The Spring Issue

No. 15

SPRING 2012

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Pacific Palace Kari Whitman rolls out the red carpet for this regal L.A. pad trÈs chic Brian McCarthy’s 18th century French revival / HOMETOWN HERO Wolford Built Homes enlivens locale

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Your Vision. Your Dreams. Your Builder.

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E.W. TARCA CONSTRUCTION, INC. • ED TARCA, PRESIDENT 1 AVENUE C • HOPKINTON, MA 01748 luxuryhomequarterly.com PH. (508)435-4290 • WWW.EWTARCACONSTRUCTION .COM

contents FEATURES

p 62 Every detail of the quaint one bedroom Greenwich Village apartment, designed

by Magdalena Keck Interiors, is draped in a flurry of white.

The Royal Treatment Interior designer Kari Whitman gives the star treatment to a royal family when re-working an 8,000-square-foot house on Los Angeles’ famous Mulholland Drive.

page 92

A Golden State The words “breathtaking views” sum up the Cypress House; built on a hillside overlooking the Pebble Beach Golf Course by California architecture firm, Pacific Peninsula Group.

page 112

French Splendor New York-based interior designer Brian J. McCarthy brings european charm to an Atlanta home with 17th and 18th century french artwork, furniture and decor.

page 102

Luckie Charm Breaking away from Florida’s traditional Mediterranean style homes, Marc-Michaels embraces contemporary flares with Asian/Balinese influences to create a ‘Zen’ like feel.

page 120

ON THE COVER The regal foyer, created by interior designer Kari Whitman, combines rich hues and sparkling hardware, while at the same time producing an inviting warmth into the Los Angeles home. Unique and captivating pieces like the The Lawrence of La Brea rug and hand blown vintage lights from 20th Century Lighting complement an entrance fit for royalty. page 91 SPRING 2012

cover Photo: GREY CRAWFORD

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contents

p 155 acclaim

J2 CONSTRUCTION

Custom-home projects of note 24

jigsaw residence

26

bennett residence

PROJECTS Intimate look behind the scenes 30

vanos architects + bowery development

33

spinnaker development

35

smith brothers construction

BUILDERS Construction firms specializing in peerless residences 37

jenson construction

40

mark timothy luxury homes

42

SBC: SCHLAUCH BOTtCHER CONSTRUCTION

46

CUDMORE BUILDERS

49

WOLFORD BUILT HOMES

54

MANCARI & ASSOCIATES

57

BEECHEN & DILL

REMODEL Tackling challenges of home renovation DOLPHIN ARCHITECTS & BUILDERS

DESIGNERS

the plans

Creative minds in interiors, landscapes, and furnishings 62

MAGDALENA KECK INTERIORS

64

LIZETTE MARIE INTERIOR DESIGN

67

B MOORE DESIGN INC.

70

LAURA HAY DECOR & DESIGN

72

ANDY GOLDSBOROUGH INTERIORS

75

SFA DESIGN

77

SHERRILL CANET INTERIORS, LTD.

A showcase of sleek, modern architecture— from plans to completion 129

STUDIO B ARCHITECTS

architects Providing concepts and programs for deluxe homes 134

SULLIVAN CONARD ARCHITECTS

136

RYAN RHODES DESIGN

138

NICHOLAS BUDD ARCHITECTS

An in-depth look at some of the industry’s most unique designers

140

CATALANO ARCHITECTS

142

BC&J ARCHITECTS

80

CLODAGH

144

MITCHELL O’NEIL ARCHITECTS

86

DIEDRE SHAW INTERIORS

146

ALISBERG PARKER

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Designer Showcase

Spring 2012

Photo: Danny Lee

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contents

PLUS

Editor’s Note

page 10

What’s New Industry news, awards, and product innovations page 14

Calendar Trade shows and special events in the coming months page 15

On the Rise Spotlighting designs that stimulate the senses page 16

Trends Home furnishing concepts en vogue page 20

Behind the Lines

featuring Alexandra Von Furstenberg page 28

Products+Services Spotlight Directory

page 160

At Home With Laurie Ghielmetti

DISTINCTION Taking luxury to new heights 148

PINNACLE ARCHITECTURAL STUDIO

151

HARKER DESIGN

153

ADVANCED ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN LTD.

ECO-LUXURY The best in sustainable living 155

J2 CONSTRUCTION

p 28 The Ice Acrylic Dining Table by Alexandra Von Furstenberg.

page 158

page 162

editor’s note p 120

T

he Spring edition of Luxury Home Quarterly is blooming with interior designers whose focus on both classical and modern aesthetics tie in seamlessly with their use of color and current trends. Each featured designer takes the reader on a journey through ornate stylings, bold hues and clean lines that complement not only a room, but also the client. The designers display spring’s vibrancy in a fresh way across the globe: most specifically in Atlanta, California, Florida and New York.

Jeffrey Strasser,Vice President of Marc-Michaels Interior Design Inc., who ranks among the 100 best interior design firms in the world, takes his family-owned business and caters to residential and commercial markets. In “Luckie Charm” (p. 120) Strasser collaborates with the owner of Courchene Development. His vibrant use of color for Paul Courchene’s home mingles with his combination of classic and modern touches, resulting in a progressive and fluid mix of Mediterranean, Spanish and Asian influences.

Brian J. McCarthy takes inspirations from his New York location down south when designing an Atlanta-based townhouse. In “French Splendor” (p. 102), McCarthy captures his client’s wishes to create a late 17th early 18th Century French haven. Using one of a kind hand-carved wood work, imported silks and custom furnishings, the house embraces Old World European techniques with a youthful edge.

Designer to the stars, Kari Whitman of Kari Whitman Interiors integrates avantgarde luxury in her designs. In “The Royal Treatment” (p. 92) Whitman focused on a house located on Los Angeles’ Mulholland Drive, catering to an undisclosed royal family. She infused a ‘masculine vibe,’ using mixed textures of silks, Ultrasuede® and oversized custom furniture. Whitman’s clients are treated to one of a kind decor that connect with and enhance their lifestyles.

For the past 30 years Irish-born Clodagh has dabbled in graphic design, landscaping and a myriad of other fields before focusing on interior design. Using Feng-Shui, Clodagh designed the Mercer residence (p. 80), in New York’s swank SoHo neighborhood, with eye-catching art pieces and products that bring a certain level of beauty to each room. The end result is a serene space that is simplistic and full of energy.

We hope that you enjoy reading through this issue where celebrity clientele and posh New York neighborhoods flourish with unique design. Be sure to stay tuned for our summer 2012 issue which features luxury get-a-ways. As always, our hope is to acknowledge and educate professionals everywhere for their commitments to innovative projects where informed decision-making and resourcefulness are paramount.

The Editors 10

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Photo: Bill Timmerman

Marc Michaels + Courchene Development

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NEWS FLASH Industry Blush - Design in Full Colour is a new book showcasing a retrospective of Scholten & Baijings work.

Made in collaboration with Het Stedelijk museum ‘s-Hertogenbosch.

Stefan Scholten & Carole Baijings

Advertising

Art & Editorial

publishers

managing editor

Madeline Camaci madeline@bowen-enterprises.com Desmond Chester desmond@bowen-enterprises.com Gavin S. Coll gavin@bowen-enterprises.com Gerald Mathews gerald@bowen-enterprises.com Colleen Wall colleen@bowen-enterprises.com Dan Zierk dan@bowen-enterprises.com

Deidre Davis deidre@bowen-enterprises.com

senior editor Samantha Bohnert samantha@bowen-enterprises.com

art director Mike Domzalski

design intern Joshua Hauth

advertising manager

copy editors

Jacqueline M. Lowisz jacqui@bowen-enterprises.com

Samantha Bohnert Teresa Silva

correspondents

Cory Bowen, President & Ceo www.bowen-enterprises.com

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Contact Information

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what’s new

Industry news, awards, and product innovations

Virgin shower system

by Daniele Bedini Gone are the days of a banal shower experience.

Architect and industrial designer Daniele Bedini has created Virgin, an innovative shower system where water pours out from an aperture in the ceiling. A myriad of colors mingle with the waterfall to stimulate the mind and body, and the white steel and corian shower system also offer adjustable shower sprays and control of lights and colors. zazzeri.it

TRUFIG accessories seemlessly blend out of view It’s all in the details for California-based company TRUFIG. Their philosophy highlights material authenticity and a systematic approach to design, with clean lines and unobtrusive materials.

Geared toward architects, designers and property owners, TRUFIG designs power outlets, light switches, speakers and other wall accouterments that differ from the traditional, somewhat invasive devices found in most spaces. The company has created their products to blend seamlessly into walls, creating a camouflage effect that does not compromise the aesthetic of a room.

All of TRUFIG’s designs are extremely versatile and can be painted, laminated or wallpapered. Standard or screw-less faceplates with square or rounded corners are also available. trufig.com

COVER-UP The outlet covers (above) show how easily design can be integrated into small details within a space. Here, patterns from the wall have been transposed over the fixtures to give a continuous visual feeling to an otherwise overlooked design feature.

OiO bath series

by Michel Boucquillon Belgian designer Michel Boucquillon caters to dynamic crowds of young and old with his new line of baths and washbasins he calls OiO. Antoniolupi, a company based in Italy that started in the 50’s and whose focus is on creating signature pieces for the bathroom industry, promotes “bathing with art,” something that Boucquillon is quite passionate about.

His products are single pieces made of polyethylene, which is a 100% recyclable material. The pieces are easily movable, and can function indoors as well as outdoors. The OiO line is available in a variety of colors, or for those with simpler tastes, translucent is also an option. The tubs and washbasins can also be equipped with lights that surround them with a soft glow. antoniolupi.it

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DIM LIT These bathroom fixtures are available with interior settings that emit relaxing ambient light.

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calendar

Trade shows and special events in the coming months

MAY 22-24 Clerkenwell Design Week London, England The three-day festival in the heart of London features well-known designers who will host debates, exhibitions, presentations and workshops. Live music, entertainment and over 150 events that focus on cutting-edge design for the 24,000 expected attendees. clerkenwelldesignweek.com

APR. 14-17

MAY 17-19

TEX-FAB 3.0

AIA 2012 National Convention and Design Expo

UTSA School of Architecture San Antonio, Texas A conference focused on projects that foster developments in the fields of computational fabrication and digital building. tex-fab.net

Washington, D.C. The industry’s most comprehensive national event that involves thousands of design professionals celebrating their community. convention.aia.org

MAR. 20- 22

APR. 15-20

MAY 19-22

Ecobuild

Light+Building

ICFF

ExCeL Exhibition Centre London, United Kingdom

Frankfurt Fair and Exhibition Centre Frankfurt, Germany

This green-building conference includes architects, designers and innovative suppliers of sustainable construction products. ecobuild.co.uk

The world’s biggest trade show for intelligent buildings and lighting will focus on energy efficiency in design. light-building.messefrankfurt.com

International Contemporary Furniture Fair Javits Convention Center, New York City

APR. 5-JUNE 24

APR. 24-26

MAR. 20-23

WAMO Competiton Exhibition

Kitchen & Bath Show

Nordbygg

Virginia Center on Architecture Richmond, Virginia

McCormick Place Chicago, IL

Stockholm Exhibition and Congress Center Stockholm, Sweden

This unique competition lets the public choose from six ideas geared toward updating the Washington Monument grounds. wamocompetition.org

This interactive and inspiring event showcases new trends brought together by the best and the brightest in the industry. kbis.com/show

An exhibition that features Sweden’s rapidlygrowing building industry from road construction to house and office development. nordbygg.se

Showcasing North American contemporary design.

Browse current trends and design classics. icff.com

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on the rise

Spotlighting innovative products and designers

modular mania BERNHARDT For more than 100 years, Bernhardt Design has created furniture for coporate environments. Since its formation, the firm has transformed stylistically into more contemporary and avant-garde seating, tables and textiles that are easily adorn any atmosphere.

Internationally known designers have joined the group, including Paris-native Patrick Jouin. His attention to detail adds to Bernhardt’s constantly evolving aesthetic. Jouin’s latest creation, “Item,” is a plush white sofa with a unique, angular design that allows for a variety of combinations that adhere to the demands of a space. bernhardtdesign.com

CRUX FLUX

Photos: Berta Ferrer

Architecture students Raquel Sola Rubio and Alejandro Garcia Pedron started Cruxflux in 2009. The designers believe that a mix of thoughtful design and architecture can help foster human interaction. Their “Sindicato de Socialización Con Cremallera” is a collection of modular, monochromatic pieces made of foam, wood and rubber that the designers created to be a “mediator of relationships.” The recombinant design adds a level of complexity to the chairs, which are connected by giant zippers. cruxflux.net

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type treatment kvadrat Denmark-based textile company Kvadrat has teamed up with Maharam, which started as a supplier of theatrical textiles more than 100 years ago.

Through a mutual understanding and respect for innovative design, as well as a desire for international outreach, the two companies now have markets in North America, Europe, Australia and the Pacific Rim. They have worked with numerous designers, including Danish creator Gunnar Aagaard Andersen. His work, “Letters,” is a textile composed of capital and lowercase letters that are bold and playful. kvadrat.dk

roeland otten

BEV HISEY photo: pietro sutera

Canadian designer Bev Hisey started out as a fashion designer, but segued into home décor design in the early 90’s. Since then, Hisey has been creating original products such as handmade carpets, cushions and blankets that are a playful mix of modern and classic. The “Sightlines” carpet pays tribute to the Snellen chart, which optometrists use to test vision. Hisey was inspired by the idea after numerous trips to an eye specialist and a desire to exalt graphic design traditions. bevhisey.com

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ROELAND OTTEN PhotoS: BAS HELBERS; BEV HISEY photo: Donna Griffith

Learning the ABC’s is easy. Creating chairs in the shape of letters, however, is something designer Roeland Otten achieved after graduating from the Design Academy at Eindhoven.

ABChairs, consistent in both font and dimension, were originally created for a park where individuals could combine letter chairs to form words, but are now available to purchase as limited editions. roelandotten.com

projected light Fabien Cappello Furniture designer Fabien Cappello’s latest installation “Cloister”, which is derived from the Latin word meaning “enclosure” is a collection of wooden seats designed for office spaces. Above the installation are three different perforated lights that provide relief from standard harsh office lighting. fabiencappello.com

KIRSTI TAIVIOLA Finnish designer Kirsti Taiviola’s works include glass, jewelry and lighting fixtures.

This year, Taiviola showcased her newest designs at SaloneSatellite in Milan. With alluring names like “Illusia” and “Magika,” her series of wall lamps send cascading floral shapes from their intricately structured glass bowls, creating a work of art unmatched by ordinary fixtures. A delicate pattern emerges from the wall lamp’s illumination. kirstitaiviola.com

DREW SESKUNAS Baltimore-native Drew Seskunas, who currently works as an artist/architect in Berlin, has a new work entitled, “Botoxlamp.” The lamp is the second in a series of three lamps in Seskunas’ “BotoxTrilogy.” Comprised of folded plasmacut aluminum sheets, the lamp has a unique angular shape and interwoven LED lights that are sensitive to ambient shadows and human presence. drewseskunas.com

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Trends

Home furnishing concepts en vogue

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GLASS ACT

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CRYSTILINE WARES FORM CLEAR VIEW 1. “Orbital” light by Decode London for Viable; viablelondon.com. 2. “Cactus Chair” by Deger Cengiz via Voos; voosfurniture.com. 3. “Bloomingbless” vase by Benjamin Graindorge for Cinna; cinna.fr. 4. “Void” stool by Ron Gilad for Wright; wright21.com. 5. “Glacier” chaise lounge

by Brodie Neill; brodieneill.com. 6. “023 Table” by Andreas Aas; andreasaas.net. 7. “Harold and Maude” tables by Carlo Tamborini for Glas Italia; glasitalia.com. 8. “The Invisibles”

by Tokujin Yoshioka for Kartell Gallery; tokujin.com.

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5

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2

1

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WOVEN WONDER

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HAND-KNOTTED, STITCHED & SEWN 1. “Fisherman” light by TAF for Zero; zero.se. 2. “Weaver” light by Satelight; satelight.com.au. 3. “Unbeweaveable” chair by Aprro; aprro. com. 4. “ROPES no.123” light by Christian Haas; haasdesign.de. 5.

“Boa” sofa by Edra; edra.com. 6. “Biknit” chaise lounge by Patricia Urquiola for Moroso; moroso.it. 7. “Stitched Tables” by Moroso; moroso.it. 8. “Frédérick” chair by Etienne Hotte; etiennehotte.com.

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PAUL’S MARBLE DEPOT 40 WARSHAW PLACE • STAMFORD, CT PH. 203.978.0669 • FAX: 203.978.0679 EMAIL: INFO@MARBLE-DEPOT.COM WWW.MARBLE-DEPOT.COM SPRING 2012

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acclaim

custom-home projects of note

01

02

Jigsaw RESIDENCE

The courtyard, which is nestled in the remains of what used to be the home’s original interior, adds to the three-dimensional effect Jameson designed.

Walls and windows lining the interior and exterior of the house blend together seamlessly, producing a feeling that one is neither inside nor outside, but experiencing both spaces simultaneously.

Credits Architects: David Jameson Architect Principal: David Jameson, FAIA Project Architect: Matthew Jarvis General Contractor: A&F Applicators, Inc., Steve Howard Project Year: 2010

Photos: PAUL WARCHOL

Entangled on a busy street corner, the “Jigsaw” house is the labyrinthine end result of the single-story house located in Bethesda, MD. Architect David Jameson of Alexandria, VA, created what, to the naked eye, looks like building blocks meticulously stacked on top of one another.

–Samantha bohnert

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acclaim

03

04

05

01 Pristine stucco walls and L-shaped modular windows form the exterior of the asymmetrical home.

04 The living room reflects the exterior of the house, with white walls and furniture made of wicker and wood.

02 The extensive use of glass walls allow for incredible views and a constant stream of light to pour inside.

05 The stairs are comprised mostly of clear panes of glass, complementing the vast windows that cover the walls throughout.

03 The simplistic design and use of natural materials for the interior of the home adds to the home’s clean exterior.

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ACCLAIM

FINE DINING The dining room in this 18th-century-style country home features reclaimed flooring, antique wood paneling, historic lighting including two chandeliers from Richard Scofield Historic Lighting (sco-

NAPOLI Residence The Napoli Residence in Brentwood, CA is an exclusive estate with golf course access and ocean views. Endless rays of light cascade throughout the home, an effect that architect Abramson Teiger of Culver City, CA captured with a skylight and floor-toceiling glass walls. The bronze-adorned mahogany windows and doors are not only eye-catching, but also help deflect the often harsh Southern California sunlight.

With the infinity edge swimming pool flowing toward the golf course, the outdoor backdrop mingles harmoniously with the interior of the house and brings in a breathtaking backdrop of scenery and landscapes.

luxury home quarterly

Contractor: AJ Engineering & Construction Andrew Jagoda & Isaac Zachary Structural: Sigma Design Hovik Khanjian Landscape: Stout Landscape Design Tom Stout Photographer: Jim Bartsch

–Samantha bohnert

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Credits

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N o. 14 winter 2011

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behind the lines

CUSTOM COLLECTIONS FOR LUXURY HOMES—AND THE designers BEHIND THEM

01

02

01 The XOXO Occasional Table, shown in pink, is available in a variety of other colors including blue, green, grey, red and yellow.

02 The simple, yet chic Brilliant Acrylic Console Table, shown in pink, is AVF’s most popular piece.

03 Alexandra Von Furstenberg sits with her design, Bullet Acrylic Coffee Table, shown in black. The table is a part of AVF’s Limited Edition Modern Furniture Collection

03

AVF Furniture Design Alexandra von Furstenberg revives retro in neon acrylic

AVF: My experience and exposure at DVF certainly helped expand my knowledge of fashion and design. However, when I left DVF, it was a fiveyear transition from fashion into furniture. It was a gradual change, going from 2-D to 4-D form; but it’s still creation and art. Fashion and furniture are innately part of design. Also, my background is global, having grown up in Asia, Europe, and the United States. Having lived in various parts of the world, I’ve seen different homes and ways to make them cozy. In Hong Kong, during the 1970’s, then still a British colony, I was influenced by the Old World interior design, with dark floors

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and ceiling fans, which was quite romantic. Later, when I spent winters in Switzerland, I admired the classic interiors and Biedermeier-style furniture.

Having lived in Paris for 5 years, French furniture influenced my designs as well. In New York, during the late 1980’s, Park Avenue apartments were traditional, with distinct puffy curtains and gold, slightly rounded furniture. I appreciate all these styles and take cues from them, particularly the late 1970’s style, which influenced my use of acrylic material for furniture.

AVF: Both informed my reading of aesthetics. I

LHQ: Your background is in costume design

I work with an engineer and a two-team shop. I like to micromanage and inspect everything. I am very hands-on in every step of the process. We are still a young brand; we are going into our fourth year.

and art history. In what ways is furniture design an extension of those interests? How is your current practice informed by your training/ experience?

look at a painting and know the era based on the costume. Fashion expanded my understanding of beauty. By looking at portraiture and pretty clothes, I was cultivating an appreciation for aesthetics.

LHQ: If you could, discuss the production of your collections. Do you work with a design team? Is work mostly done in-house or through external sources?

AVF: Everything is done in-house in Los Angeles.

luxuryhomequarterly.com

Photos: JESSY PLUME

LHQ: As the former Creative Director at Diane von Furstenberg (DVF), how did that experience translate into the definition of your own brand?

04 AVF’s Radiant Cocktail Table, shown in green, is modeled after a diamond, and can be customized to function as an end table.

04

05 The Acrylic Chiclet Candy Bowls, shown in a myriad of colors, are a smaller version of AVF’s most popular tabletop design, the Charm Candy Bowl.

06 The Ice Acrylic Dining Table, shown in yellow, functions as a desk, console table or small dining table.

07 Inspired by the grill of a car, The Luminous Desk, shown in pink, illuminates a room with its neon accents and sleek design.

05

LHQ: Your debut neon collection is a great

AVF: We have crossed over from furniture into

study of the relationship between materials and color. What inspirations did you find for this collection?

home accessories. We are tapping into the market for home objects, which transforms our brand into a lifestyle one. We will be including new materials in our design, by integrating mirror and acrylic, and we will also be using brass and wood.

The home accessories have been wildly successful but they do take time to produce. Each prototype takes months to master, and I prefer to focus on one project at a time. Currently, we have one showroom in Los Angeles, but we are showcased in 50 stores across the States, such as in Miami and Dallas. As of November 2011, Maison 24 in Manhattan is carrying my furniture collection, the first store in New York to do so. Also, in January of 2012, my brand participated in the New York International Gift Fair. These events have helped to bolster my brand, and I look forward to what the future brings.

AVF: It was close to a year of experimentation, getting to know acrylic, getting to know how to cut, how to apply color and where to apply it. We researched it to death and experimented with many prototypes. It wasn’t until the testing phase that we discovered if the designs were feasible.

The engineering on paper didn’t always work in practice. As for color, we fell in love with neon.

It’s so pop. It’s also functional art. Later, we introduced somber colors like black and bronze and jewel tones such as emerald and amethyst.

LHQ: What aspects of your practice separate you from other furniture design houses? Would you say that you’re influenced by market trends?

In what ways do you see contemporary design changing?

06

07

AVF: I don’t like to use comparison brackets. I follow my instinct when I’m designing. It’s an organic process that I love to do. I don’t follow molds or market trends either. My goal isn’t to be the most successful, but instead to produce a good product, made with good craftsmanship.

Also, my style is always evolving; I try to keep up with the times, to be contemporary. If I had to choose a mission statement for myself, it would be that we are an evolving artistic furniture company. I’m not sure if there is anyone else out there like that.

LHQ: Apart from neon’s and acrylic, what does the future hold for AVF? Do you have plans for expansion or using different materials? Opening any new showrooms in different cities? Are there any upcoming events or any news that you’d like for our readers to know about?

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Construction firms specializing in peerless residences

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Vanos Architects & Bowery Design + Development Perched dramatically on a Hollywood Hills cliff, the Queens Way residence is ready for its close-up

by Brian Libby

The Queens Way Residence, which sits on a cliffside perch above the famed Sunset Strip, was

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initially intended for Fanning and his wife. But having children, as well as the opportunity to use the house as a showpiece for Bowery Design + Development, prompted him to make it a salehome instead. After all, Fanning and Vanos had created the ultimate pad for an aspiring young entertainment star, given not only its panoramic view of iconic Sunset Strip spots like SkyBar, Chateau Marmont, and the House of Blues (and the ocean in the distance), but the simple, luxurious interiors and enough outdoor space for the ultimate backyard party, overlooking Tinseltown.

“I know what I look for in the design for a home: how spaces should be, the volumes, the different things that make spaces impressive. I design homes that I would like to live in: modern but warm, and Jay has an incredible way of bringing them to life,” Fanning says of his collaborative

relationship with Vanos. “A lot of other architects aren’t willing to work with creative points of view that stray from their voice. It can be very difficult if you yourself have a strong creative point of view. Jay is incredible to work with in that way because he is incredibly talented and very collaborative.”

The site necessitated some architectural gymnastics given its steepness and relatively small footprint. But Vanos, who spent 15 years running the office of legendary L.A. architect Eric Owen Moss, was used to tough assignments. “The process of design was never assumed to come to a conclusion,” Vanos remembers of his time with Moss. “If an idea contributed to the project, it would be pursued. That gave me an enormous amount of freedom and opportunity. But at the same time, buildings are put together by people,

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PHOTOs: Don Lewis Photography

Just over 10 years ago, Tom Fanning underwent a career change taking him, in a manner of speaking, from Jay-Z to Jay V. After spending the 1990’s as a music video producer--working with rockers The Rolling Stones, pop stars Britney Spears and Jennifer Lopez, and rappers like Dr. Dre and the aforementioned Jay-Z--today, through Bowery Design + Development, Fanning designs and builds high-end homes such as the Queens Way Residence, in collaboration with architect Jay Vanos of Vanos Architects. Yet the climate of collaborative creativity remained the same. “It’s actually very similar to what I was doing as a producer,” Fanning says. “We were creating a product that was very creative and visual but had a sophisticated business side to it.”

