Winchester Residential Design

Jordan Kokel

With an impressive double-volume entrance setting the tone, this ‘modern natural’ home design combines contemporary and natural materials as effectively as it combines form and function. The zoned layout unfolds from the entrance hub, providing a separate living space for adult children and a secluded master bedroom wing, as well as an office/home theatre and family living, dining and kitchen area. There’s a large underground garage and store – all incredibly practical, all designed to embrace the site’s northern orientation. This is an elegant home too, with a cohesive form that brings natural materials like stone and timber together with a modern colour palette and render, creating overlapping planes and an unmistakably sophisticated ambiance.

Palisades Home

Tobias Architecture

The glassed in music room creates a visual tension with the solid mass above.

Abe Residence

Lapis Design Partners

Street view towards the front door. The entry door is recessed into the covered entry to provide privacy. Back lit glass blocks accent the entry while a planter with orchids helps to create a welcoming street presence. Hal Lum

Luxury Residence - Hunters Hill by studioJLA

Justin Loe Architects

Winn Wittman Architecture

Winn Wittman Architecture A.I.A.

Contemporary Glass Panel front door

Studio 76 Kitchens and Baths

This lovely, contemporary lakeside home underwent a major renovation that also involved a two-story addition. Every room’s design takes full advantage of the stunning lake view. First floor changes include all new flooring from Urban Floor, foyer update, expanded great room, patio with fireplace and hot tub, office area, laundry room, and a main bedroom and bath. Second-floor changes include all new flooring from Urban Floor, a workout room with sauna, lounge, and a balcony with an iron spiral staircase descending to the first-floor patio. The exterior transformation includes stained cedar siding offset with natural stone cladding, a metal roof, and a wrought iron entry door my Monarch. This custom wrought iron front door with three panels of glass to let in natural light.

Monaltrie House

Project Habitation Pty Ltd

This project is a precedent for beautiful and sustainable design. The dwelling is a spatially efficient 155m2 internal with 27m2 of decks. It is entirely at one level on a polished eco friendly concrete slab perched high on an acreage with expansive views on all sides. It is fully off grid and has rammed earth walls with all other materials sustainable and zero maintenance.

Seaview Escape

Coates Design Architecture + Interiors

Coates Design Architects Seattle Lara Swimmer Photography Fairbank Construction

Quarry House

RKD Architects, Inc

The indoor-outdoor living area has a fireplace and a fire pit. Landscape Design and Photo by Design Workshop, Aspen, Colorado.

Northern Roof Tile Install by More Core Construction

JUST ROOF IT - More Core Construction

Modern, Northen Roof flat interlocking terracotta tile & Metal Roof details- More Core Construction! Just Roof it!

Doors

Samuelson Cabinets, LLC

Heidi A. Long

Patio

ODS Architecture

Atherton has many large substantial homes - our clients purchased an existing home on a one acre flag-shaped lot and asked us to design a new dream home for them. The result is a new 7,000 square foot four-building complex consisting of the main house, six-car garage with two car lifts, pool house with a full one bedroom residence inside, and a separate home office /work out gym studio building. A fifty-foot swimming pool was also created with fully landscaped yards. Given the rectangular shape of the lot, it was decided to angle the house to incoming visitors slightly so as to more dramatically present itself. The house became a classic u-shaped home but Feng Shui design principals were employed directing the placement of the pool house to better contain the energy flow on the site. The main house entry door is then aligned with a special Japanese red maple at the end of a long visual axis at the rear of the site. These angles and alignments set up everything else about the house design and layout, and views from various rooms allow you to see into virtually every space tracking movements of others in the home. The residence is simply divided into two wings of public use, kitchen and family room, and the other wing of bedrooms, connected by the living and dining great room. Function drove the exterior form of windows and solid walls with a line of clerestory windows which bring light into the middle of the large home. Extensive sun shadow studies with 3D tree modeling led to the unorthodox placement of the pool to the north of the home, but tree shadow tracking showed this to be the sunniest area during the entire year. Sustainable measures included a full 7.1kW solar photovoltaic array technically making the house off the grid, and arranged so that no panels are visible from the property. A large 16,000 gallon rainwater catchment system consisting of tanks buried below grade was installed. The home is California GreenPoint rated and also features sealed roof soffits and a sealed crawlspace without the usual venting. A whole house computer automation system with server room was installed as well. Heating and cooling utilize hot water radiant heated concrete and wood floors supplemented by heat pump generated heating and cooling. A compound of buildings created to form balanced relationships between each other, this home is about circulation, light and a balance of form and function. Photo by John Sutton Photography.

