A 6,000 square foot 2-story new home complex in Milpitas was designed to facilitate the owners’ large business parties and gatherings, to have rooms for the kids to come back to upstairs, and a ground floor master suite with a huge walk-in closet. Several separate structures make up the dwelling: The main house, 3-car garage with carport for overflow parking, and a separate entertainment and recreation building separated by a courtyard from the main house. The business activities include gatherings in the hundreds of people, so parking was maximized and guests can flow in through a separate gate to party in the courtyard and recreation building. Inside this structure is a wet bar, billiard room, workout gym and home theater. The main house ground floor has formal and informal living rooms, open kitchen and master suite with views and expansive windows in every direction. The house is sited on the crestline of a hill with views of the San Francisco Bay and private golf course below. The indoor-outdoor aspect of the house is further accentuated with outside living and dining areas. High ceilings and expansive glass walls dissolve the sense of enclosure taking advantage of the site’s openness and privacy. The owner’s suite is downstairs in anticipation of aging-in-place, and upstairs there are three bedrooms and four bathrooms plus a sitting area lounge and casual TV loft area. The house sits on one acre at the top of a low hill range overlooking Milpitas. The city was very cognizant of the importance of keeping a low profile at this crestline and required extensive story poles and photo evidence of the proper height and siting so as not to be seen from certain selected vantage points. GENERAL CONTRACTOR: JCD Builders Inc. LANDSCAPE DESIGN: Morf Chang Landscape Architecture / ODS Architecture PHOTOGRAPHS: Paul Dyer Photography

A 6,000 square foot 2-story new home complex in Milpitas was designed to facilitate the owners’ large business parties and gatherings, to have rooms for the kids to come back to upstairs, and a ground floor master suite with a huge walk-in closet. Several separate structures make up the dwelling: The main house, 3-car garage with carport for overflow parking, and a separate entertainment and recreation building separated by a courtyard from the main house. The business activities include gatherings in the hundreds of people, so parking was maximized and guests can flow in through a separate gate to party in the courtyard and recreation building. Inside this structure is a wet bar, billiard room, workout gym and home theater. The main house ground floor has formal and informal living rooms, open kitchen and master suite with views and expansive windows in every direction. The house is sited on the crestline of a hill with views of the San Francisco Bay and private golf course below. The indoor-outdoor aspect of the house is further accentuated with outside living and dining areas. High ceilings and expansive glass walls dissolve the sense of enclosure taking advantage of the site’s openness and privacy. The owner’s suite is downstairs in anticipation of aging-in-place, and upstairs there are three bedrooms and four bathrooms plus a sitting area lounge and casual TV loft area. The house sits on one acre at the top of a low hill range overlooking Milpitas. The city was very cognizant of the importance of keeping a low profile at this crestline and required extensive story poles and photo evidence of the proper height and siting so as not to be seen from certain selected vantage points. GENERAL CONTRACTOR: JCD Builders Inc. LANDSCAPE DESIGN: Morf Chang Landscape Architecture / ODS Architecture PHOTOGRAPHS: Paul Dyer Photography

BeachHaus is built on a previously developed site on Siesta Key. It sits directly on the bay but has Gulf views from the upper floor and roof deck. The client loved the old Florida cracker beach houses that are harder and harder to find these days. They loved the exposed roof joists, ship lap ceilings, light colored surfaces and inviting and durable materials. Given the risk of hurricanes, building those homes in these areas is not only disingenuous it is impossible. Instead, we focused on building the new era of beach houses; fully elevated to comfy with FEMA requirements, exposed concrete beams, long eaves to shade windows, coralina stone cladding, ship lap ceilings, and white oak and terrazzo flooring. The home is Net Zero Energy with a HERS index of -25 making it one of the most energy efficient homes in the US. It is also certified NGBS Emerald. Photos by Ryan Gamma Photography

Eric Roth Photography
Example of a mid-sized farmhouse brown two-story wood exterior home design in Boston

Our client was fighting for available space at home and so we worked with them to design and build subtle, concealed storage & bookcase solution. Our joinery team tailored everything to suit the client's requirements, maximising the available space and creating plenty of room to tuck away assorted clutter. Flush sliding doors with hidden sliding mechanisms were made in order to negate the need for ironmongery and maintain a clean appearance. The whole thing was painted in a fresh, hard wearing white finish in our own spray facility and our carpenters installed everything on site leaving the client to enjoy their newly de-cluttered living space.

Restoration of a 130 year old portico in Montreal's West end. This project was undertaken to restore the grand entry to a lovely heritage home. The structure suffered from major deterioration including rot and damage from carpenter ants. The floor structure and stairs were completely replaced with Ipe decking and treads. The newel posts, square columns and pedestals were constructed on site from PVC lumber to prevent rot in the future. The entire structure stripped, sanded and repainted after all the fascia, soffits and cornice moldings were replaced. The handrails and balusters were reproduced in yellow pine and updated to meet modern code requirements. The metal roof was patched and repainted, and the concrete footings repaired and parged. I'm confident that our work will last another century!

