Children's Bathroom. Photo by: Yorgos Efthymiadis
Powder room - coastal powder room idea in New York with an undermount sink, shaker cabinets, white cabinets and white countertops

The Ranch Pass Project consisted of architectural design services for a new home of around 3,400 square feet. The design of the new house includes four bedrooms, one office, a living room, dining room, kitchen, scullery, laundry/mud room, upstairs children’s playroom and a three-car garage, including the design of built-in cabinets throughout. The design style is traditional with Northeast turn-of-the-century architectural elements and a white brick exterior. Design challenges encountered with this project included working with a flood plain encroachment in the property as well as situating the house appropriately in relation to the street and everyday use of the site. The design solution was to site the home to the east of the property, to allow easy vehicle access, views of the site and minimal tree disturbance while accommodating the flood plain accordingly.

Charlie Cho Designed by Gabriela Eisenhart and Holly Conlan
Family room - mid-sized scandinavian open concept carpeted family room idea in Los Angeles with white walls, a ribbon fireplace, a wall-mounted tv and a wood fireplace surround

From Plain to Fabulous A great thing about building a new home is that you are starting fresh. Being a Florida decorator, many of our clients are moving from the Northern or Mid-West states. We advise them to leave their often dark, large pieces of traditional furniture behind and just bring pieces that have value to them whether sentimental or monetary. This dining room was a pleasure because it was a clean slate with large windows letting in the morning sun. The floors are hand-scraped engineered wood in Brazilian walnut which give the entire home a warm feel to counteract the stark white walls. The home owners have a large art collection and specifically chose the white paint so that the paintings can be seen at their best and moved around the home easily. The owners host many dinner parties throughout the year and wanted a table that was virtually indestructible, and that visitors didn’t have to be careful with. This long Mango wood trestle table comfortably seats between eight and ten and has an antique grey, distressed look that is similar to driftwood. We alternated turquoise and light blue dining chairs for some contrast. An outstanding centerpiece for the room is a dazzling grey chandelier with an outstanding display of brilliant graphite crystals. Hundreds of faceted crystals are suspended from ten fluted glass arms. Wall sconces in chrome with grey linen shades were added and all the lighting is on dimmers for a choice of bright or mood lighting depending on the required ambience. To control the harsh Florida sunlight that can leech color out of furnishings within weeks, we installed light grey Silhouette window shades which keep approximately 97% of harmful UV rays out but still let in light even when fully closed. Traversing draperies were installed floor-to-ceiling and wall-to-wall providing a spectacular color wall of cream, green, purple and turquoise. The hardware is hidden behind the crown moulding for a clean, modern look. The best part of this design story lies in the large-scale artwork. The home owner had been given the painting years ago when she lived in Philadelphia but the colors didn’t suit her Northern palette. The painting was hidden in the attic but during the move was crated and sent to Florida. After not seeing it for sixteen years she had forgotten what it looked like and when she saw the crate about to be off-loaded asked the removal crew to take it away. At the last minute she decided to look in the crate and was surprised and delighted to find the perfect artwork for her dining room! Lastly, hand-torn wallpaper was installed in a custom color in the tray ceiling. As this room is used for dinner parties, games and even casual dining we decided not to install a rug for ease of use and movement around the table. Photographer: Rolando Diaz

Todd Wright
Example of a mid-sized eclectic enclosed medium tone wood floor living room design in Other with a standard fireplace and a wall-mounted tv

Photos by John Woodcock
Kids' room - transitional kids' room idea in Phoenix

This San Francisco pied-a-tier was a complete redesign and remodel in a prestigious Nob Hill hi-rise overlooking Huntington Park. With stunning views of the bay and a more impressive art collection taking center stage, the architecture takes a minimalist approach, with gallery-white walls receding to the background. The mix of custom-designed built-in furniture and furnishings selected by Hulburd Design read themselves as pieces of art against parquet wood flooring.

Inspiration for a 1960s medium tone wood floor dining room remodel in Los Angeles with beige walls

The hall bathroom got a full makeover and expansion with a navy sink, a fun tile selection and gold fixtures throughout.
Bathroom - mid-sized transitional kids' ceramic tile, multicolored floor and single-sink bathroom idea in New York with shaker cabinets, blue cabinets, a two-piece toilet, gray walls, an undermount sink, quartz countertops, a hinged shower door, gray countertops and a freestanding vanity