02

01 From the outside, a series of interlocking earthtoned cubes blend the residence into the hillside.

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02 In the master suite, a 20foot glass wall slides into a pocket door, doubling the size of the space.

03 The entry leads up to a master suite or down to the living room and kitchen. The chandelier was custom fabricated using North African metallic globes.

for people. Making sure the role of the craftsman has a role in the building is important to me too.”

Fanning and Vanos preferred warm, natural surfaces inside, and stuck to just a few materials to maintain uniformity and clarity: white oak flooring, a limestone chimney and a ceiling of wood reclaimed from an old barn. And though the gray stucco façade seems to spring out of the property’s rocky hillside, the interior is all about lofty volumes and especially—thanks to the disappearing walls of glass, expansive pool and patio beyond—a sense of openness between indoor and outdoor that is ideal for this city, where desert meets ocean.

The house, with its views extending to the Pacific, takes advantage of its steep site, with an entry bridge overlooking and giving way to a living room one level below. The space blends with an outdoor patio and infinity-edge pool via a dramatic 34-foot wall of glass that all but disappears.

“The idea is that the whole wall of glass disappear, so the outdoor interacts with the indoor—to take the floor out to the pool. It feels like the pool is literally inside your living room,” says “You’re in your own little world: extremely private, Fanning. Upstairs on the third floor is a master like atop the line resort,” Vanos says. “It all comes suite, also with its own terrace, as well as its own back to the idea that this is an L.A. house.” disappearing 20-foot wall of glass.

projects 01

1512 Dolphin Terrace

THIS lavish rebuild is a shining example of coastal California’s relaxed elegance

by Teresa Silva Located in Irvine Terrace on the southern California coast, 1512 Dolphin Terrace is a versatile residence that will accommodate young families or emptynesters. Originally built in 1957, the ranch-style home is a rebuild project that respects the integrity of the architecture. Spinnaker Development’s full-scale remodel approach means that the project was stripped to its foundation and transformed.

“Seventy-five percent new lumber was introduced to the framing [and] the entire home was ‘redone.’

Most of our projects are ‘down to the foundation’ rebuilds and should be considered ‘full scale,’” says Michael Close, co-owner of Spinnaker Development. The construction company tore down to the studs and rebuilt 75 percent of the home, adding a state-of-the-art Control4 automation system that

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controls lighting, climate, security and audio/video from one’s own mobile phone. 1512 Dolphin Terrace is offered to the homeowner as turn-key and completely furnished, with a re-envisioned courtyard area for indoor/outdoor living, making this a relaxed, elegant dwelling.

Spinnaker Development started in 2009 and consists of a two-brother team, David and Michael Close. David has worked as a developer/builder since 1997, specializing in both high-end custom and spec homes. Michael has been in construction and real estate since 2003. In their new venture together, David continues in construction while Michael handles administrative aspects. Spinnaker Development is a dream come true for both broth-

ers, where the company is a vehicle to help them realize their vision for designing and constructing casual yet extravagant homes. Both admit that while the project was arduous, it was also very enjoyable.

In its short existence, the company has already built seven homes, number eight is under construction and two more are in the design phase. David and Michael live in Irvine Terrace, part of Newport Beach, and are vested in contributing to their community’s vibrancy.

Spinnaker’s approach to construction entails studying what is workable in an old home, identifying what is salvageable and examining the limits of the property size. Sometimes a rebuild can cost more than new construction so Spinnaker is very careful

luxuryhomequarterly.com

PHOTOS: SCOTT SHIGLEY

Spinnaker Development

David and Michael Close, coowners of Spinnaker Development collaborated closely with Kevin Smith of Details Design Firm and architect Craig Hampton to orchestrate every aspect of 1512 Dolphin Terrace. The clean aesthetic of the furniture and decor seamlessly pull this home together with a neutral color palette.

Set Sail With The Premier Home Builder In Newport Beach.

Spinnaker Development is renowned in the Greater Newport Beach area as “The Builder” who delivers Quality, Design and Craftsmanship and is the First Choice of discerning buyers. We design, build & furnish turnkey custom homes that are built to the highest standards. We use the finest craftsmen as well as the highest quality materials to make each home we build unique and timeless.

PROUDLY RESHAPING THE GREAT COMMUNITIES OF NEWPORT BEACH ONE AT A TIME. SPRING 2012

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428 32ND ST. • NEWPORT BEACH, CA • 92663 • P. 949.544.5800 • F. 949.544.5808 • WWW.SPINNDEV.COM

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01 The home’s outdoor seating terrace with full access to the indoors.

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02 The kitchen’s counters are completed

by Caracus Blue Limestone and Calcutta Bollini marble slabs.

03 The entry foyer features DuChateau Lugano (duchateaufloors.com) hardwood flooring, which continues throughout the home.

04 The master bedroom features full height paneling, tongue & groove ceilings, and access to the state-of-the-art audio/video systems.

before they enter into escrow. With 1512 Dolphin Terrace, they maintained the inherent structure of the house and redesigned the courtyard, removing a driveway and in-ground pool and moving a garage. Today, the courtyard is the focal point of the property, with 24-foot pocket doors that open up the living, dining and family rooms to the outdoors.

The remodel achieves essentially a new product, preserving the original architecture and footprint while exuding a relaxed and elegant charm reflected in its coastal environ.

1512 Dolphin Terrace was completed in 2011 and features four bedrooms, four-and-a-half bathrooms,

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office, living, dining and family rooms and a vast open kitchen with dining space. The outdoor area boasts a custom made fire pit, lounge area, BBQ island and ample lawn space for relaxing or casual dining. Architectural and interior design details include stunning beamed ceilings in the dining and family rooms, tongue & groove paneled ceilings with elegant crown moulding; wainscot and full “removed length” height board baton paneling and extensive finish carpentry throughout the home; Caracus blue limestone and Calcutta Bollini marble slabs in the kitchen; deluxe French doors that open to the patio and a built-in desk in the office.

These distinctive features make 1512 Dolphin Terrace very alluring but there is the added bonus of the ease with which one could move in. With their acute attention to detail, Spinnaker has not forgotten that convenience should be integral to luxury.

Spinnaker provides technical support for setting up the Control4 automation system on one’s mobile device, bringing in dinner from the client’s favorite local restaurant for the first night of moving in, and even stocking the kitchen with food to help the family get through the first week of transition. This opulent home, coupled with its convenient amenities, make it an irresistible choice for maintaining the convivial family lifestyle without the stress.

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PROJECTS 01

Smith Brothers Construction Self-Serve Option Works Best for THIS DESIGN DUO

by Rodric J. Bradford The California and Massachusetts coastlines may be separated by over 3,000 miles, but for Jeff and Cheryl Smith, Co-Presidents of Smith Brothers Construction, bicoastal living is a part of their everyday ambience, as they enjoy their finished Cape Cod Project in Del Mar, California.

“We live a block from the beach,” says Cheryl. “Our home environment is like being on vacation everyday. I have always enjoyed the traditional Cape Code style from back East and I wanted to incorporate it throughout my home.”

For over 25 years Smith Brothers Construction has been the premier choice in Southern California and Hawaii for luxury design build and new home construction as well as remodeling of fine custom homes.

The Cape Cod project began as Cheryl’s dream over a decade ago. Throughout the years she kept a scrapbook of architectural and interior design images that matched her Cape Cod dream house. After purchasing a property with an existing house five years ago, the Smiths spent a year living in the house to get a feel for the lot, traffic, noise and other living arrangements before the design and construction of the Cape Cod project.

“That experience helped a lot with the architectural plan,” says Cheryl. “You could only put a four-foot fence around your property, so with our experience we opted for planting a large, tall beautiful hedge around the entire property.

It makes a small space very private.”

The attractive planter boxes and fresh flowers welcome visitors to the Cape Cod ambience in a California beach setting. An outdoor shower helps ease the transition from outside fun in the sun to intimate inside, but the outdoor living area keeps the majority of guests outside to enjoy the backyard beach environment.

The backyard features an Italian wood dining table that seats 12, accompanied with an outdoor fireplace, stove, gas heaters and drapes. The Smiths have even hosted a wedding rehearsal for 60 guests in their beach backyard setting.

The backyard’s social environment is met with a relaxing element as a glass tile spa in a private area is accentuated with a sheer descent fountain surrounded by an array of flowers and plants.

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“It’s outdoor living at its best, and we are able to entertain guests all year long.”

Cheryl smith, co-president

01 Outdoor dining is achieved throughout the year by way of fireplace, heaters and weatherproof drapes.

“There is something truly magical about sitting outside, the backyard naturally lends itself to that feeling,” says Cheryl. “Even on a cold night, we close the drapes, turn on the heaters, light the candles and we can be anywhere. It’s outdoor living at its best, and we are able to entertain guests all year long.”

02 The ‘Great’ Room combines bold and neutral colors to create cape style comfort.

The journey inside the Cape Cod Project takes you to the Indoor Great Room, a living room, family room and dining area in one setting. Blue leather furniture is complemented with white French doors that open to the patio. A fireplace and window seat offer an option for quiet reading and peaceful evenings. Art glass windows optimize privacy.

03 A glass tile spa and a sheer descent fountain offer guests the chance to relax in seclusion on the patio deck.

The kitchen was built for function as well as style. Two sinks, each with garbage disposals, are used often for group cooking and meal prepara-

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tion, along with two ovens and multiple chopping blocks. While recycled wood floors flow throughout the house, Italian gold marble floors are featured in the kitchen.

“We love the kitchen,” says Cheryl. “Our son is a chef, and it has even received his stamp of approval.”

Three en-suite bedrooms and bathrooms complete the Smith’s Cape Cod residential experience, one that has truly lived up to their high expectations from being an industry insider.

“With all five of our children gone, the downsizing experience has been a fun and pleasurable process,” says Cheryl. “My husband’s talents and our trust in our long-time working relationships with contractors allow us to live out the Cape Cod experience I had years ago.”

luxuryhomequarterly.com

builders

construction firms specializing in peerless residences

01

Belcanto Residence

Jenson Construction Utah-based company gives full attention to individualized design

by Amy Howell Hirt Every work of art needs an inspiration, and for custom luxury home builder Dave Jenson, clients are both patron and muse.

“Every project takes on a life of its own,” says Jenson, who opened his business more than 20 years ago.

Jenson Construction, based in St. George, Utah, only accepts one or two projects a year, allowing him to become fully immersed in every detail of the design.

When Jenson decided to participate for the second time in the St. George Area Parade of Homes in 2011, he had no shortage of inspiration, building for his good friend Lanny Smith, on a lot that gazes over the beauty of Pine Valley Mountain, Zion National Park and the city lights of St. George.

While the tastes of his Utah clients predominantly lean toward Tuscan, Southwestern and traditional styles, from time to time he’s called upon to create something contemporary or altogether different. A recent client in Wyoming, for example, requested that his new home have interior finishes in-line with his rugged ranch property, but an exterior that was “tropical and lush.”

“We’ve known each other for 15 years, so it was fun to collaborate with him,” Jenson says of Smith, who founded a top-selling automatic pool-cover company. “He was instrumental in the design and finish.”

Fine materials and thoughtful, custom touches are the instruments behind the “beautiful music” in the “Belcanto” – a luxury home, priced at $4.35 million.

“No detail is left undone. We didn’t spare anything,” says builder Dave Jenson of Jenson Construction in St. George, Utah.

The home boasts high-end finishes like mahogany interior doors and kitchen cabinetry from Green Valley Cabinets, 4-inch granite countertops from Distinctive Marble & Granite (distinctivemarbleandgranite.com) in Salt Lake City and an automated system from Control4 that provides whole-house control of audio/video, security, and temperature control systems.

While anyone would feel at home living in the sprawling 10,764-square-foot ranch, it was designed as a retreat to share with friends and family.

“Lanny’s idea was that every guest should have the same experience he does,” Jenson recalls.

Jenson outfitted each of the four master suites with a kitchenette, laundry amenities, a walk-in closet and covered veranda.

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01 The expansive entrance opens to a furnished courtyard creating an idyllic outdoor retreat.

02 The all-glass tiled swimming pool and spa provide outdoor entertaining year-round.

03 Curved interior architectural details in the master bathroom highlight patterns found throughout the home.

Breathtaking views are a large part of the experience, and Jenson focused on creating this impact in both interior and exterior spaces. Curvilinear shapes appear throughout the residence: in the doorways, tray ceilings and two rotundas, all developed, in part, from the use of curved windows that significantly enhance the view.

“It’s probably the best view in St. George. It’s a 275-degree unobstructed view from the top of a stone cliff,” Jenson says.

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Natural finishes like tumbled-brushed marble from Spain, walnut hardwood flooring and all-natural stone on the eight fireplaces internalize this beauty.

In some spaces, the mountains not only inspired the colors and materials, but also the designs.

Artist Juergen Dzierzon, who is known for his work in Mormon temples, etched the view of palm trees and mountains seen from the back of the house into the hand-blasted glass shower walls in the master bath.

On the garage doors, artist Mike Dumas replicated landscapes of Zion National Park - photographed by Jenson – using varying tones of copper inlays.

With 300 sun-drenched days a year and mild temperatures, by Utah standards, the home isn’t merely an observer of nature. For fair-weather days, a retractable glass wall opens the family room to the patio and outdoor kitchen, and the master bedroom connects to an outdoor shower.

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Paradise Home Design

04 The formal dining area utilizes circular patterns to enhance feelings of community.

Creating custom designed homes in the Southern Utah area.

05

05 Folk paintings by Northern Utah artist Job Biegel greet guests in the well appointed living room.

Because Smith planned to use the home primarily for entertaining, Jenson included retreat-worthy amenities like: a green, 13-seat theater room with a 160-inch projection screen from Stewart Filmscreen; an exercise room; sauna; outdoor pool; spa; sunken fire pit and a fireplace in the private courtyard.

In the kitchen, two Sub-Zero refrigerators, double warming drawers, trash compactors and dishwashers can easily accommodate a flurry of dinner guests.

Beyond the supplemental options, there are practical considerations that lie at the heart of Jenson’s construction. In addition to the seven dual-fuel HVAC systems from Day & Night that provide customized climate control and greater energy efficiency, the home includes premier

components that Jenson considers standard, like reinforced concrete flooring, insulated interior walls and a pre-wired automation system– all top features that make the home both cutting edge and cozy.

A MESSAGE FROM Paradise Home Design With over 35 years as a home designer, Scott Hughes makes his home in Southern Utah. Combining creativity and unique designs with fast and accurate service Scott, is one of Southern Utah’s most sought after designers. His designs are known for capturing the surrounding beauty while keeping the functionality of a home.

3672 Mulberry Dr. St. George, UT 84790 O. 435.674.5550 C. 435.680.9012 SPRING 2012

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builders 01

Mark Timothy Inc. Luxury Homes COMBINING A LUXURIOUS LOCATION AND TIMELESS STYLE ON SOUTH FLORIDA’S OCEANFRONT

by Brian Libby Mark Pulte followed in his father’s footsteps in more ways than one. Just as Bill Pulte started Detroit’s Pulte Group at the young age of 18 back in 1950 (eventually becoming the nation’s largest home builder), so too did Mark set out on his own at a young age. “When I was 24, while working for my father in the late 80’s, they transferred me to South Florida,” the younger Pulte remembers. “I observed that there was a lot of demolition taking place. People were tearing down million dollar houses and rebuilding.”

Mark went to Pulte Homes and said, “You guys should start a high-end division. We bought five lots on the ocean. But right after we bought them, Pulte Homes decided they didn’t want to

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go into that market. My father said to me, ‘I still think it’s a no-brainer. Why don’t you go do it on your own? We’ll loan you the money.’”

Flash forward 32 years, and Mark Timothy Luxury Homes is South Florida’s largest luxury homebuilder, with seven projects currently under construction. But it’s still the lessons of his father and a few initial clients that he believes set the company on its way. “The first few clients I had took me under their wing and gave me great advice,” he explains. First, it’s all about location: a residence along the beach trumps every other amenity. In the home industry, Pulte learned that it’s also important to never grow beyond what you can deliver. But most of all, he says, “If you

521 South Ocean For this oceanfront property in Delray Beach, not only did Mark Timothy Luxury Homes act as developer, but the company’s owner, Mark Pulte, also designed it. “I knew the market was scaling down in size of homes. Bigger houses were really no longer desired. This house’s floor plan was compact, manageable and not overwhelming.

It had a lot more practical spaces, not your sitting rooms, piano rooms or theaters. In vogue now are media rooms, which can be a family room converted into a theater. It makes it more manageable.” The house is also maintenance-free, with a classic South Florida white-stucco façade, with aluminum stainless-steel windows, and concrete roof tiles.

“Five years ago everything used to be dark Mediterranean. Now it’s lighter, brighter colors. We used light blues, white, butter yellow—soothing colors that make people feel good.”

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01 The master bedroom comes to life with varying shades of yellow amidst traditionalstyle furnishings.

02 White marble floors in the master bath from Tile and Marble by Valentine (tileandmarblebyvalentin.com).

03 In the foyer, a suspended wood tread staircase by Rock Woodworks (rockwoodworks.com).

give a very good product for a fair price, the rest will take care of itself.” During the recession, for example, he noticed a trend towards more restrained luxury and an emphasis on trust.

“Our buyers are very wealthy, obviously,” Putte says. “They can afford whatever they want. But they want to make sure that they’re paying fair market value. Maybe four years ago a guy might walk in and say, ‘How much are those kitchen cabinets?’ Regardless, the answer would probably have been, ‘No problem.’ Now they want to make sure they’re spending it fairly.” As an extension of that customer relationship, Pulte himself routinely calls homeowners long after construction is completed to assure they’re happy—even when the original homeowners have sold. “We knew immediately this was it. The workmanship is really astonishing, down to the very smallest detail,” recalls one such second owner, Mel Weitz, who, with his wife, purchased a Mark Timothy

home in Palm Beach County. He says Pulte still visits the house occasionally to this day.

Unlike many homebuilders who retain an inhouse design staff, Mark Timothy Luxury Homes does work solely with outside firms, which Pulte believes gives the company more flexibility to accommodate buyers’ wishes. That said, the company has formed a long partnership with MarcMichaels Interior Design (p.120) out of Winter Park, Florida.

“The firm has a lot of young people, who really have a good sense of trends, of what the buyer is looking for,” he explains. “Years ago, it was Mediterranean. Now it’s this more casual look with brighter colors. But most important, they design products that are timeless. So many of our south Florida architects are not timeless. They’re designing things that are in today and out tomorrow. You can never go wrong with timeless archi-

tecture.” Pulte’s homes also come furnished, no matter if they are built on spec or for a particular client. For the 521 South Ocean project in Delray Beach, Florida, for example, a grand staircase gives way to a grand piano atop marble floors, a master bedroom with elegant chandeliers and an adjacent sitting room, always with ocean and palm trees in the distance.

Pulte says it’s the variety that ultimately gets him excited to be in business. “Every house pushes your design ability,” he says. “Even though it may be traditional, you still push the envelope, particularly on the interior finishes.

Each buyer is different, too. Every location is different. The oceanfront in Ft. Lauderdale is different from the oceanfront in Palm Beach.”

But the connecting thread amongst these projects, as his father taught Pulte, is a willingness to build quality and to be there to serve buyers long after they move in.

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builders 01

SBC: Schlauch Bottcher Construction MONTANA BUILDERS EMPHASIZE Mountain Elegance

by Lauryn Allison Lewis Located near the Gallatin Mountain Range, Schlauch Bottcher Construction draws inspiration from the lush landscape to create luxurious constructions. Chad and Jamie Bottcher, brothers and principals of the SBC firm, understand the importance of melding the great outdoors with opulent interior features. The brothers see commonalities in their clients requests: they seek a lifestyle that puts nature at the forefront, something more pure and less tied down. They’re looking for a getaway. They love the mountain setting and the view. Every effort is taken to meld the elements of nature with building materials which reflect the landscape. Chief Cliff stone walls reflect the buttes beyond, uninterrupted views blur the boundary between indoors and out, and weather-worn timbers are reminiscent of ancient Douglas Fir forests.

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Together the brothers have meticulously managed the construction of luxury homes in Montana’s Southwest region since 1996, and between them, they hold degrees in Architecture and Civil Engineering from Montana State University. “We were raised in country like this,” says Jamie Bottcher. “We’re familiar and appreciative of the land, and of its natural beauty.”

In 2009, Jamie and Chad parted amicably with Mike Schlauch, an originating partner and credited with one half of the firm’s namesake. “The community has come to recognize us as SBC. Our brand is associated with quality work, integrity and sound business practices.” Jamie explains.

“When we took ownership of SBC, there was never a thought to changing the name. Also, we still

The Locati Home: An Architect’s Retreat Jerry Locati, principal architect of Locati Architecture, combines wide open-floor plans and soaring ceilings with humanscale comfort. Wood, stone and glass in this custom home creates an interior symphony of unique and personal touches. Exposed structural elements continue indoors and throughout large expanses of glass-enclosed spaces rich in visual texture. Locati creations are recognized for blending seamlessly with the landscape.

For his own home near Bozeman, MT, the architect used a palette of natural and recycled materials—reclaimed timbers, precise stonework, rusted metals, wood windows and doors and wide expanses of glass to bring the outdoors in.

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01 Reclaimed timber and stone provide the exterior with charm.

02 Lush landscape architecture softens the home’s rustic façade.

03 Various wood finishes bring out details in the master bedroom.

04 The timber-frame home is carved out into Montana’s scenic spread.

05 The outdoor seating area overlooks a distant mountain range.

work closely with Mike Schlauch. He’s working with us on a project right now.”

Just how did the SBC team achieve such recognition? “We don’t cut corners; in the long run, that’s not the way to save time or money. We are fair, open and honest with our clients, and we stay in constant communication with them through each step of the process,” says Chad.

WHEN YOU WANT THE VERY FINEST IN CUSTOM CABINETRY

Another reason for SBC’s acclaim is because they make every effort to ensure that environmentally responsible building practices are implemented whenever possible. “In both the Richards and Locati homes, Jerry Locati (AIA, principle of Locati Architects in Bozeman, MT) used reclaimed wood in his designs. The massive timbers in both homes are reclaimed Douglas Fir. The siding on the outside of the Locati home is reclaimed as well.” Is 6573 Falcon Lane, Bozeman, MT. 59718

www.mountainhighwoodworks.com

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Bartek & Co.

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Ph. 406.581.8864 481 Green tree Dr. BelGraDe, Mt

05

The Richards Home: Perfect Harmony The Richards Home combines warmth of a log cabin with top-of-the-line luxuries, such as the home’s private movie theater, complete with a fully stocked concession area. Other features include a cavernous wine cellar, a cozy den in the fully finished garage, outdoor fireplace and a hot tub placed strategically into the estate’s layout, and in such complete harmony with the windswept surroundings, many might be fooled into believing it’s a natural feature which has always existed there. Uninterrupted views from the living and dining rooms showcase Montana’s rugged beauty and reflect the home’s stone and timber finishes.

this a move toward cost effectiveness? Of course we are very conscientious of costs. In the case of using reclaimed materials, it’s not always a costsaving measure as an aesthetic one.” Jamie explains, “There’s just no way to replicate the effects of weather and time on wood without resorting to methods that could be damaging to the environment. In this case, it makes sense to use what’s already available.”

SBC’s teamwork philosophy makes good sense also.

The brothers agree, “Our entire team–the architects, the subcontractors, the concrete crew and the painting crew–all deserve recognition. We all share our client’s vision and work together to build it.”

A MESSAGE FROM MONTANA TIMBERS Montana Timbers is a full service reclaimed lumber yard and custom milling facility located in the heart of the Gallatin Valley. We work with salvagers all over North America saving reusable materials from obsolete or condemned structures slated for demolition.

Whether it’s a complete timber package or 100 square feet of flooring, Montana Timbers has the materials and know how to bring your dreams to life. Montana Timbers is proud to provide quality reclaimed building products such as timbers, siding; flooring and custom trim packages, made locally, available nationally.

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Reclaimed • Timber • Siding • Flooring Custom Sawing & Millwork

Phillips & Company Limited 100 Shepherd Trail, Ste. 6 • Bozeman, MT P: 406.586.8222 / F: 406.586.8494

Made locally available nationally Ph. 406.388.5011 www.montanatimbers.com

builders 01

Cudmore Builders Mediterranean lifestyle & architecture in the American South

by Rob Johnson Terry Cudmore decided more than 20 years ago that he did not want to go the route of many Florida builders and develop just tract and spec homes.

Instead, he decided to put his efforts into building custom high-end homes, staying small and focusing on customer service.

“At this level, people are quite demanding,” he says.

“We just really try to service people to death.”

Cudmore credits his background in engineering and finance, as well as time working for a major oil services company that provided support to oil rigs in the North Sea and Gulf of Mexico in helping him control costs and scheduling as a builder.

“We just go out of our way to have happy customers,” says Cudmore, adding that some clients are coming back to him to renovate homes he built for them in the 1990’s. “Virtually everyone who has ever done a home with us would do it again.”

“When you bring in houses on budget and on time, that’s the easiest way to have a happy customer,” he says.

That approach has allowed Cudmore Builders to rely entirely on referrals, with many clients turning again to the Boca Raton firm to build another home elsewhere in south Florida.

Cudmore started out in home building in Houston, TX when he built the home of an architect neighbor. The 3,200-square-foot home was built in an all-brick courtyard style, which was uncommon

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for that market at the time, and it received a lot of attention upon completion in the mid-1980’s, according to Cudmore.

When the oil industry in Texas collapsed around that time, Cudmore joined a friend who had moved to Florida to work in construction with his father.

Cudmore and the friend went into business together and began building between 20 and 40 homes a year for the next couple of years, but Cudmore decided to go out on his own. He formed Cudmore Builders in August 1991.

