Inspiration for a contemporary patio remodel in Austin

The new owners were looking forward to living in their new home with an open floor plan, tall vaulted ceilings, and great views. It featured a large Great Room with two big French Doors separating the Dining Room from the Master Bedroom. But after only a few months they identified a major design flaw: Each of the French Doors had ten glass windows with two large windows above each door. (Check out our before and after designs, traffic flow diagrams and photos of this project.) Glass windows and doors allowed sound and light from guests or the TV in the great room to easily sneak into the bedroom. With unique work and sleep schedules (he’s a pilot, she’s a registered nurse) this design wasn’t working. Then there was a traffic flow design flaw: The Master Bedroom had a second entrance from a hallway. To get into the bedroom from the hallway you needed to walk down another claustrophobic hallway. To get from the Master Bedroom to the Master Bath begin at the most remote corner of the bedroom and down a hallway between two closets. Once inside the bath, a huge triangular Jacuzzi dominating the space. So, from a privacy and traffic flow perspective, this home had some major design issues. When Craig Weber first met with the owners, he listened to their ideas and concerns. The owners trusted Craig to come up with the most efficient and most effective solution to this design dilemma. He offered a solution that resolved the bed-bath traffic flow problem, offered some bedroom room privacy, and updated the bath. First, the two French Doors and windows were removed. A new wall was built with sound-absorbing materials, making the Great Room and Dining Room more comfortable spaces for entertaining while creating the bedroom privacy the owners craved. Solving the Bedroom/Bath traffic flow problem began with removing the two existing closets. The bath door was relocated next to the hall entrance, and then a new walk-in closet was added adjacent to the hallway entrance. The solution offered easy access to and from the bath, closet and hallway without a hint of claustrophobia. The Master Bath underwent a major transformation designed for convenience and comfort – especially during long, cold Minnesota winters. Most everything from the former bath was torn out, beginning with the giant Jacuzzi. A new bathtub that is wider and deeper than the standard size was installed with brushed Nickel fixtures. It’s the perfect place to relax with a glass of wine and candles. Warm floors are a Minnesota “must have.” The bath’s new ceramic floor features in-floor electric heat. Getting in and out of the tub is easy and comfortable. The new walk-in shower again features in-floor heating and a place to sit. The most interesting feature of this shower may the custom ceramic tile installed with unique patterns. A new vanity Cambria Bradshaw countertops features two under-hung ceramic sinks with matching brushed Nickel fixtures. Tall ceilings and three glass windows near the ceiling flood the room with natural light. A new energy-efficient window frames an ornamental stained glass window created by the owner’s father – a great personal touch. A quiet place to sleep. A private dining room for entertaining. A Master Bath to die for. And easy traffic flow. The owners couldn’t have been more delighted with the outcome. And Lilly, their cat, loves it too.

Apple crate planters placed around Jorgensen Farms, a premier organic farm and wedding venue in Plain Township, OH. The planters are filled with a variety of annuals and perennials highlighted by Ipomea ‘Illusion Emerald Lace’, Plectranthus 'Silver Shield', Plectranthus 'Mona Lavender' Digiplexis 'Illumination Apricot', Supertunia 'White Russian' Nick McCullough

Entry courtyard. Photography by Lucas Henning.
Photo of a mid-sized mid-century modern drought-tolerant and full sun courtyard concrete paver garden path in Seattle for summer.

Functional Laundry Room 9 Mountain Road, Wilton NEW PRICE & BEST VALUE IN WILTON! | $1,295,000 | Set high atop a hill, this gorgeous farmhouse colonial offers 4 finished floors of exquisite craftsmanship & custom millwork throughout. Stylishly renovated in 2012, this gracious residence radiates a chic country ambiance throughout a charming sophisticated interior. This sun drenched home offers a private setting, beautifully framed by stone walls & ornamental trees throughout your professionally landscaped property. The exterior also features shingle siding, copper gutters, a brick paver driveway & a beautiful mahogany wrap around porch. This home offers an outstanding open layout, perfect for everyday living as well as entertaining. Enter into your grand 2-story foyer with coffered ceilings & get ready to be impressed! Superior finishes are found throughout, including random width oak floors, air-brushed panels, recessed lighting and built in sound systems. Pass by your formal living & dining room & enter into your spacious family room w/wood beamed ceiling, large stone fireplace & cupola. Off of the family room is your stunning gourmet kitchen, offering Sub-zero & Wolf appliances, large Carrera island & butlers pantry w/2 fridge drawers, warming drawer, sink, dishwasher & subzero wine cooler. Feel right at home in your breakfast nook, which offers great natural light & a perfect spot for informal dining. A bright playroom/library, mud room & oversized 2-car garage completes the first floor. The entertaining extends down to your finished lower level w/home theater, bar, sauna & lounge area with wine room potential. Outdoor entertaining is easy with a built in grill, fridge, in-ground hot tub, sound system, expansive stone patio & level fenced backyard. When its time to relax, your luxurious master suite offers a perfect retreat. The spacious master bedroom features a sitting/dressing area, 3 walk-in closets & double-sided fireplace into your Master Bathroom. The stunning master bath offers vaulted ceilings, surround sound, radiant floors, air bubble tub, huge walk-in shower & 2 vanities. The 2nd level also features 3 additional bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, laundry room & ample closet space throughout. The 3rd level offers a bonus room/en-suite with vaulted ceilings, marble full bath, gas fireplace & lots of natural light and storage. Convenient location; close to it all. School bus stops at the end of the driveway. Only 1 mile to the train station. A truly special home. Not to be missed! Our team delivers a high level of expertise, outstanding service and the Best Results. Call, text, or email Jillian at 203.858.2095 | Jklaff@Jillianklaff.com, or Megan at 918.671.4802 | Megan.donofrio@raveis.com.

