Photo: Rikki Snyder © 2016 Houzz
Example of a mountain style home design design in New York

Audrey Hall Photography
Seated home bar - small rustic single-wall light wood floor and beige floor seated home bar idea with stainless steel countertops and gray countertops

This room is ready to go on game day. Equipped with 5 televisions, a sound bar, a hidden subwoofer. Speakers are installed in the ceiling as well (not in the photo), and all of this can be controlled while relaxing on the coach holding an iPad.

Adjacent to the home gym, this spacious bathroom has cubbies for workout clothes and equipment, as well as toilet, shower and built-in vanity. Two walls feature the shiplap and the other, shares the subway tile from the shower.

It's Christmas in July! This homeowner was interested in adding an outdoor space that would be continuous with their indoor living area. The large windows that separate the 2 spaces allows for their home to have a very open feel. They went with a contemporary craftsman style with clean straight lines in the columns and beams on the ceiling. The stone veneer fireplace, framed with full masonry block, with reclaimed Hemlock mantle as the centerpiece attraction and the stained pine tongue and groove vaulted ceiling gives the space a dramatic look. The columns have a stacked stone base that complements the stone on the fireplace and kitchen fascia. The light travertine flooring is a perfect balance for the dark stone on the column bases and knee walls beside the fireplace as well as the darker stained cedar beams and stones in the fireplace. The outdoor kitchen with stainless steel tile backsplash is equipped with a gas grill and a Big Green Egg as well as a fridge and storage space. This space is 525 square feet and is the perfect spot for any gathering. The patio is surrounded by stained concrete stepping stones with black star gravel. The original second story windows were replaced with smaller windows in order to allow for a proper roof pitch. TK IMAGES

©Finished Basement Company TV wall with balanced bookshelves and built in cabinets.
Example of a large classic look-out porcelain tile and beige floor basement design in Denver with beige walls and no fireplace

This LEED Platinum certified house reflects the homeowner's desire for an exceptionally healthy and comfortable living environment, within a traditional neighborhood. INFILL SITE. The family, who moved from another area of Wellesley, sought out this property to be within walking distance of the high school and downtown area. An existing structure on the tight lot was removed to make way for the new home. 84% of the construction waste, from both the previous structure and the new home, was diverted from a landfill. ZED designed to preserve the existing mature trees on the perimeter of the property to minimize site impacts, and to maintain the character of the neighborhood as well as privacy on the site. EXTERIOR EXPRESSION. The street facade of the home relates to the local New England vernacular. The rear uses contemporary language, a nod to the family’s Californian roots, to incorporate a roof deck, solar panels, outdoor living space, and the backyard swimming pool. ZED’s careful planning avoided to the need to face the garage doors towards the street, a common syndrome of a narrow lot. THOUGHTFUL SPACE. Homes with dual entries can often result in duplicate and unused spaces. In this home, the everyday and formal entry areas are one and the same; the front and garage doors share the entry program of coat closets, mudroom storage with bench for removing your shoes, and a laundry room with generous closets for the children's sporting equipment. The entry area leads directly to the living space, encompassing the kitchen, dining and sitting area areas in an L-shaped open plan arrangement. The kitchen is placed at the south-west corner of the space to allow for a strong connection to the dining, sitting and outdoor living spaces. A fire pit on the deck satisfies the family’s desire for an open flame while a sealed gas fireplace is used indoors - ZED’s preference after omitting gas burning appliances completely from an airtight home. A small study, with a window seat, is conveniently located just off of the living space. A first floor guest bedroom includes an accessible bathroom for aging visitors and can be used as a master suite to accommodate aging in place. HEALTHY LIVING. The client requested a home that was easy to clean and would provide a respite from seasonal allergies and common contaminants that are found in many indoor spaces. ZED selected easy to clean solid surface flooring throughout, provided ample space for cleaning supplies on each floor, and designed a mechanical system with ventilation that provides a constant supply of fresh outdoor air. ZED selected durable materials, finishes, cabinetry, and casework with low or no volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and no added urea formaldehyde. YEAR-ROUND COMFORT. The home is super insulated and air-tight, paired with high performance triple-paned windows, to ensure it is draft-free throughout the winter (even when in front of the large windows and doors). ZED designed a right-sized heating and cooling system to pair with the thermally improved building enclosure to ensure year-round comfort. The glazing on the home maximizes passive solar gains, and facilitates cross ventilation and daylighting. ENERGY EFFICIENT. As one of the most energy efficient houses built to date in Wellesley, the home highlights a practical solution for Massachusetts. First, the building enclosure reduces the largest energy requirement for typical houses (heating). Super-insulation, exceptional air sealing, a thermally broken wall assembly, triple pane windows, and passive solar gain combine for a sizable heating load reduction. Second, within the house only efficient systems consume energy. These include an air source heat pump for heating & cooling, a heat pump hot water heater, LED lighting, energy recovery ventilation, and high efficiency appliances. Lastly, photovoltaics provide renewable energy help offset energy consumption. The result is an 89% reduction in energy use compared to a similar brand new home built to code requirements. RESILIENT. The home will fare well in extreme weather events. During a winter power outage, heat loss will be very slow due to the super-insulated and airtight envelope– taking multiple days to drop to 60 degrees even with no heat source. An engineered drainage system, paired with careful the detailing of the foundation, will help to keep the finished basement dry. A generator will provide full operation of the all-electric house during a power outage. OVERALL. The home is a reflection of the family goals and an expression of their values, beautifully enabling health, comfort, safety, resilience, and utility, all while respecting the planet. ZED - Architect & Mechanical Designer Bevilacqua Builders Inc - Contractor Creative Land & Water Engineering - Civil Engineering Barbara Peterson Landscape - Landscape Design Nest & Company - Interior Furnishings Eric Roth Photography - Photography

