September 2019 – AYLAKF

7 Ways to Insert Mediterranean Elegance to Your Property

The romantic feel of Mediterranean style evokes images of seaside dwellings, sparkling turquoise waters, sun-drenched times and vibrant sunsets. The area’s simple elegance is reflected through its stunning houses. This style is based upon casual, rustic textures and finishes in classic European lines and forms to reflect the local landscape. Low-maintenance substances, earthy but bold colours, wrought iron beams and plenty of natural lighting emphasize the low-key luxe that the Mediterranean is known for.

Craving exactly the exact same classic and casual style? Add Mediterranean elegance to your home by focusing on these seven key elements.

1. Color. The colours of Mediterranean design can be both vibrant and earthy. Bold jewel tones, like aubergine, emerald green, lapis blue and sunflower yellow, are set against earth-toned backdrops to reflect the area’s natural hues.

Get this appearance: If you’re a little hesitant to pay your walls in extreme color, concentrate on beams. Classic Mediterranean houses have light, earthy walls with art, textiles and substances in vivid colours. Paint a canvas in a bold color or frame outside your favorite textiles for touches of jewel-toned brilliance.

2. Wall texture. Textured, plastered walls are somewhat commonplace in traditional Mediterranean houses. Finishes can vary from smooth and refined (like Venetian plaster) to highly textured and rough.

Get this appearance: Raised textures can be a challenging to achieve on your own, and may need an experienced hands. However, if you’re open to a little trial and error, you can mimic the appearance of raised texture with the addition of sand or coffee grounds to paint for finished walls.

JAUREGUI Architecture Interiors Construction

3. Flooring. Tiled floors dominated the classic Mediterranean home, appreciated for their low maintenance, durability and cool temperatures. Terra cotta was most commonly used, though limestone and marble were used occasionally in more high-end houses. Hand-painted tiles additional color as border or field tiles in these classic interiors.

Make this appearance: Try adding some hand-painted or terra cotta border tiles round the area’s perimeter up a flight of stairs or framed on a wall. On a budget? A couple of tiles in an entryway or in a outside path may make a sudden impact for little cost.

4. Furnishings. The furnishings for this particular layout style were often large, sturdy, rustic and hand-carved. Upholstered pieces frequently had leather or tapestry alongside the exposed and wood-carved components.

Get this appearance: Search for bits that have an aged or rustic quality at a classic European form. When larger furniture pieces are outside of your budget, then try a few small accent pieces — such as an entrance table or side seat. Rustic wood mirrors, carved boxes or small stools can help attain the appearance, too.

Tommy Chambers Interiors, Inc..

5. Fabrics. Cotton, silk and wool textiles adorned every area of a Mediterranean home. Elegant drapes, rugs and cushions were sometimes made with thicker wovens to mimic the expression of tapestry.

Make this appearance: Purchase a few yards of a heavy, printed tapestry-inspired fabric to hang on your wall. This very simple project just takes a sewn pocket hem on the top side of the fabric to suspend it from a wrought iron curtain pole.

Cornerstone Architects

6. Iron. Wrought iron may be used as a simple accessory like on a lamp base, candelabra or chandelier, or in larger architectural components. Elaborate scrollwork was frequently used, but more contemporary interpretations may add a room and character.

Get this appearance: Iron hardware is a far cheaper way to integrate this material in your home. Look for iron doorknobs, cabinet hinges and pulls in classic Mediterranean designs. If your budget is super tight, you may try picking up spray paint at a wrought iron finish to spray your existing pieces.

Mykonos Panormos Villas

7. Light and bright. Mediterranean houses always adopt the region’s plentiful, natural lighting. These houses wouldn’t be complete without plenty of large windows, breezy window treatments and a continuous sea breeze.

Make this appearance: Utilize lighter paint hues, glossy finishes and mirrors to reflect the lighting you’ve got in your home. Switch drapes that are heavy out with sheers or take out farther and higher up your draperies on either side of your window. This permits the maximum amount of light to permeate your home while camouflaging the small size of a window.

More: Length of Style: Most Cultures Make Their Marks on Mediterranean Design

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In Traditional Architecture

Roots of Design: The Birth of Modern Architecture

AnderpriedSeptember 25, 2019

How did modernism find its way to residential buildings? Consider the meaning of “modern” within the context of the growth of a fashion. “Modern” in this sense is the inception of a brand new aesthetic without building upon or interpreting previous fashions.

