Eclectic Homes

7 Tips for Contractors Your Allies

Often it seems we hear more awful stories than good in regards to client-contractor relations. Miscommunication on either side is a frequent culprit. In my experience it has been simpler to discuss topics and aligning present relationships compared to start over entirely with a new company. Due to mutual respect and an awareness of each other’s expectations, my builders and I’ve build lasting relationships. They believe vested in the project and take a personal interest in helping me look good in the opinion of my clientele. Listed below are a some tips that have helped me get the best from my builders — and from other support professionals as well. Remember that payment is overriding. Pay your builders in a timely manner, in accord with the work completed. This stage cannot be stressed enough. Your payment makes it possible for the builder to cover his or her subcontractors, vendors and…

Eclectic Homes

A Desert Stunner Highlights Nature

“My clients are parents and grandparents that love spending time with family and enjoy life,” says architect Mark Tate. Thus, they proposed their dream retirement home in Desert Mountain, Arizona, to add three guest rooms so everyone could come live with them. This magnificent desert home opens to views that stretch 40 miles, whereas cautious orientation and overhangs protect the insides out of the relentless desert sun. Outdoor living has been a priority also, so there’s a lounging patio an outdoor kitchen, a pool and a hot tub. “I wanted to bring the desert to the house for my clients to appreciate,” says Tate. “We very carefully incorporated the house to the landscape and treated the website as gently as possible.” at a GlanceWho lives here: A retired couple with a major family who loves to visitLocation: Scottsdale, ArizonaSize: 5,600 square feet; 4 bedrooms, 4 1/2 bathrooms, office, workout roomThat’s intriguing:…

Decorating Guides

The New Nostalgia: History With a Kick

Layout is cyclical, but it’s not redundant. We crave nostalgia: It will help root our identity, it reminds us where we all come from and it creates the emotional foundation for our substance histories. However, as far as we adore the past, we are creative beasts who need to impose new ideas into old looks. This careful juxtaposition has generated the “new nostalgia.” Fashion design tendencies in autumn 2012 are leaning toward pretty florals, wrought iron leather, womanly jewels and metals, and lots of vivid, saturated colours. However, the appearance also includes restraint; too much of anything and it starts to look costume-y instead of sexy. Exactly the identical rule applies to insides — building the narrative of a space maximizes the careful pressure between the then and the now. Jamie Laubhan-Oliver Leather and Lucite, concrete and fur, industrial and conventional all come together to replicate this autumn’s fashionable trend…

Fireplaces

City View: Seattle Design Shows Natural Wonders

When I think of Seattle, I Believe of the Space Needle, sleeplessness on a houseboat, Starbucks, Singles, Soundgarden and spitting rain. Recognizing this was likely an extremely weak and stereotypical way to explain one of my favourite cities, I decided to dig deeper and talk with designers and architects at the Pacific Northwest to get an accurate picture of the Seattle layout scene. Seattle designers agree that the region’s unique climate and geography are the strongest influences upon layout. The striking beauty of the environment inspires blurring the lines between indoors and out, arranging rooms “upside down” (more on this later), using rain displays and living in homes that float across the water. Additional priorities in Seattle layout are a deep concern for the environment, comfy and outdoorsy lifestyles, and respect to local materials and craftsmanship. The combination of those influences results in residential designs which are unique to the…

Decorating Guides

Celebrate Fall Together With Candleholders

Late summer is warming up the afternoons, but the nights are revealing that fall is definitely coming. As a few leaves start to drift off the trees, the piles are beginning to build up around the sidewalks around town. Little hints all around reveal that autumn is upon us, and it makes me want to celebrate. I love the changing of the seasons, especially summer to fall, when the grip of summertime heat loosens up a little and the sounds of a marching band fill the Friday-night air. Those signs that change will be coming make me want to strip the mantel, clear out closets and turn our home into a cozy cottage instead of coastal-chic getaway. During fall, gone are the sand dollars and the shells. Leaves will be the decor option du jour, and they’re asking for some attention! Amy Renea With this project, I utilized a collection…

Coastal Style

Passageways Celebrate Getting from Here to There

In architecture, moving from point A to point B is an chance to do something particular. A well-designed passageway can make motion meaningful and make us more conscious of ourselves and our surroundings. It is something I’ve researched earlier in a ideabook on halls, however here the more general expression passageway encompasses stairs, stairs (which I’ve also looked at) and other spaces devoted to moving from space to space. The following examples are quite diverse and reveal how the expertise of motion could be enriched through design. D’apostrophe layout, inc.. D’apostrophe layout’s Remsenburg House is the gut renovation of a barn to some 5,300-square-foot residence. A vital part of the layout is a central backbone which includes stairs connecting the floors. Here we see stairs resulting in the upper floor. The solid guardrails, and the method by which the stairway moves from an open space through one much wider than…

Roofing

4 Tips for Choosing a New Patio Cover

One of the best ways to have some shade on the outdoor patio is to install roofing companies. You will not only get the shade but depending on your choice, the aesthetic appeal is something you can look forward to. Also, many people use patio covers to add more room to their home, extending it outside, complete with appliances and furniture. The following are some of the top things that you should keep in mind if you want to choose the right roofing for your home: Custom Designs A patio cover can offer more than just a roof. There’s a lot that you can do once the cover is in place. Many homeowners have even installed speakers, fans, and lighting systems on the patio after installing the cover. You need to dig into your creative ability to pull this off. With some expert input, you can make the patio one…

Coastal Style

Modern Icons: The Case Study Daybed

The beauty of this streamlined daybed is at its simplicity. Made from a horizontal platform using a mattress pillow and bolster cushions, the piece serves as a sofa or a bed, with much more style than the collegiate alternative, a futon. In addition, it includes a pedigree that will satisfy you midcentury modern lovers: George Nelson made the original, along with the Case Study furniture sold today is inspired from the furniture used in the famous Case Study Houses, introduced by Arts & Architecture magazine in 1945. Design Within Reach Case Study Daybed Here the daybed cozies up into some other George Nelson bits: a seat and a clock. YLiving.com Modernica Case Study Daybed With Leg Options – $1,698 This is only one of the easiest sofa-to-bed conversions there is; all you need to do is throw the bolsters on the floor and throw on a sheet. The covers are…

Decorating Guides

5 Queries to the Adam Silverman of Heath

Adam Silverman’s first love was always ceramics — but it took him a while to perpetrate. While ceramics was his first major at the Rhode Island School of Design, he immediately shifted to design after a brief session because of nagging fears that he wouldn’t have the ability to support himself . But Silverman still took ceramics classes for pleasure, and also the voice in his mind telling him to chase pottery never really closed up. After some significant life changes — including a transfer to Los Angeles — Silverman reevaluated his career in design and did a summer program in ceramics to find out once and for all if he is a fulltime potter. “At the end of the summerI made the choice to go for it,” says Silverman. “It has been the best 10 decades of my life.” Currently the Los Angeles studio manager of Heath Ceramics, Silverman…