A white farm sink amid rich cherry cabinets with soapstone countertops, under an arched window, look as timeless as they were meant to. Photo: Nancy E. Hill

Morgante Wilson Architects designed a remodeling project that blended seamlessly with this historic home Chicago's North Shore, Illinois • Photo by: Tony Soluri

a classically designed living room with cofferred ceiling, ocular (circle) windows and french doors with radius transoms. A fireplace with a traditional mantle sits nicely on a dark stained brazilian cherry hardwood floor.

Exterior in Cedar Shake of the Art Studio accessory building in Southampton.

Eric Roth

This 3-acre property in the historic town of Concord merges a new home with surrounding topography and builds upon the neighborhood's historic and aesthetic influences. With ten entrances, the success of place making is rooted in expressing interior and exterior connections. Slabs of antique granite, Ipe decking, and stuccoed concrete risers with bluestone treads are instrumental in shaping the physical and visual experiences of the property. A formal entry walk of reclaimed bluestone and cobble slice through a sculptural grove of transplanted, mature mountain laurels and azaleas, and a new driveway sweeps past the front entrance of the house leading to a parking court. A meadow forms an intermediate zone between the domestic yard and the untamed woodland, and drifts of shrubs and perennials lend texture and scale to the home and outdoor spaces.

Photo by:Peter Rymwid

Michael Abraham

Jared M. Erb www.customhomegroup.com