinated kitchen cabinetry, carefully planned storage and continuous work surfaces support the layout of the renovated home. For homeowners researching a kitchen renovation in Scarborough or a custom kitchen remodel in Toronto, this project shows how cabinet design, appliance placement and interior finishing can be developed together within a larger home transformation. Explore this project and Cedarstone Group Inc.’s renovation work at cedarstonereno.com.

The Living Room of a Neo Classical Revival home is renovated, creating a finely proportioned parlor based on early post-colonial American influences. A hand carved mantle and two painstakingly detailed bookcases serve as the room’s focal points. At the lower level, a wine room, his “Roosevelt Room” and her Ceramic Studio provide respite from the formality of the main floor above. General Contractor: Upscale Construction Structural Engineer: Smith Engineering Inc. Mechanical Engineer: MHC Engineers Photographer: Eric Rorer

This house was burned by a neighbors house fire. We saved the foundation and rebuilt the structure including all new framing, mechanicals, structural engineering code and fire-sprinklers code upgrades, siding, roofing, vaulted ceilings, etc.

View from the entry with the loft stairs going up by remote. Photo by Anthony Crisafulli Photography
Inspiration for a small coastal medium tone wood floor and brown floor entryway remodel in Portland Maine with blue walls

All mechanical units to be properly drained into grey water system and sent to septic system. This helps contain all waste water from house system on property.

Large urban single-wall light wood floor open concept kitchen photo in Philadelphia with flat-panel cabinets, white cabinets, wood countertops, white backsplash, stainless steel appliances, an island, a drop-in sink and ceramic backsplash

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

The bedroom hall features two 24x24 skylights. The laundry/mechanical room is the door at right, with the master bedroom at the end. The engineered hardwood floor is white oak, wide plank, with a Monocoat finish. Photo by Christopher Wright, CR

Example of a cottage loft-style concrete floor living room design in Burlington with a two-sided fireplace

Designed in collaboration with industry-leading engineering and design firms, J Christopher Architecture creates mechanically healthy and aesthetically beautiful luxury modern home designs from the inside out. Read full story here>>

This new house respectfully steps back from the adjacent wetland. The roof line slopes up to the south to allow maximum sunshine in the winter months. Deciduous trees to the south were maintained and provide summer shade along with the home’s generous overhangs. Our signature warm modern vibe is made with vertical cedar accents that complement the warm grey metal siding. The building floor plan undulates along its south side to maximize views of the woodland garden. General Contractor: Merz Construction Landscape Architect: Elizabeth Hanna Morss Landscape Architects Structural Engineer: Siegel Associates Mechanical Engineer: Sun Engineering Photography: Nat Rea Photography

Railings and gates were made from galvanized pipe and Speed Rail fittings. The owner engineered the self-closing mechanism. The walkways and patios are composed of recycled brick and flagstone. PHOTO: Ignacio Salas-Humara

Wonderful Home Office !
Small built-in desk ceramic tile, brown floor, vaulted ceiling and wood wall study room photo in San Francisco with gray walls and no fireplace

HYDROGEN FUEL CELL SYSTEM architecture, bio energy, Builder, building, commercial, project, custom power, electricity, Fuel cell, general contractor, Independent, energy, MI elements, Off grid, renovation, solar, hydrogen, methane, bio fuel, methane gas power, installation, Plan set, plans, commercial, permit, engineering, mechanical, power control module, battery, lithium, fuel

HYDROGEN FUEL CELL SYSTEM architecture, bio energy, Builder, building, commercial, project, custom power, electricity, Fuel cell, general contractor, Independent, energy, MI elements, Off grid, renovation, solar, hydrogen, methane, bio fuel, methane gas power, installation, Plan set, plans, commercial, permit, engineering, mechanical, power control module, battery, lithium, fuel

HYDROGEN FUEL CELL SYSTEM architecture, bio energy, Builder, building, commercial, project, custom power, electricity, Fuel cell, general contractor, Independent, energy, MI elements, Off grid, renovation, solar, hydrogen, methane, bio fuel, methane gas power, installation, Plan set, plans, commercial, permit, engineering, mechanical, power control module, battery, lithium, fuel

The hardwood throughout this space is reclaimed beech antique engineered wood. The feature in this great room is the unique fireplace. It is a custom made wood burning fireplace with dual stainless steel vent pipes, double layered ceramic glass with mechanically fan forced air to reduce exterior window temperature. It is a frameless glass design complete with single frameless sliding glass panel for fire chamber access.

The hardwood throughout this space is reclaimed beech antique engineered wood. The feature in this great room is the unique fireplace. It is a custom made wood burning fireplace with dual stainless steel vent pipes, double layered ceramic glass with mechanically fan forced air to reduce exterior window temperature. It is a frameless glass design complete with single frameless sliding glass panel for fire chamber access.

The hardwood throughout this space is reclaimed beech antique engineered wood. The feature in this great room is the unique fireplace. It is a custom made wood burning fireplace with dual stainless steel vent pipes, double layered ceramic glass with mechanically fan forced air to reduce exterior window temperature. It is a frameless glass design complete with single frameless sliding glass panel for fire chamber access.