Photo Credit: Michael Hospelt
Example of a mid-sized minimalist l-shaped medium tone wood floor and brown floor eat-in kitchen design in San Francisco with an undermount sink, flat-panel cabinets, light wood cabinets, granite countertops, blue backsplash, ceramic backsplash, stainless steel appliances, a peninsula and black countertops

Homeowners in Rhinebeck desired an elevated patio offering views of a nearby valley and accessibility. A stone staircase designed to become a natural part of the hillside meanders upward toward the patio and connects to an existing pool. Plantings add to the natural feel and help the patio and stairway blend with the surroundings.

Inspiration for a mid-century modern home bar remodel in Seattle

Terrace runoff is directed toward a bridge and falls between pavers into the acequia below. Salvaged and matched bricks weave ‘desire-lines’ across the entertainment terrace to other rooms in the landscape. photo: Kate Russell

This 14,000sf estate sits on four acres in Montecito overlooking the green rolling hills and ocean beyond. This architectural style was inspired by the villas around Lake Como in northern Italy. The formal central part of the home contains the formal rooms, while the less formal areas are reflected in simpler detailing, more rustic materials, and more irregular building forms. The property terraces towards the view and includes a koi pond, pool with cabana, greenhouse, bocce court, and a small vineyard.

Sited on a hill sloping towards eastern views of Lake Washington and the Cascade Mountains beyond, this home for a vibrant family of four carefully weaves together their rituals of daily life with an awareness of the site's existing natural elements. Garden courts washed in natural light and lush with native vegetation are delicately carved out between earthen concrete masses, giving a meditative pause between the active living spaces. These negative spaces create a foreground of intimacy with light, earth, air, and native plantings, in contrast to the expansive framed vistas of water, mountains, and sky that are ever present in the distance beyond. The upper volume nestles the bedroom spaces into tree canopies above, modulating daylight, privacy and views with delicate wooden screens. The home acts as a lens that gives material presence to the ephemeral qualities of life and place.

This 14,000sf estate sits on four acres in Montecito overlooking the green rolling hills and ocean beyond. This architectural style was inspired by the villas around Lake Como in northern Italy. The formal central part of the home contains the formal rooms, while the less formal areas are reflected in simpler detailing, more rustic materials, and more irregular building forms. The property terraces towards the view and includes a koi pond, pool with cabana, greenhouse, bocce court, and a small vineyard.

With adjacent neighbors within a fairly dense section of Paradise Valley, Arizona, C.P. Drewett sought to provide a tranquil retreat for a new-to-the-Valley surgeon and his family who were seeking the modernism they loved though had never lived in. With a goal of consuming all possible site lines and views while maintaining autonomy, a portion of the house — including the entry, office, and master bedroom wing — is subterranean. This subterranean nature of the home provides interior grandeur for guests but offers a welcoming and humble approach, fully satisfying the clients requests. While the lot has an east-west orientation, the home was designed to capture mainly north and south light which is more desirable and soothing. The architecture’s interior loftiness is created with overlapping, undulating planes of plaster, glass, and steel. The woven nature of horizontal planes throughout the living spaces provides an uplifting sense, inviting a symphony of light to enter the space. The more voluminous public spaces are comprised of stone-clad massing elements which convert into a desert pavilion embracing the outdoor spaces. Every room opens to exterior spaces providing a dramatic embrace of home to natural environment. Grand Award winner for Best Interior Design of a Custom Home The material palette began with a rich, tonal, large-format Quartzite stone cladding. The stone’s tones gaveforth the rest of the material palette including a champagne-colored metal fascia, a tonal stucco system, and ceilings clad with hemlock, a tight-grained but softer wood that was tonally perfect with the rest of the materials. The interior case goods and wood-wrapped openings further contribute to the tonal harmony of architecture and materials. Grand Award Winner for Best Indoor Outdoor Lifestyle for a Home This award-winning project was recognized at the 2020 Gold Nugget Awards with two Grand Awards, one for Best Indoor/Outdoor Lifestyle for a Home, and another for Best Interior Design of a One of a Kind or Custom Home. At the 2020 Design Excellence Awards and Gala presented by ASID AZ North, Ownby Design received five awards for Tonal Harmony. The project was recognized for 1st place – Bathroom; 3rd place – Furniture; 1st place – Kitchen; 1st place – Outdoor Living; and 2nd place – Residence over 6,000 square ft. Congratulations to Claire Ownby, Kalysha Manzo, and the entire Ownby Design team. Tonal Harmony was also featured on the cover of the July/August 2020 issue of Luxe Interiors + Design and received a 14-page editorial feature entitled “A Place in the Sun” within the magazine.

