Custom sizing helps you make the most of every available inch for efficient storage. A narrow nook like this is ideal for storing your iron and ironing board out of sight.

Talk about your small spaces. In this case we had to squeeze a full bath into a powder room-sized room of only 5’ x 7’. The ceiling height also comes into play sloping downward from 90” to 71” under the roof of a second floor dormer in this Cape-style home. We stripped the room bare and scrutinized how we could minimize the visual impact of each necessary bathroom utility. The bathroom was transitioning along with its occupant from young boy to teenager. The existing bathtub and shower curtain by far took up the most visual space within the room. Eliminating the tub and introducing a curbless shower with sliding glass shower doors greatly enlarged the room. Now that the floor seamlessly flows through out the room it magically feels larger. We further enhanced this concept with a floating vanity. Although a bit smaller than before, it along with the new wall-mounted medicine cabinet sufficiently handles all storage needs. We chose a comfort height toilet with a short tank so that we could extend the wood countertop completely across the sink wall. The longer countertop creates opportunity for decorative effects while creating the illusion of a larger space. Floating shelves to the right of the vanity house more nooks for storage and hide a pop-out electrical outlet. The clefted slate target wall in the shower sets up the modern yet rustic aesthetic of this bathroom, further enhanced by a chipped high gloss stone floor and wire brushed wood countertop. I think it is the style and placement of the wall sconces (rated for wet environments) that really make this space unique. White ceiling tile keeps the shower area functional while allowing us to extend the white along the rest of the ceiling and partially down the sink wall – again a room-expanding trick. This is a small room that makes a big splash!

In a very small space, every inch counts. This very narrow profile spice cabinet insert tucks back into the space beside the stove to keep everything in easy reach. Design by Chelly Wentworth of Arciform. Photos by Photo Art Portraits

Spacious white kitchen with (2) islands and breakfast table. Stacked cabinets above wall cabinets and tall cabinets for additional storage / display. Tip out storage bins with mesh grill fronts on first island. Appliances consist of 48" range, 60" custom metal hood in pewter finish, (2) dishwashers, coffee maker, microwave, and (2) refrigerator / freezers. Refrigerator / freezer units are built-in with decorative mirrored panels and have a pantry squeezed in between. A frame is built around the built-in area to complete the look.

We managed to squeeze in a lot in this tight space! Upper storage, small sink, and a narrow pull out on castors for laundry detergent etc. We made a shelf out of the leftover countertop material for the bench seat.

Small transitional medium tone wood floor home bar photo in Los Angeles with shaker cabinets, gray cabinets, wood countertops, brick backsplash and brown countertops

© Alyssa Rosenheck 2016
Inspiration for a contemporary bathroom remodel in Nashville

The client purchased this property with grand plans of renovating the entire place; from top to bottom, and from inside to outside. And while the inside canvas was very generous and even somewhat forgiving, the outside space would be anything but. We wanted to squeeze in as much seating space as possible in their limited courtyard area, without encroaching on the already compact-sized pool. The first and most obvious solution was to get rid of the trees and shrubs that separated this house from its zero-lot-line neighbor. With the addition of Lueder limestone slabs, this alone would free up nearly 120 additional square feet, which happened to be the perfect amount of space for a mobile gas fire pit and sectional sofa. And all of this would make for the perfect place to enjoy the afternoon sunset with the implementation of a custom-built metal pergola standing above it all. The next problem we saw was that around the patio area, there were too many levels of steps and stairs, which meant that it would have been difficult to have any sort of traditional furniture arrangement. Randy knew that it only made sense to bring in a wood deck that could be mated to the highest level of the patio, thus creating gaining the most continuous amount of flat space that the client was wanting. But even so, that flat space would be limited to a tight "L-shape" around the pool. And knowing this, the client decided that the larger space would be more valuable to them than the spa, so they opted to have a portion of the deck built over it in order to allow for a more generous amount of patio space. And with the edge of the patio/deck dropping off almost 2 feet to the waterline, it now created the perfect opportunity to have a visually compelling raised wall that could be adorned with different hues of plank-shaped tiles. From inside the pool, the varying shades of brown were a great accent to the wood deck that sat just above. However, the true visual crowning jewel of this project would end up being the raised back wall along the fence, fully encased in a large format, 24x24 slate grey tile, complete with a custom stainless steel, square-tube scupper bank, installed at just the right height to create the perfect amount of water noise. But Randy wasn't done just yet. With two entirely new entertaining areas opened up at opposite ends of the pool, the only thing left to do now was to connect them. Knowing that he nor the client wanted to eliminate any more water space, he decided to bring a new traffic pattern right into the pool by way of two "floating", Lueder limestone stepper pads. It would be a visually perfect union of both pool and walking spaces. The existing steps and walkways were then cut away and replaced with matching Lueder limestone caps and steppers. All remaining gaps were then filled with Mexican beach pebble, which helped to promote a very "zen-like" feel in this outdoor space. The interior of the pool was coated with Wet Edge Primerastone "Blue Pacific Coast" plaster, and lit up with Pentair GloBrite LED pool lights. In the end, the client ended up gaining the additional entertaining and seating space that they needed, and the updated, modern feel that they loved.

