Our client purchased what had been a custom home built in 1973 on a high bank waterfront lot. They did their due diligence with respect to the septic system, well and the existing underground fuel tank but little did they know, they had purchased a house that would fit into the Three Little Pigs Story book. The original idea was to do a thorough cosmetic remodel to bring the home up to date using all high durability/low maintenance materials and provide the homeowners with a flexible floor plan that would allow them to live in the home for as long as they chose to, not how long the home would allow them to stay safely. However, there was one structure element that had to change, the staircase. The staircase blocked the beautiful water/mountain few from the kitchen and part of the dining room. It also bisected the second-floor master suite creating a maze of small dysfunctional rooms with a very narrow (and unsafe) top stair landing. In the process of redesigning the stairs and reviewing replacement options for the 1972 custom milled one inch thick cupped and cracked cedar siding, it was discovered that the house had no seismic support and that the dining/family room/hot tub room and been a poorly constructed addition and required significant structural reinforcement. It should be noted that it is not uncommon for this home to be subjected to 60-100 mile an hour winds and that the geographic area is in a known earthquake zone. Once the structural engineering was complete, the redesign of the home became an open pallet. The homeowners top requests included: no additional square footage, accessibility, high durability/low maintenance materials, high performance mechanicals and appliances, water and energy efficient fixtures and equipment and improved lighting incorporated into: two master suites (one upstairs and one downstairs), a healthy kitchen (appliances that preserve fresh food nutrients and materials that minimize bacterial growth), accessible bathing and toileting, functionally designed closets and storage, a multi-purpose laundry room, an exercise room, a functionally designed home office, a catio (second floor balcony on the front of the home), with an exterior that was not just code compliant but beautiful and easy to maintain. All of this was achieved and more. The finished project speaks for itself.

Our client purchased what had been a custom home built in 1973 on a high bank waterfront lot. They did their due diligence with respect to the septic system, well and the existing underground fuel tank but little did they know, they had purchased a house that would fit into the Three Little Pigs Story book. The original idea was to do a thorough cosmetic remodel to bring the home up to date using all high durability/low maintenance materials and provide the homeowners with a flexible floor plan that would allow them to live in the home for as long as they chose to, not how long the home would allow them to stay safely. However, there was one structure element that had to change, the staircase. The staircase blocked the beautiful water/mountain few from the kitchen and part of the dining room. It also bisected the second-floor master suite creating a maze of small dysfunctional rooms with a very narrow (and unsafe) top stair landing. In the process of redesigning the stairs and reviewing replacement options for the 1972 custom milled one inch thick cupped and cracked cedar siding, it was discovered that the house had no seismic support and that the dining/family room/hot tub room and been a poorly constructed addition and required significant structural reinforcement. It should be noted that it is not uncommon for this home to be subjected to 60-100 mile an hour winds and that the geographic area is in a known earthquake zone. Once the structural engineering was complete, the redesign of the home became an open pallet. The homeowners top requests included: no additional square footage, accessibility, high durability/low maintenance materials, high performance mechanicals and appliances, water and energy efficient fixtures and equipment and improved lighting incorporated into: two master suites (one upstairs and one downstairs), a healthy kitchen (appliances that preserve fresh food nutrients and materials that minimize bacterial growth), accessible bathing and toileting, functionally designed closets and storage, a multi-purpose laundry room, an exercise room, a functionally designed home office, a catio (second floor balcony on the front of the home), with an exterior that was not just code compliant but beautiful and easy to maintain. All of this was achieved and more. The finished project speaks for itself.

Rustic floating granite vanity with thick rock-faced edge , built in granite sink, and irregular backsplash. Photo by Rick Miles.
Bathroom - rustic bathroom idea in Other

Located on Wisconsin’s Door County peninsula, five miles from the heart of Fish Creek, a farmhouse stands on a hill surrounded by prairie, with old growth orchards and horse pastures a stone’s throw away. All year long, for as many days as they are able, a Milwaukee family of four spends quality time here. Their goal was to make this country property a place of sanctuary. They wished to preserve the property’s open spaces yet create unique conversation/relaxation areas for themselves and their guests. LandWorks was asked to retain the property’s natural setting, yet add whimsical, fun and surprising elements to the property. For the stone walls that would wrap around the front entrance and back patio, native Door County fieldstone was harvested from old fence lines built generations ago. The hand-fitted, dry-stacked buff-colored and black-patinaed stone wall was built to be consistent with the fieldstone fireplace constructed against one wall of the shed and the home’s stone veneer. Natural scuppers were incorporated into the wall for drainage and Kamschaticum sedum was planted in the walls’ crevices to give an aged look. Geraniums, purple coneflowers and irises are a few of the perennials planted for color all through the summer months. Mature trees were preserved so a hammock could be hung between them for a lazy summer nap. An opening in the stone wall invites a stroll out into the grove of trees and surrounding prairie. A half dozen bird houses and bench swing were relocated throughout the property. In nice weather, the children are often found there, looking past bluestem prairie grasses to the horses in the distant pasture, while their parents take in the view from the kitchen window or relaxing in front of the outdoor fireplace of their Rural Retreat.

After photo of bathroom custom tile design, new plumbing run off of existing hot and cold. New upflush toilet and vanity vent off same stack and both vanity and toilet waste water ejected by toilet. 700 square foot complete basement renovation. Egress window, recessed lighting, drywall ceilings, new bathroom with upflush style toilet with custom tile flooring, 1/4 mile of speaker cable run for surround sound in both media room and exercise room, hidden lan cables and coax cable run throughout all rooms to create interactive network between exercise room, home office, computer room, and multimedia room. Custom component area, and built in center channel housing for speaker under television. Crown molding in media room.