Two phases of modern residential design happened in the early 20th century. The first phase comprised Prairie and Craftsman styles, which came to a halt because of World War I, and a second phase comprised art moderne, art deco and International style. This second phase, occurring throughout the 1930s, was brief and not nearly as successful as the first, because of World War II.

About 1900 Frank Lloyd Wright and a few other Midwestern architects that were a part of what is known as the Prairie School created a new vocabulary of style. Their buildings weren’t trimmed or decorated in any previous ornamental style but were distinctively detailed with easier materials confidently overlaid on solid and downhill highlighting forms.

Creative Architects

Prairie

Frank Lloyd Wright deserves significant credit for contributing to the creation of 20th-century residential architectural style. His 1893 Winslow House in River Forest, Illinois, called many trends in the upcoming century. The design highlighted horizontal elements, unlike Victorian topics of the moment, and a simpler and unified aesthetic, which felt grounded and related more organically to the landscape. His other thoughts, for example Broadacre City, preceded and tasked with the influence of the automobile.

This home could be familiar to many Americans, for this particular style stretches from coast to coast and survives in many types. A generous front porch is covered by a hip roof, in which a hipped dormer lets light to the loft area. The continuous eave line confidently encircles the construction and maintains its low profile.

Ron Brenner Architects

This home resembles the previous in form, and its next degree, which became more common, also highlights horizontal elements and has generous eaves standard of this design. Some houses of this sort are called foursquares, but the massing and simplified elevations mimic the aesthetic generated by the Prairie School.

Chrysalis: Home Studio

This brand new home adheres to Prairie details faithfully, yet its overall impression is characteristic of thousands and thousands of similarly shaped houses across North America. Low-pitched, hipped roofs with wide eaves and a long, low elevation incorporate the garage to its layout, a trait significant to later-20th-century dwellings. The Prairie period was comparatively brief, occurring in 1900 to 1920, but its influence translated into the ranch fashion, which started in the 1930s and persisted for the majority of the century.

Kenorah Design + Build Ltd..

Craftsman

This fashion started in California around 1903 and became among the most popular of the 20th century in the U.S.. The Greene brothers, architects in Pasadena, developed a bungalow-type architecture rich with timber detail influenced partially by the English Arts and Crafts movement and partially by Asian wooden structures. The intimate scale and warm details can be interpreted into small and modest homes or expressed more elaborately in bigger examples.

Because of the popularity of this design, there are many variations on the subject, but they are usually detailed with some kind of generous front porch. Columns can be straight and set beneath tapered brick pedestals, as in this example, but this detail varies widely.

Cosmetic mounts visually support the rake (the upwardly sloping eave of this gable end) in many forms, and a flared lintel detail above each window trim bit is not uncommon.

Notice the railing on this porch; variations often make a particular home unique. They can have shingle siding, but clapboard and stucco also happen. Brick is normally used for porch pedestals and chimneys, as is the case for this home.

Moore Architects, PC

This remodeled and remodeled home has tapered wood columns set on stucco pedestals. Compared to the previous home, the roof formation is a side gable, rather than front facing. A shed dormer penetrates the principal roof form. This is a common Craftsman characteristic. Also observe the mixture of stucco and shingle siding.

WW Builders Design/Build Associates

This new home has been designed with Craftsman details inclined to be found on originals, but it also has a few attributes that define it as a neo-Craftsman. The arched lintel involving the porch poles and also the French doors leading onto a deck wrapped with the primary roof and parapet railing are distinct contemporary adaptations.

Jones Clayton Construction

Art Deco

The word “modern” in the context of architecture commonly brings to mind white stucco, glass walls and flat roofs. These are the features of three important fashions which developed between World War I and World War II. Art deco, art moderne and International styles sprouted from the age of this machine. Developed countries around the world had all firmly entered industrialization, and structure represented the happening using a brand new aesthetic.

The International design developed in Europe throughout the architecture of Le Corbusier and Mies van der Rohe, among others. The Finnish architect Eliel Saarinen is credited with deco’s having won second place in an important competition in 1922 in Chicago.

This brand new art deco–inspired residence illustrates vertical emphasis characteristic of this design. Many originals of this day were far more detailed, with decorations of chevron patterns together with reeding and fluting in window and door surrounds. More commonly found in commercial or apartment buildings of the 1930s, this design was highly elastic.

Peterssen/Keller Architecture

Art Moderne

More prevalent in residences than in commercial buildings, the artwork moderne design played on the subject of compact machines. Cars, ships, toasters and a number of other items became places for expression of their aesthetic. Note the curved glass block wall in this example. Even though there are few houses today which may be categorized as being this fashion, glass block has become a favorite material for translucent walls and windows in many American houses.

