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Kitchen: Keskin mixed antique brass, antique bronze and stainless steel in the hardware and appliances, as well as old-fashioned butcher block with gray Caesarstone countertops. White cabinetry lets the mix of materials shine. Cabinets: Dynasty, Omega; perimeter countertop: Raw Concrete, Caesarstone; pendant lights: Rejuvenation; stools: John Vogel, West Elm
Family room: Built-in window seats flank a fireplace with hexagonal Carrara marble tile. A large sectional provides space for lounging, watching TV and entertaining. Pillows with a mix of patterns and colors keep the room from feeling too formal, as do the midcentury modern chair and tree stump table. Sectional: Room & Board; chair: Crate & Barrel; gray poufs: Jaipur; woven wood shades and white plantation shutters: Hunter Douglas
Jamie Keskin Design SaveEmail Entry hall: The foyer “sets the tone” for the entire house, Keskin says. A vintage Turkish rug paired with a custom metal and reclaimed wood console table establishes an “eclectic, harmonious” feel. “The wainscoting adds a traditional element,” Keskin says, “but it’s not formal or stuffy.” Wall paint throughout the first floor: Silver Satin, Benjamin Moore; flooring: Alta Vista in Laguna, Hallmark
Tucked away in the woods next to a stream on the property is a screened-in wooden structure that Hestle calls The Summer House. She built this in 1996. “I just had a dream to have a getaway from the world … just quiet and simple. It is used for solitude and occasionally for dinner and an evening with friends,” she says. “It is wonderful to sit and read and relax here. All of the stones on the fireplace came from the streambed. I call this my little gem, and every moment I get to spend here is special!”
Hex tile splurge: The hex tile backsplash was a material splurge, its installation limited to the wall surface behind the tub and vanity splash areas. Its white glaze varies between opaque and a thin wash, giving it an organic, more textured appearance. A thin tile liner caps off the unfinished top edge. Hex tile: from Discover Tile, Boston Design Center
Curran & Sons Construction Inc. SaveEmail Dark accents: Faucets with a black finish provide a punch of contrast, but finding light fixtures to match proved challenging. “I don’t like a mess of too many finishes in a bathroom,” Crestin says. She settled on sconces in a coordinating dark bronze. Medicine cabinet: PL Series, Robern; undermount sink: Vero, Duravit; faucets: Odin Widespread Lavatory Faucet, Brizo; sconces: Thomas O’Brien Ziyi, Visual Comfort
Curran & Sons Construction Inc. SaveEmail Custom vanities: Curran left the custom vanity front panels unstained to emphasize the natural beauty of the white oak. They are sealed with a clear protective finish. Two middle drawers are accessed by a carved finger notch, while the top and bottom panels are stationary.
6. Less seating, more storage. Don’t feel that your kitchen island or peninsula has to feature half a dozen places to sit. If you live with just one other person and rarely entertain, or have a separate dining space that you use more frequently, consider trading seating capacity for storage capacity. Here, two counter stools allow additional base cabinetry to the left.
Sullivan Building & Design Group SaveEmail 5. The right range hood. With all the choices that go into designing a kitchen, it’s only natural to feel some selection fatigue at some point. But don’t lose steam, especially when it comes to choosing a range hood, which can establish an eye-catching focal point or recede to let another element become the star. This week, Houzz writer and editor Erin Carlyle has broken down how to get your range hood right.
3. Rug in the kitchen. Here’s another feature that I feel like I’ve been seeing a lot more of lately: a rug in the kitchen. Perhaps it dovetails with the trend of white kitchen cabinets as a way to bring add warmth and color. It also helps add softness underfoot. Go for busy patterns like those of classic kilims, shown here, to help hide spills.
2. Dedicated storage. If you’ve got a collection, nothing beats custom storage dedicated to organizing and displaying your items. Spending a little extra time, attention and money with a designer and cabinetmaker to maximize space, function and accessibility will help you take care of your collection and give you peace of mind. Here, a collection of essential oils in a home office gets special treatment.
