Architect: Michelle Penn, AIA This barn home is modeled after an existing Nebraska barn in Lancaster County. Heating is by passive solar design, supplemented by a geothermal radiant floor system. Cooling uses a whole house fan and a passive air flow system. The passive system is created with the cupola, windows, transoms and passive venting for cooling, rather than a forced air system. Because fresh water is not available from a well nor county water, water will be provided by rainwater harvesting. The water will be collected from a gutter system, go into a series of nine holding tanks and then go through a water filtration system to provide drinking water for the home. A greywater system will then recycle water from the sinks and showers to be reused in the toilets. Low-flow fixtures will be used throughout the home to conserve water. Photo Credits: Jackson Studios

The Brighton is a 4 bedroom, 5 and one half bath model home with 6,326 square feet under air featuring a Great Room, Dining Room, Family Room, Kitchen with Cafe Area, and Study. The Family Room and Nook open up to the outdoor living area leading to the pool, spa, and Summer Kitchen, allowing for a total square footage of 9,954 square feet. The Master Suite also opens up to a Master Retreat for a cozy outdoor living experience. Fully furnished by Romanza Interior Design, London Bay’s award-winning in-house design studio, the Brighton will feature a Classic American design highlighted by an artful mix of chic and rustic elements and textural fabrics in tonal neutrals. Image © Advanced Photography Specialists

This modern, waterfront, Seattle home received a 4 Star Built Green certification. © Cindy Apple Photography
Bathroom - modern bathroom idea in Seattle

Craig Denis Photography: The boys room in WCI's "Hibiscus" Model, has a nautical inspired design with grey wood tones and blue accents.
Beach style gender-neutral dark wood floor kids' bedroom photo in Miami with beige walls

The Caaren model home designed and built by John Cannon Homes, located in Sarasota, Florida. This one-story, 3 bedroom, 3 bath home also offers a study, and family room open to the lanai and pool and spa area. Total square footage under roof is 4, 272 sq. ft. Living space under air is 2,895 sq. ft. Elegant and open, luxurious yet relaxed, the Caaren offers a variety of amenities to perfectly suit your lifestyle. From the grand pillar-framed entrance to the sliding glass walls that open to reveal an outdoor entertaining paradise, this is a home sure to be enjoyed by generations of family and friends for years to come. Gene Pollux Photography

Color: Sherwin Williams Network Gray
Transitional brown tile alcove shower photo in Minneapolis with an undermount sink, shaker cabinets and dark wood cabinets

Photo: Vicki Bodine
Eat-in kitchen - large cottage u-shaped medium tone wood floor eat-in kitchen idea in New York with a farmhouse sink, beaded inset cabinets, white cabinets, marble countertops, white backsplash, stone slab backsplash, stainless steel appliances and an island

Wish I had of taken the bath mat out of the bathroom for a better look at the floor tile we selected. As I mentioned in a previous photo, our clients really liked all of the elements of the earth, so we chose this porcelain tile that looked like tree bark. It is a beautiful tile that has so much character however doesn't steal from the great features of the rest of the space.

Compact master bathroom with spa like glass tub enclosure and rainfall shower, lots of creative storage.
Bathroom - small eclectic master white tile and subway tile slate floor bathroom idea in San Francisco with an undermount sink, white cabinets, quartz countertops, a two-piece toilet and gray walls

Photo: Mina Brinkey © 2014 Houzz
Kitchen - traditional kitchen idea in Tampa

Master bedroom Photo by Emily Sidoti Photography
Bedroom - large modern guest light wood floor bedroom idea in New York with purple walls

Shenandoah Cabinetry
Inspiration for a transitional kitchen remodel in DC Metro with shaker cabinets, gray cabinets and quartz countertops