“It wasn’t really something I wanted to do,” he says, adding that the half-dozen or so homes he builds now each year range between 5,000 and 25,000 square feet. “I like the small house, frankly. I like

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The Bell Residence The 25,000-square-foot Bell residence in Boca Raton, FL was influenced by the Mediterranean Revival style that the area has been famous for the past 80 years. The large living room incorporates a kid-friendly feel that the owner was looking for, with prints of Superman, Alfred E. Neuman of Mad Magazine and the Wicked Witch of the West from the “Wizard of Oz” overlooking the space.

fairly-detailed 5,000-square-foot homes in some ways more than the really big homes. Although, the big ones are fun too.”

01 The palatial entrance, complete with doric columns and shaped topiaries.

One of the fun ones was the 25,000-square-foot home Cudmore built in Boca Raton for an Internet entrepreneur and private equity manager who is close to his children. The home, which took three years to build, was inspired by the Mediterranean Revival first made popular in Florida by famed architect Addison Minzer more than 80 years ago.

02 On the entry floor, large open passages incorporate a Mediterranean influence.

The home featured a 5,000 square-foot game room with vintage stand-up arcade video games and pinball machines. The children’s rooms were built with boating and princess themes. The home theater was built to resemble the bridge of the Starship Enterprise of the TV series and movie “Star Trek.” The

03 The kitchen’s recessed ceiling and rounded corners flow seemlessly into the rest of the home.

04 The theater was built to resemble the bridge of the Starship Enterprise of the TV series and movie “Star Trek.”

1080 S. Rogers Circle, Ste. 1 Boca Raton, FL 33487 Ph. 561.912.9881 / F. 561.912.9818 jlclosets@aol.com / jlclosets.com SPRING 2012

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Terry cudmore, founder home was wired for sound throughout. The pool, in the courtyard area of the home, can be closed off during inclement weather to protect people from the elements.

Even with the tough economic times Florida is going through now, Cudmore says his company has done well and been able to retain his 10 employees without any layoffs. He says that the economy has forced sub-contractors to provide more affordable pricing for their services. Plus, he says, his company is known for “paying well and on time.”

“Over the years, the homes have gotten a little bit larger, a little more complicated,” says Cudmore.

The renovations are more involved as well, he says. The type of building Cudmore does in south Florida is usually complicated, he says, because there is not much undeveloped land available in the region and a home already built there has to be demolished.

“They know if we get involved in a project we’re going to do a good job,” Cudmore says. “People are very comfortable coming to us.”

luxuryhomequarterly.com

builders

01

Wolford Built Homes

Wolford now boasts clients from India, Pakistan and Russia.

Leading Louisville’s Luxury Home Industry “You have to make the effort to learn about the culture,” says Wolford. “I just attended my first Indian house blessing and it was a great experience. I felt honored.”

by Rodric J. Bradford Louisville is synonymous with the Kentucky Derby. For the past three decades the lead horse in the city’s luxury home builder market has been Wolford Built Homes, and its jockey has been Founder and President Ron Wolford. Wolford Built Homes has built over 500 homes in the Louisville area.

“Our mission combines many basic philosophical beliefs,” says Wolford. “We deliver the best we have to offer because we know what you put out in life comes back to you many times over. We strive to improve the lives of others and treat them well because everyone is important and deserves to make a living.”

Wolford Built Homes has set dozens of trends in the area’s luxury homes market, including: fin-

ished basements, rear stairways, Jack-n-Jill baths, a great room, hearth room concepts, outdoor fireplaces and kitchens.

However, cutting-edge features alone are not the foundation for the ongoing success of Wolford Built Homes. Building and maintaining relationships with more informed buyers is critical for their growing client base.

“Technology has made buyers more aware of everything, from lot prices to material costs,” says Wolford. “But it is still about relationships because people want to be pampered and treated like individuals, not transactions.”

Building those relationships remains the same as Louisville’s residents become more diverse.

The presence of Wolford Built Homes can be felt throughout the Louisville community, as his wife Martha Wolford heads all corporate giving and charitable initiatives, fulfilling a responsibility that comes with being their market’s industry leader.

Two of their larger projects benefit Kosair Children’s Hospital and saved the lives of local children. They sponsor ARTavenue, allowing visitors to view original art and luxurious Wolford Built Homes and they also offered the grand prize—a new home, for the hospital’s annual fundraiser.

“In keeping with our philosophy we have always sought to give back to our community,” says Martha. “Since the collapse of the housing indus-

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01 The color and texture of the Hobbs Park Residence’s porch concrete was specially formulated to match that which would have been used when the house was built.

03

02 A soft blue color palette sets a luxurious stage in the master bedroom.

03 The kitchen island is crafted from a solid black walnut and suede granite countertop by Artistic Kitchens (artistickitchens.net) 04 Bright colors and hardwood parquet flooring create a cheerful living room.

05 The kitchen boasts an extensive use of carrera marble and custom cabinetry by Artistic Kitchens.

Hobbs Park Residence try, we have made efforts to turn our homes into community fundraising projects.”

The reputation earned in the community is equally matched by their stellar reputation earned from their clients. The transformation of two projects, Hobbs Park and Stongate Residence are prime examples.

Working with architect and artist Sonny White, the duo transformed a 2500-square-foot 1920’s bungalow into a 4500-square-foot design masterpiece. Facing permit challenges due to its

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location in a historical district, meticulous design and construction planning was necessary, beginning with the removal of walls, ceilings and electrical work.

Extensive exterior renovations and interior additions of the kitchen, family room, master suite, lower level and covered porch was combined with a remodel of the dining room and living room.

The Stongate Residence was a dramatic departure from Hobbs Park, as the 1950’s “modern” home had its own set of challenges including match-

The historical look of this project was retained through interior architectural detailing. Julie Sandman Interiors (juliesandmaninteriors.com) created a design scheme that features a seethrough fireplace in the family room with walnut-panel bookcases. Artistic Kitchens provided glittering crystal cabinet knobs to accessorize the lavish use of marble and traditional black walnut in the kitchen. “Just thinking of the Hobbs project makes me smile,” says Wolford.

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a message from artistic kitchens

05

Artistic Kitchens is your source for the ultimate in design expertise and handcrafted cabinetry. Our mission is to provide our client’s personalized design; attention to details; exceptional quality and superior service. The design is in the details and craftsmanship, resulting in creating each client’s taste and vision. a message from julie sandman interiors Julie Sandman Interiors focuses on providing professional interior design service to our discriminating clients. We believe the most successful projects are the result of the client, interior designer, and builder’s collaboration and understanding of the ultimate vision for each specific job. We are always delighted to collaborate with the Wolford Building group. a message from century living We are your one stop for all your audio video entertainment and furnishings, so you can enjoy living. At Century Entertainment & Furnishings our goal is to deliver great products at the lowest price with exceptional personalized customer service. We welcome you to come by and visit our 20,000-square-foot

Stongate Residence Stongate Residence was built in 1952 by architect Norman Sweet, whose mentor Frank Lloyd Wright influenced his design of the home. A new ceiling was built on top of the old one, and architect Jim Peterson (jimpetersonarchitect.com) led the 770-square-foot kitchen addition that blended five roof lines by American Roofing and Metal Company (americanroofingonline. com). Louisville Tile (louisvilletile.com) provided porcelain tile throughout the kitchen master suite and Global Granite (globalgranite.com) supplied Brazilian turquoise granite for the kitchen island and DuPont Zodiaq Quartz for appliance countertops. Custom lacquered wooden cabinets by designer Laura Whittle.

showroom and see everything that we can offer to turn your house into your castle. Carrying today’s top brand lines in audio video and entertainment. a message from carpet specialists At Carpet Specialists, our staff offers the years of

ing the new floor level with the old and transforming the old carport to the new master bedroom.

real-world flooring experience and knowledge not often found in the large national chain stores. Because we are locally-owned, we want to help our clients make the

“Building and transforming residences is truly one of the most rewarding businesses to be in,” says Wolford. “The housing downturn has provided us with a wonderful opportunity to focus on remodeling, and build new relationships with a new segment of clientele. We will surround ourselves with a young, talented workforce and continue to be a good example in the community, so the Wolford Built Homes brand will continue long into the future.”

right flooring and installation decisions for your home and ensure your satisfaction for years to come. a message from cherry valley spas Cherry Valley Spas, is a family owned and operated business founded in 1986. As a leader in the hot tub industry, Cherry Valley provides top quality Maax spas.

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builders

01

Vintage Villa

Mancari & Associates D’Amico Residence intertwineS rustic and modern style, vintage wine and surround sound, in this modern villa home

by Alex Glenn Finding a serene space inside the buzzing Chicagoland hive is no easy task. But it’s just what the architecture and design team at Mancari and Associates, with their D’Amico Residence, an authentic villa-style construction intend to do.

After all, how better to forget about the gridlock on the Dan Ryan Expressway than by coming home to a quiet table in the French countryside?

This is Ray Haniacek’s thinking, founder and owner of Mancari and Associates. He doesn’t simply want his work to remind clients of a certain era—he wants that era to live and breathe anew. “I like when clients look at a house and can’t tell how old it is,” he says. “As if it could’ve been in a European village. That makes us proud.”

Started 15 years ago, Mancari and Associates have earned a respected name across suburban

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Chicago with exactly that type of custom, handson approach. In fact, what separates this company from many others is that it never schedules its next project until finished with the current one, allowing artistic inspiration to flourish and the clients’ vision to take shape, distraction-free. “I want to be with clients,” says Haniacek. “I want to go to the store with them, pick out materials, everything. Whether they want a chateau orFrench villa, I want to make their vision happen, not leave them with a foreman and move onto the next thing.”

Working this way, Mancari and Associates’ homes can take up to 15 months to build. But one look at the D’Amico residence should convince you that the days spent waiting are worthwhile—and that not one of them gets wasted.

Creating villa-style homes with both old French warmth and a spice of modern energy means striking the right balance with materials and furnishings. Great Room furnishings by Interior designer Mary Susan (ibmsdesign.com), fill the 20-foot vaulted ceilings with parachute-sized drapes, damask rugs and vivid tapestries, layering an inviting oomph onto the stately base.

The floors, fashioned out of black walnut, are painstakingly hand-scraped to add to the creased book-cover character of the place. And adorning the floors in the foyer, hallway and laundry room is some roughly 2,000-year-old stone, Antiqued Dalle and Dijon Limestone, patiently lifted straight off the streets of France. Now if the bucolic materials don’t remind visitors of simpler times, then visiting the massive wine cellar downstairs ought to: weather-worn cubbies carved from reclaimed oak timbers off a 150-year-old barn hang from the hand-carved concrete walls, stretching from ceiling to floor like ring boxes encasing their dreg-encrusted

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01 The rustic Eden Stone (edenstone.net) exterior along with the stucco dormers and limestone balusters are perfect selections to give the home a “Villa” look.

03

02 The wine cellar, designed and built by Genuwine Grottos, LLC. (genuwinegrottos.com), holds approximately 3,000 bottles.

03 The exterior of the wine cellar has a tile roof, copper gutter and etched glass window panes.

04 The foyer floor, assemled in a Versaille pattern, features various shades of buttercream, caramel, and terra cotta and was the inspiration point for this home.

ruby gems. “The wine cellars are one of our specialties,” says Haniacek. Seeing the meticulous care that goes into this basement of burgundy, it’s easy to believe him.

Now while this residence--with its glazed limestone fireplace, two-story silk drapery, scraped wood, tinted stucco dormers, and dusty wine bottles,--offers a nifty escape from the modern day, sometimes it’s nice to know a house can compete with its peers from this century. For that, look no further than the abundance of smart technology that Mancari and Associates has put

in place, starting in the gorgeous, amber-hued home movie theater. Razor-sharp picture and hair-raising surround-sound send film viewers reeling deep into the comfort of their plump brown leather chairs. And if that’s not enough of a jolt back to the present day, perhaps the fact that the entire house is wired for remote access will be. “Everything is run off a touch-screen pad,” says Haniacek. “One that can be reached from inside or outside the house.” This means that a client could be on a business trip in Japan and still access documents on a home computer, watch a favorite TV show or set a security alarm.

545 Willowbrook Centre Parkway Willowbrook, IL 60527 Ph. 630.655.1898 www.ExclusiveWindows.com

04

A DIVISION OF MANCARI & ASSOCIATES

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“I like to be hands-on, become friends with all the clients,” says Haniacek. “Some even invite me to their family functions. That’s when I know I’ve done it right.” It’s this singular focus and friendly rapport that permeates Mancari and Associates’ work in the D’Amico residence. And the result is a Chicagoland haven that blends the best of OldWorld tranquility with modern luxury, a pastoral marvel with rich wine on its breath and burnt orange in its shadows. A place that’s no longer a residence, but a home.

a message from Crest Lighting, a Division of Evergreen Oak Electric Since 1964, Crest Lighting, a full-line decorative lighting retailer, has served Chicago. As a division of Evergreen Oak Electric, one of the largest independent, familyowned electrical distributors in the midwest, Crest has provided local builders, like Mancari & Associates, with the most effective lighting solutions for their project and budget. Crest showrooms are located in Chicago, Lisle, Orland Park and in New Lenox. Stop in and let Crest Lighting light up your life!

luxuryhomequarterly.com

builders

01

Beechen & Dill Homes Award-winning Chicagoland homebuilder launches new division focused on luxury custom homes

PHOTO: Norman Sizemore

by Tricia Despres The talented offspring of an established Chicagoland home builder, Matt Dill has always been awed by the way in which raw lumber and bricks could be assembled to create a home. “It’s the magic of homebuilding,” he says, and one of the many reasons he is ready to embark on a new generation of custom home design and construction with the launch of Burr Ridge-based Summit Signature Homes.

“I have always loved the challenge of design and architecture, and the cutting edge and innovative ideas you can bring to custom home design,” says Dill, who has spent many years as president of the family-owned Beechen and Dill Homes. “As interest in our custom homebuilding grew year after year,

it seemed critical that we clearly define who we are and what we do. Summit represents the next generation for Beechen and Dill, and a new era for custom homebuilding.”

Now a separate division of Beechen and Dill, Summit Signature Homes will focus exclusively on luxury custom homes often concentrated on infill projects in Chicago’s thriving western suburbs. This will mean a number of new residential opportunities in long established communities with limited available land. This also means that Dill will be putting his developer skills to work into the boutique firm.

“I feel like I can take the experience I received growing up in the business and in school in terms of management and streamline it into the creation of

high end custom homes with a very organized process,” says Dill, who graduated from the University of Iowa with a degree in business. “I always look forward to working directly with the homeowners to not only craft a plan but also turn their visions into reality.”

Of course, beginning a new company in a rather tumultuous marketplace can be a risky proposition.

A self described “fanatic” of architecture and design, Dill says he refused to cower to perceived limitations. In fact, throughout the years, Dill has worked through his share of market conditions.

After graduating from college, Dill took a position with Pulte Homes, one of the largest home builders in the country. At the time, the home

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02 Beechen and Dill’s kitchens will often serve as the design centerpiece, utilizing high-end appliances and built in features.

building industry was at its peak. “It was controlled chaos,” he says. “We were delivering eight homes a month in the subdivision I was overseeing, and it seemed very normal to work at that kind of pace. Even though it was a little stressful, I must say it was a phenomenal experience. To be able to have hands-on experience with that many homes was priceless.”

Summit Signature Homes, Inc. 7512 County Line Rd. Burr Ridge, IL 60527 Ph. 630.920.9436 SummitSignatureHomes.com 58

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In 2004, Dill returned to the family business, turning “farmlands into subdivisions” and taking the helm of the company that specialized in dazzling details at affordable prices. “We found it very important to include details such as archways or fireplace mantels seldom seen in more affordable home plans,” says Dill. “I have always looked for ways to have fun with architecture.

Creatively, I am always looking for ways to push the envelope and to create something a little bit different.”

In terms of their quite unique client base, Dill says that getting to know one another before any hole is dug is key to building an appropriate home. “I want to know how they plan to utilize the home, whether that is in terms of entertaining needs or how many children they plan to have,” he says. “In turning vision into a livable reality, I actively pursue creativity and artistry, inspiring my team of architects and skilled craftsmen to fashion homes that are as distinctive as they are sustainable. A home, after all, is far more than bricks and mortar, woodwork and walls; it is a personal reflection of those who live inside, a collection of memories and history.”

luxuryhomequarterly.com

PHOTO: Norman Sizemore

01 The outdoor entertaining trend continues in many of Summit Signature Homes properties, despite Chicago’s inclimate weather.

remodel

Tackling challenges of home renovation

01 The front of house from Surfsong Road on Kiawah Island recedes into its environment creating a private respite for the homeowners.

01

02 In the third floor master bathroom the view of the ocean is appreciated through the careful orientation of the space.

along the Charleston, SC coast all have architectural review boards. The trick is designing projects in accordance with local restrictions, meeting clients’ desires and complementing the local charm.

Dolphin Architects & Builders, Inc. Dream, design and build: An integrated experience from start to finish

by Melissa Fears “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication,” stated Leonardo da Vinci once, a sentiment that still holds true today. Sophistication is where simplicity and contemporary aesthetics meet to convey a powerful sense of luxury and repose.

Dolphin Architects & Builders focus on mastering a complex home-building process through integrative design. As a design/build company in the luxury home business for the past 22 years, they are a team

of experienced licensed architects and builders where each newly created home tells a story. They stress the importance of keeping their company diverse as each client has a different style, budget and vision. After all, specialty is what design/build is about says Bob Lisi, Executive Vice President at Dolphin Architects & Builders.

From Seabrook and Kiawah Island to Ion and Mount Pleasant, these island communities scattered

For Dolphin, meeting these strict guidelines was just one of the issues the company encountered when starting the Surfsong project, which dealt with a 30-year-old house that needed to be completely torn down and rebuilt. Located on Kiawah Island, which has been ranked as one of the 10 best family vacation spots in the United States by Travel + Leisure Family, Surfsong is a part of a very prestigious community. It was Dolphin’s job to bring the Surfsong home back to that level. But, the project’s rustic geography also proved difficult to work with for other architects, one of whom left the homeowners frustrated over the tight site and building restrictions. Reflecting on the project’s evolution, Lisi recalls hours spent discussing ideas with their design-savvy client and working with the president and lead principal architect, Kevin Whalley.

Although the homeowners were satisfied with the preliminary architectural plans, they encountered some initial hurdles. Along with the ARB height restrictions for the roof, the designers faced the challenge of maximizing the ceiling height on all three levels.

However, the hard work paid off. After a five-month design, permit process and 12-month building schedule, the client was in awe. “Once we won their trust, it was a great working relationship,” says Lisi.

“We met the husband’s desire to keep it within budget and the wife’s desire for maximizing the design and quality.” The Surfsong Residence was completed in late 2009, integrating its pristine oceanfront backdrop. Outside, exquisite white balconies hang

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RESIDENTIAL & FAUX FINISHES • WALLPAPER HANGING • MOLD COMMERCIAL

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Surfsong Residence The teardown and rebuild of this Southern low-country island home, originally built nearly 30 years ago, included a new 4,200-square-foot, three-story main house. The home not only incorporates classic elements throughout, but also stays innovative with a reverse floor plan. Inside, the home is filled with crisp clean lines, smooth neutral toned framed cabinetry, rich glazed antique wood tones and marble on the fireplace and in the bathroom. With a 1.4 million dollar budget just for the house alone.

They spared no expense using only top-of-the-line materials, such as Hardi-Plank siding (jameshardie.com), a CertainTeed roof (certainteed.com) and impact-resistant energy-efficient Andersen Windows (andersenwindows.com). “Initially, construction on the project was difficult,” says Lisi. With not much room on the lot to maneuver, the 40-plus subcontractors had to work around the naturally wooded area. It was worth the trouble. The beautiful house is enveloped in paradise, with luxurious palms, shrubs and live oaks that protect the conservatory.

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off each of the three levels on the 4,200-square-foot house allowing for picturesque ocean views.

A sense of serenity also dominates the master suite as the entire third floor has become the homeowners’ very own personal sanctuary. The luxurious bath boasts a large-floor plan complete with an Italian marble tub. “Right outside the property they have a walkway to beach,” says Lisi. “Everything the client wanted to have is there.”

duces a new Dolphin brand and supporter.” They construct homes that not only follow the client’s need on size and quality, but also on budget.

Their philosophy and client-first attitude has boosted success, setting them apart from the competition.

Dream, design and build. It is an integrated experience that begins from a simple concept and follows with an impeccable completion.

Whether it is a remodel, rebuild or custom design, the willingness to impress and work with the client to develop a true masterpiece is what Dolphin strives to achieve.

“The paradigm that we like to work within is that we design a house and build it for you,” says Lisi.

Even in a difficult economy, Dolphin has neither regretted their decision to go high-end, nor compromise on their product.

Designing everything in-house, Dolphin can stand by their mission statement of “every home pro-

A MESSAGE FROM EAST BAY WORKSHOP Founded in 1997, East Bay Workshop has maintained a strong presence in the high-end new residential and repaint markets. We consistently deliver a superior product and strive to create a long term relationship with both contractor and homeowner. East Bay Workshop can handle all of your painting needs.

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designers

Creative minds in interiors, landscapes and furnishings

01

02

The dining room with its upholstered walls is a womb like space thatinvites gathering. The clean Christian Liagre table and chairs along with the Kevin Riley light fixture give the room a clean streamlined effect.

simple decor turns a small apartment into the perfect weekend getaway

by Saundra Marcel Interior designer Magdalena Keck has been transforming commercial and residential spaces for 15 years now, but one Manhattan abode has stolen her heart. “It’s definitely my favorite apartment. You know, it’s just so tiny. I’ve done really large spaces but this little one is the closest to my heart. It has a special energy; it’s so quiet and peaceful,” Keck says.

Located in the exclusive Greenwich Village neighborhood, the apartment is only 600 square feet. But despite its size, it’s the perfect pied-àterre for Keck’s European clients, who already

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have one home in Rome and a second in Washington D.C. This one-bedroom apartment is all they really needed for weekend getaways to the city. Keck was brought on to create a calm oasis for the couple, and from the very beginning of the project client and designer seemed perfectly aligned. “Right away, we were very ‘into’ each other,” says Keck. “In terms of style, we were exactly on the same page, and they just loved every idea that I had, and I just loved their sensibility.”

Like any project, there were a few obstacles, but for Keck even the challenges were a breeze. “We

did have a relatively modest budget—compared to what most clients are willing to spend. But it was no problem, the budget was just something we had to keep in mind. ‘I can work with that,’ I told them,” says Keck. Her solution was to keep the space minimal, and to mix only a few luxury pieces with more budget-conscious items. “We mixed some high-end with some low-end. It’s like playing, trying to get the perfect mix of expensive and inexpensive,” she says. The other potential obstacle was a tight timeline, also easily accomplished. From start to finish the job took only six months.

The Greenwich Village apartment is angelic in its simplicity. White walls are a constant, and everything is trimmed and adorned in white: the sofa and chairs; and photo frames, dishes, accessories and linens. Even the books are wrapped in white dust jackets. Color punctuates the space in scant instances: in the

luxuryhomequarterly.com

PHOTO: Jeff Cate

Magdalena Keck Interiors

designers 03

04

01 Organic Panton chairs by Vitra (vitra. com) are paired with a beautiful vintage dining table with extendable eaves that can seat up to six.

02 Storage in the narrow, elongated kitchen is maximized by long floating shelves, which hold a collection of white ceramics. The vintage table seats six when the leaves are extended.

03 A Bernardo Siciliano’s painting of an urban landscape is juxtapositioned by a sitting Buddha statue on a black Alvar Aalto side table (aalto.com). The spiral brass pendant light in the bedroom from Kerson Gallery (kersongallery.com) adds some retro flair.

04 In the living room a Cappellini (cappellini.com) sofa pulls out into a bed.

The vintage chair is from ABC Home (abchome.com), as well as all of the linens and tablewares. The black and white photograph is Laura Larsen’s from the hotel series (lauralarsenphotography.net). French doors allow the light to travel thru the apartment.

Simple Serge Mouille (sergemouilleusa.com) floor lamps echo the exposed pipes in the room.

all-white kitchen, red and orange appear to brighten and cheer up the scene. Wood floors, a few pieces of vintage wood furniture, and carefully selected gold and brass accents add warmth to the seemingly clinical environment.

The biggest transformation was the bathroom. The room appeared to be a standard and unimpressive small space. But its one curious attribute turned out to be its redeeming factor: a low ceiling. “We had no idea what was going to be up there until we started demolition. It turns out, there was nothing there,” she says. So after raising the ceiling and knocking into an adjacent closet, the bath gained three more feet in height, and 30 more inches of width, and became a radically different space.

modest decisions and the bare minimum of accents. “A lot of designers make spaces that are just so packed with stuff: curtains, pillows, flowers, just too many things. I think the most important thing is not what you do—but what you don’t do.” Her motto is “no frills,” one that is perfectly executed in the Greenwich Village property. “You should have in your home only what’s beautiful and absolutely necessary, and nothing else,” she says. “That’s what I live by.”

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When Keck opened her own interior design firm 10 years ago, she thought that she would only be working on commercial spaces. But it was quickly and seamlessly that she began working on residential interiors. And like the Greenwich Village home, most of what she creates employs

that takes pride in the details. We work very closely with home owners, contractors and designers to make sure everything we do is customized specifically for the homeowners needs. From multi-apartment buildings to single family homes, we have systems of all styles and ranges.

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Lizette Marie Interior Design incorporating Individual touches to a bold, modern aesthetic

by Jamie Farshchi

While later completing a Bachelor of Science in Interior Design at San Francisco State University, she did just that by establishing her own design business with a girlfriend. “We didn’t make any money,” Bruckstein says, “but we gained experience and by the end of university I felt confident that I could give this thing a try.”

Fresh out of university, she established her namesake design firm, Lizette Marie Interior Design, offering a full scope of services: remodel or new construction,

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space planning, commercial design, kitchen and bathroom remodeling and a buying service.

The firm specializes in bold designs, featuring shocks of color and texture, with an emphasis on a layered aesthetic. “By layering both color and texture, we are able to create depth and bring spaces to life.” Bruckstein says, “whatever the desired finish is, it’s never straight forward, there are always multiple layers within.”

