Hillside Residence is a Sustainable Gem in the Marin Hills Read more: Hillside Residence is a Sustainable Gem in the Marin Hills | Inhabitat - Green Design Will Save the World

For almost as long as they’ve known each other, Scott and Tracy Lee have been designing and building the Hillside Residence, a sustainable gem in the Marin Hills. The house represents their personal merger — or marriage — as much as that of their professional talents. Scott is the principal at SB Architects and Tracy is vice president of spa development for Auberge Resorts. Their house, which was featured in the AIA San Francisco’s Marin homes tour, blends modern and green architectural influences with a spa’s love affair with wood.

Built into a hillside, as the name implies, the house consists of four small stories, totaling just 2,116 square feet. There’s a basement, a floor with a guest bedroom, a child’s bedroom, and a tiny nursery. The master bedroom gets its own level, and capping it all off is the living area, whose height earns it an exquisite view of woods and the San Francisco Bay.

A porch swing greets you at the entry to Hillside Residence.

Then again, it’s hard to say where the house’s square footage ends, because it moves so seamlessly between airy indoor spaces and partially enclosed outdoor spaces — which include a patio, a couple of outdoor showers, and an almost entirely enclosed porch, complete with a fireplace for weathering Marin County’s coolfoggy nights.

Did I mention the wood? If you’ve ever doubted that recycled wood can be lush, and even alluring, the Hillside Residence will banish that thought. All of the home’s abundant exposed wood is Douglas Fir, salvaged from a single seed plant in Idaho. It’s the DNA of the house’s character, and links it to its surroundings, connecting it visually with the redwood porch swing in the portico to suggest Mill Valley’s logging past.

Luxury Bedroom Designs | Bedroom interiors

Are you need modern bedroom design for your interior home. bedroom as place for relax and spending much time on it we have to make our bedroom as comfortable place for sleeping.These are few modern bedroom which may inspired you to get your imagination.This modern bedroom design with variegated wood furniture and furnishings for a pleasantly mixed aesthetic experience. At the opposite end of the spectrum, how would you like to have your bedroom be in the middle of your pool room? You would have to loving swimming to be willing to deal with the moisture issues and harsh lighting that would come with this design strategy.

Luxury Bedroom Designs

Luxury Bedroom Designs

Superhero Lifestyle: The House of Iron Man

Iron Man 2 continues the adventures of billionaire Tony Stark and his superhero alter ego Iron Man. The main character is played by Robert Downey Jr. and the whole movie features amazing effects and state-of-the-art technology. But the home of the character is by far the most interesting aspect of the movie- from our point of view at least. This may come as a huge disappointment to some of our readers, but what you see in the photos below is digitized fiction. Jon Favreau, the director of the film explains that the home was falsely positioned on a site in Malibu. It is forbidden to build an architecture project there, so they came up with a different solution: computer graphics. The interiors were built on a sound-stage area in Los Angeles and everything was synchronized with the computer plans. When I’ve saw the movie the house was so real but it seems that movies can trick us very easily ..like this one did. -viaHome-Designing

New Modern Kitchen Design Ideas with White Cabinets

Stosa is an Italian kitchen manufacturer, which offers as modern as traditional models of very high quality. This year Stosa has enriched its modern kitchen range by four new beautiful collections. Among these collections you could find an awesome kitchen solution for a black and white kitchen design. This modern kitchen is a model from Bring collection. The main idea of this kitchen design is a play of contrasts and asymmetric shapes. Its cabinets with non standard shape add the originality and at the same enlarge the storage space. The kitchens from this collection are also available in other different colors and in natural wooden finish.

Modern Bathroom Designs from Rexa

Modern Bathroom Designs

Modern Bathroom Designs Ideas

Bathroom Designs Ideas

Modern Bathroom Designs Ideas

Modern Bathroom Designs Ideas

Modern Bathroom Interior Design

Modern Bathroom Interior Design

Rexa must be born very recently but its collections are par excellence. With a vision of having long-lasting bathrooms, this Italian company has carved a niche for itself in the world of bathroom manufacturers. Having introduced a number of new materials, the bathrooms which are part of the collections are spacious with freestanding, built-in bathtubs.

These concept bathrooms are inspired by the theme ‘Space Navigation’ where the entire collection beautifully comes together as each piece is vividly defined by the curves and smoothness. Everything found in these bathrooms is made of Korakril which guarantees sturdiness, hygiene, static-protection and resistance from lighting and stain.