The entrance to the home. Since the kitchen tiles continued into the foyer, we decided to make the space feel grander and more special by defining the area with a different tile layout. Fortunately, the tiles we selected came in a few different sizes, which allowed us to be more creative. In the kitchen and hallway leading to the kitchen we used a standard stacked layout for the 12 x 24 tiles. In the foyer, we switched to 24 x 24 tiles and mixed them with small gloss black tiles for an interesting twist on the classic diagonal layout . We further delineated the 2-story space with a wide border of glossy black, adding formality to the columned entrance to the living room. The clients opted to go the extra mile with their budget, so we took the bold entrance to the next level by refinishing the staircase in the same black and white scheme. Black paint on the front door was the final touch to make it all come together.

East of Tshwane in Gauteng, South Africa is the spectacular Mooikloof Heights home which is situated on a north sloping 15000sq.m. site. This home is approached from the north where it is completely transparent, but as the driveway curves around the west side it becomes a collection of stacked rusted boxes without any openings. Due to the size of the site, the house could be stretched to extend to nearly 85m from east to west: The north elevation is totally glazed across the three storeys with deeply recessed glazing to create sun control. The house is clad with natural stone and rusted steel panels framing openings in the façade. These materials speak to the taste of the client, as well as the environment. The soil is composed of deep slate rock which had to be excavated and used for the gabion walls or crushed and covered with topsoil to create the garden. The sloping landscape was reduced to different terraces, creating a stepped landscape with a large retaining pond on the lowest level. As the driveway curves around the house to the entrance on the south side, a transparent “canyon” opens, with views through the house to the hills, miles away. The rust colour is picked up by the gabion retaining walls that create a carport to the south of the home, while “Weathered”, a steel sculpture by Regardt van der Meulen, welcomes you at the front door. On entering the double volume entrance hall, the view is across two water features, the first one part of the atrium at the core of the house, the other a large reflecting pond in the garden that doubles as a rainwater collection tank. Internally ribbed brass cladding is introduced to walls and ceilings, while several paintings by Santa van der Meulen complements the interiors. Mooikloof Heights was designed in such a way that the feeling of indoor-outdoor living was prominent from almost every space in the house, lending itself to spectacular views. The style of open plan living Is evident throughout the house. The flow of the ground living and entertainment areas blend and combine into each other and create a connectedness throughout house. The exposed steel beams, glass and stone cladding creates a symphony of textures combined with rusting steel walls and screed floors. The staircase cantilevers out of a massive stone wall with double storey glass to the west protected from the sun by steel louvres and an indigenous tree. A few steps down you are presented with a choice of either the formal lounge or the informal family and dining room flowing out onto the lanai, while the open plan kitchen and breakfast room are just past the jacuzzi. Another sculpture by Regardt van der Meulen sits on a perch above the family room, staring across the double volume space. The lanai is a vast space suited to the Highveld lifestyle, incorporating a bar/ barbeque, dining area and lounge, adjacent to the jacuzzi and pool. The view from the whole house to the north is breath taking, covering the valley down to foot of the hill where Mooikloof Equestrian estate is situated and the whole hill across the extensive garden and the large reflecting pond. On the opposite side of the hall is access to the garages (the other 4 garages have direct access to the kitchen area), a lift that connects the basement floor and first floor, and an executive study leading onto a massive roof garden over the guest wing. A large home theatre is situated to the south of the family room. The guest wing can be reached via the lift or another cantilevered staircase and comprises three suites with a lounge area, all leading onto the lower garden. Going up the main staircase you arrive at the pyjama lounge, with one bridge across the double volume family room leading to the main suite. The other runs across the double volume hall leading to two kid’s suites, while a third suite and the gym are situated to the south of the bridge leading to the main suite. The kid’s suite has an internal balcony with the wall facing the suite painted with a whimsical map of the world. The main suite is a private sanctuary, flooded with north and east sun, and a fabulous dressing room and bathroom leading onto large balconies. The home was designed by Nico and Werner van der Meulen of Nico van der Meulen Architects with interiors by their interior design company, M Square Lifestyle Design. Furniture and accessories were supplied by M Square Lifestyle Necessities. View the VTour for Mooikloof Heights now: https://my.matterport.com/show/?m=ChPHjLYWUuf View some of our other Contemporary Projects here >>> https://nicovdmeulen.com/contemporary/

Classic cool rises from Miles' rectangular stack bottom, curling gently then dramatically into a sophisticated fluted edge.
Bathroom - large transitional master gray tile light wood floor bathroom idea in Montreal with brown walls

Photo by Rick Miles
Mid-sized mountain style dark wood floor living room photo in Other with beige walls, a standard fireplace and a stone fireplace

Photo by Rick Miles
Bedroom - mid-sized rustic master carpeted bedroom idea in Other with beige walls

Dedicated laundry room - mid-sized modern l-shaped porcelain tile and gray floor dedicated laundry room idea in Other with an undermount sink, flat-panel cabinets, white cabinets, quartz countertops, white walls, a stacked washer/dryer and white countertops

Large mid-century modern open concept dark wood floor and brown floor living room photo in Toronto with white walls, a standard fireplace, a stone fireplace and no tv

Large mid-century modern open concept dark wood floor and brown floor living room photo in Toronto with white walls, a standard fireplace, a stone fireplace and no tv

A family with five energetic kids and a rambling new bloodhound pooch needed a better connection to the outdoors in their terraced hillside home, overlooking the historic Mountain View Cemetery. The steep and disconnected terraces made life outdoors feel miles away. The clients expressed to us that when they thought about going outside, they often didn’t. Now, more functional stairs with generous pauses make a multi-story journey to the backyard easy to do every day. And their tall house and hillside are more integrated with playful twists, turns, and swings that invite the kids (and pup) out to play.

Example of a trendy living room design in San Francisco