For Bruckstein communication and a trusted relationship with the client is an integral element to the design process. The initial approach is through extensive interviews where the designer meets with the household to establish how the space will be used, and what kind of personalities will inhabit it.

“You might work on a project for a year and a half, so there are these amazing relationships you develop with people along the way,” Bruckstein explains. “It’s a very intimate process. After all, you’re designing someone a home.”

That trusted relationship brings a mindfulness of the client’s taste that Bruckstein then carefully weaves into the design. Artworks that carry a personal touch might be commissioned or an element of the client’s personal aesthetic is used as a springboard for the project as a whole.

“If the client has an amazing art collection, or a passion for geometric shapes or an obsession with the color purple, we try and find some inspiration to develop that into a larger design-scape.”

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PHOTOs: David Duncan Livingston

Lizette Bruckstein was ecstatic when her 6th grade teacher assigned her class a project to design their dream home, “from the architecture to the interior I loved it, and I knew I wanted to be a designer,” she says.

designers 02

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01 Featuring an impressive slab of black walnut with a sculpted bronze frame, the “Jamal Table,” by APG Metalworks (adampgale.com) makes for a stunning addition to this Los Gatos, CA home.

02 The elegant dining table and Brownstone dining chairs are offset by patterned Osborne and Little Wallpaper (osborneandlittle.com).

03 The library features a bookshelf constructed

by Lonardo’s Woodworking (lonardoswoodworking.com), APG Metalworks glass coffee table and Coup d’état (coupdetat.1stdibs. com) chaise lounges and chandelier.

Bruckstein is as resourceful in her everyday inspiration. Everything from travel to a visit to the garden supply shops can influence her work.

“Travelling really opens you up to so many different cultures, value systems and colors. Just being aware of what’s around you can bring so much inspiration,” she says.

Bruckstein’s parents also instilled in her an appreciation of art, and that exposure is inherent in her conception of a space.

“There are so many young, talented artists in the San Francisco area,” she says, “meeting these people and being inspired by what they do and the color and emotion that art can invoke drives our interiors.”

Bruckstein has commissioned several furniture pieces from one such artist, sculptor Adam Gale of APG Metalworks. Gale’s “Jamal Table,” an impressive slab of black walnut with a sculpted bronze

frame, is featured in a recent remodeling project for a home in Los Gatos, CA. Another project that featured Gale’s work was a remodel of a 5,200-square-foot Willow Glen home in San Jose, CA. Initially, the project began with the development of the home’s basement and remodeling of the master bathroom. Once the work started, however, the project snowballed. Bruckstein resorted to remodeling three additional bathrooms and building the couple an outdoor kitchen, with the help of her junior designer, Sean Carino.

pattern and repeat a style, Bruckstein instead customizes each project to match the needs and desires of the client, rendering a unique creation. This approach makes Lizette Marie Design a stand-out in her field.

a message from APG Metal Works & Sculpture Since 1999, Adam P Gale has been creating abstract dimensional sculpture and custom metalworks, includ-

Bruckstein established a solid rapport with the homeowners. “They were just so open to color and pattern. We had to interpret what they were looking for but we had a trusting relationship,” she says.

ing table bases, consoles and side tables. Inspired by his grandfather, sculptor Louis O Pearson, Adam continues to use his techniques in grinding, polishing and creating in steel and bronze. Evolving into his own style, Adam’s works can now be enjoyed in the rooms of many designers, including Lizette Marie, Paul Wiseman, Orlando-Diaz

Bruckstein says it’s this approach to design that differentiates the firm’s work from others in the industry. While others become accustomed to a

Azcuy and Fringe-Studio. His pieces can also be viewed in furniture showrooms such as Coup d’Etat and Robollo in San Franscisco and at HabiteLA in Los Angeles.

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designers 01

B Moore Design Inc. elegant details in this pre-war apartment meet the needs of a modern family

by Jessica Kirby

PHOTO: A. Chester Ong

Barbara Moore doesn’t do anything by accident.

She has spent 15 carefully planned and focused years growing her solo business, perfecting her exclusive retail experience and making her way onto prime time television. Her company B. Moore Design develops luxury corporate and private residential spaces with simple, serene elegance using layers and mixing materials and textures like glass, metal, wood and velvet to enliven timeless monochromatic palettes.

mize space and minimize the use of furniture for cohesion and clean, classic lines.

A prime example is a 3,600-square-foot pre-war apartment project on New York’s Upper East Side that combines two adjoining apartments with family-focused living on one side and formal entertaining on the other.

“I like simplicity and luxurious interiors and having pieces that are very special and unique as opposed to having too much of something or overcrowding,” she says. “I would rather see items that function well and bring a nice flow to a space.”

Layered stone work, textured fabric accents and colors that sweep one room into the next personify Moore’s aesthetic and its ability to create highly functional, beautiful spaces. She preserved the traditional pre-war statement with chandeliers centered in the coffered ceilings and faux beams that continue into the tray ceilings accented by crown molding.

Frank Lloyd Wright’s influence is obvious in her use of built-ins and custom millwork to maxi-

“The concept was to create a serene atmosphere,” she says. “The clients have exquisite taste in want-

Pre-war Contemporary The Upper East Side Residence is an excellent spin on a pre-war contemporary look for a modern family. In the family room, motorized shades were provided by Del Motorized Solutions (motorizedsolutions.com). A Michael Thomas (michaelthomasfurniture. com) sofa with nubbed Chenille fabric boasts lime green, aquamarine and bright orange cushions and a velvet throw carry splashes of color into the children’s rooms and beyond for continuity throughout the space. In the master bedroom, a Zia Priven (ziapriven.com) chandelier and simple sconces by Nessen (nessenlighting.com) create a calming space along with layers of gray and varied textures. A custom silk rug by Martin Patrick Evan (martinpatrickevan.com) pulls the room together with sensual elegance. In the bathrooms, Bianco marble by Stone Décor (stonedecorinc. net) on the floors and walls is soft and warm, contrasting with period subway tiles for an intriguing mix of textures. Light transcends the onyx countertops for an entirely new and unexpected layer.

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01 Lighting features by Lampa (www.lampa.com) are subtle, with the exception of the eyecatching Magastar Chandelier floating above the space.

02 Pre-war contemporary touches such as the white subway tiles by Artistic Tile (artistictile.com) and ABC Worldwide (abctile.com) and bathroom fixtures

by Waterworks (waterworks.com) look right at home in this robin’s egg blue bathroom.

03 Playful bedding in the children’s bedroom by Kids Supply (kidssupply.com) blends seamlessly with the solid apple green area rug by Bentley Prince Street (bentleyprincestreet.com) and chandelier by Cindy Ciskowski (cindyciskowski.com).

Moore has never taken a career step that wasn’t deliberate. She spent her childhood play-designing home décor and clothing fashions, while taking breaks to rearrange the living room furniture.

Her decision to abandon a psychology degree for architecture studies at Seton Hill University in Pennsylvania was simply a natural progression of a lively inner passion.

“My goal was to work in a firm in Pittsburgh with an office in New York City,” she says. “I paid attention to the architects’ work, and it gave me a stronger leg to stand on knowing about both parts of the industry.”

She designed corporate office spaces for Perkins Eastman Architects, always keeping an eye on the tiny, simple spaces with surprising and ornate

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inner architecture—churches and old post offices, for instance—whose intricacies have inspired her.

“My focus is on interior architecture and how it balances and works together with the exterior,” she says, of having been heavily influenced by Frank Lloyd Wright’s use of architecture to design the inner furnishings of a space. “Falling Water is so remarkable—it is really about the space and the exterior exploding internally,” she says.

Her work with Perkins Eastman eventually brought her to New York City. When corporate clients began requesting her services for residential projects she made an important decision to branch out in 2002.

Four years later she opened an exclusive showroom and design studio—B. Moore Design—that was available to an exclusive professional clientele.

Within two years the pressure to go public became

intense, so she transformed the space into a retail outlet where anyone can shop for exquisite pieces by one of 50 vendors, or just browse for ideas.

“It’s great when someone comments on a piece they love and enjoy something specific about the shop,” she says. “I am happy to touch someone’s life even in the smallest of ways.”

The storefront created great exposure and growth for the business—she recently completed two episodes of NBC’s “Open House New York,” a reality TV show where she and a team have six hours to transform a space.

“I don’t know if that is where life is going, but if it seems to take a turn in that direction I would certainly follow that path,” says Moore. “My instinct in life has always been to help people and what I love about design is the instant gratification of knowing I can visually transform someone’s life.”

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designers 01

Laura Hay Decor & Design Canadian designer spends her time creating elegant retreats that embrace timeless dÉcor

by Saundra Marcel Canadian interior designer Laura Hay may be out of her native country, but not out of her element.

While many of her clients are located near her Toronto home base, an even greater number of clients are in Florida, where she splits her time practicing.

Laura Hay Décor and Design is still a young company—it was only three years ago when this creative spirit decided to branch off on her own.

But Hay is no stranger to the field. Her mother was an interior designer, her grandmother a seamstress and her father in the textile business. Surrounded her whole life by design and materials, it was only natural that she might one day follow the family footsteps. In fact, she followed those family footsteps from Canada all the way to Florida, where her parents own vacation property -- and where she serendipitously found

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the warm-weather aesthetic perfectly suited to her tastes. Living and working up to two-weeks per month there, she is becoming something of a permanent fixture.

In fact, Hay is leading the charge for a new look for Florida. “Homes in Florida tend to be two extremes: they are either overstuffed and overdecorated, or they’re über contemporary, with bright colors and ultra modern lines. Those are the bookends for my ‘new traditional’ style. My homes aren’t either of those things. They have all of the traditional elements without being too much. They have gold and silver patina finishes and lacquered antiques. But they also have a lot of neutrals; they are never too heavy,” she says. According to Hay, there’s a call for this in-between aesthetic. “People really do want something different from what has

Located in the exclusive Port Royal neighborhood in Naples, FL, this home is an example of the “new traditional” design style. It is modern and fresh-feeling, but not in an extreme way. Many of the accessories and decorative elements are from a local shop called Peach Tree Designs (peachtreedesigns.com). The living room sofa, dining room table and chairs are all from the Barbara Barry Collection (barbarabarry.com) by Baker Furniture. Living room armchairs, dining room console and kitchen chairs are all from McGuire Furniture (mcguirefurniture.com), which is one of the designer’s favorite sources.

The room is centred on a fireplace but is also connected by two walls of retractable glass doors to the stunning terrace and pool area. A black lacquered coffee table and marble topped accent tables add glamour, and beautiful lighting fixtures enhance the metallic accents that are repeated throughout the home.

been called ‘Florida design,’ they just hadn’t been able to find it.”

A perfect example of Hay’s transitional style is an exquisite two-story home in the upscale Port Royal neighborhood of Naples, FL. It is a blend of some traditional and some modern, and it is both

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PHOTOS: Lori Hamilton Photography

Port Royal Residence

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01 The living room, complete with fireplace and comfortable seating, adds comfort that is simple, fresh and clean

02 The grand foyer featuring a twostory ceiling, frames the rich hardwood stairs and coated metal hand rails.

03 The sitting room in the guest house has a guest fireplace, made cozy by the Hendredon arm chairs ottoman.

“You never want to walk into a space and not know where to look.

Something has to pull everything together. It could be the architecture, or the color palette, or it could even be a theme. But there always needs to be something unifying and calming.”

Laura Hay, designer informal and elegant, exactly what the client asked for. “They wanted a relaxing space. They wanted something suitable for entertaining that is cozy and comfortable, not extremely elegant but not sloppy,” says Hay. The interior design incorporates a variety of fine finishes of marbles, stones, Venetian plasters, glass surfaces and textiles for a rich tactile experience. Both “new” and “traditional” come into play.

The home is simple, fresh and clean. At the same time it is clearly classic and time-honored.

For Hay, the key to a successful design is constructing a cohesive design. “You never want to walk into a space and not know where to look. Something has to pull everything together. It could be the architecture, or the color palette, or it could even be a theme. But there always needs to be something

unifying and calming.” And she is not the least bit interested in adding her own touch. Hay tunes herself exclusively to her client’s desires, ignoring whatever inclination she might have for her own personal tastes. “Some designers want to make a statement, so every room has to have the his or her touch on it. I would never push my clients down a road they don’t want to be on,” says Hay. “I’m not trying to create a dramatic statement as much as I’m trying to make a space comfortable, livable, and inviting.

I always want it to be timeless and classy.”

front of that.” Her quest has many supporters: colleagues, new clients, developers; and interestingly, realtors. Hay has also inadvertently selling homes in addition to designing them. “I’ve heard that agents carry photographs of my homes to show prospective buyers what is possible.”

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While Hay avoids injecting statements in her design, she is not averse to making them—the bold proclamation kind of statement. “Florida absolutely needs better design,” she declares. “There’s a movement for better in Florida, and I’d like to be on the fore-

commercial pool builders, we continue our services into renovation and design, proving that the swimming pool is an art form. We strive to combine art and beauty with function, by utilizing gardens, islands and decking in varieties of stone, pavers, coral and natural materials.

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Andy Goldsborough Interiors Interior designer Andy Goldsborough fills rooms with fine furnishings, that reflect the true art of design.

by Saundra Marcel Andy Goldsborough will make a collector out of you. This interior designer isn’t content to simply make spaces. He makes creating spaces an interactive process, providing education with a genuine (and contagious) enthusiasm that’s simply impossible to ignore. The partnerships he forges with his clients transcend the usual business arrangement: Golsborogh is not just an experienced collector of design objects, he is also a generous teacher, and his clients are eager protégés.

For 22 years Goldsborough has been practicing in New York City, and 11 years ago he opened his own small but uniquely hands-on residential

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interior design practice. A faint, yet unmistakable Southern drawl exposes his Alabama roots, where he was raised and still frequently visits.

It’s no wonder that his forte is creating urban respites—amidst the busy city streets, Goldsborough has a knack for making calm, soothing shelters, perhaps a nod to his laid-back upbringing.

At Goldsborough’s most recent project, located in SoHo in New York City, the client was with him every step of the way. “He was incredibly educated about art, photography and design,” says Goldsborough of his client. “But at the same time he was a young collector. It was a great opportunity to visit galleries together and find art that

Cool Calm & Collecting At the Wooster Street residence in New York’s busy SoHo neighborhood, Goldsborough mentored his client throughout the design process. Together, they were on a quest for a mix of furniture and fine art pieces that had both punch and tranquility. “Because he’s young and enthusiastic, he wanted elements that were exciting and had a ‘wow’ factor to them. But at the same time he wanted this to be a restful place,” says Goldsborough.

“The overall tone is very soothing.

There are jolts of color but nothing overpowers you. The art is very aggressive, so we needed furniture that wouldn’t be.”

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01 A south view of the living room reveals the Fontana Arte floor lamp

by Max Ingrand (fontanaartestore.com) and Andreas Gursky photo and Yves Klein table filled with 3,000 sheets of gold leaf.

03 Master bedroom features matching side tables made of walnut and patinated brass, designed by Annabelle Selldorf for Vica Design (vicadesign.com)

would work with the furniture.” Goldsborough looks for a number of qualities in the furniture he selects, being most attracted to special materials and finishes, impeccable craftsmanship and an eclectic combination of old 1920’s through 1960’s Italian design paired with contemporary pieces. “It’s the most fun thing that designers do,” he says. “Not just to educate, but to curate a collection of objects, art, and furniture that is timeless.” The choices he makes are sometimes based on instinct, sometimes on his extensive knowledge of design history, but are always practical. “Of course, I’m selecting things that will appreciate in value.”

Completed in 2010, the SoHo residence on Wooster Street is one of Goldsborough’s favorite interiors. In the main living area, he selected a modular white bookcase to divide the space, rather than build walls. Created by Japanese designer Shiro Kuramata, and manufactured by Cappellini, the case is filled with sculptures and a colorful collection of design books that Golsborough—ever the perfectionist—admits to have arranged himself. Two unique pieces of furniture in the living room are representative of his ability to successfully pair works from seemingly contradictory decades. The Blo-Void chair by Ron Arad in blue anodized aluminum is from 2006, and

02 A Tord Boontje Swarovski chandelier (tordboontje. com) hangs over a dining table and chairs by BDDW (bddw.com). Artful touches such as the horizontal photograph “Pyongyang III 2007” by Andrea Gursky, and a Franz West sculpture, “Sisyphos IV 2002” complete the space.

04 A silver silk carpet by Carini Lang (carinilang.com) and Marc Newson’s Diode Lamp in blue (marc-newson.com) round out the open space.

adjacent to that stands a tall 1950’s Max Ingrand floor lamp, manufactured by Fontana Arte. Other pieces in the living area have a “wow” factor: like the Yves Klein table filled with 3,000 sheets of gold leaf or the enormous Andreas Gursky photograph hanging behind it.

In the apartment, this designer’s favorite space is the master bedroom. Purple undertones are muted and peaceful, and decorative pieces are simple and small. Flanking the grand bed are petite matching side tables made of walnut and patinated brass, designed by Annabelle Selldorf for Vica Design. Atop an asymmetrical 1960’s Nakashi-

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“It’s the most fun thing that designers do.

Not just to educate, but to curate a collection of objects, arts, and furniture that is timeless.”

Andy Goldsborough, Founder

ma wood table is a tiny porcelain bird sculpture from Moss. This is a delightful place to rest, and each little touch adds vitality, while proving that eclectic style doesn’t have to be outrageous.

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Interior designer and collector are not his only credits. This year, Goldsborough will add furniture designer when he debuts his own series of tables and lighting. The tables will be tubular steel with glass tops in several sizes, and the lighting will be silver pendants and floor lamps inspired by mercury glass. Goldsborough is always looking out for the next best thing. “I love meeting new artists and furniture makers. I’m always expanding my vocabulary of design and knowledge of people who are doing beautiful things,” he says.

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designers 01 The guest bath mimics the rest of the interior’s magnificence, with lustrous wallpaper and golden accents.

01

02 The study is comprised of custom furnishings and traditional Italian style that incorporate a more refined Tuscan atmosphere.

tentatious. Each room has its own purpose, geared for eight to 50 people.”

For these clients, the firm creates smartly designed spaces with custom finishes and furnishings that function as comfortably for lavish galas as for quiet family meals.

While the particular styles of the firm’s Silicon Valley clients differ, they often have “similar veins,” she says.

Multiple seating areas – seen in a theater room in a Los Altos residence and in the spacious entry of a Santa Barbara home – bring grand spaces down to size for daily use.

In this 20,000-square-foot home in Santa Barbara designed for a family with five kids and more than a dozen grandchildren, home is a place to relax with loved ones, wine and dine prospective clients, socialize with colleagues and host fundraisers for the husband’s Alma mater.

SFA Design Interior design firm balances presentation and comfort for Silicon Valley executives

by Amy Howell Hirt For Kara Smith and Sue Firestone, co-owners of Santa Barbara-based sfa design (Smith Firestone & Associates), business often takes them around the world to some of the most exclusive resorts, highend clubs, estate homes and luxury hotels. The firm currently is working on the largest Ritz-Carlton in the world, under development in Abu Dhabi.

Even when the project is a little smaller and closer to home, the designers believe that getting to the heart of a client’s needs - and getting their gut reaction to everything from a paint color to the depth of an armchair is essential.

“We had some people who wanted an outdoor shower like they had on their honeymoon in Bali,” Firestone recalls. “It’s sort of like we’re stylists. We

For these elite clients, Firestone aimed for modest elegance in most rooms. But for the four first floor powder rooms, Firestone chose opulent themes, one of which has a Brazilian blue granite vanity and tiles.

take everything that we have available and make it work for each client,” Firestone said.

A billiard room has become the most popular space in the house, after family dinners or elegant events.

Before opening sfa design in 1996, Firestone led Los Angeles-based Design 1 to become the sixth-largest design company in the United States. These 35-plus years of experience designing in California landed Firestone a spot on Robb Report’s prestigious list of the “Top 40 Best Designers in the World,” and has made her the unofficial designer to the stars of Silicon Valley.

“It was a formal receiving room,” she explains. “They were a little confused as to what to do with it.

Knowing they entertained, I suggested they make it an adult game room.”

“They’re celebrities of the financial world, so to speak,” Firestone said. “They’re very high executives who do a of lot of entertaining. While showing off their success and wealth, they don’t want to be os-

Despite the playful function, the room is wrapped in sophistication and custom finishes, including wall paneling that graced the residence of King Louis XV. For Silicon Valley executives, the home office often is a place of business several days a week, but also a showcase. To help separate the space from the rest of the home and conceal electronic equipment, Firestone uses extensive wood paneling on the walls and ceiling.

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Furnishing life with unparalleled design from creation to finish.

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“It’s very private and very high-tech, although you can’t see it,” Firestone says of the Santa Barbara space, which is outfitted with video conferencing capabilities.

In proud association with SFA Designs 601 North La Brea Avenue Los Angeles, CA 90036 Ph. 323.951.1200 creatofinito.com 76

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“This is such an amazing spot, it’s where I’d want to sit down and have a glass of wine at the end of the day,” Firestone says.

While comfort is always important, Firestone is careful to deliver formality where this clientele needs it, such as in this 750-square-foot great room, which has a prime location off one of the home’s several wrought iron-clad front doors.

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Two conversation pits in the entry take in the spectacular view of the ocean and the home’s reflecting pool, yet make the space feel intimate whether it’s one, 10 or 100.

as Montage Hotel Beverly Hills, Hollywood Roosevelt,

We understand that concept is simply the beginning of the evolution of design and by working directly with interior designers, architects and contractors we translate those concepts into a beautifully finished product.

Creato Finito has been involved in notable projects such The “W” Hotel Hollywood, Ritz Carlton, LA Live and more… Congratulations to Sue Firestone and the talent that makes SFA Design exceptional.

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designers 01

01 Many of the furniture pieces in the study of the Kips Bay Decorator Show House were custom created by the designer herself, including the sofa, coffee tables and club chairs.

The room exudes a comfortable and inviting air, while still maintaining a level of formality required of a successful workspace.

02 Lighting is an important element of every study, and in this regard the designer spared no expense. The Italian post-war chandelier with “bubble” form glass balls hung in concentric rings was provided by Newel (newel. com). Table lamps by Fontana Arte (fontanaarte.it) and Floor lamps with a Shagreen finish from the Sherrill Canet collection provide ample light.

Sherrill Canet Interiors, LTD. Attention to detail makes this bold blue room a showstopper

by Melissa Fears From a luscious beach getaway to a mid-century modern home in the foothills, Sherrill Canet Interiors’ has a diverse client base.

With offices in Manhattan, Locust Valley and, most recently, Palm Beach, there is no slowing down for this in-demand veteran designer.

Pulling inspiration from across the globe she focuses on her client’s vision first and foremost, making Canet a leader in today’s design industry.

“Each client comes with a unique set of needs, tastes and architectural style,” says Sherrill Canet, owner and designer.

Each project is an opportunity for something new and creative. Having a “no rules” attitude is important -- add elements of surprise, but never compromise comfort.

A show house can be the perfect canvas of creativity and imagination for a designer. The Kips Bay Decorator Show House 2010, located in the heart of Manhattan, was no different.

Adding unexpected pieces can do wonders. Canet has grown to not only be an expert at listening to her client’s needs, but also helping them venture out of their comfort zone stylistically.

A designer was chosen for each room of the massive limestone Show House where Sherrill Canet Interiors took their creative freedom and ran with it.

“A Georgian house may end up being decorated minimally with some mid-century [furniture] and hot colors,” says Canet about keeping things fresh. “A modern structure may have a few key antique pieces.”

“There is no client to temper or adjust your vision of the space,” she says. “This beautiful blue room is a sophisticated blend of new and antique pieces. All of the new furniture is of my design available through Stark.”

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Kips Bay Decorator Show House 2010 The 2010 Kips Bay Decorator Show House on NYC’s Upper East Side had a rough beginning. When the initial house sold unexpectedly, organizers scrambled.

After six long months of waiting, they spared no details on the six floor, 17room, 18-designer space. The $28.8 million limestone townhouse is now a stunning realm of elegance including the rich jewel-toned lounge living area located on the second floor. The timeless room completed by Sherrill Canet Interiors, Ltd., flows together like a perfectly organized jewelry box. Soulful artwork lines the luminescent walls with pops of color against black and white furnishings. A French-inspired Antoinette desk, part of Canet’s furniture collection for Stark (starkcarpet.com), adds depth and texture by using ivory leather and custom brass hardware. Gilded natural woods, such as the Italian 1940’s burl root-veneered sideboard (newel.com), bring character and warmth. This piece stands unequalled by using custom finishes such as twisted legs, green marble and bronze trim. Superior and unique, each piece chosen stands on its own.

Canet’s team was put in charge of designing the second-floor blue “lounge” room of the nearly 15,000-square-foot city home.

Having all the rooms flow together could be a challenge for some. However, a sense of “Tailored Chic” shows in Canet’s design.

“It is a room that is rooted in the traditional sense but streamlined and clean,” says Canet.

Crisp lines are echoed throughout the room with plenty of comfortable lounge seating. The Kips Bay Decorator Show House room was designed for an imaginary high style NY couple that loves to entertain.

“There is a nice big ottoman in the middle where people can sit around on either side of the room,” says Canet. Wanting to remain user-friendly, she created a space that’s more formal than a typical family room, but relaxing enough to not be uptight.

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Having limitless opportunities for creativity, Canet chose a bold color scheme splashing the walls with Benjamin Moore’s deep hue of “Blue Suede Shoes” and finishing with a vertical alternating clear lacquer stripe to add depth and visual interest.

“Really there were no restrictions and that’s the beauty of it for this particular show house,” says Canet. “You can paper the walls, paint them, and do whatever you want.”

Keeping the contrast sharp by adding orange accents and colorful glass art by LLe-Dom, was important Canet says.

A serene palate of creamy ivory and silvery grays played nicely with the gold-leafed ceiling paper by Winfield Designs that added height to the ceilings.

Always a fan of working with three colors, Canet added a soft muted color to the floor to temper

the overall look. The pale gray patterned carpet rug was part of Canet’s design through Stark called “Bargello”.

“It lends an Old World flavor without weighing things down,” says Canet. “It has a flame stitch pattern with a 16th century feel, so it still maintains a modern edge.”

