This Allendale family wanted a main level where everyone had a place truly their own. With two young kids and a dog on one side of the house and Mom and Dad on the other, the challenge was designing a layout that gave each part of the family their own space without the home feeling split in two. Ridgewood Home Construction solved this by constructing the entire main level into two connected zones: a bedroom-and-bathroom wing where the kids could run around, spread out, and make noise, and a quiet corner of the house for Mom and Dad to call their own. The kitchen, primary suite, living room, bathrooms, laundry, and entry were all part of the project, so every space feels like it belongs to the family that lives there.

This Allendale family wanted a main level where everyone had a place truly their own. With two young kids and a dog on one side of the house and Mom and Dad on the other, the challenge was designing a layout that gave each part of the family their own space without the home feeling split in two. Ridgewood Home Construction solved this by constructing the entire main level into two connected zones: a bedroom-and-bathroom wing where the kids could run around, spread out, and make noise, and a quiet corner of the house for Mom and Dad to call their own. The kitchen, primary suite, living room, bathrooms, laundry, and entry were all part of the project, so every space feels like it belongs to the family that lives there.

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Custom wood hood from Elmwood fine custom cabinets. Inline exhaust motor located in garage lessens the noise level in the kitchen area. John Magor Photography

Roger Wade Studio
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Empire real thin stone veneer from the Quarry Mill adds modern elegance to this stunning residential home. Empire natural stone veneer consists of mild shades of gray and a consistent sandstone texture. This stone comes in various sizes of mostly rectangular-shaped stones with squared edges. Empire is a great stone to create a brick wall layout while still creating a natural look and feel. As a result, it works well for large and small projects like accent walls, exterior siding, and features like mailboxes. The light colors will blend well with any décor and provide a neutral backing to any space.

This oversized laundry room has a huge window to make this space bright and airy. Three walls of cabinets and folding counters makes laundry day a breeze. Upper cabinets provides easy additional storage. Photo by Spacecrafting

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A great view of the custom built playhouse. This structure features all the elements of an outdoor play structure, including two slides, monkey bars, mini rock climbing wall, a swing and a "trapeze bar" / ring combo. The left "cabin" has a set of cedar stairs that allow access to the upper deck and bridge to the upper deck of the right "cabin" The left cabin features a light switch which turns all the 12V DC lighting in each cabin on or off. It also has a cedar staircase to the upper level, a PVC "sound pipe" that allows two people to talk into it, a magnetic board for play magnets, access to the ball pit slide, and a cool "button box" that is programmed with different animal noises depending on which button is pressed. The right cabin is a combination kitchen / grocery store and puppet show area and contains all the related toys and details expected in such an area. The bamboo siding edges and corners are sourced from Texture Plus, who specialize in faux siding materials.

Private layered green garden with stone, concrete and decomposed granite. The terraced garden provides an intimate seating area at an upper level. A modern fountain provides soothing white noise for these quiet, more intimate garden spaces. Acacia Cousin Itt, Lomandra 'Platinum Beauty', Dianella and no mow lawn create part of the overall planting palette.

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Secret Gardens has been developing this stunning harbourside garden over a number of years. A simple layout at water level provides a subtle foreground to the harbour view beyond. Simple, modern plant combinations draw from a simple but consistent colour palette. The main courtyard space is the highlight . A five metre high green wall and water wall provide the backdrop to a large banquet seat. The built in bbq, retractable ceiling, customised firepit and coffee table provide options for year round entertainment. Extensive soundproofing was incorporated into the boundary wall as well as behind the green wall to absorb noise from a neighbouring property.