Rexa designs are powerful and effective. They have encapsulated the essence of good taste and great quality.

New Modern Kitchen Design Ideas with White Cabinets

Stosa is an Italian kitchen manufacturer, which offers as modern as traditional models of very high quality. This year Stosa has enriched its modern kitchen range by four new beautiful collections. Among these collections you could find an awesome kitchen solution for a black and white kitchen design. This modern kitchen is a model from Bring collection. The main idea of this kitchen design is a play of contrasts and asymmetric shapes. Its cabinets with non standard shape add the originality and at the same enlarge the storage space. The kitchens from this collection are also available in other different colors and in natural wooden finish.

Decorating ideas for small bathrooms

There are so many decorating ideas for small bathrooms that you need to choose the very best that suit your own design and taste. There are however some general rules to follow that ensure you will complete it much faster and attain a better finish.

The first idea is to make the small bathroom warmer and more relaxing. This is great for increasing your enjoyment of the bathroom and making it a place that you enjoy. For many people, the bathroom represents a place of privacy and total relaxation. For this reason, it is important to pay attention to the decoration.

The decoration should match a general theme. For this to work, you need to have a consistent color scheme. One of the best color schemes is a neutral or pastel color scheme. It must be something that you like and could imagine yourself spending time around.

There is also a growing trend of brighter and warmer colors. Implementing this design with mirrored cupboards can produce a really sensational effect.

The design is down to your own tastes and personal preferences, but just ensure that it fits with the bathroom setting.

If you decide that a new scheme is needed, then rub down the walls first. Bathrooms can acquire dirt very easily so you need to wipe this away before applying more paint. Failure to do this will result in a poor quality finish. Always have a clear area on which to paint first. 

Before you even start decorating, you need to clean out the small bathroom, let the fresh air clean it and remove any mildew, water damage or dirt that might have accumulated. A clean surface area is the way to start. This will ensure that you get a quality finish and your bathroom will look professionally completed.

If you want to add new features to the small bathroom, then look at buying some new fixtures and fittings. This is one area that you can find some problems with a small bathroom, but there are ways to overcome this. Because of the limited space, you need to find usable, contemporary storage features. 

These days you can find floating units that work really well and don’t invade the space. They also provide plenty of storage for the bathroom essentials. You could also look for an inset bathroom cabinet rather than using one that protrudes out into the open space. This is a great way to save space and ensure ample storage space.

If you are looking to add more warmth and comfort to the bathroom, then you might want to use a carpeted floor. This is not for everyone, and many people are now moving to traditional wooden flooring. Other people use ceramic tiles to create a very modern look to the bathroom.

Whatever you choose make sure that the design is consistent with the rest of the decoration.

There are many ways to improve and update your small bathroom. If you use some of the decorating ideas above, you will see a drastic improvement with a few small changes. Everyone can use these simple decorating ideas to improve the look and feel of their bathroom.

Design tips for smaller bathrooms

If you have a smaller area designated for bathroom use, you will have to make some adjustments in order to make proper use of this space.Start by figuring out what things you need to have in your bathroom. For instance, if you aren’t planning to spend a lot of time in your bathroom, you can install just the main necessary equipments and items in order to feel comfortable. Another important factor is the wise choice of color because a pastel and light color is likely to make your bathroom look larger. The lighter shades are also more welcoming.

Even if your bathroom is small, you can still make it look quite elegant by using the right visual accents. You should use subtle wallpapers that can make your bathroom look larger. Floor coloring is another important issue and you should go for neutral or light colors in order to make the space look roomier. Light shades of blues, tans or grays are the best choices for a small bathroom because they can make it look more airy and sophisticated.

A small bathroom space should be lighted up with additional lights. If you notice that there is no space for such additional lights in your bathroom, you should go for the bulbs that provide a high wattage. These bulbs will make your bathroom very inviting and brighter. Don’t worry about decorating your bathroom either because even a smaller place is likely to be well decorated once you follow the right steps. 

Start by using only a few mirrors because overdoing with mirrors is likely to provide your bathroom with unwanted effects. Keep in mind that using too many mirrors in a small bathroom will emphasize only the corners of its space. So, you should be careful when it comes to selecting the places where you want to have mirrors installed. For instance, installing the mirrors opposite to each other is not a wise idea. Limit the mirrors in order not to show the real size of your bathroom.