Norris Architecture

International

European architects of the 1920s and 1930s adopted a doctrine of no ornamentation, and all elements served only functional purposes. The attractiveness of a building was to be achieved by the exactness of machine-finished structural and materials transparency. For the very first time, exterior walls weren’t structural and were tagged curtain walls. The construction (usually steel) occurred on the inside of the building, also supports were placed to allow as much freedom as possible for inside configuration.

Found in this home is a harshly executed arrangement of elements. The chimney is a floating cylinder, the walls above the windows appear to float, and also the forms appear to enclose indoor in addition to outdoor spaces. Windows are grouped or stretched in long rows, and razor-thin supports define separation.

Ehrlich Yanai Rhee Chaney Architects

Notice how the architects have given the impression of a floating roof in this Los Angeles home. The windows are either large, focusing on a certain level of interest, or organized in ribbons and mitered at the corners. The walls of the home appear solid and massive, like large cubes. The details are flush and smooth.

Birdseye Design

Within this wonderful Vermont home, the cantilever of a second level serves as security to an entrance. The materials are detailed to feel sharp and precise. The windows and doors align and are flush with the ceiling and the ground. Notice the way the terrace extends across the incline of this landscape, but is not too high off the floor, as a railing would spoil the plot.

Particularly affected by the German Bauhaus school, the International design set into motion an architectural discipline that is, to this day, essential and formative to the profession.

Historically, the trajectory is intriguing. The design became popular in Europe prior to World War II but lost favor following the war; it subsequently recovered popularity later in the century. In America, despite art deco and art moderne, residential style of the 1920s and 1930s was ruled by revivals and eclecticism.

It wasn’t till after World War II did this design fold into an American mainstream vernacular, as we will see in a future ideabook.

Next: Midcentury Styles Respond to Modern Life

Where Did Your House Get Its Appearance? | Le Corbusier: Pioneer of Modern Architecture

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In Kitchen Guides

Kitchen of the Week: Going Elegant and Bright in a 1900s House

AnderpriedSeptember 22, 2019

This modern Atlanta kitchen was not working very well with the rest of the historic residence. It had been renovated by previous owners, and few of their home’s 1900s features stayed in this part of the house. “The addition just felt very unfamiliar to the property’s history,” says designer Ili Nilsson.

Nilsson worked closely with the customers to design a brand new kitchen and attached lounge that better match the house and their own lives. Raising the dropped ceiling, putting in new windows and working with a tasteful white palette created the timeless appearance and practical function the family desired.

Kitchen in a Glance
Who lives here: A couple and their two grown children
Location: Ansley Park neighborhood of Atlanta
Size: 750 square feet, such as the attached lounge

Terracotta Design Build

A cedar-wrapped beam visually divides the kitchen in the attached bar and lounge area. The kitchen didn’t need the beams for support; highlight and they function to define the region.

Structurally, the floor-level changes could not be corrected, but Nilsson redesigned the current measures to take up minimal floor area.

Pendants: South of Market

Before Photo

Terracotta Design Build

Renovated by previous owners, the darkened space felt restricted because of its awkward cabinetry design and unnecessary corner cupboard. A single window and a dropped ceiling (shifted from 10 ft to 71/2 feet throughout that renovation) had made the space feel even more dim and enclosed.

Terracotta Design Build

Nilsson raised the ceiling with a few feet (she could not lift it to the original 10-foot elevation because of new plumbing), took out the corner cupboard and added two new windows to get an open area. Replacing the darkened built-ins with all-white cabinetry made the room feel more spacious.

Two new full-height windows on either side of the stove add more mild. The black window frames break up the white area and blend in with the darkened La Cornue stove.

In place of this corner pantry, Nilsson placed specialized pantry closets in quadrants around the fridge.

Cabinetry: Karl Alspach Construction; hardware: Restoration Hardware; fridge: Sub-Zero; microwave: Samsung

Terracotta Design Build

The customers bought the stunning La Cornue stove before the remodel, but despite the French measurements, it was easy to design into the brand new kitchen.

Hood: Vent-A-Hood; cooker: CornuFé 110, La Cornue

Terracotta Design Build

Ash paneling on the island adds a warm element to the white and black palette. The customers have two older children, and all of them love to have friends over, so Nilsson designed the spacious island with plenty of counter and chairs area.