Horseshoe Bay Lakehouse Exterior

Cornerstone Architects

As a vacation home with an amazing locale, this home was designed with one primary focus: utilizing the breathtaking lake views. The original lot was a small island pie-shaped lot with spectacular views of Lake LBJ. Each room was created to depict a different snapshot of the lake due to the ratcheting footprint. Double 8’x11’ tall sliding glass doors merge the indoor living to the outdoor living, thus creating a seamless flow from inside to outside. The swimming pool, with its vanishing edge, was designed in such a way that it brings the lake right up to the outside living terrace, giving the feeling of actually being in the lake. There is also a twelve foot beach area under the archways of the pool’s water features for relaxing and entertaining. The beauty of the home is enough to stand alone, but being on the lake as it is makes the entire design come together as a truly stunning vacation home. Photography by Adam Steiner

Contemporary Barndominium

Madigan Custom Homes

Inspiration for a contemporary barndominium

Stratford Hill Country Remodel

Paula Ables Interiors

This home was a remodel project that we did from start to finish. This included adding a metal roof to give the home a Hill Country Soft Contemporary Feel. Photos by: Micheal Hunter

Contemporary Exterior Design Ideas with Stone Veneer

The front exterior of your home – the driveway, front yard, verandah and entrance – is a fantastic place to start making that all-important first impression on house guests. Even mailboxes and house numbers can have a wonderful way of grabbing people’s attention. The architectural design should reflect the overall contemporary style of your house and the family that live there; while your choice of materials will help your house blend in with its surrounds. Browse the photos on Houzz for ideas and inspiration for the exterior of your contemporary house, and strike up a conversation with the architects and designers of your favourite picks. You’ll find house designs for contemporary, eclectic, modern, traditional styles and more.

How do I decide on the exterior style of my home?

Your location, overall sense of style, budget and current home layout will dictate the style of your exterior. If you’re renovating a period home, the materials and features you use should reflect the date in which it was built, while a unique colour scheme could add contemporary flair. New homes may prefer to look to modern or contemporary designs with structural simplicity, whereas, if you live by the ocean, a beach-style design may better suit your locale. That’s not to say you can’t build a new home that has period influences. If you’re a traditionalist, you can borrow architectural details from the Art Deco period, for instance, or use finishes that reflect more of a Scandinavian style, too.

What exterior house colours and materials should I use?

Traditional homes typically use brick and timber building materials, while stone, board-formed concrete and metal cladding are popular contemporary options. Again, the materials you use will depend on your location and the statement you want to make. Your budget will also affect your choice. Vinyl siding is affordable and easy to install, while stone is more expensive but durable and low maintenance. If you’re not ready to renovate but want to update the exterior of your home, you can still paint it. Look to your neighbours when choosing exterior house colours. Consider the streetscape and what type of colours are already in use, firstly, so you don’t replicate next door’s shade; and secondly, so you don’t stand out like a sore thumb. If you’re renovating a period home, you could paint features or intricate details in a bold, standout hue. Front doors, garage doors and window trims also look great in eye-catching colours, even if the rest of the house’s facade is neutral.

How can I maximise my home’s street appeal?

To spice up your home’s architectural design, landscape the surrounding area with plants and pathways that accent the contemporary style of your home. If you just need a quick revamp, look at your cement and pavers – these can split and crack over time; and repairing or replacing them can do wonders for your street appeal, especially if it’s a large area like your driveway. Plants, garden paths or low walls can can also add structure to your front yard. Light up your home with sufficient outdoor lighting to make walking up to the front door easy at night. You could use bollard lights along your entry path, or replace tiny wall sconces with statement pendant lighting at the entrance or on your verandah. Decorative elements such as house numbers, mailboxes and doormats will also add character. And if you're looking to sell your house, it may be worth hiring a stylist to help make the most of your property.