Photo and styling: Corynne Pless © 2013 Houzz
Inspiration for a transitional living room remodel in New York

Large island style master medium tone wood floor and brown floor bedroom photo in Charleston with white walls

Our techy client needed a quiet workspace where he can work, read, and relax. We came up with a colorful, inviting, and modern design that everybody loves. We’ve introduced geometric pattern on the rug that compliments the geometry on the bookshelves. The color of the couch picks up the reds from the rug perfectly, and the steel blue wall is the perfect backdrop to connect all the elements in the room. This is how a modern workspace should look like.

The new owners were looking forward to living in their new home with an open floor plan, tall vaulted ceilings, and great views. It featured a large Great Room with two big French Doors separating the Dining Room from the Master Bedroom. But after only a few months they identified a major design flaw: Each of the French Doors had ten glass windows with two large windows above each door. (Check out our before and after designs, traffic flow diagrams and photos of this project.) Glass windows and doors allowed sound and light from guests or the TV in the great room to easily sneak into the bedroom. With unique work and sleep schedules (he’s a pilot, she’s a registered nurse) this design wasn’t working. Then there was a traffic flow design flaw: The Master Bedroom had a second entrance from a hallway. To get into the bedroom from the hallway you needed to walk down another claustrophobic hallway. To get from the Master Bedroom to the Master Bath begin at the most remote corner of the bedroom and down a hallway between two closets. Once inside the bath, a huge triangular Jacuzzi dominating the space. So, from a privacy and traffic flow perspective, this home had some major design issues. When Craig Weber first met with the owners, he listened to their ideas and concerns. The owners trusted Craig to come up with the most efficient and most effective solution to this design dilemma. He offered a solution that resolved the bed-bath traffic flow problem, offered some bedroom room privacy, and updated the bath. First, the two French Doors and windows were removed. A new wall was built with sound-absorbing materials, making the Great Room and Dining Room more comfortable spaces for entertaining while creating the bedroom privacy the owners craved. Solving the Bedroom/Bath traffic flow problem began with removing the two existing closets. The bath door was relocated next to the hall entrance, and then a new walk-in closet was added adjacent to the hallway entrance. The solution offered easy access to and from the bath, closet and hallway without a hint of claustrophobia. The Master Bath underwent a major transformation designed for convenience and comfort – especially during long, cold Minnesota winters. Most everything from the former bath was torn out, beginning with the giant Jacuzzi. A new bathtub that is wider and deeper than the standard size was installed with brushed Nickel fixtures. It’s the perfect place to relax with a glass of wine and candles. Warm floors are a Minnesota “must have.” The bath’s new ceramic floor features in-floor electric heat. Getting in and out of the tub is easy and comfortable. The new walk-in shower again features in-floor heating and a place to sit. The most interesting feature of this shower may the custom ceramic tile installed with unique patterns. A new vanity Cambria Bradshaw countertops features two under-hung ceramic sinks with matching brushed Nickel fixtures. Tall ceilings and three glass windows near the ceiling flood the room with natural light. A new energy-efficient window frames an ornamental stained glass window created by the owner’s father – a great personal touch. A quiet place to sleep. A private dining room for entertaining. A Master Bath to die for. And easy traffic flow. The owners couldn’t have been more delighted with the outcome. And Lilly, their cat, loves it too.