Bar stools: Bungalow Classic; countertops, backsplash: Calacatta gold marble

Terracotta Design Build

Two built-in dishwashers, extra storage, and recycling and trash receptacles in the island create postparty cleanup easy.

Dishwasher: KitchenAid; faucet, sink: Kohler

Before Photo

Terracotta Design Build

The prior kitchen’s measures had dropped to a closed-off bar area, specifying the two spaces using a change in elevation and floor finish.

Terracotta Design Build

The two rooms are merged with wide-plank oak flooring and subtly split with the cedar beam and measures. The bar and adjoining seating area confront the kitchen, making for easy conversation between the two spaces.

Before Photo

Terracotta Design Build

A single, tiny window and lots of black cabinetry had made the prior kitchen feel a lot smaller.

Terracotta Design Build

Nilsson desired to maximize light and height, so she extended the cabinets to the ceiling. The best cabinets store little-used items; this classic ladder lets the family access what they want.

Your turn: Tell us about your own kitchen remodel!

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In Eclectic Homes

Kitchen of the Week: Preservation Instincts Produce Vintage Modern Style

AnderpriedSeptember 19, 2019

Anne and Richard DeWolf’s formulation for modern classic design comes out of years of experience: preserve what you are able to salvage whenever possible and keep true to your own style.

The owners of design-build firm Arciform, the DeWolfs place their renovation abilities to the test remodeling the kitchen of the 1908 Portland, Oregon, house. Remodels in the 1920s and 1970s had buried much of the original architecture below a mishmash of styles, but the few still kept whatever original components they found. Salvaged appliances and custom-designed accents helped produce a fun, casual and authentic-feeling space.

Kitchen in a Glance
Who lives here: Richard and Anne DeWolf
Location: Portland, Oregon
Size: 222 square feet
Cost: About $60,000

Arciform

The DeWolfs saved the original windows, upper cabinetry and tin ceiling, painting them all a bright white. “I think that is a bit of the European section of me,” says Anne, a German native. “I love painted woodwork and feel.”

The present cabinets and windows decided the kitchen’s design, since the DeWolfs desired the sink below the window and the cooker on an exterior wall for ventilation. Contemporary walnut accents, stainless steel appliances and glass tiles counterbalance the more conventional tin ceiling, original fir floor and marble counters.

Hood: Vent-a-Hood; ceiling paint: Dover White, Miller Paint; cooker: 1940s Tappan, eBay

Arciform

“We wanted cool colours that have a warm feeling,” says Anne. Gray-blue soft and tile yellow Venetian-plastered walls match the natural wood floors and walnut lower cabinets.

Backsplash: Roku, Walker Zanger; faucet: 1940s classic; trash cans: Cost Plus

Arciform

The long and narrow footprint didn’t allow for a single, average-size island, so Anne and Richard constructed and constructed two hefty end-grain butcher block islands. Having two separate islands also produces a pathway therefore a kitchen work triangle can be preserved.

Pendants: Clemson, Restoration Hardware

Arciform

The DeWolfs still desired a powder room, so that they constructed a small enclosed space between the dining area and kitchen. Another door on the opposite side of the enclosure contributes to the dining area.

A conventional built-in cupboard houses small appliances and a pantry. The house didn’t have many upper cabinets initially, so the few used other kinds of storage in the new design. “It’s only us,” says Anne. “So we don’t have a whole lot of stuff”

The few found the classic phone shown here (in working order!) On eBay and hooked it up to their telephone.

Arciform

Anne frequently sets up a part of a meal on an island and wheels it round the white cupboard and into the dining area.

A small bathroom with a shower before sat in this corner by the back door. The DeWolfs took it out completely to open the kitchen up.

Table, chairs, rug: Ikea; window: Rejuvenation Salvage; chandelier: Anthropologie

Have you blended classic materials with your modern design? We would really like to see your photo in the Comments.

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In Eclectic Homes

5 Ranch Homes With Modern-Day Appeal

AnderpriedSeptember 16, 2019

In the early ’70s, before my family moved to Los Angeles out of Northern California, we lived at a 1960s ranch-style residence. Our house was in a huge tract along with other houses of this style, with dramatic horizontal and low rooflines with gable and hip profiles. The designs were L shaped or U shaped, and rambled on with main living spaces on one side and bedrooms around the other. The major living spaces were available, with oversize windows which gave an outdoors-in feeling. I remember meals on TV trays (walnut veneer, naturally) in front of the big stone fireplace in the living area, that was adjacent to the kitchen.

