It's Time to Build!

I attended an online seminar ("Stimulus and the Housing Market") yesterday put on by Professional Builder Publications. Here are a few interesting tidbits.

1. First time home buyers can still get an $8,000.00 tax credit if you purchase the home by December 1 of 2009. There is speculation that this credit may be extended or even expanded to non-first time buyers. Let's hope.
2. For those thinking of remodeling tax credits are available for window and door replacements and / or other energy improving strategies. You can get more information on this at www.energystar.gov/taxcredits
3. The Home Affordability Index is at a record high. This means that construction costs are low and financing is still relatively cheap. If you are in a position to build or buy, this is truly the time to do it.
4. Consumer confidence is just beginning to improve.
5. Single Family housing is expected to begin modest recovery soon. Multi-Family is expected to lag for a while.
6. Existing home inventory is still high, but it is going down. This is a good sign.
7. U.S. construction spending is expected to start increasing by end of 09' or early 10'.

So what is the point? Now is really a good time to buy, build or remodel. Low consumer confidence and low demand are keeping construction costs down while financing costs are still relatively low. This is a good combination if you are in a position to take action. Once recovery starts to happen you know where construction costs are going to go.

Bathroom Remodel by Larson Brenner Architects

Simple,Unique, Creative and Green House Plans

Dining Room Design

Dining Room Design

Minimalist Bossanova Dining Room

Minimalist Bossanova Dining Room

Modern Dining Room Design

Modern Dining Room Design

Contemporary Dining Room Table

What Color Is Comfort By Nicolette Toussaint

We believe interior designers are their best advertisement for themselves and their business of helping the public live in a home they deserve. We consistently encourage interior designers to get a blog and tell us about your projects, share with us the before and after pictures and the problems that were solved.Here's an example of a designer, not local however, who posts an excellent piece

Christopher Guy Furniture

This dining table from Christopher Guy is described on his website thusly:"Sheer elegance and luxury define this magnificent looking mahogany and veneer dining table, complete with delicate marquetry work, a fine example of a contemporary piece with classic appeal."Ava Living has this video of a furniture fashion show in Paris this year:Bev & MikeLandfair Furniture + Design galleryFollow us on

Green Design Summit

Don't forget to sign up for the Green Design Summit to be held June 29–30 via Webcast. The event looks to help architects and designers meet rising demand for environmentally friendly materials and designs.Click here to sign up today!The two-day Green Design Summit, available nationwide and internationally, will offer a host of well-known experts in green construction, architecture, interior

How to Create a Good Interior Design

Creating a good interior design layout is much more than just selecting the right furniture and colors that go well together for a home or office. The overall mood and comfort level you want for each room of the project have to be taken into consideration. Small but subtle elements including curtains, lighting, and the art work you place on the wall can all change the feel of a room. Creating a

Realities OF Furniture Shopping

Jason Ball of Jason Ball Interiors has a great post about shopping for furniture from an interior designer's viewpoint:Interior designers shop for furniture differently than most consumers by focusing on size, style, lines, color and pattern. Many designers "shop" at designer-only showrooms which don't have a large number of options on the floor, but instead have thousands of options in catalogs

A Colorful Accent

Faith Sheridan has my husband's favorite colors: Malachite and I call it a cinnamon.Bev & MikeLandfair Furniture + Design galleryFollow us on Twitter

Jentrified

Have you been to Jen West Design's blog, Jentrified? I was struck by her post about her visit to the Design Center in San Francisco where she encountered Hwang Bishop:Darn, we are not on her blogroll either.Bev & MikeLandfair Furniture + Design galleryFollow us on Twitter

Angela Todd's Blog

Hey, gang, check out Angela Todd's blog. She has a step-by-step process to get remodeling or redecorating project underway.Another post on her blog has pictures of the Home Builders Association’s Ultimate Open House, which took place on April 18th-19th and 25th-26th. She says it was a tremendous success. The Interior Design Society of Portland worked with several of the home builders to stage

Modern Remodel - Murdock Young Architects

Modern Remodel - Murdock Young Architects, originally uploaded by plastolux.Modern Remodel - Murdock Young Architects plastolux

The sexy designer by Jason Sullivan

> How much have I enjoyed this series?!!! It's been so great! I'll actually be sad when it's over :( I couldn't be more thrilled with the two finalists. They are both so amazingly talented it's awe inspiring.My pick for the winner is Jason. Despite the fact he's a little bit saucy and comes across as a real gentleman, I am sooooo in love with his designs! Every week he's pushed the bar and

Knoll Kids - Children's Furniture!

