Atherton has many large substantial homes - our clients purchased an existing home on a one acre flag-shaped lot and asked us to design a new dream home for them. The result is a new 7,000 square foot four-building complex consisting of the main house, six-car garage with two car lifts, pool house with a full one bedroom residence inside, and a separate home office /work out gym studio building. A fifty-foot swimming pool was also created with fully landscaped yards. Given the rectangular shape of the lot, it was decided to angle the house to incoming visitors slightly so as to more dramatically present itself. The house became a classic u-shaped home but Feng Shui design principals were employed directing the placement of the pool house to better contain the energy flow on the site. The main house entry door is then aligned with a special Japanese red maple at the end of a long visual axis at the rear of the site. These angles and alignments set up everything else about the house design and layout, and views from various rooms allow you to see into virtually every space tracking movements of others in the home. The residence is simply divided into two wings of public use, kitchen and family room, and the other wing of bedrooms, connected by the living and dining great room. Function drove the exterior form of windows and solid walls with a line of clerestory windows which bring light into the middle of the large home. Extensive sun shadow studies with 3D tree modeling led to the unorthodox placement of the pool to the north of the home, but tree shadow tracking showed this to be the sunniest area during the entire year. Sustainable measures included a full 7.1kW solar photovoltaic array technically making the house off the grid, and arranged so that no panels are visible from the property. A large 16,000 gallon rainwater catchment system consisting of tanks buried below grade was installed. The home is California GreenPoint rated and also features sealed roof soffits and a sealed crawlspace without the usual venting. A whole house computer automation system with server room was installed as well. Heating and cooling utilize hot water radiant heated concrete and wood floors supplemented by heat pump generated heating and cooling. A compound of buildings created to form balanced relationships between each other, this home is about circulation, light and a balance of form and function. Photo by Philip Liang Photography.

Designed and built for the NASCAR fan utilizing a red and black theme, this bar is a winner. The checkered flag pattern of the ceramic tile completes the design and highlights the maple and oak cabinetry.

Customer's of mine bought their three year old son a race car toddler bed to support his current interests for Christmas. Before that his room was themed for nursery, designed with tree and monkey which is great for infants, but would no longer fit their new ideas. The homeowners also requested a time effective solution so we collaborated with one another and came up with the following Plan: I used the remaining paint from the original application to cover over the old work. This was the largest time savor in that the crib would be the only piece of furniture required to be moved. Prior to we agreed that subtlety was something we wanted to hold onto as much as possible. So I painted a running checker border, using only the accent color to the car and the original wall color rather than introducing an additional color which would have resulted in a louder feel. I designed the drag light as a teaching friendly tool. Building it with triangles at its base, rectangles within and circle silhouettes so that the toddler can easily identify with it's shapes. Using his current age I assigned him his first racing number and closed out this one day transformation with the finish line flag.

Lesley Davies Photography
Example of a large beach style open concept porcelain tile and brown floor family room design in Baltimore with beige walls, no fireplace and a media wall

Photo of a craftsman landscaping in Atlanta.

Photographed by Scott Amundson
Inspiration for a rustic family room remodel in Minneapolis

Behind the pond is a storm drain at the lowest point of the two adjoining yards. Last year we built a berm around it to prevent storm water from entering it and put two rain gardens surrounding it. In front of one of the rain gardens is the pond. Water sheets down the backyard lawn, into the pond, and then overflows into the rain garden. Species in front of the pond are Southern Blue Flag Iris and Marsh Marigold. Behind the pond in the rain garden are only two species - Brown Fox Sedge and Cardinal Flower (if you look closely you will see the red flowers).

Green Street Studio
Design ideas for a traditional landscaping in Cleveland.

Transitional medium tone wood floor living room photo in Los Angeles with multicolored walls

This front elevation gains pleasing depth with a new portico protecting a Provia door with a lever door handle and a keyless lock option, for further accessibility. The new look was enhanced with soft grayish-greens (to compliment the red tones of the door and brick) for the portico, and the new coats of paint on the existing shutters and siding of the garage wing. New landscaping completes the transformation to a warmer welcome.

Samantha Day
Bedroom - traditional bedroom idea in Dallas

Large cottage gray three-story wood exterior home idea in Philadelphia

1960s two-story concrete fiberboard house exterior photo in Other with a hip roof

Dark wood floor living room photo in Edmonton with beige walls

Initial Plant Install with Irrigation Flags This home had zero front landscape. The client requested low maintenance, succulents and rock elements. The area was not full sun, but had significant morning light and in fact had quite a bit of shade. This was a bit of a challenge to specify plants that could thrive in mixed light, but could handle direct sun for several hours a day. We incorporated some tough but lovely plants that require very little upkeep except to trim off spent/dying leaves to keep them looking clean. By using a rock edging and heavy mulching under the plants, we further reduced maintenance. We added landscape lighting to show off the garden at night and to provide subtle welcoming light to the entry.

cambas design & co. custom race car bedroom features this custom made ferrari bed & sleek modern furniture accents the room .
Inspiration for a transitional kids' room remodel in Los Angeles

Green Street Studio
Inspiration for a traditional landscaping in Cleveland.

Gutter repair on slate roof in Jenkintown, PA.
Inspiration for a timeless beige three-story stucco exterior home remodel in Philadelphia

Todd Wilson
Bedroom - mid-sized contemporary guest light wood floor bedroom idea in Denver with gray walls