Beginning with the owner’s stated preference for a home with abundant natural light, the name of this project was adapted from that of a famous Beijing garden.

Photo by Patricia Parinejad
Deck - modern rooftop rooftop deck idea in Los Angeles

For a family putting down lasting roots in Park City, this 10,000-square-foot estate within the gated enclave of Quarry Mountain Ranch is conceived as both sanctuary and legacy. Designed to evolve alongside its owners, the home balances permanence with a deep sensitivity to the land it inhabits. Thoughtfully positioned within an alpine meadow shaped by the gentle flow of McLeod Creek, the residence embraces its setting. The waterway threads through the property, sustaining native grasses and drawing elk, deer, and migratory birdlife, grounding daily life in the rhythms of season and landscape. Broad planes of glass and sheltering rooflines frame uninterrupted views of ski slopes and distant ridgelines, while long sightlines pull natural light deep into the interior. Terraces and covered outdoor rooms mediate between house and meadow, creating spaces for gathering, reflection, and year-round connection to the outdoors. A restrained palette of wood and stone echoes the textures of the terrain, lending warmth and durability to the home’s contemporary expression. A separate guest house extends the architectural language, forming a discreet compound that supports family life, hospitality, and the enduring cadence of alpine living. Architecture: Advanced Design Interior Design: Erin Brewer Design

When the homeowners first purchased the 1925 house, it was compartmentalized, outdated, and completely unfunctional for their growing family. Casework designed the owner's previous kitchen and family room and was brought in to lead up the creative direction for the project. Casework teamed up with architect Paul Crowther and brother sister team Ainslie Davis on the addition and remodel of the Colonial. The existing kitchen and powder bath were demoed and walls expanded to create a new footprint for the home. This created a much larger, more open kitchen and breakfast nook with mudroom, pantry and more private half bath. In the spacious kitchen, a large walnut island perfectly compliments the homes existing oak floors without feeling too heavy. Paired with brass accents, Calcutta Carrera marble countertops, and clean white cabinets and tile, the kitchen feels bright and open - the perfect spot for a glass of wine with friends or dinner with the whole family. There was no official master prior to the renovations. The existing four bedrooms and one separate bathroom became two smaller bedrooms perfectly suited for the client’s two daughters, while the third became the true master complete with walk-in closet and master bath. There are future plans for a second story addition that would transform the current master into a guest suite and build out a master bedroom and bath complete with walk in shower and free standing tub. Overall, a light, neutral palette was incorporated to draw attention to the existing colonial details of the home, like coved ceilings and leaded glass windows, that the homeowners fell in love with. Modern furnishings and art were mixed in to make this space an eclectic haven.

My client for this project was a builder/ developer. He had purchased a flat two acre parcel with vineyards that was within easy walking distance of downtown St. Helena. He planned to “build for sale” a three bedroom home with a separate one bedroom guest house, a pool and a pool house. He wanted a modern type farmhouse design that opened up to the site and to the views of the hills beyond and to keep as much of the vineyards as possible. The house was designed with a central Great Room consisting of a kitchen area, a dining area, and a living area all under one roof with a central linear cupola to bring natural light into the middle of the room. One approaches the entrance to the home through a small garden with water features on both sides of a path that leads to a covered entry porch and the front door. The entry hall runs the length of the Great Room and serves as both a link to the bedroom wings, the garage, the laundry room and a small study. The entry hall also serves as an art gallery for the future owner. An interstitial space between the entry hall and the Great Room contains a pantry, a wine room, an entry closet, an electrical room and a powder room. A large deep porch on the pool/garden side of the house extends most of the length of the Great Room with a small breakfast Room at one end that opens both to the kitchen and to this porch. The Great Room and porch open up to a swimming pool that is on on axis with the front door. The main house has two wings. One wing contains the master bedroom suite with a walk in closet and a bathroom with soaking tub in a bay window and separate toilet room and shower. The other wing at the opposite end of the househas two children’s bedrooms each with their own bathroom a small play room serving both bedrooms. A rear hallway serves the children’s wing, a Laundry Room and a Study, the garage and a stair to an Au Pair unit above the garage. A separate small one bedroom guest house has a small living room, a kitchen, a toilet room to serve the pool and a small covered porch. The bedroom is ensuite with a full bath. This guest house faces the side of the pool and serves to provide privacy and block views ofthe neighbors to the east. A Pool house at the far end of the pool on the main axis of the house has a covered sitting area with a pizza oven, a bar area and a small bathroom. Vineyards were saved on all sides of the house to help provide a private enclave within the vines. The exterior of the house has simple gable roofs over the major rooms of the house with sloping ceilings and large wooden trusses in the Great Room and plaster sloping ceilings in the bedrooms. The exterior siding through out is painted board and batten siding similar to farmhouses of other older homes in the area. Clyde Construction: General Contractor Photographed by: Paul Rollins