Our client was fighting for available space at home and so we worked with them to design and build subtle, concealed storage & bookcase solution. Our joinery team tailored everything to suit the client's requirements, maximising the available space and creating plenty of room to tuck away assorted clutter. Flush sliding doors with hidden sliding mechanisms were made in order to negate the need for ironmongery and maintain a clean appearance. The whole thing was painted in a fresh, hard wearing white finish in our own spray facility and our carpenters installed everything on site leaving the client to enjoy their newly de-cluttered living space.

This project involved the installation of a custom closet organization system designed to maximize storage, improve functionality, and create a clean, organized appearance. The layout was customized to meet the homeowner's needs, providing dedicated space for hanging clothing, shelving, drawers, and accessories. Our team completed the installation with careful attention to alignment, structural support, and finish quality, ensuring the organizer was securely mounted and seamlessly integrated into the existing space. Every component was installed for long-term durability while maintaining a modern, streamlined aesthetic. Services Performed: Site measurement and layout verification Assembly and installation of custom closet organizer components Installation of shelving, hanging rods, drawers, and storage accessories Secure wall mounting and reinforcement as required Final adjustments, quality inspection, and project cleanup Result: A functional, custom-designed closet that maximizes storage capacity, improves organization, and enhances the overall appearance and value of the home.

The Bolton-Schluter residence, located in the rural mountainous residential neighborhood of Topanga Canyon, has 2500 square feet of interior living space, with an additional 1650 square feet of exterior decks and stairs, plus garage. The wooded hillside lot is 75’ wide and 600’ deep with three large oaks that are protected by local ordinance. The garage sits on the relatively level ground adjacent to the street. The house itself “climbs” up the 40% slope upwards, achieving a 44’ elevation gain to the scenic views at the top. The design concept for the Bolton-Schluter residence combined a strong theoretical approach with the rigid building constraints of the area. The protected oak trees dictated the required angles of the stair, which, along with the natural angles of the contours on the site, and certain directional bearings in the landscape / horizon in the distance gave rise to a conceptual ordering system controlling the internal and external geometry of the house. AIA Honor Award

This residential landscape concept explores how a steep backyard could become a connected sequence of outdoor rooms without removing the character of the existing terrain. The proposed layout includes an upper cedar dining pavilion, broad stone circulation steps, a secluded woodland lounge and a planted rain garden conceived to organize surface runoff. Ferns, grasses and multi-stem trees provide privacy, seasonal texture and a natural transition to the surrounding landscape. The design focuses on safer circulation, usable outdoor space and year-round visual interest. Concept design and AI-assisted visualization by LANDYUO. The images represent an unbuilt design study, not a completed project. Final grading and drainage require site-specific professional review.

This residential landscape concept explores how a steep backyard could become a connected sequence of outdoor rooms without removing the character of the existing terrain. The proposed layout includes an upper cedar dining pavilion, broad stone circulation steps, a secluded woodland lounge and a planted rain garden conceived to organize surface runoff. Ferns, grasses and multi-stem trees provide privacy, seasonal texture and a natural transition to the surrounding landscape. The design focuses on safer circulation, usable outdoor space and year-round visual interest. Concept design and AI-assisted visualization by LANDYUO. The images represent an unbuilt design study, not a completed project. Final grading and drainage require site-specific professional review.

This stately Tudor required a new kitchen. As a large open space with long site lines from adjacent rooms, the new kitchen needed drama, presence – to make a statement. Toward that, we chose bold forms, rich colors for the perimeter and a walnut island. Golden tones are included from the straps on the custom hood, the hardware and seating at the island. And – a decorative cremone bolt!

Photo by Piet Oudolf. Uploaded with permission.

A 6,000 square foot 2-story new home complex in Milpitas was designed to facilitate the owners’ large business parties and gatherings, to have rooms for the kids to come back to upstairs, and a ground floor master suite with a huge walk-in closet. Several separate structures make up the dwelling: The main house, 3-car garage with carport for overflow parking, and a separate entertainment and recreation building separated by a courtyard from the main house. The business activities include gatherings in the hundreds of people, so parking was maximized and guests can flow in through a separate gate to party in the courtyard and recreation building. Inside this structure is a wet bar, billiard room, workout gym and home theater. The main house ground floor has formal and informal living rooms, open kitchen and master suite with views and expansive windows in every direction. The house is sited on the crestline of a hill with views of the San Francisco Bay and private golf course below. The indoor-outdoor aspect of the house is further accentuated with outside living and dining areas. High ceilings and expansive glass walls dissolve the sense of enclosure taking advantage of the site’s openness and privacy. The owner’s suite is downstairs in anticipation of aging-in-place, and upstairs there are three bedrooms and four bathrooms plus a sitting area lounge and casual TV loft area. The house sits on one acre at the top of a low hill range overlooking Milpitas. The city was very cognizant of the importance of keeping a low profile at this crestline and required extensive story poles and photo evidence of the proper height and siting so as not to be seen from certain selected vantage points. GENERAL CONTRACTOR: JCD Builders Inc. LANDSCAPE DESIGN: Morf Chang Landscape Architecture / ODS Architecture PHOTOGRAPHS: Paul Dyer Photography