Natalie Clayman Interior Design SaveEmail Shower tile: Clayman incorporated two types of tile on the shower walls by using large square tiles on the bottom and smaller hexagon tiles on the top. Clayman felt that the hexagon tile pattern was too busy to use throughout the shower, so she paired it with a visually simpler tile. “It’s about scale and proportion,” she says. “Using two smaller tiles with patterns would have been overkill.” Pro tip: When you mix different tiles, the key is to choose ones that aren’t too similar, Clayman says.
Shower: The shower gained space on two sides during the remodel, solving the cramped shower issue. On one side, the tub now takes up less space. On the other side, Clayman pushed back the wall, taking space from a closet in the next room. These two changes resulted in a shower twice the size of the original.
Fixtures: One of Clayman’s biggest challenges was balancing the couple’s personal style preferences for modern and traditional. Clayman ended up incorporating both: a vintage faucet on the bathtub, shown here, and modern fixtures in the shower. “It took some collaboration and compromise,” she says. Faucet: California Faucets
Natalie Clayman Interior Design SaveEmail After: A freestanding tub sits next to a glass-walled shower, making the room feel more open and giving the shower more space. Clayman also played up the room’s natural light with a fresh paint color, resulting in a clean, relaxing space. Bathtub: The original tub took up a lot of room. To free up space, Clayman had a freestanding soaker tub installed. As a bonus, the visually pleasing tub adds to the spa-like vibe of the room. Bathtub: Barclay Products; paint on walls: Dewy, Sherwin-Williams
The rear addition to this California-style bungalow in Melbourne boasts a shingle-clad roof and walls. Contemporary Exterior by Jane Riddell Architects Jane Riddell Architects SaveEmail The architect applied the same slate shingle to both surfaces to create a seamless transition between the old and new parts of the home.
Cedar shingles have been used on the facade of this San Francisco house to create a highly durable exterior that requires no painting or maintenance. The traditional aesthetic and rugged appearance of the shingles stand in contrast to the sharp, geometric lines of the house, creating a natural yet modern look.
Pros Cedar shingles are resistant to harsh weather and other environmental factors. The natural weathering of wood shingles creates a textured, rugged appearance that allows a house to sit beautifully in its natural environment. Wood shingles are produced from a renewable resource, especially if harvested from a sustainable forest.
Austin Maynard Architects SaveEmail Shapes While shingles are flat, rectangular shapes, there are two types of wood shingles: shingles and shakes, and the difference is how they are made. A shingle is generated from a sawn piece of wood and is characterized by its relatively smooth surface. A shake is essentially a split piece of wood with a strongly textured and more rugged, irregular surface. Shakes may also have a thicker butt end than a shingle.
10. Channel a European getaway. Exposed ceiling beams add a rustic note to this bedroom, which has the vacation feel of a Tuscan villa or a French manor house (in fact, it’s in Toulouse). All-over white paint has a summery vibe in a room that gets plenty of light, and rather than pale tiles, as seen here, which could be a bit chilly in cooler climates, you could paint floorboards white instead. One or two pieces of old furniture scored in secondhand stores would bring some of this rustic and assembled-over-time atmosphere to your own home, with any scuffs and marks of age being a benefit.
9. Be bold with blue. This twin bedroom emphasizes the shades of sea and sky, with the patterned wallpaper taking center stage and the throws and ombré curtain fabric completing the mostly blue palette. Include neutral-toned upholstered headboards like these to give a bedroom a tailored edge, and use plain flooring to prevent pattern overload.
8. Frame a view. To appreciate summer inside a bedroom, welcome it in from the outside. Opt for a window treatment that exposes every inch of glass, like these solid shutters, to maximize the focus on the green and growing landscape. In this room, a mirror opposite the bed reflects the garden outlook to double the effect.