Because of standard building, these ranch houses still stand today. And the classic ranch still has charm for older and younger generations. The baby boomers, now in their 60s, such as the single-story construction typical of this architecture. Younger buyers looking for their first home love the retro style. Interior designs are really up for translation, mostly reflecting the owners’ needs and enjoys. Take a look at the current versions of this iconic American fashion.

Think. Design Office

Midcentury influence is front and center in this great upgraded ranch home. The glass front allows in complete views of the beautiful mature trees on this property.

A close-up view of the front facade shows high ceilings and a clean, contemporary aesthetic.

Think. Design Office

The back side of this property has partition-style doors which open up for a authentic outdoor-room feeling. More contemporary lines specify this home with a fire pit and a pass-through the kitchen off.

Design Platform

This traditional ranch-style exterior includes an extended gable roof with initial 1969 hanging outside pendants. The slant of this ranch style is a little more midcentury. The color scheme has been updated to highlight the lush picture.

Design Platform

Sunlight abounds within this open-concept, upgraded ranch. The interior is minimalist and contemporary. Skylights have been added that illuminate the neutral and natural kind of the main living area.

Design Platform

Oversize windows and sliders increase the contemporary aesthetic. The double-sided fireplace nods into the 70’s style that was trending as soon as the house was built.

Tim Cuppett Architects

This simple, rustic ranch home goes back to the 1850s; its own spacious covered porch offers lots of farmhouse appeal. The inside reveals a wise and sophisticated remodel.

Tim Cuppett Architects

A matching palette of black trim and glistening white painted siding includes great transitional appeal. Discreet lighting fittings and hot wood floors snug up the dining area.

Tim Cuppett Architects

The open cabinets within this kitchen make use of every square inch under a slanted roof typical of ranch design.

Tara Bussema – Neat Organization and Design

Following is a classic midcentury ranch house complete with board and batten siding and a non gable roof. Notice the minimalist landscape of concrete and succulents. The outside color is Amherst Gray HC-167 by Benjamin Moore.

Tara Bussema – Neat Organization and Design

A white wood ceiling is just one of my favourite interior features. This light-filled space does not disappoint, with good vibes out of the windows into the cozy cork flooring.

Tara Bussema – Neat Organization and Design

Take advantage of those oversize corner windows by placing a cozy chair and a lamp nearby. With beautiful windows this big, I would suggest looking into a transparent window film to lower the level of the sun.

Feldman Architecture, Inc..

Another light-filled ranch that features clean, modern landscaping. The painted brick fireplace you’ll see within the next photograph suits the outside color palette.

Feldman Architecture, Inc..

More white ceilings and contemporary styling on the inside make retro allure. The diverse mix of furnishings includes a Platner side table and slingback cowhide chair.

Feldman Architecture, Inc..

A great deal of windows, typical in ranch houses, can make kitchen storage more hard. This great-looking solution fits the contemporary aesthetic without cluttering the kitchen with upper cabinets.

Live at an odd ranch house? Please place a photo below!

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In Tropical Style

Texas Gardener's June Checklist

AnderpriedSeptember 13, 2019

It doesn’t matter what the calendar says; 90-degree days mean summertime is here. Texas gardeners need to be tough to garden in our particular brand of summertime heat and intermittent rain. And while many sections of the nation watched some spring rains, the truth is that we’re still in a drought cycle. It requires a little additional effort to have a beautiful, healthy and thriving garden in these conditions, so follow this checklist for some helpful suggestions and be sure to always follow the suggestions of the regional professionals and governments.

Troy Rhone Garden Design

Sow seeds. From the fruit and vegetable garden, sow black-eyed peas, okra, New Zealand spinach, Malabar spinach, winter squash, cantaloupe, watermelon and honeydew melon.

For herbaceous plants, plant thyme, tarragon, tansy, basil, anise, bay, catnip, comfrey, southernwood, sorrel, winter savory, cumin, fennel, germander, lamb’s ear, lavender, oregano, summer savory, rosemary and sage.

Add yearly color with zinnias, sunflowers, periwinkle, morning glory vines, moonflower vines, marigolds, impatiens, gourds, hyacinth bean vines, four o’clocks, gomphrena, cypress vines and coleus.

guides to vegetable gardening

Landscape Designer, Jason Lackey

Plant fruit, vegetable and herb transplants. You can also plant black-eyed peas, pumpkin, okra, Malabar spinach, New Zealand spinach, peppers, sweet potatoes, winter squash, cantaloupe, honeydew and watermelon from nursery containers.