The owners of this historic house on a promontory surrounded by water asked Morpurgo Architects to maximize ocean views while expanding their home for their growing family. Conforming to The Rhode Island Historical Preservation and Heritage Commission’s requirements, our modifications to the existing structure are sympathetic to the original Stuccoed Mission-style and contextually in keeping with neighboring historic homes. This challenging site presented numerous constraints, including adherence to oceanfront setbacks and environmental and zoning regulations. We overcame imposing restrictions to develop a dynamic plan that fulfilled the clients’ programmatic and aesthetic needs. The kitchen was identified by our clients as the focal point of family activity. We maximized this lifestyle concept by developing the kitchen into a spacious living area with commanding views of the water. Renovations to the third floor allowed Morpurgo Architects to create an outdoor space offering a panorama of the historic surrounding communities.

This newly completed residence is located on Sanibel Island on a unique bayou site with western exposure for a perfect view of the sunset. The main entry is a long narrow drive that was planted with seven large native live oaks to create an oak canopy with a native hammock understory consisting of native shrubs and ferns for a tunnel like entry experience. Three large curved coconuts sit at the drive terminus and frame the view of the entry lawn and landscape at the front of the residence. There was a strong emphasis on incorporating native palms and vegetation into a Zen-inspired garden feel. Native paurotis palms and green and silver thrinax palms were carefully specified and trimmed for use as architectural elements on the tall exterior walls. Tropical bamboo of many different varieties were incorporated into the buffers for both ambiance and screening purposes. Landscape grasses and bromeliad species were planted for interest along the front entry way. Native shrubs and perennial dune grasses and groundcovers were incorporated into the side yard buffer and in the back yard on the berm at the bayou edge to blend the built element into the natural landscape. The sodded area in the back and side yards functions as stormwater detention area and prevents stormwater from running directly into the ecological sensitive bayou. All City of Sanibel codes were met for this environmentally and ecosystem rich site including holding and mitigating stormwater runoff on site and meeting the 75% native plant requirement in all vegetation categories.

This residential landscape concept explores how a steep backyard could become a connected sequence of outdoor rooms without removing the character of the existing terrain. The proposed layout includes an upper cedar dining pavilion, broad stone circulation steps, a secluded woodland lounge and a planted rain garden conceived to organize surface runoff. Ferns, grasses and multi-stem trees provide privacy, seasonal texture and a natural transition to the surrounding landscape. The design focuses on safer circulation, usable outdoor space and year-round visual interest. Concept design and AI-assisted visualization by LANDYUO. The images represent an unbuilt design study, not a completed project. Final grading and drainage require site-specific professional review.

The Atherton House is a family compound for a professional couple in the tech industry, and their two teenage children. After living in Singapore, then Hong Kong, and building homes there, they looked forward to continuing their search for a new place to start a life and set down roots. The site is located on Atherton Avenue on a flat, 1 acre lot. The neighboring lots are of a similar size, and are filled with mature planting and gardens. The brief on this site was to create a house that would comfortably accommodate the busy lives of each of the family members, as well as provide opportunities for wonder and awe. Views on the site are internal. Our goal was to create an indoor- outdoor home that embraced the benign California climate. The building was conceived as a classic “H” plan with two wings attached by a double height entertaining space. The “H” shape allows for alcoves of the yard to be embraced by the mass of the building, creating different types of exterior space. The two wings of the home provide some sense of enclosure and privacy along the side property lines. The south wing contains three bedroom suites at the second level, as well as laundry. At the first level there is a guest suite facing east, powder room and a Library facing west. The north wing is entirely given over to the Primary suite at the top level, including the main bedroom, dressing and bathroom. The bedroom opens out to a roof terrace to the west, overlooking a pool and courtyard below. At the ground floor, the north wing contains the family room, kitchen and dining room. The family room and dining room each have pocketing sliding glass doors that dissolve the boundary between inside and outside. Connecting the wings is a double high living space meant to be comfortable, delightful and awe-inspiring. A custom fabricated two story circular stair of steel and glass connects the upper level to the main level, and down to the basement “lounge” below. An acrylic and steel bridge begins near one end of the stair landing and flies 40 feet to the children’s bedroom wing. People going about their day moving through the stair and bridge become both observed and observer. The front (EAST) wall is the all important receiving place for guests and family alike. There the interplay between yin and yang, weathering steel and the mature olive tree, empower the entrance. Most other materials are white and pure. The mechanical systems are efficiently combined hydronic heating and cooling, with no forced air required.

This residential landscape concept explores how a steep backyard could become a connected sequence of outdoor rooms without removing the character of the existing terrain. The proposed layout includes an upper cedar dining pavilion, broad stone circulation steps, a secluded woodland lounge and a planted rain garden conceived to organize surface runoff. Ferns, grasses and multi-stem trees provide privacy, seasonal texture and a natural transition to the surrounding landscape. The design focuses on safer circulation, usable outdoor space and year-round visual interest. Concept design and AI-assisted visualization by LANDYUO. The images represent an unbuilt design study, not a completed project. Final grading and drainage require site-specific professional review.