7. Go for painted paneling. The paneled wall and ceiling give this room a beside-the-sea look that instantly brings summer to mind. Install boards horizontally to draw the eye outward and make a narrow room look wider than it really is, and finish them in white to increase the sense of space.
BTL Property SaveEmail 4. Play up the light. A room filled with daylight is key to a summery look, so strategies that introduce as much light as possible and reflect it back into the space are vital. In this bedroom, clear stair railing ensures that the light isn’t blocked, and dark, heat-absorbing shades are avoided. Select different textures in an all-pales room to create decorative interest.
3. Dream of tropical shores. Follow the lead of this room and use a brilliant accent shade to suggest the season. Coral, both as a color and a motif, stands out against the layers of neutral shades for the floor, furniture and soft furnishings, and evokes faraway, sun-drenched locations. Keep themed touches like these to a handful for a sophisticated result.
Secret Linen Store SaveEmail 1. Dress in white linens. Nothing says summer like a bed swathed in pristine white sheets. They look cooling and help regulate body temperature naturally even on hot nights because cotton is breathable. Want a more relaxed effect than crisp cotton offers? A duvet cover, sheets and pillowcases made from pure linen, like these, have an invitingly rumpled appearance and make sleep comfortable when the nighttime temperatures stay high.
The pine desk and wall lamp are both vintage and came from Kalita’s family. The sketch on paper taped above the bed is by Nicholas Weber. Sheets: Restoration Hardware; linen pillowcases in Natural: Pottery Barn; wall sconce: Pottery Barn; bed: West Elm
The pine desk and wall lamp are both vintage and came from Kalita’s family. The sketch on paper taped above the bed is by Nicholas Weber. Sheets: Restoration Hardware; linen pillowcases in Natural: Pottery Barn; wall sconce: Pottery Barn; bed: West Elm
Kalita’s bedroom is a crisp and clean oasis with a quiet and neutral aesthetic. “When I first moved, I was high on this aesthetically vivid and inspiring vacation I took with my then-boyfriend to Austin,” she says. “We fell hard for this minimalist hotel, the Hotel San José. Since my new place had concrete floors just like the hotel, I tried to replicate the look with a block-print duvet I purchased from the gift shop, pulling vibrant greens and reds out of it for decor. Mistake! I loved it for about two weeks. Once I transitioned from vacation mode, I appreciated that I require a much quieter aesthetic in my bedroom. It’s been white sheets and neutral accents since then. I sleep better.”
“My most contented domestic moment at home is when I’m preparing dinner for my friends,” Kalita says. “I guess the contentment starts even before they come over, when I’m listening to a podcast or bossa nova, experimenting with table settings, in the weeds of the food prep, anticipating the night ahead. I like the adjacency of the kitchen and dining spaces then, because I can multitask without missing podcast snippets moving from room to room.” Credenza: Organic Modernism (no longer available); floor lamp: vintage Panthella by Verner Panton, Craigslist
“My most contented domestic moment at home is when I’m preparing dinner for my friends,” Kalita says. “I guess the contentment starts even before they come over, when I’m listening to a podcast or bossa nova, experimenting with table settings, in the weeds of the food prep, anticipating the night ahead. I like the adjacency of the kitchen and dining spaces then, because I can multitask without missing podcast snippets moving from room to room.” Credenza: Organic Modernism (no longer available); floor lamp: vintage Panthella by Verner Panton, Craigslist
Interior designer Alex Kalita and her former roommate and friend of 20-plus years started with a fresh white canvas when moving into their newly renovated rental apartment in Brooklyn in 2011. “The building owners’ gut renovation of the rental units wrapped up just days before we moved in, so everything from the appliances to the flooring to the drywall was brand-new,” Kalita says. “I’m instinctually a ‘fixer,’ but the work was so thoughtful that I was at a loss for what to fix.” When her friend moved in 2015, Kalita took over the lease. For the past six years, she’s spent time placing each furniture piece with careful consideration as to where exactly the afternoon sun was strongest and where guests tended to congregate. Rug: Dash and Albert; pillow: Knoll Textiles Sherman in Earth; floor pillows: Knoll Textiles Diamond Days in Sapphire; wall lamp: Workstead; find wall sconces
