A rustic-modern house designed to grow organically from its site, overlooking a cornfield, river and mountains in the distance. Indigenous stone and wood materials were taken from the site and incorporated into the structure, which was articulated to honestly express the means of construction. Notable features include an open living/dining/kitchen space with window walls taking in the surrounding views, and an internally-focused circular library celebrating the home owner’s love of literature. Phillip Spears Photographer

One of the goals of Jon’s new home was to avoid unnecessary maintenance. LeafGuard® Brand Gutters offer built-in clog protection. In the unlikely event that they ever do clog, our gutter experts will fix the problem free of charge. Even more reassuring is that this warranty transfers to the next owner of Jon’s home should he ever choose to sell.

This ski-in, ski-out condo features a strong Arts and Crafts influence. The interiors feature reclaimed oak floors, mortise-and-tenon carpentry, stone, and custom period details.

After returning from a winter trip to discover his house had been flooded by a burst second-floor pipe, this homeowner was ready to address the renovations and additions that he had been pondering for about a decade. It was important to him to respect the original character of the c. +/- 1910 two-bedroom small home that had been in his family for years, while re-imagining the kitchen and flow. In response, KHS proposed a one-story addition, recalling an enclosed porch, which springs from the front roof line and then wraps the house to the north. An informal front dining space, complete with built-in banquette, occupies the east end of the addition behind large double-hung windows sized to match those on the original house, and a new kitchen occupies the west end of the addition behind smaller casement windows at counter height. New French doors to the rear allow the owner greater access to an outdoor room edged by the house to the east, the existing one-car garage to the south, and a rear rock wall to the west. Much of the lot to the north was left open for the owner’s annual summer volley ball party. The first-floor was then reconfigured, capturing additional interior space from a recessed porch on the rear, to create a rear mudroom entrance hall, full bath, and den, which could someday function as a third bedroom if needed. Upstairs, a rear shed dormer was extended to the north and east so that head room could be increased, rendering more of the owner’s office/second bedroom usable. Windows and doors were relocated as necessary to better serve the new plan and to capture more daylight. Having expanded from its original 1100 square feet to approximately 1700 square feet, it’s still a small, sweet house – only freshly updated, and with a hint of porchiness. Photos by Katie Hutchison

This Jersey City, NJ space was the first permanent ‘home’ for the yoga studio, so it was essential for us to listen well and design a space to serve their needs for years to come. Through our design process, we helped to guide the owners through the fit-out of their new studio location that required minimal demolition and disruption to the existing space. Together, we converted a space originally used as a preschool into a welcoming, spacious yoga studio for local yogis. We created one main yoga studio by combining four small classrooms into a single larger space with new walls, while all the other program spaces (including designated areas for holistic treatments, massage, and bodywork) were accommodated into pre-existing rooms. Our team completed all demo, sheetrock, electrical, and painting aspects of the project. (The studio owners did some of the work themselves, and a different company installed the flooring and carpets.) The results speak for themselves: a peaceful, restorative space to facilitate health and healing for the studio’s community. Looking to renovate your place of business? Contact the Houseplay team; we’ll help make it happen! Photo Credit: Anne Ruthmann Photography

This 2-story home with first-floor owner’s suite includes a 3-car garage and an inviting front porch. A dramatic 2-story ceiling welcomes you into the foyer where hardwood flooring extends throughout the main living areas of the home including the dining room, great room, kitchen, and breakfast area. The foyer is flanked by the study to the left and the formal dining room with stylish tray ceiling and craftsman style wainscoting to the right. The spacious great room with 2-story ceiling includes a cozy gas fireplace with stone surround. Adjacent to the great room is the kitchen and breakfast area. The kitchen is well-appointed with stainless steel appliances, granite countertops with tile backsplash, and attractive cabinetry featuring decorative crown molding. The sunny breakfast area provides access to the patio and backyard. The owner’s suite with elegant tray ceiling detail includes a private bathroom with 5’ tile shower, an expansive closet, and double bowl vanity with cultured marble top. The 2nd floor includes 3 additional bedrooms and a full bathroom.

This 2-story home with first-floor owner’s suite includes a 3-car garage and an inviting front porch. A dramatic 2-story ceiling welcomes you into the foyer where hardwood flooring extends throughout the main living areas of the home including the dining room, great room, kitchen, and breakfast area. The foyer is flanked by the study to the left and the formal dining room with stylish tray ceiling and craftsman style wainscoting to the right. The spacious great room with 2-story ceiling includes a cozy gas fireplace with stone surround. Adjacent to the great room is the kitchen and breakfast area. The kitchen is well-appointed with stainless steel appliances, granite countertops with tile backsplash, and attractive cabinetry featuring decorative crown molding. The sunny breakfast area provides access to the patio and backyard. The owner’s suite with elegant tray ceiling detail includes a private bathroom with 5’ tile shower, an expansive closet, and double bowl vanity with cultured marble top. The 2nd floor includes 3 additional bedrooms and a full bathroom.