Also search for basil, bay laurel, bee balm, yarrow, thyme, tansy, catnip, catmint, comfrey, sage, lavender, oregano, lamb’s ear, echinacea, lavender, lemon balm, lemon verbena, Mexican mint marigold, mint, pennyroyal and artemesia.

The Design Build Company

Plant annuals. Favorite warm-weather annuals contain zinnia, torenia, purslane, begonia, blue daze, celosia, ageratum, copper plant, impatiens, marigold, geranium, petunia, penta, dusty miller, Mexican heather, portulaca, periwinkle and gazania.

jenny_hardgrave

Plant perennials and ornamental grasses. Now is also the time to plant perennials: black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta), butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa), Copper canyon daisy (Tagetes lemmonii), cuphea (Cuphea spp), four nerve wracking (Tetraneuris scaposa), coneflower (Echinacea spp), lantana (Lantana spp), ruellia (Ruellia spp), salvia (Salvia spp), plumbago (Plumbago ariculata), sedum (Sedum spp), coreopsis (Coreopsis spp), esperanza (Tecoma stans), gayfeather and blackfoot daisy (Melampodium leucanthum).

Add ornamental grasses to your backyard, such as maiden grass (Miscanthus sinensis), purple fountain grass (Pennisetum setaceum), gulf muhly (Muhlenbergia capillaris), bamboo muhly (Muhlenbergia dumosa), Mexican feather grass (Nasella tenuissima)and inland sea turtles (Chasmanthium latifolium).

Shown:an Assortment of annuals and perennials with purple fountain grass (Pennisetum setaceum)

Tend your yard. In Texas it’s recommended to fertilize your yard three times every year — in March or April, again in June and a third period in September or October. Search for a lawn fertilizer which is higher in nitrogen (the first number in the three-number ratio on the package), which encourages vigorous growth and deep green color.

Avoid overfertilizing, which can burn your yard and run off to the water system. Fertilizer after the lawn is mown and the grass is dry. Lawns at the time of year will need approximately 1 inch to 11/2 inches of water per week — but make sure to always follow your area’s water limits or guidelines. Remember, watering less frequently but more profoundly is actually better for your yard.

Missouri Botanical Garden

Repel mosquitoes. Mosquitoes aren’t simply a nuisance; they also carry diseases like West Nile virus for both humans and heartworm for dogs. There are numerous things that a gardener can do to minimize the mosquito population, beginning with eliminating any standing water where mosquitoes can breed.

Add products such as Mosquito Bits and Mosquito Dunks to ponds, birdbaths and around air conditioning trickle tubes; these products and many others like them contain nontoxic ingredients which keep mosquito larvae from developing into adults. You can also include mosquito-repelling plants such as catmint, citronella and lemongrass to your backyard, or install a mosquito misting system close to your outdoor gathering areas.

Urban Hedgerow

Entire a summer garden project. Summer is the best time to plan some creative garden jobs. Add a compost bin, then construct a simple deck, install a water feature or make an insect habitat. Beneficial insects such as ladybugs, beetles, centipedes and bees have fewer and fewer places to nest and create a habitat. These beneficial bugs really are great at keeping the “bad” bugs under control.

Insect habitats are a creative way of displaying dead wood, leaves, tubes, sticks, straw, hay and bark to promote the good men to stay around and do their part to maintain our houses healthy. They are also great jobs to do with children, who can learn lessons about recycling, life spans and garden health in the procedure.

Shown:An Urban Hedgerow bug habitat

siamesepuppy

Control grasshoppers. Several years the grasshopper population simply gets out of hands, and the harm to our gardens can be astounding. Grasshoppers will strip trees, flowers, vegetables and shrubs bare with their voracious appetites, apparently overnight, so it pays to stay on top of this issue. There are quite a few organic sprays and spreads which are offered to stop grasshoppers in their course; request your garden center for a recommendation.

Or mix up a DIY remedy in the home comprising:
1 cup diatomaceous earth1 mill water2 tablespoons blackstrap molassesSpray the mixture on vulnerable plants.