We removed the pergola and existing concrete and filled in with sod and drains with the negative drainage towards the house. We covered the door exiting the house and raised the roof line to 9' and vaulted the interior ceiling to 10' to maximize volume. At the back of the space we added a 10' kitchen with granite, 32" grill, propane drawer, 2-drawer & paper towel holder combo, and space for a Large Big Green Egg. The salt finish concrete gives an added look more than the standard broom finish. The columns are built out and given dimension with exterior trim materials. We installed a 6" pre-stained tongue and groove ceiling along with 6" eyeball recess cans to give directional lighting. TK Images

We designed this 3,162 square foot home for empty-nesters who love lake life. Functionally, the home accommodates multiple generations. Elderly in-laws stay for prolonged periods, and the homeowners are thinking ahead to their own aging in place. This required two master suites on the first floor. Accommodations were made for visiting children upstairs. Aside from the functional needs of the occupants, our clients desired a home which maximizes indoor connection to the lake, provides covered outdoor living, and is conducive to entertaining. Our concept celebrates the natural surroundings through materials, views, daylighting, and building massing. We placed all main public living areas along the rear of the house to capitalize on the lake views while efficiently stacking the bedrooms and bathrooms in a two-story side wing. Secondary support spaces are integrated across the front of the house with the dramatic foyer. The front elevation, with painted green and natural wood siding and soffits, blends harmoniously with wooded surroundings. The lines and contrasting colors of the light granite wall and silver roofline draws attention toward the entry and through the house to the real focus: the water. The one-story roof over the garage and support spaces takes flight at the entry, wraps the two-story wing, turns, and soars again toward the lake as it approaches the rear patio. The granite wall extending from the entry through the interior living space is mirrored along the opposite end of the rear covered patio. These granite bookends direct focus to the lake.

Transitional living room photo in New York

The entry sets the tone with clean architectural lines and a restrained material palette. A steel-framed glass door introduces light and transparency, while wide-plank oak floors and streamlined stair detailing create a calm, modern foundation. The open sightline toward the mudroom reinforces thoughtful planning and everyday function, establishing a refined backdrop for the home’s layered furnishings.

Homeowners in Rhinebeck desired an elevated patio offering views of a nearby valley and accessibility. A stone staircase designed to become a natural part of the hillside meanders upward toward the patio and connects to an existing pool. Plantings add to the natural feel and help the patio and stairway blend with the surroundings.

This residential compound includes a primary residence, guesthouse, barn, dining pavilion and entry gate. The distinctive form of the architecture is derived from the Teton Range extending to the south. To respond to this phenomenon, the ridge of the gable roof is angled to allow the north wall to gently rise toward the west, mimicking the line of the mountains. The south wall naturally rises to the east capturing the preferred morning light. The materials - wood, rusted steel, copper panels, and stone - form a monochromatic palette to reinforce the sculptural energy of each building. A.I.A. Western Mountain Region Design Award of Citation 2005 A.I.A. Wyoming Chapter Design Award of Honor 2004 Project Year: Pre-2005

Example of a 1950s kitchen design in Seattle

This home is a simply styled version of the MossCreek Pin Oak home plan. The home's lines were kept clean and uncluttered with a nod toward a modern aesthetic on the interiors. The design of the home capitalizes on the views and works perfectly with the lot upon which it is built.

Resting upon a 120-acre rural hillside, this 17,500 square-foot residence has unencumbered mountain views to the east, south and west. The exterior design palette for the public side is a more formal Tudor style of architecture, including intricate brick detailing; while the materials for the private side tend toward a more casual mountain-home style of architecture with a natural stone base and hand-cut wood siding. Primary living spaces and the master bedroom suite, are located on the main level, with guest accommodations on the upper floor of the main house and upper floor of the garage. The interior material palette was carefully chosen to match the stunning collection of antique furniture and artifacts, gathered from around the country. From the elegant kitchen to the cozy screened porch, this residence captures the beauty of the White Mountains and embodies classic New Hampshire living. Photographer: Joseph St. Pierre