Dennis and Joe have a large, light-filled house. New construction meant lofted space and open floor plans with traditional styling. Running a busy dental practice by day and engaged in a rich social life by night, this couple needed a professional to take the lead on making their house a home. That’s my cue! They wanted to take risks, and stay away from “matchy-matchy”. We gussied up a plain ol’ TV room and gave it a healthy dose of luxury. Our plan was initially inspired by an abstract painting hanging over their stone fireplace. We brought in their love of the outdoors to make things cozy and used family furniture whenever possible for nostalgia and comfort. I took their love for one-of-a-kind objects and started making a design plan, aiming to solve their biggest frustration: the family room. They had a tortured relationship with a “forgotten family room,” a great space that was spacious and bright, but not at all cozy or joyful, and certainly not “them.” I wanted to create a cozy space functional for everyday curling up with puppies and watching TV after dinner, yet chic enough for hosting the pre-dinner kitchen overflow and cocktails during parties. I went looking for contrasting textures and materials. I wanted to balance patterns and scale, and use non-traditional colors as neutrals to create an overall sense of “BAM!” Dennis and Joe loved the nod to the classics juxtaposed with new and different globally-inspired pieces. For this project our design aesthetic can be described as Middle Eastern/tribal meets mid-century modern. We played to their sensible side with proportion and balance, and stayed as far away from boring/bleh as we could. You could say this room was pretty successful...It was featured in DC Modern Luxury. (#nobigdeal, right?) From there we moved on to other spaces.. We added colorful pillows and sheer drapery to finish off their formal living room. We kept an inherited bedroom set from Dennis’ Mom and added color, draperies, and pillows to overhaul the guest bedroom. Their project was not a rip-and-replace, we weren’t starting from scratch with a blank piece of paper. Rather, our goal was to take what was already there and make it better, more like them. Using functionality first, we focused on giving the house a soothing, joyful aesthetic. We upped the chic factor by a gajillion and helped them find their ‘happy’ at home. See more Safferstone stuff at www.safferstone.com. Connect with us on Facebook, get inspired on Pinterest, and share modern musings on life & design on Instagram. Or, send us a love note at hello@safferstone.com. Photo: Angie Seckinger

Large transitional master white tile and porcelain tile porcelain tile, gray floor and double-sink bathroom photo in Oklahoma City with shaker cabinets, light wood cabinets, a one-piece toilet, white walls, a wall-mount sink, marble countertops, a hinged shower door, white countertops and a built-in vanity

Painted Headboard wall in Ronald McDonald Showhouse - Design by Jennifer Mehditash. Tiles, custom made via Filmore Clark. Brizo faucets. Stacey van Berkel Photography, Mehditash Design, Raina Kattelson styling

These homeowners were ready to update the home they had built when their girls were young. This was not a full gut remodel. The perimeter cabinetry mostly stayed but got new doors and height added at the top. The island and tall wood stained cabinet to the left of the sink are new and custom built and I hand-drew the design of the new range hood. The beautiful reeded detail came from our idea to add this special element to the new island and cabinetry. Bringing it over to the hood just tied everything together. We were so in love with this stunning Quartzite we chose for the countertops we wanted to feature it further in a custom apron-front sink. We were in love with the look of Zellige tile and it seemed like the perfect space to use it in.

Inspiration for a contemporary light wood floor and beige floor living room remodel in Boston with white walls, a standard fireplace and a wood fireplace surround

Inspiration for a mid-sized contemporary 3/4 white tile and ceramic tile cement tile floor, green floor and single-sink walk-in shower remodel in Los Angeles with flat-panel cabinets, white cabinets, a one-piece toilet, white walls, an integrated sink, a hinged shower door, white countertops, a niche and a built-in vanity

The hall bathroom got a full makeover and expansion with a navy sink, a fun tile selection and gold fixtures throughout.
Mid-sized transitional kids' ceramic tile, multicolored floor and single-sink bathroom photo in New York with shaker cabinets, blue cabinets, a two-piece toilet, gray walls, an undermount sink, quartz countertops, a hinged shower door, gray countertops and a freestanding vanity

Welcoming powder room with floating sink cabinetry.
Powder room - transitional gray tile and ceramic tile dark wood floor and brown floor powder room idea in Chicago with blue cabinets, a one-piece toilet, gray walls, white countertops and a floating vanity

This master bath was dark and dated. Although a large space, the area felt small and obtrusive. By removing the columns and step up, widening the shower and creating a true toilet room I was able to give the homeowner a truly luxurious master retreat. (check out the before pictures at the end) The ceiling detail was the icing on the cake! It follows the angled wall of the shower and dressing table and makes the space seem so much larger than it is. The homeowners love their Nantucket roots and wanted this space to reflect that.

While renovating the master bedroom last year, the Mohrmans replaced the fireplace surround with white ceramic tile. Placed in a herringbone pattern, the tile and dark grout work together to lend a period feel to the room. As with many renovations, there were some surprises along the way. "From what we could tell the mantle had never been removed", Chelsea explains. "We removed the mantle and found bits and pieces of photos, ticket stubs, coins, etc that had fallen back there over the years. Some of the items were dated back to the 1930’s." Being the eighth owners of the home, it was hard to tell whether there was something there from every previous owner, "... but we gathered it all, placed it in a tin, added our own piece, and placed it back inside the mantle as a time capsule for future owners to find in decades to come."