Distinctive Seatoun Heights House With Breathtaking Harbor Views in New Zealand

Distinctive Seatoun Heights House With Breathtaking Harbor Views in New Zealand

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Distinctive Seatoun Heights House With Breathtaking Harbor Views in New Zealand

Posted: 12 Sep 2014 04:31 AM PDT

architecture massive residence Distinctive Seatoun Heights House With Breathtaking Harbor Views in New ZealandSeatoun Heights House sits on a steep site above Seatoun Heights Road, New Zealand, perched above the harbor. When planning the development of the residence, Parsonson Architects took advantage of the spectacular views and the existing established vegetation. Clad in dark vertical corrugated iron, the project is intended to form a relationship with the established trees on the site. The distinct color palette of the house and its irregular shape imprint a sober feel, yet this initial vibe wears off, as one steps inside.

design massive residence Distinctive Seatoun Heights House With Breathtaking Harbor Views in New ZealandTwo distinct volumes can be clearly delimited, according to the architects: “The bedroom level is excavated back into the hillside forming a base to the upper more, open and light, living level. The bedroom level undulates in and out, allowing light in and views out, giving each bedroom a different character and aspect. The lighter form of the living level above flows across the bedroom level wrapping around an existing small flat lawn and garden to the northwest of the house. The floor level steps down towards the lawn and allows views back through the house and out to the harbor beyond”. The interiors are friendly and welcoming, due to extensive use of wood, an abundance of color and floor-to-ceiling-windows framing harbor views. interior massive residence Distinctive Seatoun Heights House With Breathtaking Harbor Views in New Zealand massive residence 4 Distinctive Seatoun Heights House With Breathtaking Harbor Views in New Zealand massive residence 5 Distinctive Seatoun Heights House With Breathtaking Harbor Views in New Zealand massive residence 6 Distinctive Seatoun Heights House With Breathtaking Harbor Views in New Zealand massive residence 7 Distinctive Seatoun Heights House With Breathtaking Harbor Views in New Zealand massive residence 8 Distinctive Seatoun Heights House With Breathtaking Harbor Views in New Zealand massive residence 9 Distinctive Seatoun Heights House With Breathtaking Harbor Views in New Zealand massive residence 10 Distinctive Seatoun Heights House With Breathtaking Harbor Views in New Zealand massive residence 11 Distinctive Seatoun Heights House With Breathtaking Harbor Views in New Zealand massive residence 12 Distinctive Seatoun Heights House With Breathtaking Harbor Views in New Zealand massive residence 13 Distinctive Seatoun Heights House With Breathtaking Harbor Views in New Zealand massive residence 14 Distinctive Seatoun Heights House With Breathtaking Harbor Views in New Zealand massive residence 15 Distinctive Seatoun Heights House With Breathtaking Harbor Views in New Zealand massive residence 16 Distinctive Seatoun Heights House With Breathtaking Harbor Views in New Zealand massive residence 17 Distinctive Seatoun Heights House With Breathtaking Harbor Views in New Zealand massive residence 18 Distinctive Seatoun Heights House With Breathtaking Harbor Views in New Zealand

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Make a Great First Impression With Jewelry-Like Door Handles and Knobs

Posted: 12 Sep 2014 01:39 AM PDT

Haute Décos Signature Collection 1 Make a Great First Impression With Jewelry Like Door Handles and Knobs

First impressions are the building block you can use to erect an inspiring world of beauty around you. When someone first visits your home, they see the front door. And the door handle as they get closer. Imagine a door handle so beautiful, it would immediately receive the admiration of your guests. These stunning handmade door handles and door knobs were carefully crafted by Haute Déco, a London-based company specializing in luxury contemporary door handles. They will provide the “WOW” factor to a detail usually forgotten. Every door you face has a handle of some sort and you interact with it through sight and touch.

The signature collection of Haute Déco’s contemporary door-handles are handmade by British craftsmen in the UK and explore a luxury door handle design with a distinctive style. Designing and manufacturing high-quality door handles, the company imagined their Signature Collection as encompassing coordinated door knobs, lever handles, cabinet knobs and center knobs. Available in many metal colors - polished for a mirror effect or satin for a soft glow – these precious handles have been seen in up-scale London residences, as well as luxury yachts in customized versions that inspire.