This renovated brick rowhome in Boston’s South End offers a modern aesthetic within a historic structure, creative use of space, exceptional thermal comfort, a reduced carbon footprint, and a passive stream of income. DESIGN PRIORITIES. The goals for the project were clear - design the primary unit to accommodate the family’s modern lifestyle, rework the layout to create a desirable rental unit, improve thermal comfort and introduce a modern aesthetic. We designed the street-level entry as a shared entrance for both the primary and rental unit. The family uses it as their everyday entrance - we planned for bike storage and an open mudroom with bench and shoe storage to facilitate the change from shoes to slippers or bare feet as they enter their home. On the main level, we expanded the kitchen into the dining room to create an eat-in space with generous counter space and storage, as well as a comfortable connection to the living space. The second floor serves as master suite for the couple - a bedroom with a walk-in-closet and ensuite bathroom, and an adjacent study, with refinished original pumpkin pine floors. The upper floor, aside from a guest bedroom, is the child's domain with interconnected spaces for sleeping, work and play. In the play space, which can be separated from the work space with new translucent sliding doors, we incorporated recreational features inspired by adventurous and competitive television shows, at their son’s request. MODERN MEETS TRADITIONAL. We left the historic front facade of the building largely unchanged - the security bars were removed from the windows and the single pane windows were replaced with higher performing historic replicas. We designed the interior and rear facade with a vision of warm modernism, weaving in the notable period features. Each element was either restored or reinterpreted to blend with the modern aesthetic. The detailed ceiling in the living space, for example, has a new matte monochromatic finish, and the wood stairs are covered in a dark grey floor paint, whereas the mahogany doors were simply refinished. New wide plank wood flooring with a neutral finish, floor-to-ceiling casework, and bold splashes of color in wall paint and tile, and oversized high-performance windows (on the rear facade) round out the modern aesthetic. RENTAL INCOME. The existing rowhome was zoned for a 2-family dwelling but included an undesirable, single-floor studio apartment at the garden level with low ceiling heights and questionable emergency egress. In order to increase the quality and quantity of space in the rental unit, we reimagined it as a two-floor, 1 or 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom apartment with a modern aesthetic, increased ceiling height on the lowest level and provided an in-unit washer/dryer. The apartment was listed with Jackie O'Connor Real Estate and rented immediately, providing the owners with a source of passive income. ENCLOSURE WITH BENEFITS. The homeowners sought a minimal carbon footprint, enabled by their urban location and lifestyle decisions, paired with the benefits of a high-performance home. The extent of the renovation allowed us to implement a deep energy retrofit (DER) to address air tightness, insulation, and high-performance windows. The historic front facade is insulated from the interior, while the rear facade is insulated on the exterior. Together with these building enclosure improvements, we designed an HVAC system comprised of continuous fresh air ventilation, and an efficient, all-electric heating and cooling system to decouple the house from natural gas. This strategy provides optimal thermal comfort and indoor air quality, improved acoustic isolation from street noise and neighbors, as well as a further reduced carbon footprint. We also took measures to prepare the roof for future solar panels, for when the South End neighborhood’s aging electrical infrastructure is upgraded to allow them. URBAN LIVING. The desirable neighborhood location allows the both the homeowners and tenant to walk, bike, and use public transportation to access the city, while each charging their respective plug-in electric cars behind the building to travel greater distances. OVERALL. The understated rowhouse is now ready for another century of urban living, offering the owners comfort and convenience as they live life as an expression of their values. Eric Roth Photo

The living room moved from the middle part to the east side. Now it faces the main street with its two big windows. Main bedroom was relocated to the back west side, so that street noise won’t bother sleeping tenants. As a result, a living room gets a considerable amount of day light and better natural ventilation. Relocated kitchen similarly receives the same benefits. Photo: Peter Kostelov

One of the primary requisites for the new design is that it needed to be soundproof. Therefore, innovative acoustic materials were chosen for the home office, kitchen, dining and living areas. In the living room, the black wall behind the TV has acoustic panelling, which is ideal for reducing the noise level in the space.

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The design of this remodel of a small two-level residence in Noe Valley reflects the owner's passion for Japanese architecture. Having decided to completely gut the interior partitions, we devised a better-arranged floor plan with traditional Japanese features, including a sunken floor pit for dining and a vocabulary of natural wood trim and casework. Vertical grain Douglas Fir takes the place of Hinoki wood traditionally used in Japan. Natural wood flooring, soft green granite and green glass backsplashes in the kitchen further develop the desired Zen aesthetic. A wall to wall window above the sunken bath/shower creates a connection to the outdoors. Privacy is provided through the use of switchable glass, which goes from opaque to clear with a flick of a switch. We used in-floor heating to eliminate the noise associated with forced-air systems.

One more captivating project was delivered by a well-known builder in the area. There are 2 units in total and each one has it's own special features. This 3-level condo offers so much space: the main level has an open concept floor plan with living room, dining room, custom-designed kitchen, three bedrooms, and the laundry room on the same floor and master bedroom with en suite on top with alluring master bathroom, hall, powder room, spacious wood roof deck and alluring basement. This condo unit has so much more to offer than just space: private patio, hardwood flooring, beautifully designed tiled bathrooms, lots of closet space for storage, custom gala kitchen with a large island that can become the center of all the events and gatherings. All new mechanical systems - electrical, plumbing, HVAC, insulation, resilient channel, and additional insulation to reduce the noise between the floors. Deeded off-street parking in the driveway.

Secret Gardens has been developing this stunning harbourside garden over a number of years. A simple layout at water level provides a subtle foreground to the harbour view beyond. Simple, modern plant combinations draw from a simple but consistent colour palette. The main courtyard space is the highlight . A five metre high green wall and water wall provide the backdrop to a large banquet seat. The built in bbq, retractable ceiling, customised firepit and coffee table provide options for year round entertainment. Extensive soundproofing was incorporated into the boundary wall as well as behind the green wall to absorb noise from a neighbouring property.