You should cleat out the bathroom walls in order to create the illusion of a larger space. You should also keep your things floating. For instance, you might install floating cupboards and a wall mounted sink in order to prevent these items from taking too much from the floor space. You can utilize the bathroom floor for other useful things such as putting a plant or a trash can. Using the bathroom door is another useful tip that will help you save some space. The door is more useful and helpful than acting as a simple exit and entrance.  For instance, you can use it in order to install some clothes or towel hangers because this will conserve extra precious space. You will also be left with more space to use for the bathroom design you plan to have.

You might consider using the collapsible shower screens. Such shower screens come in various types such as sliding or foldable ones. You can also use curtains in order to get the division you want. Allowing natural light inside your bathroom is another wise thing for you to do because having a window installed in this space will make it look more spacious. However, you must make sure that the window is not too big because, if this is the case, you will defeat the initial purpose of trying to conserve wall space. Now that you know all these tips, you are truly ready to start designing your small bathroom .   

Modern Bathroom Designs from Rexa

Modern Bathroom Designs

Modern Bathroom Designs Ideas

Bathroom Designs Ideas

Modern Bathroom Designs Ideas

Modern Bathroom Designs Ideas

Modern Bathroom Interior Design

Modern Bathroom Interior Design

Rexa must be born very recently but its collections are par excellence. With a vision of having long-lasting bathrooms, this Italian company has carved a niche for itself in the world of bathroom manufacturers. Having introduced a number of new materials, the bathrooms which are part of the collections are spacious with freestanding, built-in bathtubs.

These concept bathrooms are inspired by the theme ‘Space Navigation’ where the entire collection beautifully comes together as each piece is vividly defined by the curves and smoothness. Everything found in these bathrooms is made of Korakril which guarantees sturdiness, hygiene, static-protection and resistance from lighting and stain.

Rexa designs are powerful and effective. They have encapsulated the essence of good taste and great quality.

7 Home Decoration Secrets

We always want our homes to be perfect. That is understandable since our home is our abode, our personal sanctuary, the place we look forward to go to after a whole day of stressful work. This is why, one of the most important things a homeowner has to do is to decorate his or her home in such a way that it will be a nice and relaxing escape. This article reveals top 10 home decoration secrets that you surely would want to know.

1. Visualizing is the key

Do not simply make an exact replica of the living room you found on the home interior magazine. Visualize on your own how you want your home to look like, how you want home decors like your wall plaques and paintings to be hung on the wall. Visualization of each room will make it easier for you to do your planning and decoration.

2. Start with a focal point

Any veteran interior designer knows how important it is to start with a focal point in any room so that other home décor items will flow easily around it. It is always a great idea to select an item that gives a big impact like the fireplace, a piano or a sofa.

3. Colors have psychological effect

Colors are important design elements not only because it determines the ambience and feel of the room, and gives the illusion of space but also because they have psychological effects on people.

For example, blue, which is the least appetizing color is not a good shade to paint in your dining area or kitchen. Meanwhile, light and pastel colors, which can relax the mind, are a good idea for the living room. Make sure that the colors you choose complement well with each other.

4. A theme makes it easier to achieve unity and harmony

A décor theme not only makes home decoration a lot easier but is also important because it reflects the homeowner’s personal taste and style. Your theme can be classic, modern, nautical, tropical, European, Asian or whatever you can think of.

Buy furniture and home accessories that match the theme that you have chosen. For example, if the theme of your home is contemporary, modern metal wall plaques would be a great addition while if you have a coastal theme, you might as well go for nautical wall art.

5. Clutter can ruin even the nicest home decoration

Get rid of everything that you do not need or hardly ever use and neatly store them in the storage room. Even if you have the most expensive or most gorgeous home decor, all these are useless if your room is filled with clutter.

6. Lighting is just as important as furniture

Lighting is important because of two things. First, it illuminates the room and allows people to do the things they need to do. Second, it creates an ambience and feel of the room. Because of this, you need to choose the proper kind of lighting, which will make you achieve both objectives. Lamp and fluorescent are great for general and task lighting while candles and smaller lamps are ideal for accent lighting.

7. Strive to achieve a balance between form and function

Form is just as important as function and because of that, it is necessary to achieve a balance between the two when buying furniture or decorating your home. To put it simply, you must be able to decorate your home in such a way that it will be both practical and beautiful

We all know that home decoration is not as easy as we want it to be. However, it is also true that we do not need a doctorate degree on interior decoration to get the job done right. With a dash of creativity, resourcefulness and patience, we can have a home that looks like one of those featured in interior designing magazines.