Olivehouse

This new home in the Catskills was for a young family of photographers and music lovers transplanting themselves from Brooklyn.  Taking its cue from the sloped site, the home appears to cascade down the site creating tiered interior spaces with soaring ceilings. Large expanses of glass bring in abundant natural light from the wooded site. Budget-conscious design included a simple rectangular footprint and wall framing which freed up funds to pay for radiant stone flooring, reclaimed stained cedar siding, and a long-lasting metal roof.

Between Woodstock and Saugerties in the Catskills, this small cabin on the edge of an old pasture and mature woodlands had decent bones, but prior interior alterations left a lot to be desired. With a limited budget, surgical interventions led to the best bang for the buck to transform it into a cozy rustic modern retreat. Relocated bedroom closets opened up a mountain view through a new window, a small dark bathroom became a spa-like retreat with a walk-in shower, and a workable kitchen was updated with new butcherblock countertop, country sink & gooseneck faucet, and playful colors added to the walls, cabinets & floor.

The Upstater Blog featured before & after photos of the project.

 This partial apartment renovation was born from necessity after water leaks damaged its kitchen and bathroom. The bathroom was gutted and re-imagined with bold red cabinetry and wallpaper from a Warhol collage, and its entry was re-oriented from the living room to the hallway to provide greater privacy. The kitchen also uses color to contrast with the glossy white cabinetry and countertop, while exposed lighting provides a minimal aesthetic. The renovation was documented by the Blog on Sweeten. Images courtesy Sweeten.

A recently married couple's first apartment in a 4-unit coop possessed a lot of great features, including an exposed brick wall and fireplace, but the 1980's era kitchen was a separate room. The new design opened and re-oriented the kitchen to the living space. Using new white oak cabinetry and paneling helped define the edge of the kitchen and a new dining nook helped unify the living space visually and doubled the amount of storage in the small apartment. Concealed lighting and integrated shelving contributes to the warm but crisp aesthetic.

A couple's first apartment in a brownstone had decent square footage and high ceilings but felt small because it was narrow and dark as a result. By opening the kitchen to the dining and living spaces and utilizing glossy white cabinetry and Cesarstone recycled glass countertops, it received more reflected light than before. White oak cabinetry extending into the dining and living space provided needed storage including a desk "nook" and added sophistication. 

A young couple with a baby on the way was in a race against time to get their newly purchased condo renovated before the big day arrived. To save time, we limited the design to replacement and addition of cabinetry and flooring - nothing that would require DOB approval. Opening the kitchen to the living space and uncovering a small kitchen window brought light into the formerly dark kitchen, while converting an old closet into a mirrored bar with record storage below, further personalized their new home.  

The owner of this tropical home in the Mayan Mountains of Belize had already successfully designed and built his own island resort comprised of single room cabanas, but a multi-level, multi-room structure was beyond even this polymath's skill set. The final hurricane-resistant structure featured a radial plan inspired by John Lautner's famous Chemosphere house in the Hollywood Hills, but using all indigenous building materials, labor, and building techniques common to Belize to create a soaring common space with natural ventilation throughout.