The Roger Lee designed house from 1962 was purchased by the current homeowners in almost original condition, as the previous owners elected to defer most maintenance projects over the years. The clients were able to see beyond the dated materials and finishes, single-paned glass and uninsulated walls and they approached Klopf Architecture to help them expand and update the entire home, one the family could settle into and enjoy for years to come. It was important that the new designs were aligned with Lee's original intent not only because of the client's appreciation for mid-century modern architecture, but also because the house was deemed historical. The Stanford Real Estate Office requires a stringent design review which safeguards the integrity of the community, which Klopf Architecture was happy to oblige going into their updated designs. As with many original mid-century modern homes, the house was scaled to the 1960s lifestyle where rooms were smaller and openings to views were limited and tightly framed. The original conditions defined the direction the family of four would take in updating the house and making it comfortable for their modern lifestyle. Klopf designed a full gut remodel and major addition to bring the house into the 21st century and provide the living area needed for the client's family. The newly expanded house added just about 1,100 sf to create an airy, comfortable and family friendly house, taking full advantage of the beautiful southwestern views that extend out to the hills beyond. The enclosed garage created an additional 240 sf of covered space for long-term storage. A cracked swimming pool created an eyesore taking up a majority of the backyard landscape, so it was one of the first elements to go during the transformation. Working with Outer Space Landscape Architects, the family asked for a mix of relaxing outdoor patio spaces that eventually blend into the native landscaping, extending their views outward toward the natural greenery of the trees beyond their property. Filling in the old pool was a smart way to expand the living spaces outward. The orientation of the house was designed to enjoy the views, but the original architecture provided the first homeowners with mere glimpses of the landscape outside. Klopf was able to broaden those views, continuing and extending on the original architecture to take full advantage of the unobstructed natural views across the rear facade of the house. Small horizontal openings in the primary bedroom and office were replaced with much taller windows that now follow the angled roof line upward, extending across almost all of the facade. We worked with Western Windows, whose designs included an oblique-shaped, operable casement that allowed our design to rise with the slope. A new corner office added to the primary suite, offers a bright and functional work-from-home solution that looks out at the distant views and added natural light from the expanded window configuration that now wraps around the corner. The existing lower level was designed by Lee as a utilitarian space, serving as a wet pool room with a drain in the center of the floor, bathroom, laundry and storage areas. Without the need for a pool room, Klopf was able to convert the area into a much more comfortable and functional living space with a new family room and guest suite. The new spaces enjoy easy access to a new outdoor patio through floor to ceiling, full-width glass sliders. Continuing along the rear facade, a previously exposed deck extending from the living room and hallway provided access to the backyard through a single set of stairs leading toward the side of the house which made sense when the pool was in place. The new deck was re-envisioned as an extension of the main living room and now serves as a second outdoor living room. A new slatted pergola above provides the homeowners welcome relief from the hot afternoon sun. A second set of stairs now creates a better connection to the redesigned lower level. Klopf was able to reconfigure the spaces, extending the living room outward toward the views, where the family now claims it as the heart of the home, spending a large majority of their time outdoors. Back inside, the original wood-burning Malm fireplace was beautifully restored and a gas burner installed to comply with California's strict air standards. It now rests in front of a wall of Heath accent tiles where a dated red brick wall used to stand. A new taller window brings more light and views into the refreshed interior living room. The original glass doors opposite the fireplace were replaced by larger sliders that when fully opened, create a seamless transition to the new outdoor living area so the two spaces feel like one connected space. The original utilitarian kitchen was needlessly tucked into the far back corner and closed-off, out of sight from the living room, so the clients asked Klopf to open it up and expand the kitchen forward so it felt more connected. Today the much larger kitchen is connected to the living area where a short wall with a cutout offers a visual glimpse into the kitchen and a handy pass-through counter for serving guests. A new breakfast nook was also added to create another spot where the family can gather for casual meals. Just outside, a new built-in outdoor grill and prep area extends the kitchen outside and connects to a new outdoor dining spot nestled amongst the trees, taking advantage of the views out back. Klopf was able to expand the other two bedrooms, add a new laundry room and half-bath and convert the carport to an enclosed garage to add more storage areas which was lost when the pool house was converted to the family and guest room. To maintain a historical connection to the original designs, the exterior siding was repeated on all exterior walls, a full-height stained glass window at the front entryway restored, and an interior slatted screen element repeated outside at the exterior entry courtyard and over the new outdoor living room to create a shade trellis. The new house stands proudly and shines against it's new landscaping features, while respecting and expanding on the original intent of Roger Lee's designs epitomizing the comforts of indoor-outdoor living in Northern California. Completion year: 2020 Klopf Architecture project team: John Klopf, Klara Kevane, Noel Andrade Contractor: ORB Construction, Brendan O'Reilly Structural engineer: Sezen and Moon Landscape architect: Outer space Furnishings and decoration: Urbanism Designs Photographer: Mariko Reed

Sited on a hill sloping towards eastern views of Lake Washington and the Cascade Mountains beyond, this home for a vibrant family of four carefully weaves together their rituals of daily life with an awareness of the site's existing natural elements. Garden courts washed in natural light and lush with native vegetation are delicately carved out between earthen concrete masses, giving a meditative pause between the active living spaces. These negative spaces create a foreground of intimacy with light, earth, air, and native plantings, in contrast to the expansive framed vistas of water, mountains, and sky that are ever present in the distance beyond. The upper volume nestles the bedroom spaces into tree canopies above, modulating daylight, privacy and views with delicate wooden screens. The home acts as a lens that gives material presence to the ephemeral qualities of life and place.