Gorgeous townhouse with stylish black windows, 10 ft. ceilings on the first floor, first-floor guest suite with full bath and 2-car dedicated parking off the alley. Dining area with wainscoting opens into kitchen featuring large, quartz island, soft-close cabinets and stainless steel appliances. Uniquely-located, white, porcelain farmhouse sink overlooks the family room, so you can converse while you clean up! Spacious family room sports linear, contemporary fireplace, built-in bookcases and upgraded wall trim. Drop zone at rear door (with keyless entry) leads out to stamped, concrete patio. Upstairs features 9 ft. ceilings, hall utility room set up for side-by-side washer and dryer, two, large secondary bedrooms with oversized closets and dual sinks in shared full bath. Owner’s suite, with crisp, white wainscoting, has three, oversized windows and two walk-in closets. Owner’s bath has double vanity and large walk-in shower with dual showerheads and floor-to-ceiling glass panel. Home also features attic storage and tankless water heater, as well as abundant recessed lighting and contemporary fixtures throughout.

The little cottage on Turnip Field Road in Eastham had been owned by the same couple since 1940, until they built a new, adjacent house on the property. The cottage was then handed down to the next generation, who began spending more and more time at the cottage. It was then that they contacted Cape Associates to construct a more livable home in place of that little cottage. It was crucial to the owners however, that the home keep with the understated charm and Cape Cod-feel of the neighborhood. The primary challenge was to keep it humble, while building the owners their well-deserved vacation retreat. The original cottage had no air conditioning, and renovating was quickly dismissed because of the inadequacies and the cost of modernizing. Building new allowed the team to relocate the house further back from the street, and it meant meeting the owners’ needs without compromise. Cape Associates’ project manager Lance LaLone said the owners expressed their desire to incorporate lots of wood and the types of materials that were in the old cottage. Most of the interior is pine, which was used on the flooring, the walls, and wrapped around the ceiling’s beams, giving the owners what they desired on a grander scale – a beautiful, modern dwelling that still held the personality of that little cottage that held such cherished memories. The front of the home has a two-car garage and breezeway entrance, while the rear reveals an entertainer’s paradise, with an enormous mahogany deck with an outdoor shower, a stunning Connecticut-fieldstone fireplace with a chimney that reaches around 30 feet in height, and multiple sliders to access the home. The finished basement opens to the ground level, and above the entrance breezeway is another small deck with a great view. It’s the best of indoor/outdoor living. Movement patterns from beach to house to bedroom were an important consideration. The site also provided an excellent opportunity to visually connect the basement level patio visually to the main level deck and finally the master bedroom deck. The finished home provides year-round living, with a summer-getaway atmosphere.

The owners of this home wanted to have a home in the style of Sir Edwin Lutyens. He designed in the late 1800's, early 1900's when the styles were more elaborate and fancy. He took the elements of the times and made the lines clean and distinctive.

Gorgeous townhouse with stylish black windows, 10 ft. ceilings on the first floor, first-floor guest suite with full bath and 2-car dedicated parking off the alley. Dining area with wainscoting opens into kitchen featuring large, quartz island, soft-close cabinets and stainless steel appliances. Uniquely-located, white, porcelain farmhouse sink overlooks the family room, so you can converse while you clean up! Spacious family room sports linear, contemporary fireplace, built-in bookcases and upgraded wall trim. Drop zone at rear door (with keyless entry) leads out to stamped, concrete patio. Upstairs features 9 ft. ceilings, hall utility room set up for side-by-side washer and dryer, two, large secondary bedrooms with oversized closets and dual sinks in shared full bath. Owner’s suite, with crisp, white wainscoting, has three, oversized windows and two walk-in closets. Owner’s bath has double vanity and large walk-in shower with dual showerheads and floor-to-ceiling glass panel. Home also features attic storage and tankless water heater, as well as abundant recessed lighting and contemporary fixtures throughout.