Haute Décos Signature Collection Make a Great First Impression With Jewelry Like Door Handles and Knobs

The fabulous Signature Collection “epitomises Haute Déco's distinctive style of understated contemporary glamour. Bringing together bronze elements and Cristalle glass, the concept behind the collection is to play on the reflection of light on polished or satin metal, refracted through glass for a sensational blend of radiance and sheer translucency. The concept and proprietary processes that have been perfected over time to achieve such extraordinary radiance were developed at the company's artisan workshop in Hampshire where the collection is produced. Bronze elements, plated and polished to a variety of metal finishes, are cast into Cristalle glass, an alternative material to crystal specific to Haute Déco: as translucent as the purest crystals yet extremely durable so that it will not chip, it can, unlike glass, be cast around metal; the secret to its soft glow is in the multi stages of the polishing process, which is done by hand.”

Call them door jewelry if you like, simply because they are.

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Rediscovering Things That Matter: Charming Hudson Woods Nature Retreat

Posted: 11 Sep 2014 12:18 PM PDT

architecture wooden residence Rediscovering Things That Matter: Charming Hudson Woods Nature Retreat
Ingeniously crafted by the team at Lang Architecture, this Hudson Woods retreat is part of a larger residential project located 100 miles away from New York and including 26 modern and energy efficient homes. This project is said to open doors to rediscovering the things that matter: family, nature,  freedom, long-forgotten passions. With an emphasis on responsible land use, including active forest management and on-site agriculture, Hudson Woods aims to nurture and protect the extraordinary natural beauty of the region.
design wooden residence Rediscovering Things That Matter: Charming Hudson Woods Nature Retreat A contemporary living alternative to the bustling city, Hudson Woods is a place where one can find peace and do it elegantly. Here is an excerpt from the official description provided by the project developers: “Humble and private upon approach, the simple vernacular house form fits sensitively into the topography of each site. Once inside, expansive views to the surrounding landscape are framed through custom mahogany windows. The interior is modern and warm, with an abundance of local white oak surfaces and details. Throughout the home, craft is on display from solid wood doors with sand cast bronze hardware to custom freestanding kitchen island and pantry units produced in collaboration with local craftsmen”. This place pretty much suits our vision of a charming nature retreat and we hope it will have the same effect on you!
exterior wooden residence Rediscovering Things That Matter: Charming Hudson Woods Nature Retreat wooden residence 4 Rediscovering Things That Matter: Charming Hudson Woods Nature Retreat wooden residence 5 Rediscovering Things That Matter: Charming Hudson Woods Nature Retreat wooden residence 6 Rediscovering Things That Matter: Charming Hudson Woods Nature Retreat wooden residence 7 Rediscovering Things That Matter: Charming Hudson Woods Nature Retreat wooden residence 8 Rediscovering Things That Matter: Charming Hudson Woods Nature Retreat wooden residence 9 Rediscovering Things That Matter: Charming Hudson Woods Nature Retreat wooden residence 10 Rediscovering Things That Matter: Charming Hudson Woods Nature Retreat wooden residence 11 Rediscovering Things That Matter: Charming Hudson Woods Nature Retreat wooden residence 12 Rediscovering Things That Matter: Charming Hudson Woods Nature Retreat wooden residence 13 Rediscovering Things That Matter: Charming Hudson Woods Nature Retreat wooden residence 14 Rediscovering Things That Matter: Charming Hudson Woods Nature Retreat wooden residence 15 Rediscovering Things That Matter: Charming Hudson Woods Nature Retreat wooden residence 16 Rediscovering Things That Matter: Charming Hudson Woods Nature Retreat wooden residence 17 Rediscovering Things That Matter: Charming Hudson Woods Nature Retreat wooden residence 18 Rediscovering Things That Matter: Charming Hudson Woods Nature Retreat wooden residence 19 Rediscovering Things That Matter: Charming Hudson Woods Nature Retreat

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Why Houses Are Getting Smaller

Posted: 11 Sep 2014 09:17 AM PDT

small modern home Why Houses Are Getting Smaller

A modern home doesn’t have to be huge. There are lots of great reasons to live in a smaller home. Image Source: CLB Architects

Are you one of the millions who have down-sized in recent years? If you are, what made you decide to move into a smaller home? Was it financial motives that lead to your decision, or just the fact that you no longer required a home full of rooms that collect dust and never get used?