The Child's Womb Chair from Knoll Kids, shown here with the Stone child's seat in poppy. The adult version of the chair was designed in 1948 by Eero Saarinen, and the seat by Maya Lin in 1998.Kids Today reportsKnollStudio, a division of Knoll, Inc., renowned for its collection of classic and enduring designs for the workplace and the home, has launched Knoll Kids, a modern children’s furniture

Small but Unique, Cheap but Nice House Plans

I was discussing home design trends with a builder friend of mine the other day. He said to me that "small is the new big". This is true because people are demanding much more value in their purchases now. But they also still want quality. So how can designers and builders deliver on this? Here are a few of my thoughts:

• Build it small - but liveable. A floor plan needs to be smart in order to be functional while remaining compact. Every space should be analyzed for efficiency. Better hire a pro.
• Keep it simple. Roof form and wall massing should be as simple as possible. This reduces labor costs and additional materials.
• Keep it square. A square plan has much less surface area than more complicated plan shapes. That means less roofing, wall and foundation materials.
• Keep it square 2. Square plans have less jogs. And jogs are transitions that cost money. Think about it. It is faster to build one long wall than 3 or 4 separate walls that total the same overall length.
• 1 for 2 special. One big window is less expensive than 2 small ones. Labor and materials included.
• Get rid of the ginger bread. A quality design does not need ornamentation but a bad design does. We call it "putting earrings on a pig".
• Eliminate redundancy. Most folks don't really need 3 places to eat (kitchen island, kitchen nook and formal dining room). Most folks don't use a formal living room if they have a main floor family room. It's not the 1950's anymore Beaver.
• Use the basement. You have to build that foundation anyway (up north anyway), so you might as well incorporate it into your plan.
• Use the garage. Many times we will use the space above the garage as a master suite or family room space.
• Question everything. Look at every building system and every component critically. Ask yourself if there is a better choice to be made. Make sure it's functional as well as beautiful and economical. If it's functional but ugly - I don't call that value.
• Plan ahead. Get your plan completely right before you build. Work with a pro. If you get the plan right then you can build without changes. Changes during construction always cost time and money.
• 
  Afton Cottage House Plan
  
  
  Ok, I'll stop. There are a million other great ideas. I'd like to hear some of yours. Please comment.

Simple,Unique, Creative and Green House Plans

Modern Interiors - Studio Pepe

Modern Interiors - Studio Pepe, originally uploaded by plastolux.Black bedroom from London.

Before & After With Interior Designer Marlene Buckner

We've encouraged interior designers in our area to show us their before and after pictures of projects they've completed. We want to give you an idea through their examples why we recommend you use an interior designer.Our latest example is from Marlene Buckner, president elect of ASID Oregon Chapter, and a consummate professional having passed the National Council for Interior Design

SEHD and Southern Living House Plans

Simply Elegant Home Designs is announcing a new relationship with Southern Living House Plans. Southern Living will be marketing two plans as seen below.

The "Marine Farmhouse"

The "Stillwater Craftsman"

Ron Brenner, President of Simply Elegant Home Designs had this to say -

" We are so excited about the opportunity to work with Southern Living House Plans. What we are trying to do here at Simply Elegant is to make truly good home design more economically achievable for the general public, and we see this new relationship with Southern Living as a great way to do that. We think our designs are special, and we want to get them out there for as many people to see as possible. The additional exposure we receive through SL will be more valuable than many press releases."

The Marine Farmhouse is being featured this week (week of June 22nd) on the Southern Living Custom Builder program at http://www.southernlivingcustombuilder.com/

The unique Interior Design

Sinead Considine is a nationally renowned Irish designer who combines a simple but elegant style that permeates her best designs at every level. Recognised as a new talent her work is continually featured in numerous magazines and on television. With her dynamic team on board, Sinead oversees and is personally involved with all interior design projects. The unique Interior Design service

interior and exterior decoration

We carry out all aspects of interior and exterior decoration of residential homes and commercial properties. We also offer an interior design service which can include hard and soft furnishings.