Mixing old and new is just part of the fun she says. “I like mixing periods and mixing styles and making them work together.”

This room keeps diversity stylish by including an eclectic mix of Biedermeier Scandinavian furniture, Asian influenced furniture, mid-century and contemporary artwork and even a French English desk.

“There is a lot of different things going on, but I was happy with the way it turned out,” says Canet.

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Clodagh Designs

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“People call me enough names, I don’t need another one,” says Clodagh, an Irish-born, quirky designer of many talents who was only 16-years-old when she decided to break rank with convention. At 17-years-old, she dropped her last name, began a career in fashion design and now, thirty-plus years later, has dipped her toes into nearly every arena of design. “I’m a generalist. If I were a doctor I’d be in integrated medicine—I’ll do just about anything,” she says. Clodagh still practices fashion design, but has added product design, graphic design, landscaping and both commercial and residential interiors to her repertoire.

text: Saundra Marcel photos: Antoine Bootz

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hile boasting a wide range of services, it is clearly Clodagh’s interiors that have garnered the most attention and is the arena which she is most passionate about. By incorporating beautiful products and eye-catching works of art she creates homes that are both pristine and livable. They also have “flow,” as her secret weapons are a deep and long-standing practice of Feng Shui, and possessing a true faith in the metaphysical. Design consultations with Clodagh include an in-depth horoscope reading.“I don’t design spaces, I design experiences,” she says. “I am the travel guide, and it is my job to interpret what the client needs, and lead the way.”

Her most recent acclaim is for a residence in New York City’s lavish SoHo neighborhood. In many ways this was a dream project—not only is the multi-million dollar apartment located in a building designed by Pritzker Prizewinning architect Jean Nouvel, but it was also a blank slate. In a city built on layers of architectural history, for an interior designer, the opportunity to work in a newly constructed space is like a gift. And the pied-à-terre residence has amazing amenities: generous square footage, a retractable glass outdoor wall, an impressively large outdoor space and a pool. The owner had only one stipulation: interior design had to be completed in less than one year.

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01 Expansive solid wood table by Hudson Furniture Inc. (hudsonfurnitureinc.com). Wood Spring and Down bench (woodspringdown.com) and Dennis Miller (dennismiller.com) chairs finish the room.

04 Mirrors by Galaxy Glass and Mirror (galaxycustom.com) visually extend the guest bedroom.

The area rug is from Taiping Carpets (taipingcarpets.com).

02 Various seating options inside the home’s lounge.

05 Tree trunk table by Chista (chista.net) and leather slipcovers

by Edelman Leather (edelmanleather.com).

03 Views of the city are enjoyed in comfort from the well appointed outdoor space.

06 Entertainment features by Sound Sight Technologies Inc. (soundsightonline.com).

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The Mercer Residence This luxurious residence in Manhattan’s exclusive SoHo neighborhood is an example of Clodagh’s taste for fine design and art, and a successful collaboration with a wonderful client.

Many pieces of furniture in the apartment are also designed by Clodagh and are available through the Clodagh Signature product collection. Most of the sculptures and paintings are from the client’s private art collection. Utilizing the practice of Feng-Shui, the entire space is open, serene and simple, with only a few walls to disturb a peaceful flow of energy. Designed to be a comfortable and welcoming place, it can easily large parties. SPRING 2012 luxury home quarterly 84accommodate

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07 Seating by Flexform (flexform.it) is durable and comfortable. The area rug by AM Collections (amcollections. com) ties all elements together.

08 A quiet space to work and study came together with a custom desk by JWA Furniture Consultant Co. and a task chair by A. Rudin (arudin.com).

09 Custom cabinets and lighting complete the home’s kitchen

With an unlimited budget, Clodagh rose to the challenge by calling upon her most trusted associates, bringing onto the project only those who could quickly deliver the finest quality. Since this was not the client’s permanent residence, Clodagh was responsible for every detail, from the furniture to the hinges on the cabinets to the dishware inside of them. “Our mantra is everywhere you look, there is something beautiful,” she says. In the main living area, the most unusual piece is a seemingly endless wooden dining table from Hudson Furniture. Paired with a long, custom-designed bench by Clodagh herself, the ensemble can seat up to 20 guests. Also, from Clodagh’s private label collection, there is a jigsawlike coffee table in the living area and a comfortable, deep, golden-toned sofa set.

Clodagh recalls an excellent relationship and a shared taste in fine art with her client, who brought along select pieces from his personal collection, including a special tree stump table designed by Korean artist Lee Jae-Hyo. The only

thing not shared between the two was a taste for real fur, incorporated into a few slipcover accents, which this vegan interior designer had a moral objection to. But the potential conflict was easily surmountable, since Clodagh admitted to her own guilty affection for leather shoes, so she was quick to concede. For the rest of the project, client and designer worked together seamlessly, and the end result is something they are both proud of.

“It’s not a battle. The battle is won before the client walks through the door and hires me. They don’t come to me for traditional,” she says. With her company handling an average of over 40 different design projects simultaneously, keeping up the pace on this particularly aggressive timeline may have required an exceptional commitment from her team, but they are all willing to dig deep. As this spiritually-centered interior designer professes, “there’s no savings account for energy, we have to just put it all in.”

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Diedre Shaw Interiors Diedre Shaw, owner of Diedre Shaw Interiors in Burlingame, California, received her formal training at the University of California–Berkeley’s design school. But her passion for design was fueled by earlier creative endeavors—she worked as an international model, earned a teaching degree in ballet, and another degree in literature from UCLA.

Text: Frederick jerant Photos: David Duncan Livingston

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“I want to design rooms that are actually useful and not just attractive.”

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er eclectic education has contributed to her own philosophies about what makes a good interior. “Home is where your most memorable experiences take place,” she says. “The settings add so much to those life events, and that’s why I create beautiful spaces for my clients.”

Shaw obtained her first client while she was still at University of California– Berkeley. That job was the initial link in a chain of referrals, and she took her business full-time in 2004. “I’ve been working on my own ever since,” she says.

Diedre Shaw Interiors’ market niche is high-end residential work, primarily in the San Francisco area, from the Peninsula to the East Bay. The city is home to a mélange of architectural styles—everything from Mediterranean to Victorian to Modern.

“I’m responsible for the whole scope of the design,” Shaw says. “From planning the space, selecting materials to choosing colors and patterns, just about everything, except drawing up the architectural plans, I do.” Planning and certain other services, such as upholstering and cabinetry construction, fall to a long-standing pool of vendors. Also, according to Shaw, “I know I can count on them to do excellent work and to be good representatives of my firm.”

01 The sinewy carved bed, undulating reflective side tables, and soft green color scheme continue the organic feel of the home. The silk bed and window drapes, along with the mohair sofa in the same soft hue, create the femininity and elegance the client desired.

02 The make-up table in the master bedroom features a custom vanity upholstered in shagreen. The mirror and bench employ a twig design in gold leaf.

03 The front entry features a chest of drawers, made by Charles and Charles Bombay.

Made of burled Italian walnut, it gracefully balances the antique piece on the other side of the hallway.

04 Sectional sofa upholstered

by Belmar-Fine Custom Upholstery (belmarcompany. com) and taupe club chairs.

The Starburst Cocktail Table

by Ralph Hays Contemporary Designs offers a visual anchoring point around which all else centers.

Client input is essential to Shaw’s projects. “Your home should reflect your best self,” she says. Yet, she acknowledges that every client’s needs and desires are different and determining them can be challenging. “Often, people can’t get there themselves, and they need to be prodded about their passions.” To help with this, during successive client meetings, Shaw asks plenty of probing questions, and at the same time, she helps her clients expand their comfort zones.

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05 The Tavolo “Urbino” coffee table is made of Italian walnut, with an inlaid panel by Artitalia Group (artitaliagroup.com), and it reflects the owner’s taste and heritage and echoes the clean lines of the fireplace and ceiling.

06 The dining room table has a 60-inch circular Italian number with an inlaid Firenze -- design

by Artitalia Group (artitaliagroup. com)—expands to 83 inches to accommodate as many as 12 guests.

07 The master bathroom’s thick glass sink vessels are blue and brown, contrasting the space’s natural stone color palette. The California modern home’s hot tub area was converted into a spalike tub room that now adjoins the master bathroom through French doors. The retreat includes a 10-foot-wide circular whirlpool tub and travertine flooring.

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“One of my clients strongly preferred landscape paintings; modern art was off the table,” Shaw says. “But three weeks after we visited some galleries in San Francisco, she spent $100,000 on contemporary paintings.”

That client had contracted with Shaw for a major remodeling of her 4,000square-foot home. “It was a real mix of traditional and modern elements,” Shaw says, “with a motif of bringing the outdoors inside.” In the living room, a side table rests on a fur rug. The table’s cast-bronze legs resemble gnarled twigs, and its top is covered in sharkskin. A large painting on one wall incorporates falling leaves set within seven layers of wax. It is all quite elegant yet maintains a definite earthiness. The bedroom is an exercise in a sage-green monochrome, but contrasting materials—mohair, linen, and silk—bring visual and tactile variety to the limited palette. A tree theme is carried through lamps, and the bedroom’s dressing table, bench and mirror all contain arboreal elements. Even the mir-

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ACOUSTICAL FABRIC SYSTEMS, INC. ror’s sidelights look like branches. The dining room mixes hand-carved java wood, neutral silk chairs and light woods, all resting on a modern shag carpet.

Shaw’s penchant for mixing it up is further exemplified in an 8,000-squarefoot traditional Mediterranean home in Hillsborough, California. The interior had been beautifully decorated by a well-known designer some years previously and featured a then-popular color palette and furniture set.

“My clients wanted a complete home makeover,” Shaw says. The husband is proud of his Italian heritage, so Shaw used traditional shades of rust, olive and taupe throughout the house. A large modern painting above the living room fireplace is enhanced by the room’s subdued color scheme. Cleanlined mohair sofas and antique walnut fireside armchairs with silk upholstery and galloon trim comfortably share space with an inlaid walnut coffee table and an animal-print tufted ottoman.

A centuries-old burled Italian walnut chest (a family heirloom) in the main hallway contrasts with a Corbin bronze sculpture and other modern art; it is balanced by a replica chest crafted by Charles & Charles.

And the dining room includes Louis side chairs in rust and red brocades as well as an expandable round Italian inlaid table that can accommodate up to 12 guests.

Currently, Shaw takes on a steady flow of three or four projects at a time, which Shaw sees as a comfortable number in the tough economy. She is able to continue offering complete interior remodeling services from the ground up while ensuring that each space meets her own rigorous standards, which go beyond mere aesthetics. As Shaw says, “I want to design rooms that are actually useful and not just attractive.”

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The Royal Treatment Kari Whitman regularly creates unique living spaces for Hollywood stars but meets her biggest challenge to date in renovating a sprawling home on Mulholland Drive for its royal resident story Romy Schafer 92 luxury home quarterly

Photos Grey Crawford

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ver since launching her firm in 1994, interior designer Kari Whitman has been creating personalized, private spaces for well-known, public figures from coast to coast. Appearing in her star-studded portfolio are projects for such celebrities as Jessica Alba, Virginia Madsen, Kristen Bell, Don Johnson and Emilio Estevez.

It was a friend and fellow actor, in fact, who gave Whitman her first job as a designer, after hiring the former actress to appear in a movie that he was directing. “He always loved the little put-together apartments that I had when I was struggling as an actress,” Whitman explains.

Some 20 years later, this celebrity remains on Whitman’s client list, which now also includes commercial clients ranging from boutique hotels to largescale residential projects, like Park La Brea, a 4,000-unit apartment complex in Los Angeles’ historic Miracle Mile district. The designer acknowledges, however, that residential projects are her passion.

01 Glass from Pulp Studio Glass (pulpstudio.com) plays prominently in the home’s front exterior.

Mosaic glass tiles by Imperial Stone (lookimperial. com) welcome visitors.

02 The entrance features Onyx slabs by quality tile works. Woodwork from Daniel Clavin (danielclavin.com) and front door from New City Door (newcitydoor.com).

03 The living room is a glamourous retreat ideal for entertaining. Custom sectional sofa by Kari Whitman, wall finishes

by Gorgeous Homes, Vintage cargo plane door from Habite (habite.com) and woodwork by Daniel Clavin (www.danielclavin. com) complete the space.

Given Whitman’s acting background and large celebrity client base, it was only natural that the designer would eventually expand into television. To date, she has been host of Women’s Entertainment (WE) TV network’s “Designer to the Stars: Kari Whitman,” a featured celebrity interior designer on The Discovery Channel’s “The Dude Room” and a special correspondent on “TODAY,” “Entertainment Tonight” and “Access Hollywood.”

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04 The metallic wall finish by Gorgous Homes, Inc. (gorgeoushomes.org) and ceiling wallpaper by Donghia enhance the dining room’s lighting, also by Donghia (donghia.com).

05 Hand blown vintage lights by 20th Century Lighting (20thcenturylighting.com) and wall art by Perrell Fine Art (perrellfineart.com) set an artful tone upon entrance into the home.

Whitman is in negotiation right now with a major TV network to produce a show focusing on green design, one of the self-professed tree-hugger’s passions. “I was green before green was cool,” says the Boulder, Colorado native.

It was a magazine article about Whitman’s home renovation for actress Jessica Alba, however, that garnered the designer her most challenging job to date: completely re-working an 8,000-square-foot house situated on Los Angeles’ legendary Mulholland Drive. “The clients had seen [the article] and liked what I did on her home, so they hired me,” she explains. “They’re from a royal family; they’re just really amazing people and very artistic.”

The house’s primary occupant, a 21-year-old family member and student at a nearby university, asked Whitman to create a place with a “masculine vibe” where he could relax and entertain friends. His request resulted in a yearand-a-half-long project that involved extensive interior and exterior construction, including moving a shear wall. “I like to take on big projects,” Whitman acknowledges. “I usually don’t take on just one room unless it’s something like an elaborate kitchen.”

Creating an upscale, modern kitchen was just one of a myriad of spaces the designer-builder and construction specialist was charged with completely reinventing. Her transformation started at the home’s entrance, which she turned into a floating entry that enables visitors to walk on water. A stepping stone path spans a cobalt blue mosaic pool made from recycled glass and leads to a 10-foot-tall, custom-built front door from New City Door.

Inside the entry hall, two illuminated, 500-pound slabs of onyx were installed.

Whitman also created a chic powder room featuring walls clad in 9 x12 in. silver-leaf-backed glass tiles from Ann Sacks Tile & Stone and an eco-friendly, high-efficiency toilet from TOTO USA.

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The designer used neutral-colored faux leather and Ultrasuede® fabric on walls and custom furniture to give the spacious living room a masculine, yet warm and inviting, feel. Metallic cork wallpaper from Astek Inc., a large geometricpatterned area rug from è bella and a custom light box from Fire Farm Lighting further enhance the room’s manly look, as does a vintage, rolling cargo door that opens to reveal the library. Whitman discovered the 1950’s airplane part at Habite, a Los Angeles store that specializes in antique furnishings.

The adjoining formal dining room, which Whitman says is one of her favorite spaces, features what she considers to be the residence’s masterpiece— “window walls” crafted from 3,000 small pieces of recycled wood. Designed

by Whitman and constructed by contractor-and-finish carpenter Daniel Clavin, the elegant, peek-throughs add privacy to the room, while letting in natural light and enabling the homeowner to enjoy the stunning outdoor views. A sleek, rectangular light fixture from Donghia Inc. complements the peekthroughs’ geometric design.

For further information or for a free estimate please call 866.930.6717 or visit www.newcitydoor.com. luxuryhomequarterly.com

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06 Silver-leafed tile by Ann Sacks (annsacks.com) in the powderroom.

Lights by Paul Marra (paulmarradesign.com) and tables from Jarlath Mellett (jarlathmellett.com) add charm and function.

07 The fire pit was fabricated by Milo Marble and Tile, and features sectional seating designed by Kari Whitman and fabricated by Nadia of Casabella for You (casabellaforyou.com).

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A large, pivoting glass door, meanwhile, provides access to the kitchen. Fabricated by Romanoski Glass and Mirror Co. Inc., it features leaves pressed between sheets of glass, a fitting design for a kitchen filled with custom cabinets made from recycled and sustainable woods, high-end stainless steel appliances and top-of-the-line, shell-flecked granite.

a message from Acoustical Fabric Systems, Inc. AFS would like to thank Kari Whitman, for the opportunity given to our company to work in her creation; AFS is here to give life to any designers’ creation and to provide high quality

Of course, for most people, part of the appeal of living in southern California is being able to dine and entertain outdoors most of the year, and Whitman’s client was no exception. Consequently, she included large folding doors on one side of the kitchen to provide easy access to the outdoor living area, to which she added a recycled, glass mosaic water wall and swimming pool (both were installed by Milo Marble & Tile Co.), a fire pit, kitchen and dining areas, custom-made pool and dining furniture.

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To make the outdoor living spaces even more eco-friendly, Whitman installed ProLawn synthetic turf on the south side of the home to save water and eliminate the need for pesticides. She also selected plant material that will thrive in southern California’s climate. “I handpicked every single tree,” she says. “I really enjoyed taking on the horticultural and arborist aspects. If I didn’t do interior design, I’d definitely do some kind of landscape architecture.”

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French Splendor

New York-based interior designer Brian J. McCarthy transforms a newly built Atlanta townhouse into an 18th century French showcase story Romy Schafer 102

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Trois Chic When asked to choose his favorite spaces in the 11,000-square-foot Atlanta townhouse that he spent five years transforming into an homage to 18th century European interior design, Brian J. McCarthy of Brian J. McCarthy Inc. paused for a while before responding. “The dining room, because it’s kind of a crazy, mad, régence-style room, with Chinese lacquer panels and mirror,” he says. “It’s so over-the-top, but in such a beautiful way. I love that.” The room’s ceiling was inspired by a Tiepolo ceiling, a ceiling fresco style named for Italian painter Giambattista Tiepolo. The library, another McCarthy favorite, features carved oak panels from Feau et Cie, a Parisian company that specializes in antique and reproduction wood paneling, and a fireplace with an original, Louis XIV marble mantel. “The tower guest bedroom is really like being in a garret of an 18th century building,” McCarthy explains. “Its exposed beams and stucco, so you really feel like you’ve left the formality of the main part of the house as you go up into the bowels of the luxury home quarterly 104but, again, house in a beautiful way.” SPRING 2012

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1. The grand salon bedecked in white and gold Louis XV boiserie also features a Louis XVI inspired Aubusson carpet.e as you go up into the bowels of the house but, again, in a beautiful way.”

2. This lavish kitchen is befitting of the rest of the home’s decor. Gray painted cabinets flow easily with the established Louis XV style. The backsplash above the stove is inset with 18th century style tiles from Portugal.

3. Dressing for the ball is easy work in this Louis XVI style dressing room under an extraordinary 18th century Louis XVI tole lantern.

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or many interior designers, turning an 11,000-square-foot townhouse into an 18th century French showcase could be a daunting undertaking.

For Brian J. McCarthy, of Brian J. McCarthy Inc., such a project turned into a five-year-long adventure for the New York City-based decorator, architectural consultant and traditional European design devotee.

McCarthy’s adventure began in 2004, when an affluent couple in Atlanta commissioned him to completely decorate the interior of their newly built, 20-room townhouse. Annual month long stays in France had instilled in the couple a love for late 17th century and early18th century artwork and décor, which they wanted their new home to reflect. At the recommendation of their architect, Peter Block & Associates Architects Inc. in Atlanta, they sought out McCarthy to help them turn their dream into reality.

A graduate of the Pratt Institute in New York, McCarthy was recognized for his modern European furniture design and residential projects while still a student at the college’s School of Art and Design. After receiving a Bachelor of Fine Art in 1983, he joined Parish-Hadley Associates, where he served as an assistant to world-renown interior decorator Albert Hadley, until being named a full decorator in 1989.

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01 The ante room walls feature tooled and patinated leather panels and a rare 17th century portrait, also in leather, of Louis XlV. 02 The formal dining room imparts a sense of extravagance when combined with the regency style boiserie panels in peacock blue and oriental red.

03 Grand Salon in white and gold Louis XV boiserie and 20th Century Louis XVI style Aubusson.

04 Nested beneath the eaves of the house, the guest bedroom features reclaimed antique oak, a carpet of Ukrainian design and a custom sleigh bed.

05 The Louis XVI Husband’s bathroom exudes masculinity with a military green palette, gilt boiserie panels and finished with a parquet patterned oak floor.

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“The beauty of working there was that the four of us who were partners were each encouraged to create our own style and delve into whatever direction we wanted to take,” McCarthy explains. “In my case, that was a much more European direction with furniture that was much more rooted, initially, in classical aspects.”

Twenty years after founding his company in 1991, McCarthy’s style is still rooted in traditional European design, but now incorporates a modern sensibility that comes from years of working with contemporary artists and furniture designers and in exclusive workrooms throughout Europe. As a result, the decorator was able to give his Atlanta clients everything they knew they wanted—and more. “[The clients had] this complete fantasy about how they wanted to live their lives,” McCarthy explains. “They could put their finger on it. They were able to describe the direction that they wanted to go in, which was not something that I had literally done before. So it became this journey that we all embarked on.”

For McCarthy, the journey began by working with the clients to determine the function of each floor, the number of rooms on each floor and the needs of each room. “In this case, the couple had children and grandchildren, so [the house] needed to function a certain way for them,” he explains.

And while the clients knew that they wanted an 18th century French interior, they were unaware of the amazing resources available to them. “They were completely unfamiliar with the workshops in Paris [and what they could do],” McCarthy says. He, however, was not.

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“The backgrounds are everything for me in every project. The architecture has to be great, to begin with, but then the level of finish has to equal to the quality of the architecture.”

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06 A flat screen television in the master bedroom is concealed behind a framed 18th century Louis XV beaded and embroidered textile. The Italian dressing box atop a gilded console table brings functionality to high style.

07 The first floor ante hall is paneled with painted scenes from Aesops Fables.

The Louis XV gilt wood, iron and marble topped console table leads into the library.

During his more than 35 visits to Europe while working on the project, McCarthy consulted with an exclusive French maker of appliqué and embroidery for the haute couture trade to design pillows, the dining room curtains, the backs of the dining room chairs and other items; with wood workshops to produce the hand-carved wood paneling and ornate architectural trim found throughout the home; and with furniture manufacturers to create reproductions of period pieces when originals were unavailable.

08 The lavish library with Louis XIV style oak carved boiserie and a 17th Century gilt wood chandelier encourages resplendent relaxation. The library also features a Louis XIV period marble mantle piece and a rare Oushak medallion carpet.

“The furnishings are almost entirely 17th and 18th century,” McCarthy explains.

“But we did make some things, like the dining room chairs. It’s difficult to find a big set of 18th century dining room chairs or find the scale of an 18th century chair that’s really comfortable. In this case, we found a beautiful pair of Louis XV side chairs that were quite big to use as the prototype, and then added to the set.”

As with all his projects, McCarthy was involved in every aspect of designing the 18th century French townhouse, from choosing the door hardware and medicine cabinet interiors to specifying the floor, ceiling and wall finishes, of which the latter is crucial to the decorator. “The backgrounds are everything for me in every project,” he says. “The architecture has to be great, to begin with, but then the level of finish has to equal the quality of the architecture. That’s something that takes a lot of effort.”

McCarthy, therefore, sought out Atelier Meriguet-Carrère, a Parisian company that specializes in producing and restoring painted surfaces of all types, to create all the finishes found throughout the townhouse.

Even when it came to the millwork and construction, McCarthy was indirectly involved, weighing in on material choices and finishes that might impact the construction process. “I have a very good understanding of all that, but that’s really much more in the court of the architect,” he says. “I supervise things as jobs are progressing and under construction.”

Completed in 2009, the project “looked absolutely fresh, and there was something youthful about it,” McCarthy reflects. “Yet it had all the layers of a home that had been lived in for 20 years by someone with curiosity and culture. It did not look like something that had just been finished. It looked like something that had really been a love affair for a long time.”

And the love affair will likely continue for both the homeowners and McCarthy in the coming years. Says the decorator, “The wife said to me just last week— they’re in Europe right now—‘I want you to make a list of more things that we need. We have to do more shopping.’ They love the adventure, and they’re really collectors. They love the search and discovery.”

McCarthy continues, “There are not a lot of clients like that. There are so many that approach a project as a start, a middle and an end. It’s so nice when you can continue adding to layers because that’s the evolution of life. Our lives are never over until they’re over.You like to think that you’re always learning and growing.

With that comes this wonderful layered patina.”

A MESSAGE FROM Bonner Custom Homes For 40 years Bonner Custom Homes has had the honor of working with great teams on outstanding projects creating extraordinary homes. Paramount to the success of every project is communication. The client’s ability to clearly articulate vision with the decorator and architect ultimately affects every step in the process. In this project, the client’s clear communication inspired the phenomenal work of Brian McCarthy and Peter Block, ultimately making the experience gratifying for everyone.

A MESSAGE FROM PE Guerin PE. Guerin is the oldest decorative hardware firm in the United States, and the only metal foundry in New York City. The company was founded in 1857 by French immigrant Pierre Emmanuel Guerin and has been at its current location on Jane Street in Greenwich Village since 1892. For over 150 years, P.E. Guerin remains the industry’s gold standard for high-quality decorative hardware. In addition to a vast stock collection spanning historical to modern bath, furniture, and builder’s hardware, there are more than 50,000 made-to-order models for customers to choose from. Custom items can also be created to customer specifications from existing patterns or a simple sketch. Every P.E. Guerin piece is created and finished by hand, using the same timehonored techniques that helped establish the company’s reputation a century and a half ago.

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A GOLDEN STATE Maybe it’s the California sunshine, but Pacific Peninsula Group homes seem to radiate from within. text by Brian Libby photos by Barry Calhoun

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hen Pacific Peninsula Group set out to build the Cypress House in Pebble Beach, CA, co-founder Steve Ackley jokes that there were three overriding concerns: “the view, the view, and the view.” The house, situated on a hillside near the 18thhole fairway of the legendary Pebble Beach golf course, takes advantage of its hillside perch overlooking the Pacific Ocean with 16 different viewing opportunities. Whether it’s one of two master bedroom suites, a guesthouse or its rooftop decks, one enjoys an unobstructed view over the other houses’ rooftops of the crystal blue water.

