Category Archives: Home Design

Architecture, Gardens, Home Design, Homes

Home Tours: ‘The Garden House’ In Southwell, Nottinghamshire, UK

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Set within the grounds of a Georgian walled-garden, this superb seven-bedroom house has been joyfully designed around the exceptional architectural landscaping. The internal living space spans over 4,580 sq ft across multiple levels, arranged in a playful layout of floating mezzanines, balconies, and a double-height winter garden.

Designed with high energy efficiency in mind The Garden House has outstanding solar collection, heat recovery and rainwater harvesting and is partially earth-sheltered to conserve its heat and energy.

The Garden House is approached via a quiet country lane, leading to a secluded entrance, revealing little of the house from the walled courtyard. A private driveway leads to a sheltered car port available for several vehicles to park adjacently to the house. There is also a log store, outside store room and a smaller front courtyard garden.

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Home Design, Homes, Innovations, Videos

Innovative Home Tours: ‘Ultra-Modern Shipping Container’ – Kamloops, BC

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In this video, we’re touring a really unique and modern shipping container home in Kamloops, BC, and hearing from the family’s story of how and why they host their shipping container on Airbnb. Cathi and her husband Trevor downsized to this small space three years ago after their sons had left home and the couple has been living in it full-time ever since.

The main house has 2 bedrooms, a kitchen and a living room, and a full bathroom. It’s built with 4 recycled shipping containers. There’s an additional studio space that’s connected to the main house with a breezeway and it is set up as a fully self-contained micro cabin, plus there’s an awesome outdoor kitchen with a dining space and wood-fired pizza oven.

Architecture, Home Design, Homes, Travel, Videos

Top Estate Home Tours: ‘Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin’ -Grand Italian Renaissance

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The Herman and Claudia Uihlein residence at 5270 N. Lake Drive is situated on over 3 acres in Whitefish Bay and is a spectacular example of Italian Renaissance architecture and old-world craftsmanship re-imagined for today’s living. The residence has been extensively and lovingly restored and the current steward of this property has invested significantly in upgrading and maintaining the home to perfection. With spaces both intimate and expansive, the home is the ideal location and setting for gracious living, family gatherings and events of any size. This home truly needs to be experienced in person to appreciate what the artisans, craftsmen and designers have created. Fabulous new kitchen in 2018, new boiler and air conditioning systems, renovated baths, and a wonderland of fine finishes.

Home Design, Homes, Travel, Videos

Historic Home Tours: ’18th Century In Sag Harbor, NY’

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Dating to circa 1765, with walls originally constructed from the ballasts of ships, and sympathetically modernized in 2012, this graceful 4-bedroom former manse of the Old Whaler’s Church offers impeccable style and irreplaceable character at a coveted address in the heart of Sag Harbor Village.

Period architectural details in the Egyptian Revival style with a whaling motif, matching that of the church, remain beautifully preserved from an addition in the mid 1800s by Minard Lafever, designer of the iconic Old Whaler’s Church. The home opens on a grand 50′ hallway of brick, waxed, Venetian plaster, dentil molding, and the original wide plank, pumpkin pine floors. The living room and dining room, each adorned with fireplaces and Lafever’s authentic moldings, flank the entry and profit from the natural light of nearly full height windows which open to the charming front porch.

The entry hallway leads to the spacious and supremely stylish eat-in kitchen with bay window breakfast nook, island seating, and custom cabinetry by Dereyk Patterson, crowned by a handmade La Cornue Chateau range in Lafayette Blue. Convenient to all the charms of Sag Harbor Village, this is a rare opportunity to own a fully renovated, trophy home of exceptional character and design.

Architecture, Home Design, Homes, Travel, Videos

NYC Penthouse Video: 40th Floor, 3-Story Modern Design Near Central Park

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This modern glass-wrapped triplex penthouse was masterfully designed for both grand scale entertaining and comfortable family living. With entertaining in mind, this home features a stunning corner great room with 25’+/- ceilings, floor-to-ceiling windows, a fireplace, and direct access to a 41’ long terrace with wide open Hudson River and city views.

Additionally, the home features two dramatic sculptural floating staircases, an owner’s kitchen, a separate catering kitchen, and a wet bar with a fully equipped beverage center. Guests will enjoy light-flooded views by day, gorgeous river-view sunsets in the evening, and dazzling views of all the lights of the Broadway Theater District by night.

The Costas Kondylis designed Platinum Condominium is located in one of Manhattan’s most exciting and vibrant neighborhoods – a short distance to Central Park, and just moments away from all Broadway Theaters, world-class dining, cafes, shops, and public transit hub. The Platinum features a sleek and modern lobby with a soothing Zen-like water feature, and a 26’ long fireplace.