Whether you are a first-time home buyer or a downsizing retiree—there is a definite trend toward people buying and building smaller homes.  It’s a fact, houses are getting smaller. It seems there is a new world-view developing—people are shunning the ideals of bigger is better in exchange for a more modest lifestyle,  despite what is in their pocket books.

Let’s look at the many reasons that people are heading towards smaller homes, exchanging vast opulence for the little luxuries of life— And maybe you will discover that a more modest home is in your future, too. The pictures alone will make you realize that good things do come in small packages.

orange modern home Why Houses Are Getting Smaller

Good things do come in small packages. Image Source: Cab Like Enterprises

Aging Population

With the hopes of retiring early from his job as a school teacher, Doug Immel decided to downsize to 164 square-feet of living space, yet still managed to create a dream home with cathedral ceilings and cherry wood floors.

This is the viewpoint of the aging population— they want to retire; they have their eyes on the prize and are doing whatever it takes to get there—including downsizing.  The Administration on Aging says that by 2030, there will be approximately 72.1 million persons 65 years or older in America alone. This is a vast populace of aging citizens who will be looking to downsize, either for financial reasons or physical ones—the physical ones mainly being the desire for a small, stair-free home that is easier to get around in.

We can all take note from this senior population, learning that bigger is not always better, and that life’s luxuries can be enjoyed in even the smallest of homes.

cute grey cottage Why Houses Are Getting Smaller

Life can be relaxing and enjoyable when you don’t have a big mortgage payment. Image Source Blansfield Builders

 Economy

A CNN report offers a practical reason for the trend in downsizing— People are recognizing that by buying a large home, they are consequently living paycheck to paycheck in order to cover their immense mortgages. Who wants to live month-to-month just so that they can have a big house?

The financial crisis of 2008 , acted as a wake-up call to many, prompting them to reassess their lifestyles and begin dreaming of a new, more modest dream. Devastating foreclosures forced many out of their homes, but also brought about a happier, less stressed world-perspective—gone were the worries of climbing the corporate ladder in order to realize the dream of the bigger house or the faster car—ideals were changing and people were discovering a new road to happiness.

Being forced into a smaller home, makes you become inventive; you learn to use small spaces in amazing ways, and you learn that you really don’t need all those big rooms in order to make you happy.

small attic room Why Houses Are Getting Smaller

We are learning to use space in our home that we never dreamed of before. Image Source: Cultivation Design

A Greener World-View

Young people can be powerful agents when it comes to change, and in numerous ways they are being emboldened with the knowledge of their environmental footprint and how they impact the natural world around them.

We are developing into a society that is more aware of our natural surroundings and our ecological encroachment on the world. With this new-found awareness comes the challenge to live a greener lifestyle; this challenge is being met, in part, through the trend of small, eco-friendly homes.

Now, it is almost commonplace to hear of someone building a green home with reclaimed materials; salvaging them from dumpsters or  tear-downs of older buildings. Eco-friendly technologies allow for us to build a home that is energy efficient and produces less waste. Naturally, we are discovering that smaller homes consume less energy versus a home full of unused and unnecessary space. Imagine what the next, younger generation will do!

home with salvage materials Why Houses Are Getting Smaller

Smaller homes lessen our environmental footprint on the world. Image Source: JH Interior Design

Good Things Do Come in Small Packages

Houses are getting smaller because people are realizing that high-end luxury and style can be achieved in even the smallest of spaces. There is  plethora of do-it-yourself designers who offer-up unique ways to create a luxurious space despite small surroundings.

It seems that designers have responded to the smaller housing movement, showing us that luxury can be achieved in the smallest of homes, with a little help from the experts.

In turn, this designer response may perpetuate the realization that we can still  have it all, just in a smaller home. There are so many inventive small-space solutions! Let’s consider trying some in our own small homes today!

small open kitchen Why Houses Are Getting Smaller

Luxury living is achievable in the smallest of homes. Image Source: Kathleen Bost

There is a definite trend of people buying and building smaller homes. Whether it is for ecological reasons, health reasons, retirement reasons, or simply a more design-savvy public…the movement of bigger isn’t better is here and it seems to be taking off.

Consider looking to the numerous online sources that can help with your small space design solutions. Declutter your lifestyle—you will quickly see that you don’t need immense rooms filled with things in order to be happy.

Do you plan to downsize in the near future? What is your ideal square footage?

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