Stepping stones in a minimal gravel paved area lead past two lounge chairs to the intimate dining area. The herringbone-patterned limestone patio dissipates into a lush planting bed filled with loose swaths of shade-loving perennials and seasonal bulbs. Beech hedging, and formal clipped evergreens, surround the space and provide privacy, structure and winter interest to the garden. On axis to the main interior living space of the home, the fountain, is the focal point of the garden. A limestone water wall featuring an engraved pattern of fallen Honey Locust leaves nods to the centrally located mature Honey Locust tree that anchors the garden. Water, flowing down the wall, falls a short distance into a pool with a submerged limestone panel. The light noise of the falling water helps soften the sounds of the bustling downtown neighbourhood, creating a tranquil back drop for living and entertaining.

Not everyone has the backyard that suits a hardscape patio. Those situations sometimes call for a different approach....especially in this case! We built a second-level deck and pergola for this family outside of Greenfield. Cedar all around! They also wanted to retain their beautiful views. So we used a cable railing system that is safe and effective at preventing falls, but also perfect for maximizing those views. I think it turned out well, don't you? Sun-Dried tomatoes anyone?

The challenge of this brand new high rise condo was to stay in keeping with the contemporary finishes of this Denver interior while giving a nod to the owners' more traditional taste. The bigger challenge was to prevent this essentially storage wall from looking flat and boring. Working with designer Linda Sease, our senior designer developed this brilliant vignette featuring a special door design that retains simplicity of lines while attaining an elegant almost glitzy style. Another challenge was the almost full wall window on the right which forced a shallow column of display over a stack of shoe roll-outs. This forced a stepped out pair of columns for hanging clothes above matching stacks of roll-outs for clothes storage. This articulation actually improves the design by preventing an otherwise unbroken and uninteresting storage wall. Finally a clever set of two-tone drawers featuring a pair of jewelry organizer drawers in black (see photo), with TV over and at the top a swing up opening cabinet for media equipment. Glitz and a feeling of luxurious living is enhanced with beveled mirrored doors, beveled glass doors and beveled edge glass shelves. The slate blue French doors with antique mirror between the master bedroom and living room provide extra privacy as well as enhancing the almost spartan trim and open plan kitchen to a feeling of luxury.

images by: Travis Rhoads Photography
This is an example of a mid-sized contemporary partial sun backyard stone formal garden in San Francisco for spring.

Inspiration for a rustic patio remodel in Seattle

Le jardinet
Photo of a contemporary landscaping in Phoenix.

My clients had outgrown their builder’s basic home and had plenty of room to expand on their 10 acres. Working with a local architect and a talented contractor, we designed an addition to create 3 new bedrooms, a bathroom scaled for all 3 girls, a playroom and a master retreat including 3 fireplaces, sauna, steam shower, office or “creative room”, and large bedroom with folding glass wall to capitalize on their view. The master suite, gym, pool and tennis courts are still under construction, but the girls’ suite and living room space are complete and dust free. Each child’s room was designed around their preference of color scheme and each girl has a unique feature that makes their room truly their own. The oldest daughter has a secret passage hidden behind what looks like built in cabinetry. The youngest daughter wanted to “swing”, so we outfitted her with a hanging bed set in front of a custom mural created by a Spanish artist. The middle daughter is an elite gymnast, so we added monkey bars so she can cruise her room in style. The girls’ bathroom suite has 3 identical “stations” with abundant storage. Cabinetry in black walnut and peacock blue and white quartz counters with white marble backsplash are durable and beautiful. Two shower stalls, designed with a colorful and intricate tile design, prevent bathroom wait times and a custom wall mural brings a little of the outdoors in. Photos by Mike Martin www.martinvisualtours.com

Elegant home bar photo in Other

AshleyDSP
Inspiration for a farmhouse master bedroom remodel in Seattle

Design ideas for a mid-sized traditional front yard driveway in Toronto.

To create a colonial outdoor living space, we gut renovated this patio, incorporating heated bluestones, a custom traditional fireplace and bespoke furniture. The space was divided into three distinct zones for cooking, dining, and lounging. Firing up the built-in gas grill or a relaxing by the fireplace, this space brings the inside out.

We custom made these built in cubbies. They have storage nooks, coat hooks, and beadboard back capped with a top rail. We added a small wood doorstop on the lower right to prevent the door from banging into piece. After tearing down this home's existing addition, we set out to create a new addition with a modern farmhouse feel that still blended seamlessly with the original house. The addition includes a kitchen great room, laundry room and sitting room. Outside, we perfectly aligned the cupola on top of the roof, with the upper story windows and those with the lower windows, giving the addition a clean and crisp look. Using granite from Chester County, mica schist stone and hardy plank siding on the exterior walls helped the addition to blend in seamlessly with the original house. Inside, we customized each new space by paying close attention to the little details. Reclaimed wood for the mantle and shelving, sleek and subtle lighting under the reclaimed shelves, unique wall and floor tile, recessed outlets in the island, walnut trim on the hood, paneled appliances, and repeating materials in a symmetrical way work together to give the interior a sophisticated yet comfortable feel. Rudloff Custom Builders has won Best of Houzz for Customer Service in 2014, 2015 2016, 2017 and 2019. We also were voted Best of Design in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 which only 2% of professionals receive. Rudloff Custom Builders has been featured on Houzz in their Kitchen of the Week, What to Know About Using Reclaimed Wood in the Kitchen as well as included in their Bathroom WorkBook article. We are a full service, certified remodeling company that covers all of the Philadelphia suburban area. This business, like most others, developed from a friendship of young entrepreneurs who wanted to make a difference in their clients’ lives, one household at a time. This relationship between partners is much more than a friendship. Edward and Stephen Rudloff are brothers who have renovated and built custom homes together paying close attention to detail. They are carpenters by trade and understand concept and execution. Rudloff Custom Builders will provide services for you with the highest level of professionalism, quality, detail, punctuality and craftsmanship, every step of the way along our journey together. Specializing in residential construction allows us to connect with our clients early in the design phase to ensure that every detail is captured as you imagined. One stop shopping is essentially what you will receive with Rudloff Custom Builders from design of your project to the construction of your dreams, executed by on-site project managers and skilled craftsmen. Our concept: envision our client’s ideas and make them a reality. Our mission: CREATING LIFETIME RELATIONSHIPS BUILT ON TRUST AND INTEGRITY. Photo Credit: Linda McManus Images

jenna muirhead
Inspiration for a southwestern deck remodel in Toronto

Landscape contracting by Avid Landscape. Carpentry by Contemporary Homestead. Photograph by Tina Witherspoon.
Inspiration for a mid-sized transitional partial sun backyard stone landscaping in Seattle.

Unilock Umbriano in Summer Wheat creates the contemporary base for this outdoor living project. A perfect choice for outdoor cooking and dining areas, Umbriano offers Easy Clean Stain Resistance, a proprietary technology that helps prevent spills from turning into stains. The beauty of Umbriano is further highlighted with a dramatically dark Unilock Series paver band inset from the edges of the project. The raised patio area and steps were created using Unilock Brussels Dimensional wall product, with pillars integrated into the design for functional lighting and visual interest. These homeowners chose the Sierra color for its subtle red tones, as the perfect complement to the red tones on their home’s exterior, finished with Unilock Ledgestone coping and pillar caps.

Beautiful new stone walk, visible and welcoming!
Inspiration for a traditional landscaping in Raleigh.

Entrance plantings used for a low maintenance garden that is full of color and texture.
This is an example of a craftsman full sun front yard stone garden path in New York.