Interior designer Alex Kalita and her former roommate and friend of 20-plus years started with a fresh white canvas when moving into their newly renovated rental apartment in Brooklyn in 2011. “The building owners’ gut renovation of the rental units wrapped up just days before we moved in, so everything from the appliances to the flooring to the drywall was brand-new,” Kalita says. “I’m instinctually a ‘fixer,’ but the work was so thoughtful that I was at a loss for what to fix.” When her friend moved in 2015, Kalita took over the lease. For the past six years, she’s spent time placing each furniture piece with careful consideration as to where exactly the afternoon sun was strongest and where guests tended to congregate. Rug: Dash and Albert; pillow: Knoll Textiles Sherman in Earth; floor pillows: Knoll Textiles Diamond Days in Sapphire; wall lamp: Workstead; find wall sconces
Green Line Architects SaveEmail 8. Magic treehouse. Have a treehouse or playhouse in the backyard for the kids? Consider lighting it to extend play time as the days shorten in the fall. This fantastical treehouse in Colorado even has a sleeping loft, which is sure to appeal just as much to the grownups as the kids
C.O.S Design SaveEmail 6. A lighted allee of trees. On a larger property, a path lined with trees makes an elegant way to progress from one point to another in the garden or to light the path to your front door. Encourage enchanted evening walks with uplights positioned at the base of the trees, plus landscape lighting on stakes to light up the path.
Grant and Power Landscaping SaveEmail 3. Submerged lighting. If you’ve invested in a water feature for your garden, such as a pond, waterfall or stream, help it shine after the sun goes down with submerged lighting. The glow of light under burbling water creates a magical effect, softly illuminating the landscape. Lighting designed for water features should be installed by a pro.
2. Arbor of light. An arbor, with or without plants growing overhead, is a lovely feature — play it up at night by stringing it with fairy lights. The soft glow provides just the right amount of illumination to make an outdoor gathering feel cozy. Find string lights
Mix and match lanterns. A mature tree bedecked with glowing lanterns in an assortment of sizes and shapes creates a majestic focal point in this backyard. A hammock and swing strung from its branches give kids and adults alike good reason to get out there and enjoy the glow. Tip: If you want to hang electric lights from a tree in your yard, you’ll need to hire an electrician to safely install them. Don’t want the hassle (or cost) of installing electric lighting? Solar-powered lanterns can be a good alternative.
The simple master bath continues what Coane calls the home’s “cottagey kind of feel.” Before moving here, the clients lived in a grand Italianate house, and they “wanted this house to be warm and more intimate.”
A family room off the kitchen provides comfortable seating and windows with views to the herb garden, which lies outside the back door.
Inside the home’s front entry, the living room is off to the right. Cabinets house glassware above a wet bar, which has an antiqued-mirror backsplash. Below the wet bar are a refrigerator and wine storage behind paneled cabinetry. The stairs to the left of the entry had to be rebuilt because they were too steep.
The designers and homeowners agree that their favorite design flourish is the glass tile backsplash from Architectural Ceramics. Designer Samantha Klickna says she loves the combination of materials and how the backsplash provides some depth and ties in the two different cabinet colors. “It really makes the space,” she says. The designer replaced a large range hood with a low-profile model whose thin line of stainless steel contributes to a clean cabinet-backsplash connection. The glass cabinets amplify the wow factor the clients craved, as it reintroduces the backsplash tile’s curves in a subtle way. Lights in the cabinet add ambiance along with the complementary pendants.
An array of custom cabinets from Crystal Cabinets were fabricated with two finishes: a white up top and a mushroom color below. The woman of the house loves green, and the adjacent TV room and dining spaces are replete with green accents that work well with the earthy undertones of the lower cabinetry and island. The color blends almost perfectly with the Blanco Silgranit sink, a stone composite product favored by the designers for its durability, low maintenance and wide range of color options.