Five-star building amenities include 24-hour concierge and doorman security; residents lounge with pool tables, and a vast landscaped terrace with fireplace; spa lounge with experiential massage showers, sauna, and treatment rooms; state of the art health club with indoor and outdoor yoga studios; state of the art golf simulator; and onsite enclosed parking.

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Home Design, Homes, Living

Best New Tiny Homes: ‘The Natura’ – Tiny Housing Co.

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The Natura features wood paneling on the exterior, a thick corkboard layer on the front to add a defining feature that doubles as a breathable, fire-retardant area by the bedroom.

Inside, we’ve paired the natural aesthetics of the exterior, with luxury fixtures and fittings – tonnes of light floods the rooms to ensure you feel like you’re practically outside. Our architects have applied a whole host of space-saving features, from tucked away hidden storage under the stairs, between walls and under the bed.

The Key Features

  • 1-bed tiny home
  • 7m long X 2.4m wide x 3.95m high (23.25m2 total floorspace)
  • 1 loft bedroom fitted with a multi-functional kingsize bed (storage under the bed)
  • Thick insulation in the walls, floor and roof, to increase the U-value of your home to near-passive house standards using, EPS, XPS boards and corkboard.
  • Fully-fitted kitchen with A++ energy-efficient appliances ( 2-hob induction cooker, fridge freezer, electric oven, extractor fan, under-sink water filter).
  • Fully-fitted bathroom with large shower, toilet, cabinets and vanity.
  • 1000w solar panels pre-installed with inverter and li-ion 24v or 48v battery bank.
  • Energy Recovery Ventilator (ERV) – This helps to remove excess humidity, filters the air and removes stale air whilst keeping your home warm.
  • Optional extras: 3000w solar panels, wood-burning stove connected to underfloor heating.

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Architecture, Books, Design, Home Design, Homes

Interior Design: ‘Inside Marrakesh – Enchanting Homes And Gardens’ (2020)

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Contemporary design meets Marrakesh’s splendid artistic heritage in a fresh burst of color, form, and texture through a panoply of sensual houses and gardens. Noted designer Meryanne Loum-Martin provides entrée into the extraordinary residences of this fabled city’s leading tastemakers.



This exquisite book showcases the stunning properties of the world’s leading design connoisseurs, including Jasper Conran, Lynn Guinness, Vanessa Branson, and Helen and Brice Marden, who have transformed Marrakesh’s exotic style into unexpected but elegant expressions.

The story of design in Marrakesh begins with the contributions of Bill Willis, Yves Saint Laurent, and Pierre Bergé, who fearlessly fused Moroccan elements–zellige tilework, rugs, pottery, fountains, woodwork, metalwork, and tadelakt wall treatments–with a luxuriant mix of furnishings from around the world. We are invited into such lush private places as the gardens of the Villa Oasis, designed by Madison Cox, and the Bulgaris’ tranquil riad.

Full of personal insights, Loum-Martin explores how international design-savvy individuals continue to incorporate such exuberant designs in their work.

Today’s Marrakesh style appeals to a wide variety of tastes–from formal to quirky, from rustic to refined–and is suitable for diverse settings. Eco-friendly materials, including earthenware and natural fibers, contribute to these appealing interiors and gardens. Superbly photographed, Inside Marrakesh abounds with a wealth of unique design ideas.

About The Author

International tastemaker Meryanne Loum-Martin is the proprietor of the award-winning Jnane Tamsna boutique hotel in Marrakesh’s Palmeraie district. Lauded in publications such as Town & Country and Architectural Digest, she has designed porcelain dinnerware for Meissen and an outdoor furniture collection. Award-winning lifestyle and food photographer Jean Cazals‘s work has been published in numerous magazines and cookbooks.

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Architecture, Books, Home Design, Homes

American Architecture: Evolution Of Indiana Houses In Photographs

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In the early nineteenth century, Indiana was at the intersection of ideas from the East and the frontier – resulting in a unique opportunity to express creative adaptions of residential architectural styles in America.

Industrialization later in the century created a new wealth to build extraordinary houses outside of cities; by the early twentieth century, Americans had created their own distinctive residential architecture with the Prairie Style.

This 288 page compendium includes over ninety houses in Indiana which are representative of the finest American residential architecture, from the Federal and Classical Revival style to Modern. The fascinating story of the evolution of residential architecture elaborates on the character defining features of each period, including the exterior form, massing, details as well as interiors – all beautifully illustrated in large format black and white photographs.

Authors: Craig Kuhner and Alan Ward

American Residential Architecture
Oscar Riera Ojeda Publications
Photographs of the Evolution of Indiana Houses

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Architecture, Home Design, Homes, Travel, Videos

Top Home Design Videos: ‘Tear Of God’ In Crete (WSJ)

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For his home on Crete, Greece’s largest island, George Kalykakis wanted something unique. He got a sculptural structure, nicknamed the “Tear of God,” designed to keep the harsh sun in check through a series of cuts. Kalykakis gives us a tour.