bev080968's Ideas
Photos by Gibeon Photography House at a Glance Who lives here: An active family that includes three kids Size: Four bedroomsLocation: Whitefish, MontantaDesigners: Hunter Dominick of Hunter and Company Interior Design and Stillwater ArchitectureBuilder: Bear Mountain Builders Who ever said treehouses are only for kids? For a family of hikers, skiers and mountain bikers, this mountaintop lot was the perfect place to build a new home. “The house was designed to slip into the side of a mountain,” says designer Hunter Dominick. “The shiplap coastal cedar siding and plaster mixed to mimic steel were selected to bring the house in tune with the West in terms of materials. It’s what we call mountain modern.”
11. Use a statement headboard. A tufted cobalt wingback headboard gives the bed a strong presence and, along with the artwork, brings in some color. More of the elegant wall paneling anchors the headboard wall and provides cohesion with the rest of the house. A special chandelier adds texture and the soft industrial look overhead. Walls: Unusual Gray, SW 7059; trim: Pure White SW 7005, both Sherwin-Williams
The bed and accent wall: The built-in bed and teak wall were a collaboration with the interior designer, Nancy Burfiend. The headboard incorporates the nightstands, creating a pleasing, cohesive look. The linear fireplace is wrapped in a custom steel surround and ledge. And the size and placement of the headboard band plays off the band of negative space on the fireplace.
The master bedroom’s walk-in closet has sliding doors that open to a walnut cabinet with a mirror that draws in light and also reflects the city views.Browse more homes by style: Apartments | Barn Homes | Colorful Homes | Contemporary Homes | Eclectic Homes | Farmhouses | Floating Homes | Guesthouses | Homes Around the World | Lofts | Midcentury Homes | Modern Homes | Ranch Homes | Small Homes | Townhouses | Traditional Homes | Transitional Homes | Vacation Homes
Photos by Aaron LeitzHouse at a GlanceWho lives here: A couple with three kidsLocation: San FranciscoSize: Five bedroomsArchitect: Joo Oh of Sutro ArchitectsThis home was built from the ground up for a family of five. It was designed by the team at Sutro Architects with the aim of creating a contemporary home with heart that incorporates warm materials throughout. The exterior of the house features what architect Joo Oh describes as “glass boxes” stacked on top of the garage. Anodized aluminum painted black demarcate the boxes, with glazed windows at the corners to give the interior spaces unobstructed views. White stucco walls and metal slats on the upper level add texture.
The patios extend the living space and create a seamless transition between inside and out. A fireplace of cold-rolled steel in the living room stretches along the length of the wall, with the fireplace opening on one side and the TV mounted on the other. Cabling for the house’s many audio and visual devices is housed off to the side to keep the walls free of clutter.
A comfortable seating area in the great room invites conversation by the fireplace. “The owner is not a formal person,” Miller says. “He wants to have a place where you can put your feet up and not worry about what the grandchildren are doing.”Sofas, cocktail table, floor lamp and end table: Holly Hunt; armchair: Michael Berman Limited; table lamp: Philip Nimmo Design
Living room: Since I mentioned that they swapped the living room and dining room spaces, it’s only fair to show how that worked out. This is the space shown in the previous photo.Takeaways Don’t feel confined by how your existing rooms are defined. Try swapping them around if your layout isn’t working for you.Going bold with wallpaper can infuse a room with your personal style.When it comes to a ho-hum element like the door to the basement, realize that it can be a design opportunity.Glass cabinet doors are great for displaying everyday items as well as special objects. An appliance wall can get a lot of the bulky stuff out of the way visually.Make your island stand out by painting it a color that’s different from the rest of your cabinets, and by using a different countertop material.More: See other Kitchens of the Week
This side of the island contains a dishwasher, utensil drawers, pullout bins for trash and recycling, and that open slot for cutting boards. On the other side Alton was able to add cabinets for scads more storage. “My clients told me they can’t believe that they got so much storage that they actually wound up with an empty cabinet,” she says.Flooring: Alton replaced all of the flooring on the first level with a French white oak. It’s been wire-brushed to give it an aged look. Cabinet paint: Whitestone, Benjamin Moore; hardware: Channing series, Top Knobs; flooring: Alta Vista in Laguna, Hallmark Floors
Color palette: Alton talked her clients out of going with the all-white approach. There are three shades of blue happening in the kitchen: navy on the china cabinet wall, icy gray-blue on the island and a true indigo on the sliding door to the basement.Sliding door: We don’t often think of a utilitarian door to a basement as a missed design opportunity, but Alton does. “I have seen so many of these types of houses that I always know exactly where the basement door is. This one adds a little mystery and is more fun than your typical swing door,” she says. The paneled door was a great opportunity to bring in texture, color and personality.Sliding-door paint: Indigo Batik, Sherwin-Williams
Style: Alton’s clients were a bit fearful about color and unsure about pattern, so part of her job was to help them open to the possibility and commit. “Sometimes I have to say to my clients, ‘Do you want a kitchen just like everyone else has or do you want to show off that you are confident with your own style?’ ” she says. In this case, they went for the oversize botanical wallpaper she’d found for the wall behind the glass cabinets, and it completely makes the room. Must-have: The clients also love to play around with their personal style and needed storage for that. “She loves to switch her decor up seasonally,” Alton says. “Now she can show off her decorations in the glass cabinets and store the ones that are out of season underneath.” Wallpaper: Leaf, Harlequin; check out more blue botanical wallpapers
Lights and plants
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