Amy Gillis Photography
Example of a trendy patio design in Dallas with a roof extension

So often clients are happy to focus on design details in a dedicated media room but tend to let things slide in the living room. This is unfortunate since the majority of their entertainment time is spent there. Compromise starts with the typical TV over the fireplace, a conspicuous mount and visible components. Then there are compromises in sound by using a sound bar, that although better than built-in TV speakers due to it’s limited size, does not have the ideal speaker separation needed for better stereo and surround sound. This client moved into this house with a clean slate and a desire to skip all those mistakes.

photo by: Heather Rhodes Tile & Marble: Granite, Marble and Tile Design www.houzz.com/pro/lambmax/granite-marble-and-tile-design-center
Small beach style 3/4 gray tile, white tile and mosaic tile marble floor corner shower photo in New York with a one-piece toilet, gray walls and a wall-mount sink

Large transitional guest medium tone wood floor bedroom photo in New York with blue walls

Transitional closet photo in Dallas

Meet the Pros: Sound Design To celebrate it's 20th anniversary, Sound Design built a 6,500-square-foot showroom in Horseshoe Bay, Texas to demo technology in a "relaxing, luxurious ambience that appeals to our local clientele." “We’ve learned a lot over the years, and our experience helped us design the new showroom in a way that presents a relaxing, luxurious ambience that appeals to our local clientele,” says Sound Design owner Chris Bean. “We used the best-of-the-best in every category, from the Runco 63-inch plasma TV framed and hidden by a VisionArt motorized art print to the ultra-high-end CAT MBX Sequoia speakers and of course the ELAN g! system.” The showroom’s entrance living room features A/V and lighting control from an Elan TS10 10-inch in-wall touchscreen, an Elan TS2 in-wall touchscreen and Elan HR2 handheld remote. The system distributes audio and video content to a system consisting of a Runco V63 63-inch plasma display, a Planar 2×3 Matrix Wall with six 46-inch panels, a Planar Mosaic wall with four 46-inch panels and four 15-inch square panels, a two-channel audio system that uses two 7-foot-tall CAT MBX Sequoia’s, and a surround system that includes an Integra DTR 50.4 receiver, Newport speakers and two Sunfire HRS-12 subwoofers. “Many of our clients are tech-savvy homeowners who have become mobile tech enthusiasts through their everyday interactions with iPhones and tablets, and they want that same instant satisfaction to apply to their household media and home functions,” says Bean. “Just a few years ago, the most common client request was for an amazing home theater to enjoy the newest DVDs or Blu-rays. Consumer culture is now moving beyond just high-quality audio and video and our clients are demanding easy, fast, total control of everything in the home from their touch panels, smartphone or tablet.” The most unique part of the new showroom, Bean says, will be the 640-square-foot simulation room, which is still under construction. Featuring AboutGolf’s newest three-projector continuous curve screen golf simulator, a LaserShot shooting simulator with five-channel surround and 30 competitive games for two players, and a VRX iMotion triple-LCD display driving & flight simulator, this room is a virtual playground. “The simulation room is a step forward for CI showroom design and for our company, and it allows us to open the imagination of our clients to show them that anything is possible,” says Bean. “Homeowners in Horseshoe Bay are all about recreation and a luxury lifestyle, so we wanted to show the unique ways people could enhance their home’s fun factor. From controlling lighting, heating and surveillance cameras on an iPhone to a hyper-realistic golf simulator that makes you feel like you’re really teeing off on the course, our Horseshoe Bay showroom is as state-of-the-art as it can be.” Sound Design also built a commercial-quality home theater that uses a Display Development HD3 projector, a 184-inch Stewart Filmscreen Luxus Deluxe screen, a Kaleidescape M300 player connected to a Kaleidescape CinemaOne server in the lobby, a Theta Casablanca III preamp/processor, Theta Compli-blu Blu-ray player, a PrimaCinema server, and a bevy of California Audio Technology speakers, subwoofers and amplifiers.

Inspiration for a transitional living room remodel in Atlanta

The new owners were looking forward to living in their new home with an open floor plan, tall vaulted ceilings, and great views. It featured a large Great Room with two big French Doors separating the Dining Room from the Master Bedroom. But after only a few months they identified a major design flaw: Each of the French Doors had ten glass windows with two large windows above each door. (Check out our before and after designs, traffic flow diagrams and photos of this project.) Glass windows and doors allowed sound and light from guests or the TV in the great room to easily sneak into the bedroom. With unique work and sleep schedules (he’s a pilot, she’s a registered nurse) this design wasn’t working. Then there was a traffic flow design flaw: The Master Bedroom had a second entrance from a hallway. To get into the bedroom from the hallway you needed to walk down another claustrophobic hallway. To get from the Master Bedroom to the Master Bath begin at the most remote corner of the bedroom and down a hallway between two closets. Once inside the bath, a huge triangular Jacuzzi dominating the space. So, from a privacy and traffic flow perspective, this home had some major design issues. When Craig Weber first met with the owners, he listened to their ideas and concerns. The owners trusted Craig to come up with the most efficient and most effective solution to this design dilemma. He offered a solution that resolved the bed-bath traffic flow problem, offered some bedroom room privacy, and updated the bath. First, the two French Doors and windows were removed. A new wall was built with sound-absorbing materials, making the Great Room and Dining Room more comfortable spaces for entertaining while creating the bedroom privacy the owners craved. Solving the Bedroom/Bath traffic flow problem began with removing the two existing closets. The bath door was relocated next to the hall entrance, and then a new walk-in closet was added adjacent to the hallway entrance. The solution offered easy access to and from the bath, closet and hallway without a hint of claustrophobia. The Master Bath underwent a major transformation designed for convenience and comfort – especially during long, cold Minnesota winters. Most everything from the former bath was torn out, beginning with the giant Jacuzzi. A new bathtub that is wider and deeper than the standard size was installed with brushed Nickel fixtures. It’s the perfect place to relax with a glass of wine and candles. Warm floors are a Minnesota “must have.” The bath’s new ceramic floor features in-floor electric heat. Getting in and out of the tub is easy and comfortable. The new walk-in shower again features in-floor heating and a place to sit. The most interesting feature of this shower may the custom ceramic tile installed with unique patterns. A new vanity Cambria Bradshaw countertops features two under-hung ceramic sinks with matching brushed Nickel fixtures. Tall ceilings and three glass windows near the ceiling flood the room with natural light. A new energy-efficient window frames an ornamental stained glass window created by the owner’s father – a great personal touch. A quiet place to sleep. A private dining room for entertaining. A Master Bath to die for. And easy traffic flow. The owners couldn’t have been more delighted with the outcome. And Lilly, their cat, loves it too.