01 The rear exterior of the home features a second floor terrace and two-story living room, bathing the area in evening sunlight.

“Cypress was a once-in-a-lifetime lot,” says Ackley, who formed the company more than 20 years ago with business partner Brad Smith. “As you walk through the entry, the house opens up to the back and presents breathtaking ocean views.”

02 The view as you enter the house, which presents itself as a contemporary and elegant home with quiet, natural finishes designed to showcase the spectacular setting.

The company, located in Menlo Park, California, has made its name largely with houses on small, urban and suburban infill sites. “We’re in a tightly controlled, very populated and constrained area,” Ackley adds. “But one thing we’ve been really consistent with, in whatever marketplace we’re targeting, is to be more progressive with our designs and use of materials, and several notches higher in quality. I think we’re always looked at as a leader in what’s coming, what’s next on the design horizon.”

03 The rear exterior of the house, featuring close-up views of the mahogany windows, limestone walls and terraces, and the linear fireplace in the foreground.

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Cypress Residence Like some champion golfers who have mastered the Pebble Beach links a few yards away, the Cypress House exhibits a kind of effortless elegance. Inside and out, the design balances traditional and contemporary stylistic influences. Its surfaces are richly appointed, from limestone and marble countertops to mahogany windows, along with rift-sawn white oak cabinetry and flooring, yet the materials work so quietly together, one is continuously led to the view and the home’s numerous outdoor spaces. A simple array of creamy tones and natural materials help focus one’s eye on the color of the golden light coming off the Pacific through the trees. The house is conducive to entertaining: its outdoor terraces can be accessed separately from the outside, and among the trees sprinkled throughout the property is a separate patio area and bocce ball court, ideally situated for overlooking a quintessential Pebble Beach sunset.

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05 04 View of the master bedroom with uninterrupted, eye-level views of the Pacific Ocean.

05 Sunken Butler’s Bar with limestone counters and brushed nickel hardware.

06 The sculptural quality of the custom staircase made with glass panels, steel hardware and rift-sawn oak, as viewed from the entry hall.

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T he aest het ic of our environment enhances t he qual it y of our l ives

The company initially worked solely with outside architects such as Jude Kirik. But Kirik has become such a frequent collaborator that Pacific Peninsula Group brought him into the fold, creating an architecture firm that is now one of three separate companies.

In the ensuing years, Pacific Peninsula Group has developed a kind of signature in its balance of contemporary and classical forms and sensibilities. “We work with many clients on the custom side that still like traditional homes but also want the openness, light and views—all modern aspects of homes that you can’t find in an existing 1930’s Palo Alto home,” Kirik says. “We’ve recognized this and expanded our interpretation so that the end result is a more contemporary design, incorporating the use of natural materials and colors.”

Everything in the Cypress, or other Pacific Peninsula Group projects like the Walsh Residence or the Almendal Residence seems to be in delicate, subtle balance. Often the solid masonry of a ground floor façade gives way to a lighter material on the second floor, as if one level is rising from the other like a Russian doll. Inside, the interior unfolds intuitively from one room to another. “I call it just good Midwestern common sense,” says Kirik, who grew up in Ohio. “The house has to work. It has to flow right. There are spatial relationships that have to be maintained. How do you get that light, that view, that openness, into the plan?” In the Cypress House, for example, a double-height living room gives way to the dining room and then

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“The house has to work. It has to flow right.

There are spatial relationships that have to be maintained. How do you get that light, view AND openness into the plan?�

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07 Afternoon sunlight streams onto the chiseled limestone fireplace wall in the dining room.

08 The subdued palette of the dining room reflects the natural views of the exterior.

the kitchen in a succession that allows the spaces to feel part of one continuous open space, yet still separate enough to each feel distinct. Creamy tones were used throughout the inside and out of the home, from off-white walls and rift-sawn white-oak floors to matching sofas, punctuated occasionally with dramatic pieces like a ring-shaped chandelier over the living room or the chocolate marble countertops in one of two master baths. “Our main goal was to keep the interiors subtle – let the outside speak and be your wow factor,” Ackley says. “Everything inside was purposefully done in a quiet and monochromatic fashion, using natural materials and colors.”

Indeed, whether it’s the majestic coastline near the Cypress House or sites amid the Bay Area urbanity, the climate and living style in Pacific Peninsula’s region make outdoor spaces a natural luxury. The Pebble Beach house includes a guesthouse as well as terraces on the second floor, a main terrace off the living room and a dining patio amongst a grove of mature Cypress trees and Monterrey pines. “Flow between the indoor and outdoor spaces is a huge selling point here in California,” Ackley says. “It’s a design element we try to achieve in each of our homes.”

415.536.7850 info@lgisf.com www.lgisf.com

A MESSAGE FROM Laurie Ghielmetti Interiors Laurie Ghielmetti Interiors congratulates Pacific Peninsula Group for their extraordinary attention to detail and exceptional craftsmanship. Our participation in their homes is a subject of great pride knowing that our company provides the same level of creativity, service and expertise.

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Luckie Charm Marc-Michaels Interior Design and Courchene Development collaborate on an updated classical-influenced residence. story frederick jerant

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“The house is amazing!” says Jeffrey Strasser, Vice President of interior design at Marc-Michaels Interior Design, Inc., Winter Park, FL. He’s referring to the home he designed for Paul Courchene, president of Courchene Development Corp., Boca Raton, FL, (whose company built the house) and Courchene’s partner Jim Luckie, President of Garden & Home Perennial.

Marc-Michaels, founded in 1985 by Marc Thee and Michael Abbott, offers interior design, model merchandising and furnishing specifications for residential and commercial markets. The winner of over 400 design awards, MarcMichaels is ranked among the top 100 interior design firms in the world.

Courchene Development, a family-owned business, has developed and built custom luxury residences in south Florida for over five decades. Its homes have received repeated awards from the National Association of Home Builders, Gold Coast Builders Association and the Southeast Building Conference.

The collaboration between the firms is nothing new, says Courchene. “We’re good friends and the three of us have worked together on many projects—everything from specific client jobs to spec homes.”

01 The patio/pool area’s seating juxtaposes the classic Tuscan exterior with more contemporary furniture: cushions complement the pool colors, and frames are clad in all-weather wicker.

02 The breakfast nook’s sleek limestonetopped table offers appealing visual contrast with the table’s rusticated wooden legs. Faux poplar overhead beams offer the illusion of aged wood.

03 The home’s entrance counterpoints a “Zen-garden” aesthetic (seen in the walkway and pond) with a streamlined classical European architectural approach—notably the clean, simple columns and striped awnings.

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The project’s genesis was simple. “We were living next door [to the current property],” Courchene adds. “The opportunity arose for us to improve on certain criteria to better fit our way of living. Not wanting to leave the area, it was perfect when the property became available. We entertain often and enlarging the family room, kitchen and outdoor living spaces was essential.”

Although the predominant style in south Florida is Mediterranean/Spanish, the exterior design of the Courchene/Luckie residence has contemporary influences. “The stone cladding is clean and straightforward, and there are no ornate carvings or capitals,” Strasser says. “The basics are there, but not the gingerbread.”

Touches of Asian/Balinese influence emerge in the entrance to the home. Visitors climb three gentle steps to a bridge that crosses a serene water pond. “It’s a nod to the ‘Zen garden’ look,” Strasser says. “A simple bridge with clean lines, flanked by topiaries.”

The interior follows the same simple conceptual approach. “We wanted a progressive look,” Strasser says, “without overdoing the architectural detailing.

They might sell the home someday, and if a home is too personalized, it can be a tough sell.”

04 The living room’s low, linear seating is arranged to accomplish numerous groupings without blocking the view of the landscape and pool area.

05 The home provides a comfortable space for entertaining guests with both its indoor and outdoor spaces.

06 An elevated, glassed-in fireplace, clad with verde bamboo granite slabs, dominates the living room without overpowering the other details—such as the custommade cocktail table and expa sive windows.

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The living room, for example, is paneled in a limed oak. It features a pair of suede chairs with nailhead accents and a pair of pony-hide stools. A linear-patterned custom-made three-level rosewood cocktail table echoes the striations of the Brazilian verde bamboo granite fireplace.

The dramatic oversized fireplace bridges the living room and dining room.

“It’s free-standing,” says Courchene, “and is clad with slabs of Brazilian granite on all four sides. Jim and I saw a similar fireplace while traveling, so we scaled it down, tweaked it a bit and made it work for our house.”

The living room, kitchen and family room function as one large area when entertaining. “We wanted to keep it open, so guests could circulate easily,” Courchene says. “Jim cooks a lot, and when he’s in the kitchen, everybody wants to be nearby.”

07 Flanking cabinetry and paired mirrors bring a sense of balance and symmetry to the master bath.

08 The main staircase balances classic elements—such as oak-clad treads and risers— with modern architectural touches, seen in the horizontal iron railings and the sharply angled ascent.

And when weather permits, the expanded pool/patio area is ideal for al fresco events. “It’s really spectacular,” Luckie says. “When the sliding doors are open, there’s an easy flow from indoors to outdoors.”

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“We wanted a progressive look, without overdoing the architectural detailing.�

Jeffrey Strasser, Vice President, Marc-Michaels Interior Design

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09 The Ultrasuede®-covered panel functions as a headboard and appears integral to the same-covered bed. Accents of seaspray (in the pillows, walls and drapery panels) provide subtle contrast.

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10 The contrast between light and dark make for a dynamic environment in one of the home’s bedrooms.

Asian-influenced gridded panels flank the master bedroom’s Ultrasuede®-covered headboard panel; mirrors behind the panels add a perception of depth to the room, amplify the natural light and add reflection. A neutral palette informs the mohair coverlet and silk/ mohair pillows, while splashes of seaspray provide color and contrast.

“We wanted the house to be dramatic and exciting but more importantly comfortable,” Luckie concludes, “This is our home and we want out friends and guest to love coming here!”

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THE PLANS A showcase of sleek, modern architecture —and the blueprints that started it all

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STUDIO B architectS Studio B Architects’ stunning Aspen getaway echoes the angular beauty of the natural landscape

by Bridget Herman

Photo: raul j Garcia

When one globetrotting Manhattan-based couple decided to overhaul their Aspen retreat, they knew they’d scrap the two older homes that then occupied their sprawling property. The pair spends about three months a year in Colorado, and they craved one larger secondary residence, made from sustainable materials, where they could spend time together alone or comfortably entertain large groups of friends and family. In addition, they envisioned a getaway that would take full advantage of the breathtaking mountainous landscape and provide a platform for them to showcase their sizable art collection. With these criteria in mind, the duo recruited Scott Lindenau, FAIA principal of Studio B Architects, to helm the project.

Since 1991, Lindenau has led Studio B Architects, an Aspen-based design firm with a national recognition, tackling a wide range of projects such as schools, private residences, churches and even a winery. It’s no surprise that his work caught the attention of the Manhattan-based couple. Educated at the Rhode Island School of Design, Lindenau is well respected in the architectural community. He was recently elevated into the American Institute of Architects’ College of Fellows—an honor awarded only to those who have made a significant contribution to architecture and society. (Less than 1% of architects make the cut.) While most of Studio B’s work shares a clean, modern aesthetic, Lindenau

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the plans 02

01 The main entry features a landscape water feature and connecting bridge.

04 The rear of the house showing the fractured landscape and mountains beyond.

02 A closer view of the house sitting on the steep, angular site with Red Mountain in the distance.

05 Master bath offers expansive landscape views.

03 The design of the indoor pool and operable walls allow it to completely open up to the rest of the house as well the surrounding landscape.

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06 The connecting bridge sits between the separated wings of the house.

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says he doesn’t adhere strictly to any one particular architectural style. Rather, the building site and the needs of his clients shape each of the firm’s projects.

“We do a lot of research and analysis, looking into the history of the site, its geology and geography,” he says. “We also interview the end-users of the building and develop the architecture from there.”

This project was no different. After carefully interviewing his clients to determine their needs, Lindenau set to work designing Edge House, a 10,000 square-foot abode that boasts nine bedrooms, a wine room, a massage room, a heated pool and caretaker’s quarters, among other comforts. The home’s layout is divided into three distinct zones, which are connected by floor-to-ceiling windows.

When the house is full of guests, all of the pods are in use. When the homeowners are alone, though, two of the pods can essentially be shut down, preventing them from powering, cleaning and maintaining a large empty residence.

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Entry Connecting Bridge Pool Terrace Living Room Dining Room Kitchen Car Port Bathroom Bedroom

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the plans

SITE PLAN

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07 Master bedroom showing the extension into the landscape and views of the mountains to the south.

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08 View into the kitchen, which can be closed off if desired.

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09 The main living/dining area overlooks the dramatic mountain views to the south and the west.

The living area completely opens up to the pool area with a collapsible wall.

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10 The driveway entrance faces at the main entry and the connecting bridge that joins the wings on the house.

Lindenau was careful to ensure that the home would complement the dramatic building site, which stretches along a cliff overlooking a river, that courses 50 feet below. The house has a low posture, so it doesn’t compete with the mountain views and, in addition, the sharp angles of the building’s exterior reflect the angularity of the landscape’s rocky outcroppings. To ensure that the homeowners could enjoy nature from inside, windows are plentiful. A panoramic window stretches across the wall over the kitchen counter, for example, so occupants can enjoy the mountains even while cooking. In addition, nearly each room has access to the outdoors. When guests are in town, the couple often hosts summertime dinner parties on their outdoor terrace

that seats 14 guests and offers stunning mountain views. Even the sounds of nature can be heard from indoors: the roof projects out over the river, capturing the sound of rushing water as it reverberates out and off the underside of the roof’s canopies.

Artwork accents the home indoors and out, including an exterior arcing steel piece the homeowners had commissioned. Most importantly, though, Edge

House treads lightly on the earth. Hot water for the home and the heated pool is provided by an elaborate solar-panel water-heating system. The home’s exterior is composed of sustainable materials, such as exposed concrete, eco-friendly porcelain tiles imported from Spain, and Prodema, an eco-savvy man-made building product that resembles wood, ensuring that the home doesn’t take away from the natural beauty that surrounds it.

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architects

Providing concepts and programs for deluxe homes

Engawa House Sullivan Conard Architects’ Engawa House is situated on the shores of Lake Washington with views of Mt. Rainier. Wood-framed in hemlock, the residence’s basic form is comprised of expansive, horizontal roof eaves featuring a high clerestory leading to a central “light core,” a volume of space illuminating the center of the home. A custom, floor-to-ceiling entry door with cast bronze hardware by Stefan Gulassa (stefangulassa.com) and Sullivan Conard Architect, Stephen Sullivan, introduces the Japanese design theme. The fabrication of the door handle is comprised of silk cord wrap over inlayed shagreen, the same technique used in the making of traditional Japanese samurai swords. The grand room, a large, light-filled entertaining space, features Lift and Slide floor-to-ceiling doors in solid fir by Qauntum (quantumwindows. com), and custom blue spruce ceiling beams by GR Plume (grplume.com). The house’s “engawa” or veranda leads to a spectacularly manicured landscape garden by TR Welch and Associates (trwelch.com).

inspiration found in Japanese architecture and the history of craft in the Pacific Northwest

by Jamie Farshchi A history of craftsmanship in the Pacific Northwest was a driving influence in the design of Sullivan Conard Architect’s Engawa House, a home set on the shores of Lake Washington that finds its roots in Japanese architecture and modernism.

Peter Conard, a principal at the Seattle-based firm, sees the design as “a celebration of wood and craft,” two concepts that are specific to the language of Japanese architecture and the rich traditions of the Northwest region.

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The structure is a long, slim but bold, L-shaped design. Its levels are layered in such a way that one imagines an aerial view in which the horizontal roofs appear as a single form.

The residence is timber-framed in hemlock, and the wood’s light color adds radiance to an already light-filled open space. At the center of the home is a high ceiling that opens to a clerestory that directs light down and lets it radiate throughout.

Conard refers to this as home’s “light core.”

“In the [Pacific] Northwest the sun is a finite and coveted commodity,” he explains, “the balance of light on multiple sides of the room is critically important, when you move from one room to the other, light becomes this unifier.”

Reminiscent of Frank Lloyd Wright, the exterior concrete structure at once contrasts and integrates seamlessly into its natural surrounding. This is where the Japanese architectural concept of “engawa,” the creation of an intermediate space that integrates the outdoor and interior of a home, is most evident in the design.

“The engawa is the edge of a dwelling that connects the house and the garden,” Conard says. “That concept was hit on really early in the process and informed everything from the way the house re-

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Photos: Benjamin Benschneider

Sullivan Conard Architects

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01 Covered walkways and secondfloor terraces provide sheltered engagement with the outdoors on the lake side of the house.

lates to the terrace, to the way the center [of the home] connects to the edge.”

Stephen Sullivan, the founding Principal at Sullivan Conard and architect on the project, has a notable affinity for Japanese design, having pursued pottery in the nation before moving back to the US to practice architecture. It’s this affinity that bodes particularly well with the clients, a retired couple with an interest in Japanese architecture and a livelihood etched out in the Northwest’s timber industry. The result is a design that is clearly and highly considered, each element selected for the way it informs the overall design.

The home’s two cast-in-place concrete chimneys are a case in point. These impressive concrete structures add a complexity to the design. The first chimney serves two fireplaces. The second chimney is split in two, half its mass utilized by a fireplace the other featuring a stair case running from the family room to the second level.

With work spanning from Sydney to the Sherland Islands, Sullivan Conard Architects has been in business for 25 years. Stephen Sullivan has a background in fine arts while Peter Conard studied geology as an undergraduate and practiced as a carpenter before completing a master’s degree at the University of Oregon’s School of Architecture and Allied Arts.

“We come to the work from very different angles,” Conard says. “Stephen has a more intuitive approach while mine is more analytical and that’s why it works.”

02 Designed to bring light into the core of the house, the Light Core, a three-dimensional timberframed structure, serves as the primary spatial orientation of the home as well as its formal path of circulation.

03 The living room and study are both examples of the homes emphasis on natural materials.

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Concrete was chosen for its raw, coarse characteristics, a contrast to the wood featured throughout. Wood grain was also imprinted on the concrete in what Conard calls “horizontal striations,” as a reference to the interior of the home.

The clients were highly engaged in the conception of the space, an involvement that Conard sees as a critical part of the design process. “We have to understand who we’re working with and who we’re designing for. We have a strong focus on client service and it’s very important for us to make the process fun,” he says.

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ARCHITECTs

Raye Street House

Ryan Rhodes Design Seattle architect Ryan Rhodes takes a hands-on approach to designing homes

by Brian Libby Ryan Rhodes recalls drawing pictures of houses among his earliest childhood memories. But when the Seattle-area native grew up and became an architect, it wasn’t blueprints or 3-D renderings that excited him so much as the craft of building, particularly houses.

“I like to do things I know can be built,” he says.

“That’s the most important thing. There are a lot of people out there, especially young, who draw a lot of stuff that never gets built. I like to be able to be involved in all the aspects. I’m big on talking to contractors and subs to learn from them.

And with residential, you’re basically building something where people eat and sleep, not some corporate situation. That was kind of the goal from the beginning.”

After studying at the University of Washington’s School of Architecture, Rhodes first worked at the Seattle firm Sortun-Vos Architects. “One

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principal was a real artist and the other was more like a general contractor,” he explains. “I was thrown into the deep end of the pool and learned both. It taught me how much I like to be able to be involved in all the aspects of a project.” Among his contributions at Sortun-Vos before founding his own firm, Ryan Rhodes Designs, was an extensive remodel of a Palm Springs, CA midcentury modern house, emphasizing its seamless transitions between indoor and outdoor spaces.

That concept also serves him well in Rhodes’ native Pacific Northwest; like many architects and artists here, Rhodes is inspired by the pristine landscape of Cascade mountain peaks and evergreen forests.

“I’ve had every opportunity to go elsewhere, but this is kind of where it’s at, even though there are lots of architects,” says Rhodes, whose portfolio also includes numerous remodels. “It’s a pretty special region in terms of materials, especially

With its hillside view of Seattle and the Cascade mountains, the Raye Street House’s interiors are a restrained palette of contrasting tones—white walls and oak floors stained in sable-black—in order to accentuate light and texture.

“When you sand that wood, it’s pure white and beautiful. To put that stain floor is a weird moment. But to me in a modern house, it’s all about simplicity and a couple big moves.” Another standout is a sandstone fireplace that separates the dining and living areas. I call it the ‘Brady Bunch’ fireplace,” the architect says, chuckling. “I love throwbacks to mid-century modern, which we get from this stacked wedge-stone look.” In the powder room, an IceStone recycled glass countertop gives way to a custom bronze bethel sink and a backsplash of tiles. “The mirror goes all the way to the ceiling,” Rhodes adds. “But it’s pulled out from the wall to look like it’s floating.”

wood. I have a cabin up at Crystal Mountain and I’m into fly-fishing and mountain biking. It’s where you find the good peace.”

It’s that same sense of simple, soulful beauty that Rhodes and his team sought for the Raye

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01 VIVA ITALIA Designed after canal-front Venetian palazzos, this residence stays true to its Italian theme with columns, arches, arcades, and balconies.

It also emphasizes ocean views through large expanses of glass.

In business for over 26 years.

Architecht Ryan Rhodes, Seattle,WA

02 01 White oak cabinets (acorncabinets.com) in the kitchen impart a modern touch. Lighting

by Hubbardton Forge (hubbardtonforge.com) 02 The sandstone fireplace

by Montigo (montigo. com) surrounded by Ambiente Tile (ambientetile.com) adds warmth and texture to the room’s sleek atmosphere.

Street House, which has helped put his firm on the architectural map thanks to a captivating design full of textures and spacious intersecting volumes.

The site was a rare opportunity in Seattle, on a hillside in the historic Queen Anne neighborhood overlooking downtown. “It sits so proud on this hill,” the architect says. “There are no houses in front of it, so you have a 180-degree view from the Olympics to the Cascades.” Pushing the house to the edge of the property (the opposite of how a smaller home previously located there was situated), Rhodes’ design also creates a more private backyard nestled against the hill, complemented by a rooftop deck.

To help the house’s simple, modern form of intersecting rectangles fit in amongst the neighborhood’s namesake Queen Anne-style homes, the exterior is clad in the same cedar lap siding,

simply stained instead of painted. Inside, on the 1,500-square-foot main floor Rhodes explains that, “It does feel like one space.” You can open up that door and see through the house all the way to the back. People asked, ‘Why aren’t you putting a big deck on the view side?’ I wanted to make the house itself like a deck, with floor to ceiling glass.

Inside you feel like standing on a deck.” But subtle divisions are made between dining, kitchen and living areas with pieces such as a kitchen island and a fireplace. “People want that main open floor, with their living upstairs, and the extra room downstairs with a media room,” Rhodes explains.

Upstairs is a master suite on the corner, taking full advantage of the views; off it are additional bedrooms and a library, the latter of which is defined by a second-floor continuation of the fireplace. Be it warming beside the fire or through the passive solar of the house’s ample glass, being here is indeed being inside and out simultaneously.

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Winebaum Residence

nicholas/budd architects Away from the city, L.A. architects draw picture frame homes that showcase iconic panoramas

“It’s a very quiet façade,” Susan Budd says of this 7,500-square-foot home, situated atop a canyon. “It’s not about presenting itself to the street. You arrive and it’s very closed off.” Yet from the inside, the views are “just spectacular.” As architects, she and William Nicholas aim to strike a balance between the fluidity of open spaces and the coziness of closed-off nooks where clients can read or enjoy privacy.

In the case of the Winebaum residence, Nicholas’ eye for details shines. He designed a giant, customized pocket door that with the flick of a hand transforms an open, flowing space to into an intimate, private dining room. Both architects are LEED-accredited and have worked with the client to set up the infrastructure for a 10-kilowatt photovoltaic panel system on the roof. “It was set up but not installed,” Budd says. The client’s sustainable choice paid off a couple of years later when the cost of solar panels dropped considerably, she added, and the residents were able to install panels at a cheaper rate. “Demand is increasing,” Budd says. “It’s definitely advantageous in southern California where the sun is shining a lot.”

by Katjusa Cisar

“We’re interested in the experiential aspect of architecture, in terms of how you occupy space, walk through it, and experience it as an individual,” she says. This is best exemplified, she adds, by the Winebaum Residence, a two-story, single-family home built on a mountain promontory with a 270-degree view that sweeps from the Getty Center to the Santa Monica Bay. The home acts

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as a picture frame for the surrounding landscape.

“When you walk in, it’s about celebrating that view from within, as opposed to simply existing as an iconic object on the hill,” Budd says.

Budd and her partner, husband William Nicholas, met at Harvard’s Graduate School of Design in the early 90’s while studying under the Spanish architect Jose Rafael Moneo. “He brought a whole series of fantastic architects as critics from Europe, many from Portugal, Spain, Austria and Switzerland, and introduced us to a great range of work,” Budd says.

Although they share a common educational background, she and Nicholas approach their work with different but complementary skills. “People

ask how we can work as husband and wife, but I trust his judgment,” she says. “We tend to have the same instincts.”

Both she and Nicholas like to involve their clients closely in the design process and encourage input sparked by personal desires and needs, not a cookie-cutter replica of a magazine spread. Budd advocates that clients follow their hearts. “This is their opportunity,” Budd says. “It shouldn’t be about real-estate resale. If you really want this room for your family, it should be the way you want it. A lot of times people will ask, ‘What style of architecture do you design?’ We’re modernists at heart, but we really shy away from the word ‘style’ because what we like to talk about with clients is, ‘What kind of spaces are you drawn

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ALL PHOTOS: DAVID LENA

Honking horns drown out Susan Budd mid-sentence as she discusses her architectural philosophy from her cell phone. The Los Angeles traffic jam is proving her point, as if on cue. “It’s gridlock,” she explains, and it’s exactly what many of her clients want to escape. Her company’s goal for their residential clients is “to create an oasis away from the city.”

