Rooted in a blend of tradition and modernity, this family home harmonizes rich design with personal narrative, offering solace and gathering for family and friends alike. In the living room, artisanal craftsmanship shines through. A custom-designed fireplace featuring a limestone plaster finish and softly rounded corners is a sculptural masterpiece. Complemented by bespoke furniture, such as the dual-facing tete-a-tete and curved sofa, every piece is both functional and artistic, elevating the room's inviting ambience. Project by Texas' Urbanology Designs. Their North Richland Hills-based interior design studio serves Dallas, Highland Park, University Park, Fort Worth, and upscale clients nationwide. For more about Urbanology Designs see here: https://www.urbanologydesigns.com/ To learn more about this project, see here: https://www.urbanologydesigns.com/luxury-earthen-inspired-home-dallas

Impressive leather-textured limestone walls and Douglas fir ceiling panels define this zenlike living room. Integrated lighting draws attention to the home's exquisite craftsmanship. Project Details // Now and Zen Renovation, Paradise Valley, Arizona Architecture: Drewett Works Builder: Brimley Development Interior Designer: Ownby Design Photographer: Dino Tonn Limestone (Demitasse) walls: Solstice Stone Faux plants: Botanical Elegance https://www.drewettworks.com/now-and-zen/

Photo by Kawanami Takahiro

aluminum windows, glass railing, herringbone wood floors, modern furniture, modern living, pendant light

The Kiguchi family moved into their Austin, Texas home in 1994. Built in the 1980’s as part of a neighborhood development, they happily raised their family here but longed for something more contemporary. Once they became empty nesters, they decided it was time for a major remodel. After spending many years visiting Austin AIA Home Tours that highlight contemporary residential architecture, they had a lot of ideas and in 2013 were ready to interview architects and get their renovation underway. The project turned into a major remodel due to an unstable foundation. Architects Ben Arbib and Ed Hughey, of Arbib Hughey Design were hired to solve the structural issue and look for inspiration in the bones of the house, which sat on top of a hillside and was surrounded by great views. Unfortunately, with the old floor plan, the beautiful views were hidden by small windows that were poorly placed. In order to bring more natural light into the house the window sizes and configurations had to be addressed, all while keeping in mind the homeowners desire for a modern look and feel. To achieve a more contemporary and sophisticated front of house, a new entry was designed that included removing a two-story bay window and porch. The entrance of the home also became more integrated with the landscape creating a template for new foliage to be planted. Older exterior materials were updated to incorporate a more muted palette of colors with a metal roof, dark grey siding in the back and white stucco in the front. Deep eaves were added over many of the new large windows for clean lines and sun protection. “Inside it was about opening up the floor plan, expanding the views throughout the house, and updating the material palette to get a modern look that was also warm and inviting,” said Ben from Arbib Hughey Design. “Prior to the remodel, the house had the typical separation of rooms. We removed the walls between them and changed all of the windows to Milgard Thermally Improved Aluminum to connect the inside with the outside. No matter where you are you get nice views and natural light.” The architects wanted to create some drama, which they accomplished with the window placement and opening up the interior floor plan to an open concept approach. Cabinetry was used to help delineate intimate spaces. To add warmth to an all-white living room, white-washed oak wood floors were installed and pine planks were used around the fireplace. The large windows served as artwork bringing the color of nature into the space. An octagon shaped, elevated dining room, (named “the turret”), had a big impact on the design of the house. They architects rounded the corners and added larger window openings overlooking a new sunken garden. The great room was also softened by rounding out the corners and that circular theme continued throughout the house, being picked up in skylight wells and kitchen cabinetry. A staircase leading to a catwalk was added and the result was a two-story window wall that flooded the home with natural light. When asked why Milgard® Thermally Improved Aluminum windows were selected, the architectural team listed many reasons: 1) Aesthetics: “We liked the slim profiles and narrow sightlines. The window frames never get in the way of the view and that was important to us. They also have a very contemporary look that went well with our design.” 2) Options: “We liked that we could get large sliding doors that matched the windows, giving us a very cohesive look and feel throughout the project.” 3) Cost Effective: “Milgard windows are affordable. You get a good product at a good price.” 4) Custom Sizes: “Milgard windows are customizable, which allowed us to get the right window for each location.” Ready to take on your own traditional to modern home remodeling project? Arbib Hughey Design advises, “Work with a good architect. That means picking a team that is creative, communicative, listens well and is responsive. We think it’s important for an architect to listen to their clients and give them something they want, not something the architect thinks they should have. At the same time you want an architect who is willing and able to think outside the box and offer up design options that you may not have considered. Design is about a lot of back and forth, trying out ideas, getting feedback and trying again.” The home was completely transformed into a unique, contemporary house perfectly integrated with its site. Internally the home has a natural flow for the occupants and externally it is integrated with the surroundings taking advantage of great natural light. As a side note, it was highly praised as part of the Austin AIA homes tour.