David Lauer Photography
Inspiration for a mid-century modern kitchen remodel in Denver

By Steve Crowe, March 08, 2013 Sound Design Builds State-of-the-Art Showroom for 20th Anniversary To celebrate it's 20th anniversary, Sound Design built a 6,500-square-foot showroom in Horseshoe Bay, Texas to demo technology in a "relaxing, luxurious ambience that appeals to our local clientele." Sound Design, a custom installer with offices in Horseshoe Bay and Lakeway, Texas, is celebrating its 20th anniversary in a big way: with the opening of a 4,500-square-foot showroom on April 1, 2013. The state-of-the-art space will be a “veritable candy land” that includes Elan g!, Planar, Runco, Sunfire and many more top-of-the-line brands. “We’ve learned a lot over the years, and our experience helped us design the new showroom in a way that presents a relaxing, luxurious ambience that appeals to our local clientele,” says Sound Design owner Chris Bean. “We used the best-of-the-best in every category, from the Runco 63-inch plasma TV framed and hidden by a VisionArt motorized art print to the ultra-high-end CAT MBX Sequoia speakers and of course the ELAN g! system.” The showroom’s entrance living room features A/V and lighting control from an Elan TS10 10-inch in-wall touchscreen, an Elan TS2 in-wall touchscreen and Elan HR2 handheld remote. The system distributes audio and video content to a system consisting of a Runco V63 63-inch plasma display, a Planar 2x3 Matrix Wall with six 46-inch panels, a Planar Mosaic wall with four 46-inch panels and four 15-inch square panels, a two-channel audio system that uses two 7-foot-tall CAT MBX Sequoia’s, and a surround system that includes an Integra DTR 50.4 receiver, Newport speakers and two Sunfire HRS-12 subwoofers. “Many of our clients are tech-savvy homeowners who have become mobile tech enthusiasts through their everyday interactions with iPhones and tablets, and they want that same instant satisfaction to apply to their household media and home functions,” says Bean. “Just a few years ago, the most common client request was for an amazing home theater to enjoy the newest DVDs or Blu-rays. Consumer culture is now moving beyond just high-quality audio and video and our clients are demanding easy, fast, total control of everything in the home from their touch panels, smartphone or tablet.” The most unique part of the new showroom, Bean says, will be the 640-square-foot simulation room, which is still under construction. Featuring AboutGolf’s newest three-projector continuous curve screen golf simulator, a LaserShot shooting simulator with five-channel surround and 30 competitive games for two players, and a VRX iMotion triple-LCD display driving & flight simulator, this room is a virtual playground. “The simulation room is a step forward for CI showroom design and for our company, and it allows us to open the imagination of our clients to show them that anything is possible,” says Bean. “Homeowners in Horseshoe Bay are all about recreation and a luxury lifestyle, so we wanted to show the unique ways people could enhance their home’s fun factor. From controlling lighting, heating and surveillance cameras on an iPhone to a hyper-realistic golf simulator that makes you feel like you’re really teeing off on the course, our Horseshoe Bay showroom is as state-of-the-art as it can be.” Sound Design also built a commercial-quality home theater that uses a Display Development HD3 projector, a 184-inch Stewart Filmscreen Luxus Delux screen, a Kaleidescape M300 player connected to a Kaleidescape CinemaOne server in the lobby, a Theta Casablanca III preamp/processor, Theta Compli-blu Blu-ray player, a PrimaCinema server, and a bevy of California Audio Technology speakers, subwoofers and amplifiers.