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to and how do you like to use them?’ It’s a very personal thing, and it’s their sacred space at the end of the day.”

Increasingly more, the kitchen is becoming the domestic center point, and Budd sees it fitting in with an increased desire for kid-centric design.

Clients with children often ask for a balance between togetherness and solitude; a family room with easy access to the kitchen or an adult “playroom” that feels private but isn’t cut off. Gone are the days when a teenager could hole up in the basement and play on the computer. “You’ve got workstations in the kitchen,” she says, adding that there’s so much demand for rooms adjacent to the kitchen that it by necessity becomes the hub of the household.

California House nicholas/budd designed the 5,000-square-foot California House for a client who is passionate about surfing, and is reflected throughout this coastal home in Los Angeles. The client told the architects his favorite materials were beach glass and driftwood. “The palate is all derivative of the landscape there,” says Budd. The design materials are soft and white in color and include bleached oak, glass and limestone, so the walls reflect changing colors throughout the day. “There’s a lot of light-play going on with the nature outside. Quality of light is incredibly important to us, as well as the tactility of the materials,” says Budd. The team’s cabinetmaker Ian Walmsley supplied oak for the casework, while Walker Zanger, Inc. (walkerzanger.com) supplied the limestone. In the client’s studio, William Nicholas – who took the lead on the design of the California House – carved a tiny window from one room to the next framing a view to the outdoors through which the client could check the surf. In a home filled with opportunities to bask in widescreen panoramas of the ocean and surrounding landscape, Budd calls this the “little sneaky view.”

Fluidity plays into almost all aspects of nicholas/ budd designs. In the California House, which overlooks the coast, the bathroom’s SPD Systems glass windows switch from milky opaque to clear.

“At every turn, the client wanted to capture the view and feel, as though you’re at one with the landscape,” Budd says. “Especially in California, that’s how people live. The outdoor dining, the outdoor fire pit. All of those become critical components in your everyday life, if you’re outside half the time.”

Next up, she and Nicholas are designing a home for wine connoisseurs in Healdsburg, CA., about 120 miles west of Sacramento. It’s not near the ocean, but once again, the home showcases the view instead of itself. Throughout the living spaces, the residents and their visitors will be able to gaze directly out onto the surrounding vineyards, and not hear street traffic.

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The Dolce Residence

Catalano Architects Massachusetts firm boasts eco-friendly homes

by Isabel Eva Bohrer Since 1987, the Catalano Architects firm has been dedicated to the pursuit of contextually sensitive design and the idea of crafting well-built structures that withstand the test of time. From both a notion of aesthetics and durability, Catalano constructions are meant to last. “We believe that well-built houses are truly ‘green’ and we use the collective knowledge that has informed traditional building in the Northeast for the last 250 years,” owner Tom Catalano explains.

Catalano’s approach to architecture has always been informed by the study and appreciation of craft. “I have been a student of the built environment from grade school and I followed that with architecture school at the Rhode Island School of Design,” he says. His firm has done many single-family homes, both primary and secondary

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residences. “We are nearing completion of the Dreamland Theater in downtown Nantucket,” Catalano says. “And we have completed work for institutional clients, such as a dormitory and a headmaster’s house for an Eastern Massachusetts boarding school.”

Specifically, his firm focuses on environmentally friendly design; the Dreamland Theater is a candidate for a LEED silver rating, as well as a newly completed residence in Hyannis, MA. Catalano Architects bring a highly refined sense of detail and preparation to their projects, regardless of size. This results in a refreshing alternative to the culture of mass homogenization in which we live.

“We believe that good architecture can enliven our existence and relieve us from the mediocrity of much of the built environment,” reads the

The residence is marked by its unique location: a beautiful hillside sloping down to a nearby lake. On a clear day, the Vermont Slate roof contrasts with a blue sky. Light enters through Marvin windows and doors (marvin.com). Interior door hardware by Baldwin (baldwinhardware. com) and custom turned “beaded” stair balusters by H.A. Stiles Inc (hastiles.com) decorate the home’s entrance. Downlights and decorative lights are manufactured

by Lightolier Calculite and Hammerton. In the kitchens and bathrooms, elegant Rohl faucets and plumbing fixtures, and AKDO tile (akdo.com) mosaics provide the final touch throughout the house.

company’s mission statement. “Our projects are the singular expression that results from involved clients and awareness of, and sensitivity to, their specific sites.”

The Dolce Residence located in Eastern Massachusetts was designed as a kind of private

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01 The main house stair tower and porte-cochère as seen from the parking court.

02 One of the powder rooms on the first floor.

03 The pool wing is bathed in sunlight all day long. The indoor pool as seen from the pub area 04 The first floor terraces gradually lead down to the pool areas.

vacation spot that the clients also use as a residence most of the time. In designing the project, Catalano remembers that, “we wanted to take advantage of the relationship of the house to the site.” Another very important factor was “to

maximize the views of nature from every place in the house,” he explains. “The site is a beautiful hillside that slopes down to a nearby lake.”

As is the case with every design project, the Dolce Residence also came with its challenges. One of them was fitting a large program into a form that did not overwhelm or seem out of place. “We used several devices to break down the massing of the house,” Catalano explains. One example would be breaking the four-car garage into two separate structures, which are connected by a porte-cochère.

Similarly, in many areas, the rooflines come down to a height of one story, again to minimize the apparent mass of the house.

Looking back, Catalano particularly enjoyed the positive relationship he developed with the clients. “We had very engaged and energetic clients,” he says. “Their passion for the project fueled our work.”

In fact, Catalano tends to develop a positive relationship with many of his clients. His firm prides itself on the ability to listen to its clients and understand not only their functional requirements, but also their aesthetic aspirations. “Our

continuing success is built upon this close working relationship with our clients,” reads the firm’s mission statement.

“I almost feel as though we are spoiled by our clients as most of our projects are in fact dream projects for us and for them,” says Catalano.

Personally, he does not really have any “dream projects.” Right now, his firm is working on a house in Weston, Massachusetts that is contemporary in nature. “Our clients are allowing us to stretch our design wings, so to speak,” he says.

“That is fun and rewarding.”

a message from E.W. Tarca Construction Accomplished custom home builder, E.W. Tarca Construction Inc. builds luxurious homes throughout Massachusetts. With over twenty years of experience, Ed Tarca and his team take into consideration how each homeowner lives, works, relaxes and entertains to make every detail perfect. From beginning to end, we provide our technical brilliance and imaginative eye to help you create your unique, breathtaking dream home become a reality.

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Olympic View House

an oceanside oasis with an unwavering ability to strengthen relationships

by Brian Libby Peter Brachvogel and Stella Carosso founded “We want to engage a family in a house, and expand BC&J Architects in 1990 with a mission that emthat concept to engage people in an entire town,” says bodies the same principle that inspires their work. Brachvogel, a Tacoma,WA native.

By leveraging the social dynamic that exists between people and their environments, the couple This interest began when he was a child and his father creates engaging homes that foster interaction bought a boat. “I became very interested in how boats between people, their families and others. look and perform, what they can look like when they are moving, when they are sitting still and that they “We also wanted a way of living and working that can embody family values,” says Brachvogel. offers the freedom to work professionally and to have a meaningful life,” says Brachvogel. “If you He abandoned plans to study medicine in favor of atdon’t have that, you have less than what life can tending the School of Architecture at the University of give you.”

Washington and completed his master’s degree at the University of Michigan where he met Carosso.

The firm’s philosophy spills over into its work on light commercial and mixed-use community “By the time that was over it was the mid-1980’s and developments up and down the Pacific Northwe were just coming off of a recession,” he says. west Coast.

“Carter had interest rates up around 17 percent

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and there were no jobs for architects, never mind architects brand new out of school.”

He wound up in San Francisco working for a company that designed hospitals. The couple later moved to Bainbridge Island and made the commute to Seattle, but soon a change was in order.

“We realized that if we wanted to create houses that foster and engage families, then we needed to practice what we preach,” he says.

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PHOTOS: Martin Bydalek Photography

BC&J Architects

Olympic View House is a 2,700-squarefoot, two-story wood-framed home on a concrete foundation. It responds to its environment with balanced massing and architectural features that protect it from the elements, including a combination of natural and concrete siding materials. Classic, contemporary styling creates a timeless, natural oasis where the occupants can settle into retirement. The home replaces a 1940’s plywood house that was beyond restoration. Renewable materials, optimized window orientation and a combination of closed-cell and blown-in insulation package infuse the home with comfort, longevity and sustainable design.

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01 The living room and dining room mingle together with the breathtaking view of the waterfront, which can be seen from the expansive windows on the first floor.

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02 The steps of the entryway are lit with a soft glow casting down from the protective canopy roof.

03 The master bathroom window looks out onto the Olympic peninsula, and a pair of illuminated mirrors and medicine cabinets open behind flush birch panels.

Now they are home by 6 p.m. every night and are able to spend time with their children. “Life is pretty terrific,” says Brachvogel. “It is a different lifestyle that adds new facets to how we approach projects.”

Inspired by Darryl Fish, an industrial designer on the eastern seaboard who “understands the evolution of materials,” Brachvogel used wood for its classic beauty and for the opportunity to explore how to accommodate the harsh, oceanside environment.

The company styles its work to accommodate how the client wants to live and thrives on a measure of completeness in its concepts. “It is more than a front and a back held together with sides,” says Brachvogel. “We are practicing in the Northwest so we do take on a certain aesthetic, but we aren’t style or fad-driven.”

Generous overhangs protect the exterior, but the trick was keeping the slope of the roof down so as to avoid creating a huge ground shadow.

The house is designed around light penetration because the island is starved for light for much of the year.

The Olympic View House on Bainbridge Island personifies the notion of unique design inspired by lifestyle. The owners are empty nesters living the dream of early retirement. “They wanted something fresh and modern and not stoically trying to be hip,” says Brachvogel.

A framework of battered bases on each corner of the building forms the strength of the structure.

From the water, the result is a series of negative and positive—a membrane of glass, a massing, back to glass—that provide recessions for doors and generous outdoor areas.

Inside, the main floor is all living space, including a master bedroom and a great room for entertaining and relaxing with an easy flow to the waterfront terrace. Upstairs the glass-enclosed media room is directly over the living room and a shallow-hipped roof stretches out over the windows. The tops of the battered bases are positioned to end two feet short of the roof plane, which appears then to float on the glass, leaving room for light to escape onto the street at night.

“Twenty years from now the house will still be classically balanced,” says Brachvogel. “At the firm we are about understanding the difference between this not being about us and being solely focused on the art of architecture.”

“At the end of the day it is about making sure the buildings stay up, respond to everything and are beautiful.”

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The Derbes Residence

Bridging classic and modern with simplicity, light and one-of-a-kind stairways

by Katjusa Cisar When he’s designing contemporary homes, Mitchell O’Neil likes to work in as much structural glass as possible. Glass doesn’t just showcase the lush environs of his native South Florida, it fits in with his lifelong taste for design that utilizes light, transparency and openness for a free, airy aesthetic.

He applies this aesthetic to both traditional and contemporary architecture. “Simplicity is important, order is very important; the organization of space, the use of light. I try to get windows at the end of hallways so there’s a view at the end of the hall.

These are design tools that can be used in either style,” he says.

In 2012, O’Neil celebrates two decades of running his own award-winning, independent architecture firm. His experience in architecture goes back much further, to an elective drafting class he seren-

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dipitously took in high school. The teacher treated the subject seriously and inspired the students to think like professionals. By junior year, the class was designing houses that were actually built. Soon after college, O’Neil designed and built his own home in the West Palm Beach area.

These decades of experience have manifested themselves in O’Neil’s sharpened skill for engineering small details, such as one-of-a-kind staircases, that he says he simply wouldn’t have included years ago.

“As I did more houses, I added more detail and took the knowledge from the previous projects and applied that,” he says. “As my knowledge base grows, I’ve been able to do more things.”

a focal point, such an important architectural element, a symbol of movement and a highly sculptural feature.”

“One of my interests is stairways. I don’t think any stairway I’ve ever done has been the same in any two-level house,” he says. “A stairway can be such

Attention to detail plays an important role in one of his latest designs. Commissioned by the client and completed in 2005, this 8,250-square-foot modern

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photos: Kim Sargent

Mitchell O’Neil Architects

O’Neil incorporated several materials that complement the rough beauty of the area’s weather and coastline. “Concrete is a very practical material, especially in south Florida,” says O’Neil. “The house is about a mile away from the ocean, where salt air, hot sun and humidity are a reality....If you use wood down here, it rots very quickly.” Oyster shell aggregate, sourced from coastal Georgia by installer Tradesmen Quality Plastering (tradesmenplastering.com), is mixed into the stucco around the main entrance to catch the sun’s glittering rays. O’Neil says the light-reflecting material “provides a nice textural difference” to the smooth stucco on the rest of the exterior. He also uses a high-performance Oldcastle product, a tough layer of polyvinyl butyral (PVB) sandwiched by sheets of glass. The material is similar to a car’s windshield. “If a coconut from a hurricane hits the glass, it’ll fragment, but it won’t go through,” he says.

residence in a golf club community near Jupiter, FL., takes inspiration from Frank Lloyd Wright in its clean lines, enclosed courtyards, flowing floor plan and blending with the surrounding landscape.

“They wanted a contemporary house. That’s what led me to the Frank Lloyd Wright influence,” O’Neil says. “The whole rear of the house faces the golf course, so that’s an uninterrupted view there.”

He was also tasked with designing specific architectural details, including the built-in aquarium and a wine room that could hold 1,400 bottles, and took it as a challenge to go beyond the basic requirements and get creative.

He suspended the aquarium in exposed structural columns. The fish tank acts as a see-through divider between the dining room and the living room while adding – literally, with flowing water – to the overall flow of the home. “It’s the equivalent in decoration that would be in a more traditional house where you have crown molding,” he says. “In the modern home, the beams and columns and so forth are providing the decoration, but they’re also functional in that they’re holding up parts of the house. It’s an interesting aspect of modern architecture that I try to show whenever possible.”

In designing the wine room, O’Neil sets it off as a freestanding structure inside the home, with a display window that wraps around a corner. “You can actually walk all the way around it. It’s a pretty neat feature. All the glass and refrigeration had to be detailed out,” he says.

Going beyond client expectations takes some clairvoyance. O’Neil bases his business and design philosophy on figuring out the little extras that the client will love but weren’t part of the original plan.

“What I try to do is give them all their needs and wishes, of course, but also something they didn’t realize they needed,” he says.

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Susan Alisberg and Ed Parker design homes that blend into Connecticut’s history and environment.

by Susan Lahey The house could have been one of the original homes in Greenwich, CT. Sitting quietly on its hill, dark and shingled, blending with the trees and the wetlands around it, it could have been built up over time. But this 10,000-square-foot home called Somerset Point was built in 2000, for an owner with a sense of adventure. Susan Alisberg and Ed Parker have one guiding principal of their architectural firm: build beautiful, functional homes that fit with the environment.

Based in Greenwich, CT., Alisberg Parker Architects is a ten-year partnership between Susan Alisberg, a veteran architect with a background in fine arts and antiques, and Ed Parker, who has a background in construction in addition to being a veteran architect and lecturer at his Alma mater of Yale University Graduate School of Architecture.

“It fits into the landscape the way it does because that’s where it was meant to be,” Parker says of Somerset Point. “Sitting on that grassy hill, it looks

While much of the work they do is in the classical styles of the Northeast-colonial, Georgian, Tudor and shingle-style; they’ve also designed French

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like it was always there. That’s what we wanted it to feel like.”

Norman homes, English Arts and Crafts homes, a log home in Colorado and a home in the Bahamas designed in a Mediterranean style.

“All styles have a particular language they speak.

We base our work on historical precedents,” Parker explains. “If you’re striving to be accurate and conform to those styles, you have rules you have to follow.”

Ultimately, Parker says that the ideas of symmetry illustrated by Leonardo da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man apply regardless of what you’re designing. “Beauty has to do with proportion,” he says. “There are ways to figure that out mathematically. The person looking at the house doesn’t know about the mathematical proportions. They just know, ‘That’s really nice. That’s really a beautiful house.’”

The partners share a love of classical architecture and a passion for building homes whose exteriors blend with the natural surroundings rather than compete with it. Since both are also raising fami-

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photos: Tim Lee. interior designer: Tyler Tinsworth LTD

Alisberg Parker Architects

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01 An oversized mantle with ionic columns and absolute black stone surround resides in the formal living room. The coffered ceiling helps the scale of the room and anchors the mantle in the space.

03 The formal dining room’s horizontal paneling has a faux denim painted finish and rough hewn ceiling beams to create a more casual dining experience.

02 To create a more playful environment, the children’s bedrooms have lofts above the bath and closet areas. The lofts have secret passages to the attic playroom.

Summer Camp, Revisited Alisberg and Parker are passionate about building homes that look like they were built at the turn of the last century, in the golden age of traditional residential construction. By contrast, the interiors reflect how people live now. For example, at Somerset Point, each child’s bedroom has a loft that opens into a shared play space in the attic, part of the “summer camp” atmosphere the owner wished to create. In other homes, they’ve built slides that connect two floors, secret staircases which lead to secret rooms, even a pool with a dance floor over it å la, “It’s a Wonderful Life.”

lies, they understand that interiors must fit a modern family’s lifestyle. As old as a house may look on the outside, on the inside it may have a great kitchen with a table where kids can do homework and a cozy sitting area where adults can read the paper or share morning coffee.

They design homes as a team, each drawing separately, then bouncing ideas off one another.

“One of us will take charge on a project but it’s a collaborative effort. On most projects I work on the plans. Ed takes the lead with the elevations and then I come back in on the interiors.”

Alisberg explains.

This collaborative strategy bodes well for the duo.

“We know we have it right when both of us agree

it’s the right thing to do. Alisberg beams, “We are a great team. In more than ten years we’ve never had a fight.”

The Somerset Point Home was a tricky project because of the wetlands. The owners had been told they could only build on 5,000-square-feet and have no pool or tennis court. Alisberg Parker Architects worked with the North Castle Conservation Board and negotiated for 10,000-squarefeet, a pool, a tennis court and a dock.

The owner decided against a pool and instead built a grassy, old-style tennis court where the pool was set to be. “Stately as it is,” Alisberg explains, “the whole place was meant to feel like a summer camp.”

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distinction

Serving a unique niche in the custom-home industry

5 Favorite Design Elements

Pinnacle Architectural Studio Architect Quinn Boesenecker of Las Vegas’s Pinnacle Architectural Studio made his home a high-tech showcase for modern style

by Brian Libby Quinn Boesenecker, president of Pinnacle Architectural Studio, could be called the mad scientist of Las Vegas luxury home design. A 39-year-old largely self-taught architect, he took just a few vocational drafting classes before completing much of his education (and passing state architect licensing exams) on the job. Back in high school, Boesenecker, then an aspiring computer programmer, had actually taught his drafting teacher how to harness the class’s previously unused computer for producing blueprints. The same happened when he went to work for esteemed Las Vegas architect Richard Luke, with whom Boesenecker spent a decade; he helped modernize the firm’s computer-aided drafting tools while learning the nuances of architecture: how to make clients’ dreams reality.

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Today Pinnacle, with a staff of 13, is one of the only Vegas firms that experienced no layoffs during the Great Recession of 2008. The firm is rooted in Boesenecker’s whiz-kid-like gift for the technical side of architecture, as well as a borderless style. Pinnacle regularly designs not just houses but also lighting, furniture, landscaping, interior design and manages construction.

That varied skillset exemplifies the Desert Contemporary Residence, which is both a demonstration project for Pinnacle and a home for Boesenecker. Although primarily a contemporary style, it also shows a nuanced incorporation of Mediterranean, Asian and Southwest vernaculars. “To pick something that will appeal to everybody is

For slate walls inside and out, Pinnacle created their own color pattern. “I wanted a darker, richer color, but I also wanted linear, long pieces that would make those walls stretch out,” Boesenecker explains.

Granite countertops in the kitchen have deliberately broken edges. It’s not rough enough to scratch, but it attracts your eye,” the architect says.

Custom living room chandeliers were based on a more expensive inspiration, costing about $500 apiece instead of $10,000. Designers stripped shell-like pieces from another off-the-shelf fixture and affixed them to iron poles.

In the master bedroom, the customdesigned fireplace is angled in front to allow a 50-inch TV to drop out of ceiling at the push of a button.

The swimming pool is covered in Bisazza mosaic glass tiles. “Because we were able to import the tile it was affordable,” Boesenecker says. “It’s easy on your feet and it helps heat the pool.”

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DISTINCTION

“I really wanted to know how far you can take it. Can we make our own fireplaces?

Can we put copper on the ceiling? Can we make our own lighting fixtures?”

Quinn Boesenecker, President, Pinnacle Architectural Studio

not so easy,” the architect explains. “We wanted a house that is contemporary but is still warm.”

the courtyard entrance, and the driveway itself is clad with basaltic lava rocks.

That warmth is achieved in part by the firm’s ingenuity with materials. Whether it’s a rock sculpture inside their own custom made fireplace, bamboo embedded in plastic to form transparent wall space above the kitchen cabinets, a copper ceiling or an entry bridge over a water feature, the firm uses a variety of textures and surfaces to keep one’s eye moving around the room. Every inch of the house is thought out for maximum effect, from the glass-tiled swimming pool to bamboo pieces of varying sizes embedded into limestone flooring. “Our clients who have seen this said, ‘Can we put steel in the floor or can I put walnut?’” Boesenecker adds. “Whether you loved that house or not, you could tell a lot went into it. A lot of detailing. Whether somebody likes contemporary or whether they like something more Tuscan, a woody feeling, they both got it.” Even at the entrance the home’s iron gate was custom-designed to match the ironwork at

The firm also relies on detailed site analysis to maximize views. In a city where views of the neon-ensconced Strip are at a premium, for example, Pinnacle used on this project, as with others, a detailed computer-mapping of the topography to pinpoint particular casinos and orient sight lines of the house accordingly (with an extra outdoor room on top). And it was all on a site sold on the basis of not having a proper Strip view. That same technology helps orient the house to solar angles so as to minimize summer sun and maximize it in winter.

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on someone else. On this one I said, ‘Let me just take it all and if it goes bad, it’s my house,’” Boesenecker recalls. “I really wanted to know how far you can take it. We’re always told we have limitations.

Can we make our own fireplaces? Can we put copper on the ceiling? Can we make our own lighting fixtures? That’s been tremendous for our business.

We can oversee the building, the interiors, the landscaping, everything—and make sure you’re getting the best shake.”

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Pinnacle’s business success has increasingly come from their variety of services. The Desert Contemporary Residence, from its media room to its wellness area, its lanai and game room to powder rooms, children’s bedrooms study and second master bedroom, was done entirely by Pinnacle.

“Every time I’d done a house before I’d counted

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Harker Design Idaho-based designer soars beyond mountain-minded design

by Jennifer Olvera Pat Harker of Harker Design embraces many design styles. Her firm, which has offices in Idaho Falls, ID, Jackson Hole, WY and Big Sky, MT, is more apt to use architecture and history—as well as clients’ preferences—as cues.

An interior design graduate from Brigham Young, Harker hounded her eponymous company in 1980, which today has grown to staff nine designers and multiple project managers, who specialize in residential interior, remodeling and architectural design and see projects from start to successful completion. The company also excels at commercial design, while offering thousands of product lines that ensure singular, far-from-cookie-cutter, results.

“Every project is unique, with fully customized details or unique customization,” says Harker.

“We don’t specialize in a ‘look.’”

The firm also prides itself on being eco-minded.

“We always begin with quality products,” she says.

“That means nothing ends up in a landfill. It also means our clients get the best value overall.”

With expertise in resort design, Harker Design has also earned a reputation among discerning residential clients, who seek not only its expertise but also its unique point of view.

“Whatever we’re working on, we get inspired by beautiful, high-quality design, from history and from what makes sense based on the relationship we develop with the client,” says Harker.

In the case of a recent project in Jackson Hole, WY, a client from the Midwest called for a remodel of a spacious, luxurious log-laden home. Because it had

wood beams and a lot of dark spaces, Harker set about showcasing its massive stone fireplace, while brightening it up and creating intimate seating areas in the expansive great room.

“We hung hand-forged iron chandeliers from Eicher to illuminate the space,” she says, “and we added groupings of furniture that felt collected, intimate and warm.”

Harker points to added touches like a Woodland coffee table and sofa from Woodland, the latter swathed in textural, camel-hued chenille by Christopher Michael Upholstery.

Harker Design has gained acclaim, too, for its ability to change gears. Many of its clients have utilized experts’ services for more than 20-plus years. Because its projects often start at the architectural level, the firm is able to contribute to the function of a home from the onset.

“In addition to incomparable design services for every inch of a home including lighting and cabinetry, we have the facilities to store product until delivery,” Harker notes.

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Our mission and long-standing tradition has been to exceed the expectations of our clients by individually customizing each project from concept to finished installation.

01 The great room, anchored by a massive stone fireplace, is accented with Eicher chandeliers (woodlandfurniture.com) to brighten the space. Cozy groupings of Woodland seating was incorporated, including a sofa cloaked in camel-toned chenille by Christopher Michael Upholstery.

02 In the kitchen, a custom, carved French oak island from Woodland (woodlandfurniture.com), is outfitted with a pull-out garbage; dramatic cabinetry with a collected feel; and honed granite countertops.

At the root, though, the end result must always make sense. “It’s not uncommon for us to do multiple residences for a single client,” she says. “So, each needs to be very different from the next.”

Such was the case with a recent endeavor in Punta Mita, Mexico. The project was for a client with an existing Harker-designed home in Jackson Hole.

The complex, centered around a stone structure with a palapa roof and stone floors, has a contemporary zebrawood and primavera mahogany kitchen and bedrooms with artisan-crafted, brick herringbone domed ceiling. In the end, Harker ensured there were touches that felt both old and new.