Darlene Halaby

Around the fireplace the existing slate tiles were matched and brought full height to simplify and strengthen the overall fireplace design, and a seven-foot live-edged log of Sycamore was milled, polished and mounted on the slate to create a stunning fireplace mantle and help frame the new art niche created above. searanchimages.com

Modern - Contemporary Interior Designs By J Design Group in Miami, Florida. Aventura Magazine selected one of our contemporary interior design projects and they said: Shortly after Jennifer Corredor’s interior design clients bought a four-bedroom, three bath home last year, the couple suffered through a period of buyer’s remorse. While they loved the Bay Harbor Islands location and the 4,000-square-foot, one-story home’s potential for beauty and ample entertaining space, they felt the living and dining areas were too restricted and looked very small. They feared they had bought the wrong house. “My clients thought the brown wall separating these spaces from the kitchen created a somber mood and darkness, and they were unhappy after they had bought the house,” says Corredor of the J. Design Group in Coral Gables. “So we decided to renovate and tear down the wall to make a galley kitchen.” Mathy Garcia Chesnick, a sales director with Cervera Real Estate, and husband Andrew Chesnick, an executive for the new Porsche Design Tower residential project in Sunny Isles, liked the idea of incorporating the kitchen area into the living and dining spaces. Since they have two young children, the couple felt those areas were too narrow for easy, open living. At first, Corredor was afraid a structural beam could get in the way and impede the restoration process. But after doing research, she learned that problem did not exist, and there was nothing to hinder the project from moving forward. So she collapsed the wall to create one large kitchen, living and dining space. Then she changed the flooring, using 36x36-inch light slabs of gold Bianco marble, replacing the wood that had been there before. This process also enlarged the look of the space, giving it lightness, brightness and zoom. “By eliminating the wall and adding the marble we amplified the new and expanded public area,” says Corredor, who is known for optimizing space in creative ways. “And I used sheer white window treatments which further opened things up creating an airy, balmy space. The transformation is astonishing! It looks like a different place.” Part of that transformation included stripping the “awful” brown kitchen cabinets and replacing them with clean-lined, white ones from Italy. She also added a functional island and mint chocolate granite countertops. At one end of the kitchen space, Corredor designed dark wood shelving where Mathy displays her collection of cookbooks. “Mathy cooks a great deal, and they entertain on a regular basis,” says Corredor. “The island we created is where she likes to serve the kids breakfast and have family members gather. And when they have a dinner party, everyone can mill in and out of the kitchen-galley, dining and living areas while able to see everything going on around them. It looks and functions so much better.” Corredor extended the Bianco marble flooring to other open areas of the house, nearly everywhere except for the bedrooms. She also changed the powder room, which is annexed to the kitchen. She applied white linear glass on the walls and added a new white square sink by Hastings. Clean and fresh, the room is reminiscent of a little jewel box. I n the living room, Corredor designed a showpiece wall unit of exotic cherry wood with an aqua center to bring back some warmth that modernizing naturally strips away. The designer also changed the room’s lighting, introducing a new system that eschews a switch. Instead, it works by remote and also dims to create various moods for different social engagements. “The lighting is wonderful and enhances everything else we have done in these open spaces,” says Corredor. T he dining room overlooks the pool and yard, with large, floorto- ceiling window brings the outdoors inside. A chandelier above the dining table is another expression of openness, like the lens of a person’s eyeglasses. “We wanted this unusual piece because its sort of translucence takes you outside without ever moving from the room,” explains Corredor. “The family members love seeing the yard and pool from the living and dining space. It’s also great for entertaining friends and business associates. They can get a real feel for the subtropical elegance of Miami.” N earby, the front door was originally brown so she repainted it a sleek lacquered white. This bright consistency helps maintain a constant eye flow from one section of the open areas to another. Everything is visible in the new extended space and creates a bright and inviting atmosphere. “It was important to modernize and update the house without totally changing the character,” says Corredor. “We organized everything well and it turned out beautifully, just as we envisioned it.” While nothing on the home’s exterior was changed, Corredor worked her magic in the master bedroom by adding panels with a wavelike motif to again bring elements of the outside in. The room is austere and clean lined, elegant, peaceful and not cluttered with unnecessary furnishings. In the master bath, Corredor removed the existing cabinets and made another large cherry wood cabinet, this time with double sinks for husband and wife. She also added frosted green glass to give a spa-like aura to the spacious room. T hroughout the house are splashy canvases from Mathy’s personal art collection. She likes to add color to the decor through the art while the backdrops remain a soothing white. The end result is a divine, refined interior, light, bright and open. “The owners are thrilled, and we were able to complete the renovation in a few months,” says Corredor. “Everything turned out how it should be.” J Design Group Call us. 305-444-4611 Miami modern, Contemporary Interior Designers, Modern Interior Designers, Coco Plum Interior Designers, Sunny Isles Interior Designers, Pinecrest Interior Designers, J Design Group interiors, South Florida designers, Best Miami Designers, Miami interiors, Miami décor, Miami Beach Designers, Best Miami Interior Designers, Miami Beach Interiors, Luxurious Design in Miami, Top designers, Deco Miami, Luxury interiors, Miami Beach Luxury Interiors, Miami Interior Design, Miami Interior Design Firms, Beach front, Top Interior Designers, top décor, Top Miami Decorators, Miami luxury condos, modern interiors, Modern, Pent house design, white interiors, Top Miami Interior Decorators, Top Miami Interior Designers, Modern Designers in Miami, J Design Group Call us. 305-444-4611 www.JDesignGroup.com

Photo Credit: Mark Boisclair Photography