An outstanding collection of Art Deco furnishings, lighting, artwork, and accessories imbues this full-floor, Lake Shore Drive condominium with uncommon presence. Tailored in style and masculine in hue, it cocoons even as it welcomes light and views. Macassar ebony millwork and travertine floors evince its luxurious architectural side; sumptuous materials including silk velvet, cashmere, and shagreen articulate exquisite decorative elegance – as do pashmina draperies and parchment-covered walls. Also climbing walls: poetry, in this case written by the owner’s son and artistically hand-lettered by a local artisan. Layered in the extreme and collected over time, interiors exemplify the owner’s vocation as a jewelry designer, avocation as a world traveler, and passion for detail in measures both large and small. Embellished by a wide-ranging collection of sophisticated artworks – think everything from vintage New Yorker covers to a graphic Lichtenstein – it is a testament to the decorative power of self-assurance. Photo: Werner Straube

Inspiration for a large transitional master beige tile and ceramic tile ceramic tile, beige floor, double-sink and wallpaper freestanding bathtub remodel in San Francisco with flat-panel cabinets, dark wood cabinets, a two-piece toilet, beige walls, an undermount sink, quartz countertops, gray countertops and a built-in vanity

With an exquisite blend of modern and traditional details, this 3,600 square foot residence has an open Kitchen, a Family Room with a 12-foot-tall ceiling, a first floor Owner’s Suite, a first floor Office, and a large laundry room. On the second floor are three bedrooms and a kids’ “loft” area. Builder: Hibbs Homes

The owners of this 1950s colonial on Philadelphia’s Main Line wanted to preserve its traditional architecture and take advantage of the kitchen’s ample footprint. In addition to reworking the floorplan and improving the flow, the owner wanted a large island with several seating options, a desk area and a small table for dining. One of the design goals was to transform the spacious room into a functional kitchen that still felt intimate and comfortable for everyday use. Furniture style inset cabinetry kept the room in tune with the home’s original character and made it feel less utilitarian. Removing the wall that hindered the flow and views between the kitchen and the adjacent family room ensured that the main entertaining areas flowed together. Stylistically, we wanted to avoid the typical white kitchen, opting instead to pull in rich wood tones to create a warmer and more classic look.

The avid gardener who owns this Kenilworth home hoped for a more efficient kitchen — one that would better accommodate her penchant for canning and allow her to enjoy the fruits of her labor year round. An experienced commercial interior designer, she first drew up a plan, then contracted The Hands of Sean Perry Co. to bring her vision to life. The crew constructed a new kitchen extension and mudroom space, then added a back entrance and stoop to the side yard, improving accessibility from the kitchen to the garden. Then, it was the kitchen’s turn for an upgrade. The team worked with Grove Cabinet Gallery to create and install cabinets that were specific to the homeowner’s needs, including a custom open corner base cabinet that puts all cooking necessities at the owner’s fingertips.

This 1990's home, located in North Vancouver's Lynn Valley neighbourhood, had high ceilings and a great open plan layout but the decor was straight out of the 90's complete with sponge painted walls in dark earth tones. The owners, a young professional couple, enlisted our help to take it from dated and dreary to modern and bright. We started by removing details like chair rails and crown mouldings, that did not suit the modern architectural lines of the home. We replaced the heavily worn wood floors with a new high end, light coloured, wood-look laminate that will withstand the wear and tear from their two energetic golden retrievers. Since the main living space is completely open plan it was important that we work with simple consistent finishes for a clean modern look. The all white kitchen features flat doors with minimal hardware and a solid surface marble-look countertop and backsplash. We modernized all of the lighting and updated the bathrooms and master bedroom as well. The only departure from our clean modern scheme is found in the dressing room where the client was looking for a more dressed up feminine feel but we kept a thread of grey consistent even in this more vivid colour scheme. This transformation, featuring the clients' gorgeous original artwork and new custom designed furnishings is admittedly one of our favourite projects to date!

Overlooking of the surrounding meadows of the historic C Lazy U Ranch, this single family residence was carefully sited on a sloping site to maximize spectacular views of Willow Creek Resevoir and the Indian Peaks mountain range. The project was designed to fulfill budgetary and time frame constraints while addressing the client’s goal of creating a home that would become the backdrop for a very active and growing family for generations to come. In terms of style, the owners were drawn to more traditional materials and intimate spaces of associated with a cabin scale structure.

This residence served to satisfy the Owner’s complex needs to relocate in the region efficiently, economically and expeditiously to a three bedroom, two bath residence. The site was purchased in a challenging real estate market with an existing, converted “A” frame camp home. The design was bound to the tight footprint by pre-existing wetland and zoning constraints. The existing 886 sqft foundation was repaired and reused with only a 150 sqft of allowable increase in footprint.