In this recent kitchen design and renovation project, these long time clients came to me originally, several years ago to start discussing the design of their kitchen. At that time, the kitchen in this 1800’s home included a kitchen that had been poorly remodeled in the 1980’s, so the kitchen had already lost most of it’s original charm. I created a design plan creating a beautiful large kitchen expanding the space into the adjacent rooms. My clients loved this design plan, but other home issues took precedence, so after a few additional years, my clients were now ready to start their kitchen project. Their overall goals for the property did change since we first looked at this project, my clients decided that they did not want to enlarge or expand the small kitchen by opening it up to the adjacent rooms. So, I went back to the drawing board to create a kitchen in the existing kitchen space that fulfilled their new goals and created a beautiful functional space within the existing kitchen space. This new design, like my former design, honored this home’s traditional architecture, but added a light, fresh feel to the space using updated colors and material selections. This design consisted of additional storage and cabinetry, additional countertop space, and a small space to sit. We added new cabinetry, appliances, electrical, plumbing, beautiful quartz countertops, glass backsplash tile, traditional lighting fixtures, and finished everything off using beautiful classic hardware elements. My clients are now in love with this new renovated kitchen space. It contains many of the elements of a much larger kitchen, and melds beautifully with the rest of the house which we have also designed renovated over the last few years. Finally my client’s get to enjoy their new kitchen space as much as they enjoy the rest of this beautiful home!

Inspiration for a large contemporary porcelain tile kitchen pantry remodel in New York with flat-panel cabinets, white cabinets and wood countertops

'Carmello' tomatoes growing in a large terra-cotta pot. Photo by Steve Masley
Photo of an eclectic landscaping in San Francisco.

Waynesboro master bath renovation in Houston, Texas. This is a small 5'x12' bathroom that we were able to squeeze a lot of nice features into. When dealing with a very small vanity top, using a wall mounted faucet frees up your counter space. The use of large 24x24 tiles in the small shower cuts down on the busyness of grout lines and gives a larger scale to the small space. The wall behind the commode is shared with another bath and is actually 8" deep, so we boxed out that space and have a very deep storage cabinet that looks shallow from the outside. A large sheet glass mirror mounted with standoffs also helps the space to feel larger. Granite: Brown Sucuri 3cm Vanity: Stained mahogany, custom made by our carpenter Wall Tile: Emser Paladino Albanelle 24x24 Floor Tile: Emser Perspective Gray 12x24 Accent Tile: Emser Silver Marble Mini Offset Liner Tile: Emser Silver Cigaro 1x12 Wall Paint Color: Sherwin Williams Oyster Bay Trim Paint Color: Sherwin Williams Alabaster Plumbing Fixtures: Danze Lighting: Kenroy Home Margot Mini Pendants All Photos by Curtis Lawson

Halkin Mason Photography
Example of a mid-sized trendy wooden u-shaped open and metal railing staircase design in Philadelphia

Bedroom - large coastal master medium tone wood floor bedroom idea in Detroit with white walls and no fireplace

Melissa Fitzgerald
Home design - cottage home design idea in Houston

Example of a large cottage master porcelain tile bathroom design in DC Metro with shaker cabinets, white cabinets, beige walls, an undermount sink and quartzite countertops

A tiny outdoor space was made to feel larger by replacing the lawn with paved paths and a courtyard. New steps replaced a sloping path to the front door. This home now has great street appeal and the courtyard provides a pretty flower filled living space throughout the year. There is even a small vegetable box squeezed in.

Waynesboro master bath renovation in Houston, Texas. This is a small 5'x12' bathroom that we were able to squeeze a lot of nice features into. When dealing with a very small vanity top, using a wall mounted faucet frees up your counter space. The use of large 24x24 tiles in the small shower cuts down on the busyness of grout lines and gives a larger scale to the small space. The wall behind the commode is shared with another bath and is actually 8" deep, so we boxed out that space and have a very deep storage cabinet that looks shallow from the outside. A large sheet glass mirror mounted with standoffs also helps the space to feel larger. Granite: Brown Sucuri 3cm Vanity: Stained mahogany, custom made by our carpenter Wall Tile: Emser Paladino Albanelle 24x24 Floor Tile: Emser Perspective Gray 12x24 Accent Tile: Emser Silver Marble Mini Offset Liner Tile: Emser Silver Cigaro 1x12 Wall Paint Color: Sherwin Williams Oyster Bay Trim Paint Color: Sherwin Williams Alabaster Plumbing Fixtures: Danze Lighting: Kenroy Home Margot Mini Pendants All Photos by Curtis Lawson

Photo: Teness Herman © 2015 Houzz
Example of an eclectic kitchen design in Portland