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In Kitchen Guides

Salvage Spotlight: By Boat Hull into Social Hub of This House

AnderpriedSeptember 9, 2019

One day when the lady met this fellow … they renovated their residence and comprised a showstopping bar island crafted by a sailboat. “These homeowners are a timeless Brady Bunch story: a woman with three brothers, a guy with three sons — they found each other, married and created a family of eight. The children were teenagers at about that moment,” says architect Jean Verbridge of Siemasko and Verbridge. “One of the homeowners grew up with a bar-type space as the social center of the house and wished to recreate that welcoming environment, albeit with a exceptional twist”

Siemasko + Verbridge

This exceptional twist was inspired by another ship bar the homeowners had seen, in addition to their property’s breathtaking waterfront setting, north of Boston, Massachusetts. After viewing a similar bar, they found Davita Nowland of Nauticals of Marblehead, a nautical reclamation expert that specializes in altering nautical salvage material into useful household objects. She helped them secure and salvage the ship from a 1952 Hinckley sailboat.

After they had a conversation-starting nautical form, they had function. The vessel hull bar was carefully planned, quantified, sanded and made operational with a counter counter tops, sink and cabinets added to the hull by expert craftspeople. All this work entailed a group that comprised Verbridge since the programmer of the general renovation, both the homeowners, Nowland and her craftspeople, and required several months.

The beauty of ships inspired the remainder of the bar area; the bar is mahogany, with a gloss finish worthy of a yacht, and the closets have nautical hardware like you would find on a ship, including sailing cleats.

On the bar a TV transforms into a framed mirror when not being used. Behind it beadboard panels were inspired by ship design.

Siemasko + Verbridge

The swimming fish details have special meaning; made of mahogany that matches the bar, each one has another rock eye, representing each one of the kids’ birthstones. They also offer a function. “It’s traditional in using reclaimed wood to get chips, dings and holes, and frequently these regions are treated to disguise the flaws,” Verbridge states. “Here the flaws were renowned as an chance to add interest”

Siemasko + Verbridge

A brass footrest provides a practical touch for relaxation and another nautical touch.

The location of the bar is just off the kitchen close to the casual entryway to the house. The bar anchors one end of a casual living room, complete with comfy lounge furniture, a fireplace, a television and an Elvis pinball machine.

“One of the homeowners was a bartender during his school days; he had a great working knowledge of how a bar ought to function,” Verbridge states. The group carefully planned for pullout trash bins, drawers, a sink, and a marble counter tops and backsplash on this side of the bar. A refrigerator, a dishwasher and a ice maker are integrated to the cabinets on the wall.

“Another detail beyond the use of the vessel hull is that the use of a board floor made out of mahogany and holly strips, found in yachts,” Verbridge states. The rock used on the countertop recalls the large stones along New England’s shore.

Siemasko + Verbridge

The property’s setting, in the gateway to Marblehead Neck, is just the spot for a bar made from a salvaged ship.

Long until they found the ship, the homeowners envisioned the bar as a great spot for family, neighbors and friends to congregate at, and now it is.

Watch more of this beachfront house

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In Decorating Guides

10 Beautifully Blossoming Spring Centerpieces

AnderpriedSeptember 6, 2019

Spring is wonderful in a million distinct ways, not the least of which is the abundance of flowers that rise at no time of year — crocuses, tulips, blossoming trees, wisteria and blankets of wildflowers.

You can freshen up any room and bring a little of this exuberance of spring inside with a seasonal fragrance. Think marijuana green, soft pinks, lavenders and whites. Believe an explosion of field flowers in oranges, yellows and purples.

And the best thing isthat you don’t have to be a professional gentleman to make something amazing. Many of the choices below are at their most stunning in their natural state.

Dreamy Whites

Blossoming Trees

1. Cut several branches. 2. Place the branches in a transparent jar or vase. 3. Love your own arrangement.

Pickell Architecture

A branch in blossom requires no adornment. Blossoming branches are both sculptural and fresh and colorful all on their own, and they are at home with home designs from French state to Western modern.

Dreamy Whites

Flowers of Spring

A bucket of spring flowers is all you should say regarding spring. And it looks beautiful from an all-white background.

thirdstone inc. [^]

For a more modern, less state, look, arrange single stems in a geometric shape or line.

Dreamy Whites

I love little individual structures. Even though “arrangement” only means one stem of lilac blossoms in an old apothecary bottle.

Debora carl landscape layout

New-Leaf Greenery

This bowl of Sedum ‘Angelina’ has durable power and that vibrant, almost glowing green of new development.

Tracy Murdock Allied ASID

A single palm frond or tropical leaf is modern and sculptural and also all things spring: fresh, green, dewy.

Lucy Interior Design

Fresh new fern shoots: modern, delicate and the lightest, tenderest colour of green.

