Photos Courtesy of Sharon Risedorph

For this house “contextual” means focusing the good view and taking the bad view out of focus. In order to accomplish this, the form of the house was inspired by horse blinders. Conceived as two tubes with directed views, one tube is for entertaining and the other one for sleeping. Directly across the street from the house is a lake, “the good view.” On all other sides of the house are neighbors of very close proximity which cause privacy issues and unpleasant views – “the bad view.” Thus the sides and rear are mostly solid in order to block out the less desirable views and the front is completely transparent in order to frame and capture the lake – “horse blinders.” There are several sustainable features in the house’s detailing. The entire structure is made of pre-fabricated recycled steel and concrete. Through the extensive use of high tech and super efficient glass, both as windows and clerestories, there is no need for artificial light during the day. The heating for the building is provided by a radiant system composed of several hundred feet of tubes filled with hot water embedded into the concrete floors. The façade is made up of composite board that is held away from the skin in order to create ventilated façade. This ventilation helps to control the temperature of the building envelope and a more stable temperature indoors. Photo Credit: Alistair Tutton

Zoë Noble Photography A labour of love that took over a year to complete, the evolution of this space represents my personal style whilst respecting rental restrictions. With an emphasis on the significance of individual objects and some minimalist restraint, the multifunctional living space utilises a high/low mix of furnishings. The kitchen features Ikea cupboards and custom shelving. A farmhouse sink, oak worktop and vintage milk pails are a gentle nod towards my country roots.

I found the vintage barkcloth curtain panels being sold as yardage on Etsy and had them turned back into curtains. Photo © Bethany Nauert

A little girls room with a pale pink ceiling and pale gray wainscoat This fast pace second level addition in Lakeview has received a lot of attention in this quite neighborhood by neighbors and house visitors. Ana Borden designed the second level addition on this previous one story residence and drew from her experience completing complicated multi-million dollar institutional projects. The overall project, including designing the second level addition included tieing into the existing conditions in order to preserve the remaining exterior lot for a new pool. The Architect constructed a three dimensional model in Revit to convey to the Clients the design intent while adhering to all required building codes. The challenge also included providing roof slopes within the allowable existing chimney distances, stair clearances, desired room sizes and working with the structural engineer to design connections and structural member sizes to fit the constraints listed above. Also, extensive coordination was required for the second addition, including supports designed by the structural engineer in conjunction with the existing pre and post tensioned slab. The Architect’s intent was also to create a seamless addition that appears to have been part of the existing residence while not impacting the remaining lot. Overall, the final construction fulfilled the Client’s goals of adding a bedroom and bathroom as well as additional storage space within their time frame and, of course, budget. Smart Media

Donna Dotan Photography Inc.

Herbert Stolz, Regensburg

Josh Thornton

This eclectic dining room mixes modern and vintage pieces to create a comfortable yet sophisticated space to entertain friends. The salon style installation feature the client's favorite family photos. Photo Credit - Christopher Stark

Photo by Erica George Dines Interior design by Melanie Turner http://melanieturnerinteriors.com/