Green Design

This Month's issue of Designer Monthly features "Green Design". We start things off with a special feature on Living Green, showing you different ways you can change your lifestyle and your room designs in environmentally-friendly ways. Our Room of the Month highlights a small sitting area designed with earth-friendly objects. Little Things highlights independent designers producing "

Bernard Tschumi Architects' New Acropolis Museum

The museum is articulated in three layers, a base, a middle zone, and a top. The musuems' entrance is in the base, where glass floors hover over the excavation site on more than 100 concrete pillars, placed so as not to damage the remains. A glass ramp leads to a the middle section's double-height space, featuring the musuem's permanent collection galleries from the Archaic to the late Roman

FreeGreen: Bringing Green Design to the Masses

2005’s Solar Decathlon blew us away, but we were particularly fascinated by a stunning Solar House from Cornell University. This team brought a beautiful zero-energy home to the mall in Washington, D.C., and had just launched Zero Energy Design a home design firm focused on zero-energy design. Continuing their momentum as green home design gurus, two of the Cornell Solar Decathlon team members

Colorful Armchair

unique-artistic outdoor furniture, originally uploaded by baliboro.unique-artistic outdoor furnitureunique-artistic outdoor furniture detail visit http;//javabali.info

A good interior decorator

Architects and remodeling contractors are the folks to call for structural planning, while interior designers work out optimal room size, traffic flow and lighting. When it comes to choosing and coordinating the color schemes, paint finishes, cabinet styles and light fixtures that go into that room, that's where an interior decorator comes in.A good interior decorator will save you months of

Description for Interior Design Ideas Screensaver

Lunafurniture.com brings you the Interior Design Ideas Screensaver that includes modern designs of living rooms, bedrooms, kitchens, and dining rooms that will decorate your screen and provide you with interior design ideas to decorate your home.

Description for Interior Design Ideas Screensaver

Lunafurniture.com brings you the Interior Design Ideas Screensaver that includes modern designs of living rooms, bedrooms, kitchens, and dining rooms that will decorate your screen and provide you with interior design ideas to decorate your home.

Paper Architecture

"Paper Architecture" is a term in our industry that has traditionally referred to buildings that we design that never get built. It seems in this current economic situation there is an awful lot of paper architecture going on.

Over the weekend I ran across this more literal example of "Paper Architecture" - that being the art of creating an object out of a single piece of paper. A single sheet of paper is cut and folded into an intricate miniature structure. Here are a couple of examples:

Before the final design is finished, something like 20 to 30 (sometimes even more) prototypes are made by Ingrid Siliakus. Drawing paper architecture designs to Ingrid is as building: first one layer, with a single shape, will be drawn and than layer after layer are added. Read More:

The White House Daylesford...

Hello again :) I know it's been ages since my last blog I sincerely apologise for that. I hope you're all well :) I've moved house and I'm currently busy renovating and decorating my new bedroom. I'll post pics when I'm finished if it turns out how I picture it in my mind hehe. The look I am trying to achieve is inspired from Claudia Strasser's The Paris Apartment book. Needlessly to say I am

The Principles of Good Interior Design

UNITY - Unity refers to the designer's concept and the honesty and thoughtfulness that is brought to achieve the concept. Through repetition and similarity, a single motivating idea emerges. When you design a home, make every effort to have the objects and colors relate to each other in some way. Use repetition of color, pattern, line and shape to establish unity. But use creative thinking to

Cool Applied Modular

Modern Interiors - Specht Harpman, originally uploaded by plastolux.Modern Interiors - Specht HarpmanModern Interiors - Specht Harpman as seen on plastolux

Normal Room's curving deck wall via Apartment Therapy

Normal Room's curving deck wall via Apartment Therapy, originally uploaded by Lyndar T. Merciless.The wood deck for your home. It's a good use of the space in the garden. It's suitable for one who don't have much time to maintain the garden so build the deck.

Blue and brown living room : Yellow accents and modern art

Love the chocolate velvet and bold splashes of yellow. Park Avenue living room designed by Pappas Miron. Photo from www.pappasmiron.com.

Pale gray living room + built-in bookshelves: Benjamin Moore 'Winter Solstice', from Elle Decor

Pale gray living room + built-in bookshelves: Benjamin Moore 'Winter Solstice', from Elle Decor, originally uploaded by xJavierx.Pale gray living room + built-in bookshelves: Benjamin Moore 'Winter Solstice', from Elle DecorIn the office of Ali Wentworth and George Stephanopoulos’ Washington D.C. home, walls are painted Winter Solstice by Benjamin Moore. The table and chairs are flea-market finds

Facundo Poj : Concept To Prototype

Remember the January post titled Facundo Poj Design? Argentinian Facundo who now makes his home in Miami, has just released a video on the whole process of the aztec stool & wine rack from concept to prototype in just over 3 minutes. Naturally, the design is facilitated with a nice bottle of red wine and a cigarette. Bev & MikeLandfair Furniture + Design galleryFollow us on Twitter

Modern home furnishing ideas3

Modern home furnishing ideas2

Modern home furnishing ideas1

Modern Interiors - Kate Hume

Modern Interiors - Kate Hume, originally uploaded by plastolux.Decorate with photo frames.

Contemporary Lighting for the Modern Style Apartment