Leverone Design, Inc..

Wildflowers

Full disclosure: I had mason jars full of wildflowers as my wedding centerpieces. I am just a sucker for their messy, natural beauty. Sweet pea blossoms like these are so fleeting and so sweet smelling.

ZeroEnergy Design

You don’t have to go messy and crazy with wildflowers. Separate them by color or species and generate a perfect wabi-sabi modern structure.

See more about wabi-sabi style

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In Gardening and Landscaping

5 Garden Path Looks to Get an Enchanting Journey

AnderpriedSeptember 2, 2019

A pathway is much more than just a means of getting from point A to point B; it’s a journey. Whether just a couple steps to the front door or a twisting trail through a backyard, a journey can be made memorable with one simple design suggestion: repetition.

Repeating a crucial plant or colour, or both down the length of a pathway produces a feeling of movement, enticing the eye — and the feet — to research further. It produces a unifying theme while incorporating highlights which cause you to want to enjoy the experience.

Alyson Ross Markley

1. An Alluring Stroll

Plantings and walkway blend easily within this picture-perfect scene. One is naturally drawn to the partially obscured stacked stone sculpture however also wishes to linger on this delightful meandering path.

The colour palette concentrates on colors of purple provided by ‘Beni Otake’ Japanese maple (Acer palmatum ‘Beni Otake’) and ‘Velvet Cloak’ smokebush (Cotinus coggygria ‘Velvet Cloak’).

The chartreuse leaves of ‘Mellow Yellow’ spirea (Spiraea thunbergii ‘Ogon’), ‘Golden Spirit’ smokebush (Cotinus coggygria ‘Golden Spirit’) and Bowles’ golden sedge (Carex elata ‘Aurea’) adds high contrast, taking center stage.

Rhododendrons add rich magenta accents, while black mondo grass (Ophiopogon planiscapus ‘Nigrescens’) adds deeper black notes.

Essential plants and colours are repeated on alternate sides of the pathway, luring you deeper and deeper to the dappled glade.

AR Design Studio Ltd

2. The Boardwalk Experience

What a fun experience this stroll to the lakehouse must be. Neither directly nor curved, this jaunty boardwalk traverses the marsh in a zigzag, reaching its final destination by means of a ramp.

Cattails grow easily on both sides of the boardwalk in the shallow water, enhancing the experience. Maybe we’ll hear the trill of a red-winged blackbird or see a very small marsh wren flitting among the reeds if we take our time.

We might not have a natural wetland on our property, yet this design might recommend a new method to create a casual, naturalistic pathway using wooden boards simply teeming with trees that are taller, like maiden grass (Miscanthus sinensis ‘Gracillimus’).

Le jardinet

3. An Intimate Walk

When the view is grand and the pathway sweeps from perspective, how do we design a pathway which feels romantic?

Waterfalls of gentle yellow Japanese forest grass (Hakonechloa macra ‘Aureola’) placed strategically along both sides of the walkway become trail markers within this Asian-inspired garden, leading us from one to another.

Layers of foliage in shades of green, highlighted with a deep burgundy ‘Crimson Queen’ Japanese maple (Acer palmatum var. Dissectum ‘Crimson Queen’) will be the critical features in this design. The repetition of the textured mounding grasses ties into this foliage-focused subject while producing pools of light which naturally draw the eye.

Ann Kearsley Design

4. The Softened Straight Course

Straight avenues may easily resemble a runway, suggesting a fast entrance and leave with no reason to linger. To create the illusion of curves, then repeat a key plant. Purple catmint (Nepeta sp) and pink dianthus (Dianthus sp) are used within this photograph on alternating sides of the road.

As these mounds spill on the flagstone, the straight lines become partially obscured, while the eye is naturally drawn from a single purple haze to the next, all of the way to the renovated barn.

Who would not want to linger on such a superbly fragrant journey?

Peter Raarup Landscape Design

5. Woodland Highlights

Woodland paths naturally suggest a slower pace, yet they may be uneventful with no few highlights. Here groups of shade-loving caladiums have been repeated along the pathway, sweeping the eye easily from one side to the other and inviting people to observe where the disappearing route leads.

This contrast in foliage colour and feel makes the journey more interesting, although the repetition of those groups makes the wander memorable.

Do you end up rushing along your garden route, or do you enjoy those few moments? Simply by rearranging and replicating a few plants, you can transform the experience from predictable to exceptional.

Read thousands of beautiful path design photos | guides to plants and blossoms

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