LEED Certification Level: Platinum. The homeowners put a premium on indoor air quality and low energy consumption and recognized that quality design would allow more investment in a smaller project. A modest plan size was developed (1,700 square foot net, 1,960 square foot gross), with slab-on-grade first floor. The upper level slopes up to the south to capture sky views and solar gains; the stair allows that light and energy to flow to the main level. The front-screened porch is a reinvention of the traditional front porch — a place to socialize, enjoy the outdoors and enjoy fire on cool evenings. Great care was taken in specifying non-toxic materials: no-added formaldehyde cabinet construction with water-borne finishes, zero VOC, nontoxic floor finish and paints, Greenguard certified drywall and subfloor adhesives, caulks, and sealants, salvaged wood (not previously finished), etc. Third-party air quality testing showed total VOC of only 48 parts per billion prior to move in, and formaldehyde of 46ppb. The CARB residential formaldehyde guideline is below 27ppb for residential chronic exposure. Since we had no specified added-formaldehyde construction materials, our count is likely due to furniture and other off-gassing, and will drop as the house is ventilated. Mold readings were below outdoor air. An energy monitoring system was installed so the owners and design team can track energy use compared to modeled predictions. Measured results also contribute to a clearer understanding of energy use for future energy models across the industry, which is one of PHIUS’ objectives. Although early in occupancy, the owners appear to be running this all-electric house at about 500kWh per month, below the modeled prediction. The owners plan to install a PV array within the next year.

Like this Plan? See more of this project on our website http://gokeesee.com/homeplans HOME PLAN ID: C13-03186-62A Taryn Meeks

Small cottage black two-story wood house exterior photo in Austin with a shed roof and a metal roof

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. Built by Exact Builders, landscape design by Shades Of Green, photos by John Sutton Photography & Philip Liang Photography.

K&P Builder's presents their beautiful Villager VI model home at Kingsview, in White Plains, MD. This home is located in Charles County. The home features a brick front, a sunroom addition, a morning room addition and various room bumpouts. The base home is about 3100sf above grade. This model home, including all room additions and bumpous, totals around 3,840sf above grade with an 1800+sf basement. Affordably price, in Charles County Maryland. K&P Builders is a custom home builder!

Southwest kitchen photo in Austin

The Mazama house is located in the Methow Valley of Washington State, a secluded mountain valley on the eastern edge of the North Cascades, about 200 miles northeast of Seattle. The house has been carefully placed in a copse of trees at the easterly end of a large meadow. Two major building volumes indicate the house organization. A grounded 2-story bedroom wing anchors a raised living pavilion that is lifted off the ground by a series of exposed steel columns. Seen from the access road, the large meadow in front of the house continues right under the main living space, making the living pavilion into a kind of bridge structure spanning over the meadow grass, with the house touching the ground lightly on six steel columns. The raised floor level provides enhanced views as well as keeping the main living level well above the 3-4 feet of winter snow accumulation that is typical for the upper Methow Valley. To further emphasize the idea of lightness, the exposed wood structure of the living pavilion roof changes pitch along its length, so the roof warps upward at each end. The interior exposed wood beams appear like an unfolding fan as the roof pitch changes. The main interior bearing columns are steel with a tapered “V”-shape, recalling the lightness of a dancer. The house reflects the continuing FINNE investigation into the idea of crafted modernism, with cast bronze inserts at the front door, variegated laser-cut steel railing panels, a curvilinear cast-glass kitchen counter, waterjet-cut aluminum light fixtures, and many custom furniture pieces. The house interior has been designed to be completely integral with the exterior. The living pavilion contains more than twelve pieces of custom furniture and lighting, creating a totality of the designed environment that recalls the idea of Gesamtkunstverk, as seen in the work of Josef Hoffman and the Viennese Secessionist movement in the early 20th century. The house has been designed from the start as a sustainable structure, with 40% higher insulation values than required by code, radiant concrete slab heating, efficient natural ventilation, large amounts of natural lighting, water-conserving plumbing fixtures, and locally sourced materials. Windows have high-performance LowE insulated glazing and are equipped with concealed shades. A radiant hydronic heat system with exposed concrete floors allows lower operating temperatures and higher occupant comfort levels. The concrete slabs conserve heat and provide great warmth and comfort for the feet. Deep roof overhangs, built-in shades and high operating clerestory windows are used to reduce heat gain in summer months. During the winter, the lower sun angle is able to penetrate into living spaces and passively warm the exposed concrete floor. Low VOC paints and stains have been used throughout the house. The high level of craft evident in the house reflects another key principle of sustainable design: build it well and make it last for many years! Photo by NIls Finne