BOB BEITCHER says he and his wife, Carol, want their newly built home in Santa Monica to be a showcase of sustainable practices “without being granola-y, if you know what I mean.”
Their house off San Vicente Boulevard has been carefully designed by architect Warren Wagner to optimize solar energy and the use of recycled and renewable materials. Yet the modernist dwelling seems more about the panache of architectural possibilities than the virtuousness of green design.
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These days, it’s a breeze to find the perfect ceiling fan.
They come with blades covered with cloth, hand-carved into leaf shapes, made of saw grass and wicker — even double-deckered to look like the wings of a biplane.
Some have elegant, crystal-like or etched glass and lots of ornate detail. Others are simply styled, made of brushed nickel and aluminum. Some have an industrial look.
As temperatures rise and houses often get stuffy, many people are thinking about buying ceiling fans. (more…)
Imagine lounging on a chaise, sipping something cold on a hot day and being cooled by palm fronds moving slowly overhead.
Or picture a pair of small airplane propellers whirring around the room, or evoke the feeling of a fine old hotel with an ornate fixture in an antique finish.
Today, it’s a breeze to find the right ceiling fan.
They come with blades covered with cloth, hand carved into leaf shapes, made of saw grass and wicker. Some have elegant, crystal-like or etched glass and a lot of ornate detail. Others are simply styled, made of brushed nickel and aluminum. Some even have an industrial look to them.
Brian Sponsler, vice president and general manager of Emerson Ceiling Fans in St. Louis, calls ceiling fans the “hottest accessory in home fashion” that can be a “reflection of the homeowner’s personality.” (more…)
You don’t just open a door and wander into a Parade of Homes house.
You travel through custom-designed iron gates and into an expansive courtyard. Or into a room with a wall of windows and a view of the pool.
Then comes the Italian Travertine floors, European cabinets, massive stone fireplaces, coffee bars in the master suite and outdoor kitchens nicer than your actual kitchen.
At the 2006 Parade of Homes in New Braunfels, it’s all about the details.
“Everything is hand-done and custom-ordered,” said Bart Goldblum of the Laredo-based Artison Homes, whose parade home entryway features a cross vault ceiling covered with Travertine in a herringbone pattern.
The Parade of Homes continues through Sunday in the RockWall Ranch neighborhood, a rural, gated community in New Braunfels. (more…)
It lifts the spirits to live and work somewhere beautiful, and that’s something that Queensland’s best architects understand.
Over the next few weeks, in the lead-up to Queensland Architecture Awards in July, Steve Austin will be celebrating the best designs (featuring both beauty and practicality) that Queensland’s architects have to offer.
Queensland Regional Awards – Mackay
Rothiemay Place – Regional Commendation
Architect Practice: Gordon Gould Ipson Architects (more…)
