We turned one open space into two distinct spaces. The home owner opted to have the pianist face away from the room in order to allow for more seating. The goal was to enhance the home owners suite of inherited wood furniture by adding color and art. Interior Design by AJ Margulis Interiors. Photos by Paul Bartholomew

Andrea Brizzi

Located in San Rafael's sunny Dominican neighborhood, this East Coast-style brown shingle needed an infusion of color and pattern for a young family. Against the white walls in the combined entry and living room, we mixed mid-century silhouettes with bold blue, orange, lemon, and magenta shades. The living area segues to the dining room, which features an abstract graphic patterned wall covering. Across the way, a bright open kitchen allows for ample food prep and dining space. Outside we painted the poolhouse ombre teal. On the interior, we echoed the same fun colors of the home.

This photo is taken from the newly-added family room. The column in the kitchen island is where the old house ended. The dining room is to the right, and the family room is behind the photographer. Featured Project on Houzz http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/19481561/list/One-Big-Happy-Expansion-for-Michigan-Grandparents Interior Design: Lauren King Interior Design Contractor: Beechwood Building and Design Photo: Steve Kuzma Photography

This stunning 4 bedroom, 3.5 bath home sits on just over one very private, mostly flat acre located at 22 Pigeon Hollow Rd San Rafael CA. The spacious home features a chef’s kitchen with granite counters, custom cabinets and high-end appliances. Adjoining the kitchen is a wonderful family room with cathedral ceilings, gas-burning fireplace and opens to the expansive patio, yard and gardens. The south-facing formal living room with wood-burning fireplace gets all day sun. With the formal dining room opening wide to the patio, you will enjoy indoor/outdoor living and entertaining at its finest. Three spacious bedrooms, including master suite with walk-in closet and access to yard through French doors, are all on the ground floor. The second floor fourth bedroom features a beautiful spa bath with jetted tub and separate stall shower. A great office with built-in bookcases also features exterior access through French doors. Hardwood floors throughout, except bedrooms, which are carpeted. A children’s play structure, trampoline and kids’ zipline, while out of site, complete the back yard, which also features a rose garden, raised beds and a pool site. Adjacent to the parking area at the front of the house is the sunken sports court. This spectacular property, located just one mile from Highway. 101, and in the Glenwood School District, is a home you will never want to leave.

The Craftsman shiplap continues into the Living Room/Great room, providing a relaxed, yet finished look on the walls. The built-in's provide space for storage, display and additional seating, helping to make this space functional and flexible.

A small foyer opens into a large living room. Archways keep the living space open. White bookcases line the main hallway walls. A kitchen eating bar opens to the living room.

In this bright and airy apartment we couldn't resist incorporating some "Bruncon Orange" into the cabinets. This is a true urban live/work space so a desk area was a must. Stainless steel counter tops gain character over time and are low maintenance. The wall art features Anthony's photography and brings a little bit of the city into the living room. Photo by Chris Amaral

The Victoria era ended more then 100 years ago, but it's design influences-deep, rich colors, wallpaper with bold patterns and velvety textures, and high-quality, detailed millwork-can still be found in the modern-day homes, such as this 7,500-square-foot beauty in Medina. The home's entrance is fit for a king and queen. A dramatic two-story foyer opens up to 10-foot ceilings, graced by a curved staircase, a sun-filled living room that takes advantage of the views of the three-acre property, and a music room, featuring the homeowners' baby grand piano. "Each unique room has a sense of separation, yet there's an open floor plan", explains Andy Schrader, president of Schrader & Companies, the builder behind this masterpiece. The home features four bedrooms and five baths, including a stunning master suite with and expansive walk-in master shower-complete with exterior and interior windows and a rain showerhead suspended from the ceiling. Other luxury amenities include main- and upper level laundries, four garage stalls, an indoor sport court, a workroom for the wife (with French doors accessing a personal patio), and a vestibule opening to the husband's office, complete with ship portal. The nucleus of this home is the kitchen, with a wall of windows overlooking a private pond, a cathedral vaulted ceiling, and a unique Romeo-and-Juliet balcony, a trademark feature of the builder. Story courtesy or Midwest Home Magazine-August 2012 Written by Christina Sarinske Photographs courtesy of Scott Jacobson

A young couple with three small children purchased this full floor loft in Tribeca in need of a gut renovation. The existing apartment was plagued with awkward spaces, limited natural light and an outdated décor. It was also lacking the required third child’s bedroom desperately needed for their newly expanded family. StudioLAB aimed for a fluid open-plan layout in the larger public spaces while creating smaller, tighter quarters in the rear private spaces to satisfy the family’s programmatic wishes. 3 small children’s bedrooms were carved out of the rear lower level connected by a communal playroom and a shared kid’s bathroom. Upstairs, the master bedroom and master bathroom float above the kid’s rooms on a mezzanine accessed by a newly built staircase. Ample new storage was built underneath the staircase as an extension of the open kitchen and dining areas. A custom pull out drawer containing the food and water bowls was installed for the family’s two dogs to be hidden away out of site when not in use. All wall surfaces, existing and new, were limited to a bright but warm white finish to create a seamless integration in the ceiling and wall structures allowing the spatial progression of the space and sculptural quality of the midcentury modern furniture pieces and colorful original artwork, painted by the wife’s brother, to enhance the space. The existing tin ceiling was left in the living room to maximize ceiling heights and remain a reminder of the historical details of the original construction. A new central AC system was added with an exposed cylindrical duct running along the long living room wall. A small office nook was built next to the elevator tucked away to be out of site.