Penza Bailey Architects was contacted to update the main house to suit the next generation of owners, and also expand and renovate the guest apartment. The renovations included a new mudroom and playroom to accommodate the couple and their three very active boys, creating workstations for the boys’ various activities, and renovating several bathrooms. The awkwardly tall vaulted ceilings in the existing great room and dining room were scaled down with lowered tray ceilings, and a new fireplace focal point wall was incorporated in the great room. In addition to the renovations to the focal point of the home, the Owner’s pride and joy includes the new billiard room, transformed from an underutilized living room. The main feature is a full wall of custom cabinetry that hides an electronically secure liquor display that rises out of the cabinet at the push of an iPhone button. In an unexpected request, a new grilling area was designed to accommodate the owner’s gas grill, charcoal grill and smoker for more cooking and entertaining options. This home is definitely ready to accommodate a new generation of hosting social gatherings. Mitch Allen Photography

The 2,800 square foot Rockaway Beach Residence is a significant remodel and addition to a small beach cottage built in the 1920’s. The owner’s desire for the building was to maintain a visual connection to the water and Seattle beyond and expand upon the nature of the shingled cottages found along the water’s edge in Puget Sound in the early part of the 20th century. The two bedroom house includes daytime living spaces on the ground level including a sunroom where one can view both Mt. Baker and Mt. Rainier on a clear day. The second floor includes bedrooms with views, a gallery space over the dining room below, owner’s office and grandchildren’s loft. Fine attention to craft was taken in preparing the unusual roof shapes and gracious trim assemblies. Designed by BC&J Architecture.

The owners requested that their home harmonize with the spirit of the surrounding Colorado mountain setting and enhance their outdoor recreational lifestyle - while reflecting their contemporary architectural tastes. The site was burdened with a myriad of strict design criteria enforced by the neighborhood covenants and architectural review board. Creating a distinct design challenge, the covenants included a narrow interpretation of a “mountain style” home which established predetermined roof pitches, glazing percentages and material palettes - at direct odds with the client‘s vision of a flat-roofed, glass, “contemporary” home. Our solution finds inspiration and opportunities within the site covenant’s strict definitions. It promotes and celebrates the client’s outdoor lifestyle and resolves the definition of a contemporary “mountain style” home by reducing the architecture to its most basic vernacular forms and relying upon local materials. The home utilizes a simple base, middle and top that echoes the surrounding mountains and vegetation. The massing takes its cues from the prevalent lodgepole pine trees that grow at the mountain’s high altitudes. These pine trees have a distinct growth pattern, highlighted by a single vertical trunk and a peaked, densely foliated growth zone above a sparse base. This growth pattern is referenced by placing the wood-clad body of the home at the second story above an open base composed of wood posts and glass. A simple peaked roof rests lightly atop the home - visually floating above a triangular glass transom. The home itself is neatly inserted amongst an existing grove of lodgepole pines and oriented to take advantage of panoramic views of the adjacent meadow and Continental Divide beyond. The main functions of the house are arranged into public and private areas and this division is made apparent on the home’s exterior. Two large roof forms, clad in pre-patinated zinc, are separated by a sheltering central deck - which signals the main entry to the home. At this connection, the roof deck is opened to allow a cluster of aspen trees to grow – further reinforcing nature as an integral part of arrival. Outdoor living spaces are provided on all levels of the house and are positioned to take advantage of sunrise and sunset moments. The distinction between interior and exterior space is blurred via the use of large expanses of glass. The dry stacked stone base and natural cedar cladding both reappear within the home’s interior spaces. This home offers a unique solution to the client’s requests while satisfying the design requirements of the neighborhood covenants. The house provides a variety of indoor and outdoor living spaces that can be utilized in all seasons. Most importantly, the house takes its cues directly from its natural surroundings and local building traditions to become a prototype solution for the “modern mountain house”. Overview Ranch Creek Ranch Winter Park, Colorado Completion Date October, 2007 Services Architecture, Interior Design, Landscape Architecture

Photo: Mina Brinkey © 2013 Houzz
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Ward Jewell, AIA was asked to design a comfortable one-story stone and wood pool house that was "barn-like" in keeping with the owner’s gentleman farmer concept. Thus, Mr. Jewell was inspired to create an elegant New England Stone Farm House designed to provide an exceptional environment for them to live, entertain, cook and swim in the large reflection lap pool. Mr. Jewell envisioned a dramatic vaulted great room with hand selected 200 year old reclaimed wood beams and 10 foot tall pocketing French doors that would connect the house to a pool, deck areas, loggia and lush garden spaces, thus bringing the outdoors in. A large cupola “lantern clerestory” in the main vaulted ceiling casts a natural warm light over the graceful room below. The rustic walk-in stone fireplace provides a central focal point for the inviting living room lounge. Important to the functionality of the pool house are a chef’s working farm kitchen with open cabinetry, free-standing stove and a soapstone topped central island with bar height seating. Grey washed barn doors glide open to reveal a vaulted and beamed quilting room with full bath and a vaulted and beamed library/guest room with full bath that bookend the main space. The private garden expanded and evolved over time. After purchasing two adjacent lots, the owners decided to redesign the garden and unify it by eliminating the tennis court, relocating the pool and building an inspired "barn". The concept behind the garden’s new design came from Thomas Jefferson’s home at Monticello with its wandering paths, orchards, and experimental vegetable garden. As a result this small organic farm, was born. Today the farm produces more than fifty varieties of vegetables, herbs, and edible flowers; many of which are rare and hard to find locally. The farm also grows a wide variety of fruits including plums, pluots, nectarines, apricots, apples, figs, peaches, guavas, avocados (Haas, Fuerte and Reed), olives, pomegranates, persimmons, strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, and ten different types of citrus. The remaining areas consist of drought-tolerant sweeps of rosemary, lavender, rockrose, and sage all of which attract butterflies and dueling hummingbirds. Photo Credit: Laura Hull Photography. Interior Design: Jeffrey Hitchcock. Landscape Design: Laurie Lewis Design. General Contractor: Martin Perry Premier General Contractors