©Morgan Howarth
Photo of a traditional partial sun garden path in DC Metro.

The kitchen is well equipped with new sleek appliances and dark accented features to compliment the light colors of the room. There is plenty of storage space in the stunning white cabinets to make for efficient cooking and storage.

The Terrace Level of the Tindal Designer Model is an excellent welcome for those entering this home. Guests are greeted by a cozy keeping room equipped with a well-appointed wet bar.

Torlys "Bridgewater" Luxury Vinyl Tile. Well-equipped to conquer damp basements, kitchen spills and bathtub run-off. 100% waterproof from top to bottom.

This late 70's ranch style home was recently renovated with a clean, modern twist on the ranch style architecture of the existing residence. We were hired to create the entire outdoor environemnt including the new pool and spa. Similar to the renovated home, this aquatic environment was designed to take a traditional pool and gives it a clean, modern twist. The site proved to be perfect for a long, sweeping curved water feature that can be seen from all of the outdoor gathering spaces as well as many rooms inside the residence. This design draws people outside and allows them to explore all of the features of the pool and outdoor spaces. Features of this resort like outdoor environment include play pool with two lounge areas with LED lit bubblers, Pebble Tec Pebble Sheen Luminous series pool finish, Lightstreams glass tile, spa with six custom copper Bobe water spillway scuppers, water feature wall with three custom copper Bobe water scuppers, Fully automated with Pentair Equipment, LED lighting throughout the pool and spa, gathering space with automated fire pit, lounge deck area, synthetic turf between step pads and deck and a fully loaded Gourmet outdoor kitchen to meet all the entertaining needs. This outdoor environment cohesively brings the clean & modern finishes of the renovated home seamlessly to the outdoors to a pool and spa for play, exercise and relaxation. Photography: Daniel Driensky

Entertainment possibilities are endless with the well-equipped outdoor kitchen standing adjacent to the pool, all set against the backdrop of a meticulously landscaped yard maintained with ease thanks to an in-ground sprinkler system

Entertainment possibilities are endless with the well-equipped outdoor kitchen standing adjacent to the pool, all set against the backdrop of a meticulously landscaped yard maintained with ease thanks to an in-ground sprinkler system

Kitchen remodeling project where the homeowners elected to upgrade their kitchen to a more transitional look by installing new cabinets. They went with the Manhattan door by Bridgewood done in Maple. The kitchen cabinets were done in the color white while the island cabinets were done in a custom navy color. To complete the new look we installed crown molding, a new Cambria quartz countertop done in Ella, a white subway backsplash and around the range we installed a custom decorative backsplash.

Home gym with cardio equipment, wood flooring and wide glass openings facing the garden.

Reclaimed brick and barn doors in Basement. Stained concrete floor. Lawrence Smith Photography
Mid-sized arts and crafts look-out basement photo in Chicago with brown walls and no fireplace

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 Benjamin Benschneider

This 1960 house was in need of updating from both design and performance standpoints, and the project turned into a comprehensive deep energy retrofit, with thorough airtightness and insulation, new space conditioning and energy-recovery-ventilation, triple glazed windows, and an interior of incredible elegance. While we maintained the foundation and overall massing, this is essentially a new house, well equipped for a new generation of use and enjoyment.