This sixth floor penthouse overlooks the city lakes, the Uptown retail district and the city skyline beyond. Designed for a young professional, the space is shaped by distinguishing the private and public realms through sculptural spatial gestures. Upon entry, a curved wall of white marble dust plaster pulls one into the space and delineates the boundary of the private master suite. The master bedroom space is screened from the entry by a translucent glass wall layered with a perforated veil creating optical dynamics and movement. This functions to privatize the master suite, while still allowing light to filter through the space to the entry. Suspended cabinet elements of Australian Walnut float opposite the curved white wall and Walnut floors lead one into the living room and kitchen spaces. A custom perforated stainless steel shroud surrounds a spiral stair that leads to a roof deck and garden space above, creating a daylit lantern within the center of the space. The concept for the stair began with the metaphor of water as a connection to the chain of city lakes. An image of water was abstracted into a series of pixels that were translated into a series of varying perforations, creating a dynamic pattern cut out of curved stainless steel panels. The result creates a sensory exciting path of movement and light, allowing the user to move up and down through dramatic shadow patterns that change with the position of the sun, transforming the light within the space. The kitchen is composed of Cherry and translucent glass cabinets with stainless steel shelves and countertops creating a progressive, modern backdrop to the interior edge of the living space. The powder room draws light through translucent glass, nestled behind the kitchen. Lines of light within, and suspended from the ceiling extend through the space toward the glass perimeter, defining a graphic counterpoint to the natural light from the perimeter full height glass. Within the master suite a freestanding Burlington stone bathroom mass creates solidity and privacy while separating the bedroom area from the bath and dressing spaces. The curved wall creates a walk-in dressing space as a fine boutique within the suite. The suspended screen acts as art within the master bedroom while filtering the light from the full height windows which open to the city beyond. The guest suite and office is located behind the pale blue wall of the kitchen through a sliding translucent glass panel. Natural light reaches the interior spaces of the dressing room and bath over partial height walls and clerestory glass.

The spacious great room combines the kitchen, dining, and living rooms into one large room. Architecture and Interiors - Tate Studio Architects, Builder - Platinum Homes, Photography - Thompson Photographic.

Modern family room addition addition on a traditional colonial house. The exterior detailing defers to the original structure while the interior is treated as a modern space with crisp and clean lines. Hoachlander Davis Photography.

Removing the stone wall that once separated the kitchen from the dining room (now the family room–living room) allowed more natural light to flood the kitchen. Removing the wall also improved the flow between the two spaces, and now the homeowners working in the kitchen have a way to check on the kids or visit with guests when entertaining. The barn door can slide to the right to cover the mudroom or to the left to shut off the pantry. We are proud to say that this kitchen was featured in a Houzz Kitchen of the Week article! Photography by Alicia's Art, LLC RUDLOFF Custom Builders, is a residential construction company that connects with clients early in the design phase to ensure every detail of your project is captured just as you imagined. RUDLOFF Custom Builders will create the project of your dreams that is executed by on-site project managers and skilled craftsman, while creating lifetime client relationships that are build on trust and integrity. We are a full service, certified remodeling company that covers all of the Philadelphia suburban area including West Chester, Gladwynne, Malvern, Wayne, Haverford and more. As a 6 time Best of Houzz winner, we look forward to working with you on your next project.

Residential Design: Peter Eskuche, AIA, Eskuche Associates

Our clients struggled with the fractured layout of their traditional Tudor style home in Weston MA. Typical for the time period in which it was built, a series of unconnected rooms and a kitchen too small for the gathering of the family or entertaining guests was literally cramping their style. The homeowners were seeking to reimagine the space, making room for larger gatherings while maintaining the intimacy of separate individual spaces. A truly collaborative process between the homeowner and our design team resulted in a blending of formal and casual design transforming the space into a bright and flexible living area that allows for both cozy family dinners or a party for a crowd. To open the fractured space, the Feinmann team removed two walls between the kitchen and the family room. A bright, casual dining area with functional built-in seating anchors one end of the room. Upgrades in appliances and ample work surfaces make this a true cooks kitchen. The painted cabinetry along the perimeter of the kitchen keeps the space feeling bright while the rich, dark brown lyptus wood cabinetry on the island adds warmth and contrast. The black walnut bar invites guests to linger while keeping them out of the busy cooking area. Sunlight, pond views and an elegant raised coffered ceiling in the seating area off the kitchen create a cozy place to relax, take in the view of the pond or catch a game on the new custom wireless audio flat screen television. What was once a divided floor plan is now a truly connected space thanks to the ingenuity and vision of the Feinmann design team. Photos by John Horner

Command Central: This room is the renovated home office that was once a small guest room. It is right off the kitchen on the main floor, so it made a great location for the family home office. The cabinetry is the same style and color as the kitchen so one room flows nicely with the next. The countertop is a warm grey limestone with shells and fossils appearing in the stone. The wall behind the desk and in between the wall cabinets is covered with a tack board that is then covered with a burlap material. The deep drawers to the left make a perfect location for long rolls of wrapping paper. Photography by Northlight Photography.