Large trendy gender-neutral dark wood floor and brown floor dressing room photo in Seattle with raised-panel cabinets and white cabinets

Revitalizing a 1950’s Ranch The owners of this property purchased the dilapidated 1950’s ranch with the intention of demolishing it and building a modern residence in its place. A yearlong demolition delay caused the owners to rethink their plan, and instead, looked to Slocum Hall to design an addition and reconfigure the existing home to meet their programmatic needs. The prominent two-car front-facing garage was converted into Living Space with 12’ ceilings. An addition towards the rear of the property housed a new Garage, Mudroom and expanded Kitchen spaces. All the living spaces were reconfigured to function more efficiently, creating four bedroom suites and an expansive basement for recreation and informal entertaining.

Modern black and white kitchen. Caesar stone backsplash and counters.
Example of a large minimalist eat-in kitchen design in Los Angeles with an undermount sink, flat-panel cabinets, white cabinets, quartz countertops, black backsplash, stone slab backsplash and stainless steel appliances

Mid-sized transitional ceramic tile eat-in kitchen photo in Los Angeles with quartz countertops, subway tile backsplash, stainless steel appliances, an island, a double-bowl sink, raised-panel cabinets, white cabinets and beige backsplash

Inspired by DesignARC's Greenworth House, the owners of this 1960's single-story ranch house desired a fresh take on their out-dated, well-worn Montecito residence. Hailing from Toronto Canada, the couple is at ease in urban, loft-like spaces and looked to create a pared-down dwelling that could become their home.

Inspired by DesignARC's Greenworth House, the owners of this 1960's single-story ranch house desired a fresh take on their out-dated, well-worn Montecito residence. Hailing from Toronto Canada, the couple is at ease in urban, loft-like spaces and looked to create a pared-down dwelling that could become their home. Photo Credit: Jim Bartsch Photography

The simple use of black and white…classic, timeless, elegant. No better words could describe the renovation of this kitchen, dining room and seating area. First, an amazing wall of custom cabinets was installed. The home’s 10’ ceilings provided a nice opportunity to stack up decorative glass cabinetry and highly crafted crown moldings on top, while maintaining a considerable amount of cabinetry just below it. The custom-made brush stroke finished cabinetry is highlighted by a chimney-style wood hood surround with leaded glass cabinets. Custom display cabinets with leaded glass also separate the kitchen from the dining room. Next, the homeowner installed a 5’ x 14’ island finished in black. It houses the main sink with a pedal style control disposal, dishwasher, microwave, second bar sink, beverage center refrigerator and still has room to sit five to six people. The hardwood floor in the kitchen and family room matches the rest of the house. The homeowner wanted to use a very selective white quartzite stone for counters and backsplash to add to the brightness of their kitchen. Contemporary chandeliers over the island are timeless and elegant. High end appliances covered by custom panels are part of this featured project, both to satisfy the owner’s needs and to implement the classic look desired for this kitchen. Beautiful dining and living areas surround this kitchen. All done in a contemporary style to create a seamless design and feel the owner had in mind.

The primary bedroom suite in this mountain modern home is the picture of comfort and luxury. The striking wallpaper was selected to represent the textures of a rocky mountain's layers when it is split into. The earthy colors in the wallpaper--blue grays, rusts, tans and creams--make up the restful color scheme of the room. Textural bedding and upholstery fabrics add warmth and interest. The upholstered channel-back bed is flanked with woven sisal nightstands and substantial alabaster bedside lamps. On the opposite side of the room, a velvet swivel chair and oversized artwork add additional color and warmth. The home's striking windows feature remote control privacy shades to block out light for sleeping. The stone disk chandelier repeats the alabaster element in the room and adds a finishing touch of elegance to this inviting suite.

This labor of love turned out to be a mid-century masterpiece, thanks to Robert Maurer's expert eye for color and interior design
Example of a mid-century modern kitchen design in Sacramento with dark wood cabinets, green backsplash, ceramic backsplash and an island