LOCATIONS: Idaho Falls, Idaho Jackson, Wyoming Big Sky, Montana

208.523.3323 307.733.5960 406.993.9423

“The back of the house faces the ocean, so we had to be mindful of the intense sun,” she adds, noting that they used lasting materials—including fabrics from Holly Hunt and GLANT .

“We also incorporated clean-lined, contemporary furnishings and details of local craftsmanship throughout,” she says.

It’s not just their decorative approach that’s built Harker Design’s reputation; it’s also the fact that its projects deliver on a promise.

“We present full proposals of the entire project, complete with prices so there are no financial surprises,” Harker says. “We also do what we say we will, within the time frame we commit to.”

Adding further appeal, Harker notes that Harker Design’s projects always feel “finished” when they’re done.That means all the little details—be it antique pots that are turned into lamps, timeless accessories, trims or pillows— are complete.

“As a result, the projects are better for it,” Harker says.

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CONSULTING ENGINEERS

Providing Best-In-Class Customer Service And Cost-Effective Engineering

Advanced Architectural Design Ltd. bringing classic French and Italian designs to Chicago’s upscale Lincoln Park neighborhood

by Romy Schafer

photo: CORY BOWEN

Wayne Zediker’s choice to study classical architecture at the decidedly modernist Illinois Institute of Technology preempted a career spent championing classical French and Italian architecture. “I tried to be different, I guess. My fifthyear teacher let me design a classical architecture building during my final year.” After graduation, Zediker worked for several Chicago-area architecture firms, including 10 years at Howard Holtzman & Associates, where he designed classical French and Italianate homes in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood.

Today, as the principal project architect at Advanced Architectural Design Limited in Mount Prospect, Illinois, Zediker still focuses on creating classically inspired, single-family dwellings with French-inspired architecture. Still, one of his

Italianate creations in Lincoln Park set a record in 2002 by selling for 9.5 million dollars; the highest selling price of a single-family residence in the Chicago area at the time.

“Italian and French design, in my opinion, are very different,” Zediker explains. “Italian design is very bold and masculine. French design is very feminine, with soft and curved architectural lines. It’s also more romantic.”

While incorporating classic elements into each of his projects, Zediker insists each is distinctive. “If you saw all my houses, you’d see that they don’t look the same. It starts outside, with the stonework. Everything is custom: the crown molding, trim work, stonework around the windows and triumphal arches.”

213 W. Institute Pl., Ste. 406 Chicago, IL 60610 Ph: 312.664.1465 / F: 312.664.1464 www.JBEServices.com

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French Lesson

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To give a home the appearance of a bygone era when viewed from the street, the architect conceals the steel beams supporting the façade.

“You’re going to look at the [structure] and say, ‘This looks like an authentic bearing-wall building.’ But it’s not. It’s just a veneer,” he says.

room was fitted with a freestanding air bathtub, walk-in shower with seating, a hand-shower and glass door, dual sinks and contemporary lighting.

Fireplaces can be found in the living room, master bedroom and family room, while a built-in refreshment center adds functionality to the latter.

While many clients seek out Zediker for his expertise with French and Italianate architecture, when it comes to the interior of their future home, most opt for modern or contemporary designs, but with classic embellishments like crown and base molding and trim work. “The architecture’s there, but the casework and [fixtures] are very contemporary,” he says.

A French metropolitan residence completed by Zediker in 2008 serves as a perfect example. In the kitchen, the clients opted for custom cabinetry with clean lines and sleek hardware and plumbing fixtures, contemporary lighting fixtures and high-end appliances. The master bath-

It usually takes Zediker 16 months to two years to complete a project. Much of this time, he says, is spent seeking construction code variances from Chicago’s Zoning Board of Appeals. “A typical city lot is 25 x 125 feet,” he explains. “The lot [on which the French Metropolitan home sits] was 23 x 124 feet. Right away, you have a hardship. I’ve not done one house where I didn’t have to go downtown for a variance. People want to push the envelope; they’re spending big bucks for these properties, and they don’t want to waste an inch of space.” And because they want every inch to be perfect, they seek out the expertise of Wayne Zediker of Advanced Architectural Design Limited.

luxuryhomequarterly.com

photo: CORY BOWEN

Wayne Zediker’s latest architectural addition to Lincoln Park is a two-story, French metropolitan structure that looks as though it has graced the tree-lined street on which it was built for years. The single-family home features a creamy limestone exterior, cut-stone detailing and ornamental ironwork. The house’s interior, on the other hand, is decidedly contemporary and filled with the latest conveniences: a freestanding, air bathtub and Carrara marble-lined, walk-in shower in the master bathroom, professional-grade stainless steel appliances, custom-built cabinets and Carrara marble countertops and backsplash in the kitchen.

ECO-LUXURY

The best in sustainable living

J2 Construction Utah leader in green housing receives national certification

photo: Danny Lee

by Rodric Hurdle-Bradford In 2005, Jake Joines moved from Las Vegas to St. George, UT and established J2 Construction. He immediately earned a reputation as a regional leader in residential green building practices for a market that was relatively uneducated about energy-efficient technology.

of Homes, was the first home in southern Utah to receive Green Build Certification from the National Association of Home Builders. Following the Cliffrose project, J2 received national recognition for the 2011 Green Certified Terra Numa Parade home, and will Green Certify a 2012 parade home as well.

“The level of expectations for residential builders was low, especially when compared to the commercial market,” says Joines. “Initially, I would suggest individual features to clients and begin an ongoing educational process about the benefits.”

“The program looks at areas of construction and addresses different ways to improve indoor air quality, energy and resource efficiency,” says Joines.

“It is a certification for a third-party inspection that gives additional value to a regular appraisal.”

To enhance his expertise Joines collaborated with professors, attended workshops across the country and identified industry collaboration opportunities.

The homes built by J2 Construction demonstrates their position as industry leaders. Cliffrose, a project featured in the 2010 St. George Area of Parade

The green building features that Joines recommends depends on the needs of the particular client. Light-Emitting Diodes (LED) lighting with dimmable bulbs are consistently recommended because it only uses 1/6 of the energy as incandescent bulbs. Site planning and watering resource ef-

Casa De Amor Residence When building the Casa De Amor residence, J2 Construction focused on style, comfort and green design.

The high efficiency low E dual pane windows offer unobstructed views of red rock landscaping setting the mood for the home’s interiors, while the salt water filtration system takes the place of traditional chlorine for the desert oasis. “A decade ago when I was working in Las Vegas, we were at the forefront in the green technology revolution in heating and cooling, lighting and filtration systems,” says Joines, who worked as a senior engineer and project engineer for several Caesars Palace projects, including the Roman Plaza, the Colosseum and Celine Dion facilities. “It was the beginning of (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)) certification, and the building practices were being incorporated in every facility from the hotel casino gaming floors to the high-rise penthouses.”

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CUSTOM COLOR • RESIDENTIAL COMMERCIAL • PATCH WORK FREE ESTIMATES

SERVING THE ST. GEORGE AREA SINCE 1998!

SIPCO STUCCO, INC.

“ERV regulates the temperature because the fresh air being carried in is the same temperature that is already inside,” says Joines. “Some clients with the resources to pay for high-end energy saving technologies want to do everything possible to reduce or eliminate their power bill.”

For a client that travels the world, Casa de Amor’s exterior boasts a Moroccan design, while the interiors of the home incorporate many green design features, from spray foam insulation, to photovoltaic panels to extensive LED. Casa

Energy Efficiencies/ Green Technologies Double framed walls up to 2’ thick with hybrid insulation system. 2” closed cell spray foam and blown in fiberglass insuation.

14 ton geothermal ground source heating and cooling system 4.4 KW photovoltaic system Energy recovery ventilators to exhaust stale air and supply fresh air. HEPA air filtration system.

Native and regional xeriscape Landscaping.

Low VOC paints and finishes High-efficiency low E dual pane windows LED lighting throughout

963 N. 1400 W. • ST. GEORGE, UT 84770 P. (435)656-1466 • F. (435)673-4367 156

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photos: Danny Lee

EXCELLENCE THROUGH PRIDE IN CRAFTSMANSHIP

ficiencies are implemented from the beginning of the development. J2 Construction also increases its home’s energy efficiency by using photovoltaic solar panels, roofing and a hybrid foam/cellulose insulation system with blown in cellulose or fiberglass. An Energy Recovery Ventilation (ERV) system is also used to bring in fresh air.

“Initially, I would suggest individual features to clients and begin an ongoing educational process about the benefits.” jake joines, Principal

de Amor also includes ground source heat pumps, passive solar elements, views to the north, passive solar heating and extra thick walls up to two feet in width to maintain interior temperature.

“With the technology that is available now the overall idea of green building and energy efficiency is about education and assisting the home owner in selecting valuable technologies that

will improve their quality of life,” says Joines.

“Location has very little to do with energy efficiency, all regions have specific and general design elements that can be implemented. Clients do not know what is available at first, then once they become satisfied with our solutions they share their story with friends and family.

They become our biggest advocates for green building.”

Building healthier, energy efficient luxury homes P. 435-673-4626 www.j2-construction.com SPRING 2012

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products + services spotlight

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An environmentally friendly open fireplace, the EcoSmart Fire is an Australian innovation featuring remarkable design flexibility. The EcoSmart burner is fueled by denatured ethanol, which burns clean and is virtually maintenance-free—no flue or hard connection is required for installation. Available in a variety of ready-made designs, the EcoSmart Fire is also customizable in that it can be installed into any accommodating design.

(310) 914-3335 ecosmartfire.com

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Special Advertising Section

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directory

Professional Services & Organizations Architecture

Interior Design

Advanced Architectural Design Ltd., architecturaldesignchicago. com, 153-154

Alexandra von Furstenberg, alexandravonfurstenberg.com, 28-29

Maya S. Cochron, 46-48

Alisberg Parker, alisbergparker.com, 146-147

Andy Goldsborough Interiors, andygoldsborough.com, 72-74

Norman Sizemore, normansizemore.com, 57-58

BC & J Architects, bcandj.com, 142-143

Brian J. McCarthy, bjminc.com, 102-111

Paul Warchol, warcholphotography.com, 24-25

Catalano Architects, catalanoinc.com, 140-141

Clodagh Designs, clodagh.com, 80-85

Raul J. Garcia, rauljgarcia.com,129-131

David Jameson Architects, davidjamesonarchitect.com, 24-25

Diedre Shaw Interiors, diedreshaw.com, 86

Tim Lee Photography, timleephoto.com, 142,146

Dolphin Architects & Builders, Inc., dolphindesignbuild.com, 59-60

Expressive Interiors, expressiveinteriors.net, 154

Locati Architects, locatiarchitects.com, 42 McCaren Designs, greenwalls.com, 158 Mitchell O’Neil Architects, oneilarchitect.com, 144-145 Nicholas Budd Architects, nicholasbudd.com, 138-139 Pinnacle Architectural Studio, lvpas.com, 148-150 Ryan Rhodes Design, ryanrhodesdesigns.com, 136-137 Saunders Architecture, saunders.no, 26 Sullivan Conard Architects, sullivanconard.com, 134-135 Vanos Architects, vanosarchitects.com, 30-31

Harker Deisgn, harkerdesign.com, 151-152

Plumbing Fixtures

Interiors by Mary Susan, ibmsdesign.com, 54

Rohl, rohlhome.com, 140

Julie Sandman Interiors, juliesandmaninteriors.com, 50-51,53 Kari Whitman Interiors, kariwhitmaninteriors.com, 92-101 Laura Hay Decor & Design, decoranddesign.ca, 70-71 Laurie Ghielmetti Interiors, lgisf.com, 119, 162 Lizette Marie Interior Design, lminteriordesign.com, 64-65 Magdalena Keck Interiors, magdalenakeck.com, 62-63 Marc-Michaels Interior Design, marc-michaels.com, 120 Sherrill Canet Interiors, Ltd., sherrillcanet.com, 77-78 SFA Design, sfadesign.com, 75-76

Construction & Design-Build

Michel Arnaud, michelarnaud.com, 140-141

Pools & Spas Nassau Pools, nassaupools.com, 71

Roofing American Roofing and Metal Company, amerroofing.com, 51 Certain Teed, certainteed.com, 60 Prestige Roofing, prestigeroofinglv.com, 149-150

Tyler Tinsworth Ltd., tylertinsworth.com, 146

Beechen & Dill, beechendill.com, 57-58

Flooring

B Moore, bmooredesign.com, 69

DuChateau Lugano

Bonner Custom Builders, bonnercustomhomes.com, 108 Bowery Design & Development, bowerydesigngroup.com, 30-31 Courchene Development, courchene.com, 120-128 Cudmore Builders, cudmorebuilders.com, 46-48

Landscape Earth & Water, jimfullmerews@yahoo.com, 149 Prolawn Turf, prolawnturf.com, 5,101 TR Welch and Associates, trwelch.com, 134-135

Eastbay Workshop, eastbayworkshop.com, 60 E.W. Tarca Construction, Inc., ewtarcaconstruction.com, 4,141 Hoffman Vest Judaken Design, hvjdesign.com, 158 J2 Construction, j2-construction.com, 157 Jenson Construction, jensonconst.com, 37-39 Mark Timothy Luxury Homes, marktimothy.com, 40-41 Mancari & Associates, mancarihomes.com, 54-56 Pacific Peninsula Group, pacificpeninsulagroup.com, 112 Paradise Home Design, 435-674-5550, 38 SBC: Schlauch Bottcher Construction, sbconstruction.com, 42-44

Paris Ceramics, parisceramics.com, 54

Millwork Acorn Cabinets, acorncabinets.com, 137 Centennial Home Finishing, 435.467.3076, 38 Christiana Cabinetry, christianacabinetry.com, 64 Closet Systems & Cabinetry, jlclosets.com, 47 Fantastick Kitchens, fantastickitchensonline.com, 51 GR Plume, grpulme.com, 6,134-135 Montana Timbers, montanatimbers.com, 44-45

Products Accessories & DĂŠcor Benjamin Graindorge for Cinna, cinna.fr, 20 Bradley Hughes, bradley-hughes.com, 64 Gio Ponti, fontanaarte.it, 73 Kvadrat, kvadrat.uk, 18 TRUFIG, trufig.com, 14

Mountain High Woodoworks, mountainhighwoodoworks.com, 43 Superior Wood Products, swpcabintrey.com, 41

Art Job Biege, jbbiegel.com, 38

Sipco Stucco, Inc., 435-656-1466, 156 Smith Brothers Construction, smithbrothersconstruction.com, 35-36

Photography

Spinnaker Development, spinndev.com, 33-34

Barry Calhoun, barrycolhounphotography.com, 112-118

Summit Signature Homes, summitsignaturehomes.com, 58

Bas Helbers, bashelbers.com, 18

Washburn Construction & Design, washburnconstruction.com, 66

Benjamin Benschneider, benschneiderphoto.com, 134-135

Wolford Built Homes, wolfordbuilthomes.com, 49-51

Bill Timmerman, billtimmerman.com, 10

Engineers

Cory Bowen, 153-154

JBE Consulting Engineers, jbeservices.com, 153

David Duncan Livingston, studiolivingston.com, 86-91

Berta Ferrer, 16 Blueocean Photography, blueoceanphotography.org, 8

David Lena, davidlena.com, 138-139 Events

David Papazian, papazianphoto.com, 159

AIA 2012 National Convention and Design Eco, convention.aia.org, 15

Don Lewis Photography, donlewisphotography.com, 30-31

Clerkenwell Design Week, clerkenwelldesignweek.com, 15

Donna Griffith Photography, donnagriffith.com, 18

Corbin Bronze, corbinbronze.com, 88 Michael Dumas, natureartists.com, 38 Perrell Fine Art, perrellfineart.com, 94 Tokujin Yoshioka for Kartell Gallery, tokujin.com, 20 Carpets & Rugs AM Collections, amcollections.com, 84 Bev Hisey, bevhisey.com, 18 Carpet Specialists, carpetspecialists.com, 51-52 Carini Lang, carinilang.com, 73-74 Taiping Carpets, taipingcarpets.com, 82 Fireplaces EcoSmart Fire, ecosmartfire.com, 158

Ecobuild, ecobuild.co.uk, 15

Fritz Von Der Schulenburg, fritzvonderschulenburg.com, 102-111

International Contemporary Furniture Fair, icff.com, 15

Grey Crawford, greycrawford.com, 92-101

Kitchen & Bath Show, kbis.com/show, 15

Jeff Cate, jeffcate.com, 62-63

Furniture

Light & Building, light-building.messefrankfurt.com, 15

Jessy Plume, jessyplume.com, 28-29

Andreas Aas, andreasaas.net, 20

Montigo, montigo.com, 137

Nordbygg, nordbygg.se, 15

Jim Bartseh, 26

APG Metalworks & Sculpture, adampgale.com, 64,163

Tex-Fab, tex-fab.net, 15

Kim Sargent, sargentphoto.com, 144-145

Aprro, aprro.com, 21

WAMO Competition Exhibition, wamocompetition.org, 15

Martin Bydalek, bydalek.com, 142-143

A. Rudin, arudin.com, 75,85

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Artitalia Group, artitaliagroup.com, 88

Ferguson, ferguson.com, 50,97

Walls

AVF Furniture Design, alexandravonfurstenberg.com, 28-29

Irpinia Kitchens, irpinia.com, 2-3

McCaren Designs Inc., greenwalls.com, 112

BDDW, bddw.com, 73

Kohler, kohler.com, 159

Bernhardt, bernhardtdesign.com, 16

Michel Boucquillon, michelboucquillon.com, 14

Bordie Neill, brodieneill.com, 20

Wolf, subzero-wolf.com, 95

Brownstone, brownstonefurniture.com, 64 Carlo Tamborini for Glas Italia, glasitalia.com, 20 Casabella, casabellaforyou.com, 98 Charles Bombay, 88 Chista, chista.net, 83 Christopher Michael Upholstery, woodlandfurniture.com, 151 Coup d’ état, coupdetat.1stdid, 64 Creato Finito, creatofinito.com, 76 Cruxflux, cruxflux.net, 16 Deger Cengiz via Voos, voosfurniture.com, 20 Dennia Miller, dennismiller.com, 80 Edra, edra.com, 21 Etienne Hotte, etiennehotte.com, 21 Flexform, flexform.it, 84 Fontana Arte, fontanaartestore.com, 72 Interior Illusions, interiorillusionshome.com, 95 Isay Weinfeld, fontanaarte.it, 73 Hudson Furniture Inc., hudsonfurniture.com, 80 J. Robert Scott, jrobertscott.com, 75 Joseph Noble, josephnoble.com, 88 JWA Furniture Consultation, 85 Kravet, kravet.com, 88 Lonardo’s Woodworking, lonardoswoodworking.com, 64 Maxalto/B&B Italia, maxalto.it, 73 Marc Newson, marc-newson.com, 74

Wall-Coverings & Paint Donghia, donghia.com, 93 Gorgous Homes, Inc., gorgeoushomes.org, 93, 95

Lighting

Osborne and Little Wallpaper, osborneandlittle.com, 64

20th Century Lighting, 20ththecenturylighting.com, 94,99 Christian Haas, haasdesign.com, 21

Windows & Doors

Crest Lighting, evergreenoak.com, 53

Andersen Windows, andersenwindows.com, 60

Decode London, decodelondon.com, 158

Barema, baremwindows.com, 97

Decode London for Viable, viablelondon.com, 20

Habite, habite.com, 95

Drew Seskunas, drewseskunas.com, 19

Marvin Windows, marvin.com, 140

Fabien Cappello, fabiencappello.com, 19

New City Door, newcitydoor.com, 97

Foscarini, foscarini.com, 159

Qauntum, quantumwindows.com, 134

Hubbardton Forge, hubbardtonforge.com, 137

Window Modes, windowmodes.com, 79

Jarlath Mellett, jarlathmellet.com, 97 Kirsti Taiviola, kirstitaiviola.com, 19

Window Treatments

Paul Marra Design, paulmarradesign.com, 97

Smith Shade, shademan@smithshade.com, 13

Phillips and Co. Ltd., 406-586-8222, 45 Satelight, satelite.com.au, 21 TAF for Zero, zero.se, 21

Woodwork Daniel Clavin, danielclavin.com, 95 James Hardie, jameshardie.com, 60

Specialty

Mountain High Woodoworks, mountainhighwoodoworks.com, 43

Century Living, centuryliving.com, 22,51 Cherry Valley Spas, cherryvalleyspas.com, 51-52 Dreamspace, thedreamspace.com, 11 Genuwine Grottos, genuwinegrottos.com, 56 Sunshield Energy Control Systems LLC., sunshield0.tripod.com, 74

Michael Taylor Designs, michaeltaylordesigns.com, 75 Moroso, moroso.it, 21 Patricia Urquiola for Moroso, moroso.it, 21 Philippe Stark, stark.com, 95,99 Poltrona Frau, poltronafrau.it, 73 Ralph Hayes Contemporary Designs, 415-431-6682, 89 Randolph & Hein, randolph-hein.com, 75 Roeland Otten, roelandotten.com,18 Ron Gilad for Wright, wright21.com, 20 Shiro Kuramata, skirokuramata.com, 73 Stark, starkcarpet.com/furniture, 78

Stairs Rock Wood Works, rockwoodworks.com, 41 The Iron Shop, theironshop.com, 84 Stone & Tile Akdo, akdo.com, 140 Ambiente Tile, ambientetile.com, 137 Ann Sacks, annsacks.com, 97 Caracus Blue, quarryc.com, 34

Tapestry Design, 435.986.0794, 38

Distinctive Marble & Granite, distinctivemarbleandgranite.com, 37

Therien & Co., therien.com, 75

Eden Stone Company, edenstone.net, 54

Tokujin Yoshioka, tokujin.com, 20

Imperial Stone, lookimperial.com, 98

Tord Boontje, tordboontje.com, 73

Milo Marble and Tile, 323-463-3601, 98

Woodland, woodlandfurniture.com, 151

Paul’s Marble Depot, marble-depot.com, 23

Wood Spring and Down, woodspringdown.com, 80

Tile and Marble by Valentin, tileandmarblebyvalentin.com, 41 Walker Zanger, walkerzanger.com, 97

Glass Galaxy Glass and Mirror, galaxycustom.com, 82

Technology

Pulp Studio Glass, pulpstudio.com, 98

Accurate Communications, 61,63 Control4, control4.com, 37

Hardware

Kole Digital Systems, koledigitalsystems.com, 54

H.A. Stiles Inc., hastiles.com, 140

Mellon Security & Sound Systems, mellonsss.com, 48

PE Guerin, peguerin.com, 111,164

Sound Sight Technologies Inc., soundsightonline.com, 83

Rocky Mountain Hardware, rockymountainhardware.com, 97

Tech-Knowledge, centuryliving.com, 22

Stefan Gulassa, stefangulassa.com, 134-135 Kitchen & Bath Amati, amaticcanada.com, 38 Artistic Kitchens, artistickitchens.com, 17, 50-51

Textiles Acoustical Fabric Systems, Inc., 562-633-6050, 100 Belmar- Fine Custom Upholstery, belmarcompany.com, 89

Bosch, boschappliances.com, 95

Christopher Michael Upholstery, woodlandfurniture.com/ Upholstery, 151

Daniele Bedini, iguzzini.com, 14

Edelman Leather, edelmanleather.com, 83

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At home with Laurie Ghielmetti designer Laurie ghielmetti of Laurie ghielmetti interiors specializes in creating environments that reflect the outlook and lifestyles of its clients.

01

01 The traditonal master bedroom features an abundunce of artful touches. The headboard is upholstered in Clarence House fabric from Belmar Company, in San Francisco CA (belmarcompany.com). The bed itself showcases a cashmere coverlet from Pratesi (pratesi.com), bedskirt by Christopher Hyland (christopherhyland.com) and Italian pillows, Chinese silk fabric bolster pillow and antique throw all from The Lotus Collection (ktaylor-lotus.com) The gold mohair chair from Gregorius/Pineo (gregoriuspineo.com) and iron bench from Blank and Cable skillfully complement the Bessarabian rug.

LHQ: Where did you study architecture, and what major influences have shaped your business?

LHQ: How do you connect with your clients, to

LG: I was a Humanities Field Major at Berkeley

LG: We have several conversations about their

and studied Art and English. I worked with my aunt, an Interior Designer, and then started my own business 23 years ago. My early travels abroad with my parents and journeys with my own family into Asia and other areas of the world have influenced me. I felt the confluence of the mixture of cultures here in California and wanted to use that wonderful eclecticism to help inform my own work. [It was] a mixture of balance and surprise. Â

lifestyle, the adjectives that they would like to use when they enter their own home and how they would like others to feel in that home as honored guests. Clients often show us photos of homes they have admired in magazines and if not, we ask them to go onto our web site and let us know which rooms appeal to them and why.

Most of the time, people wear colors that they feel enhance them and explain their personality and that is often carried through in the colors that speak positively to them in their home; whether it be in furnishings, art or paint that car-

LHQ: What types of services does your company offer?

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understand their needs and desires?

ries through even in the choice of style for their pieces. And then we continue that communication throughout the relationship. We are a small firm, which allows us to create intense personal relationships with our clients often over a period of years as we grow together to fit their needs.

LHQ: What’s in the future for Laurie Ghielmetti Interiors?

LG: I feel so passionately about the joyous pursuit of interior design that at this point I cannot imagine waking in the morning and not wanting the challenge of this work. I continue to enjoy the variety of clients who invite us into their private lives and ask us to turn their thoughts and ideas into a wonderful reality, where a marriage of both style and comfort can be attained. A home is supposed to enhance our lives and the interior of that home needs to feel there is a conversation between the various elements that is balanced. A result that provides both stimulation and serenity.

luxuryhomequarterly.com

photos of Robert Whitworth

LG: We are a full service interior design firm.

That includes: architectural consultation for new or remodeled homes, furnishings and accessories for the home and art advice for building or adding to personal collections of contemporary art.

RHODE ISLAND • CONNECTICUT • LONG ISLAND RI Phone: 401.322.0889 • CT Phone: 860.459.9262 • info@washburnconstruction.com • www.washburnconstruction.com

Established

1857

Imitated Every Year Since

212.243.5270 • PEGuerin.com 164

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