Sometimes what’s right for others isn’t what’s right for you. With their three children grown out of the house with families of their own, the couple didn’t need a giant refrigerator. But they did need a lot of storage for their large collection of dishware. So Klickna and Cooley added a smaller built-in fridge, which they hid behind a sleek white paneled door, and bordered it with enough storage to give everything from teacups to small appliances its own proper home.
6. Covered with a pergola. This rooftop oasis is designed not to entertain hordes of friends, but rather to act as an idyllic hideaway from the stresses of daily life. An all-wood combination of bench, pergola, flooring and fence unifies the design elements and provides a neutral backdrop to enhance the eclectic mix of greenery. For maximum practicality, make use of the space beneath the bench, as this designer did, for storing cushions when they’re not in use.
5. Floating above greenery. This suspended bench appears to hover between the walls. This type of installation requires skill to create a smooth transition between the materials. Additional planting beneath the bench softens the overall design for a more naturalistic effect.
Hill Farm Furniture Ltd SaveEmail Metal pendant lights help define the island and add another traditional-style element to the kitchen. Enna pendant lights: Moretti Luce via Broughtons of Leicester. Find more metal pendant lights
Hill Farm Furniture Ltd SaveEmail There’s no waiting for the kettle to boil here; the prep sink on the island features a Quooker hot, cold and boiling water dispenser. The Case for 2 Kitchen Sinks
Paint: Smoke (cabinets) and Elephant-Grey (island), Zoffany
Hill Farm Furniture Ltd SaveEmail Central to the new kitchen is a large island packed with integrated storage and featuring a sitting area at one end. When it came to challenges, the most awkward element of planning the kitchen was where to put the refrigerator. “It was built into an existing chimney [bump-out],” Ashwin says. “We placed some paneling on the front to disguise it so it just looked like tall units.” Next to the built-in fridge is a built-in microwave and oven. Weathered oak stools: Cox & Cox.
Aged copper pendants bring old-world charm to this stunning English kitchen.
A corner sectional, grill and fireplace create a warm outdoor living space with views of Los Angeles. “The thing we most often brag about is the view,” Zimny says. “Anytime we’re home to catch the sunset, we feel especially lucky to call this place ours.” Calanthe sectional: Wayfair; Acapulco side chair: Wayfair; pillows: Decolic, Etsy; Red Ember Tucson 36-inch gas fire bowl: Hayneedle
floor tile: Carrara marble hex tile; faucet: Vigo VG03009MB, Build; shower curtain: Locust Wyatt space-dyed: Urban Outfitters
The backyard originally didn’t have any lawn, just 4-by-4-foot pavers, many of which were cracked and broken. “It was like a toe-stubbing minefield back there,” Krefman says. He and McFarland removed the broken slabs, then repositioned the ones in good shape to create areas for dining and lounging. The rest they covered in lawn. “It’s more parklike and usable than before,” Krefman says.
The deck to the right is original. The couple added the raised deck in the background to create more of a fluid extended living space off the kitchen.
Lowering the ceiling of an outdoor room can make an open area feel less exposed. In this backyard in Marin County in Northern California, a movable shade sail set on wires provides cover from the sun and makes the space feel more intimate. Other ways to lower the ceiling of your outdoor room: Build a pergola, plant trees to provide a leafy canopy or hang crisscrossing string lights overhead.
Jamie Keskin Design SaveEmail Kids’ bathroom: Ceramic faux wood tile along the back wall pairs with a trough sink to give the room a “warm, rustic, camp-like” vibe, Keskin says. Penny tile on the floor in a happy shade of aqua softens the rugged feel of the tile. A white sconce “looks like it belongs outdoors,” Keskin says. Sink: Brockway cast iron, Kohler Builder: Giannetta Real Estate & Construction
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