livingroombuzz

This may be my dream bathroom! I’ve seen a lot of church...

Wed, 05 Jan 2011 10:04:05 +0000

This may be my dream bathroom! I’ve seen a lot of church conversions in my time and most fall flat on dealing with such a large interior space. Here the layout keeps all the lovely original features like stained glass windows and the amazing timber roof structure but also matches the theatre of the space particularly the bedroom in the apse of the original church, separated from the rest by an epic pair of velvet curtains…

Love this Austrian suburban house, whose unusual shape was...

Thu, 16 Dec 2010 09:03:54 +0000

Love this Austrian suburban house, whose unusual shape was dictated by local planning laws - this became an opportunity rather than a restriction and the L-shaped layout hinges around a large open plan living, kitchen and dining area opening directly onto a sheltered terrace.

Love the simplicity and rugged materials of this Icelandic house...

Tue, 07 Dec 2010 08:47:30 +0000

Love the simplicity and rugged materials of this Icelandic house discreetly located in a National Park with minimum impact on the land. The interior layout is designed to be as flexible - the living room can be converted for sleeping - making sure every inch of space is used as much as possible.

A new way to think about suburban housing? Love how these Polish...

Fri, 03 Dec 2010 09:04:47 +0000

A new way to think about suburban housing? Love how these Polish houses turn green roofs into gardens, use the shape of the brick and timber houses to create privacy and also make the most of sunlight and views.

In the harshest of conditions, hope still blossoms.

Sat, 27 Nov 2010 12:22:31 +0000

In the harshest of conditions, hope still blossoms.

As a writer myself, and having received good news about my work,...

Thu, 25 Nov 2010 09:17:58 +0000

As a writer myself, and having received good news about my work, I can’t help dreaming of the day when I’ll have a place like this to write. Even in the middle of winter heaped in snow, the timber interior makes it look warm and cosy…

Love this Japanese project to create many different types of use...

Wed, 17 Nov 2010 12:26:06 +0000

Love this Japanese project to create many different types of use within a small apartment space using cupboard and sliding walls - a real transformer type of home!

Love how this single-storey villa fits discreetly into an...

Thu, 11 Nov 2010 09:27:30 +0000

Love how this single-storey villa fits discreetly into an existing residential neighbourhood, increasing density whilst respecting privacy and preventing overlooking or overshadowing of the existing houses - key planning issues.

Love the simple shape and materials of this cape house where the...

Wed, 10 Nov 2010 09:59:12 +0000

Love the simple shape and materials of this cape house where the clients prioritised space and light over fancy fittings and finishes to keep costs down. Clever move - interior can be upgraded over time, but space and light are more difficult and costly to fix.

Traditional materials, modern shapes and styling. Love the use...

Tue, 09 Nov 2010 11:49:15 +0000

Traditional materials, modern shapes and styling. Love the use of timber to soften & add warmth to the stone and concrete interior.

Love how this Alpine weekend house has been designed to open and...

Thu, 21 Oct 2010 09:42:00 +0100

Love how this Alpine weekend house has been designed to open and close, acknowledging its occasional use & puts a modern twist on the steep roof and timber cladding of traditional building forms in the area.

When I first saw this house, I spend quite 5 mins making throaty...

Tue, 05 Oct 2010 10:14:04 +0100

When I first saw this house, I spend quite 5 mins making throaty purring noises at the computer screen. It is rare to see a house that has been considered so completely in its setting - front and back it creates a sharp contrast with the rocky mountainside, both in shape and colour. I love the sharp edges, the way the window openings look like slices out of the facade - the whole looks as though it could have been carved from a single block of stone rather than cast in concrete. Exquisite.

"Like the quiet, fine-boned pavilions that form a leitmotif throughout the work, this seamlessly..."

Mon, 04 Oct 2010 09:29:36 +0100

““Like the quiet, fine-boned pavilions
that form a leitmotif throughout the
work, this seamlessly unembellished
beach structure reflects a yearning
to defer to a larger landscape,
minimizing architectural intervention.
And just as the sensuously sculptural,
almost randomly strewn, skylights of
several earlier designs play against
the otherwise rational lines, this
undulant cloak finds its counterpoint
in a precisely straight-edged plan,”
explained the architects.”

- Names have been changed to protect the innocent.

"O then it was a story as old as war or man, and although we have not said it we know it, and..."

Sun, 03 Oct 2010 20:58:40 +0100

“O then it was a story as old as war or man,
and although we have not said it we know it,
and although we have not claimed it we do it,
and although we have not vowed it we keep it,
without a name to the end.”

- The Unspoken - Edwin Morgan

Love the design choices made by the owners of this Thai house!...

Sat, 02 Oct 2010 11:44:00 +0100

Love the design choices made by the owners of this Thai house! The husband, who works from home, has his office projecting over the swimming pool, so when he gets too stressed with work he can just jump out the window into the pool. Building Regulation officers everywhere are weeping…

Love how this Alaskan house responds with elegance and...

Wed, 29 Sep 2010 09:59:27 +0100

Love how this Alaskan house responds with elegance and sensitivity to its environment - from the limited building footprint (the house is cantilevered from a small basement), the balance of large and small spaces for heat control, the careful capture of year-round sunlight, as well as solar-panels for heating / water and the robustness of the metal exterior to deal with the harsh winter climate combined with a soft, tactile interior - a nest for the family.

A bit of a James Bond house this - love the punched concrete...

Mon, 27 Sep 2010 10:29:52 +0100

A bit of a James Bond house this - love the punched concrete facade which gives it a 60’s feel with circles acting as screen, window and door. The circles theme is continued on the opposite side with the use of circular glass bricks, giving the house a light, glittering look. Very glam.

The ultimate bachelor pad? A reworked Brazilian apartment for 2...

Thu, 16 Sep 2010 09:46:16 +0100

The ultimate bachelor pad? A reworked Brazilian apartment for 2 men - father & son - it avoids all the chrome & black leather man-cave cliches, but retains a distinctly masculine feel through use of timber, marble / ceramics and the exposed concrete in the walls and in the ceilings.

The concrete also contributes to the heating and cooling of space - its mass makes it slow to heat during the hot days, releasing the heat during the cooler nights. Beautiful and useful.

Interesting low-tech approach to environmental design in this...

Wed, 15 Sep 2010 09:57:47 +0100

Interesting low-tech approach to environmental design in this Japanese house which uses the shape of the roof to control the entry of heat & light to the house, including a panel which opens to allow air to pass through the roof space and cool the house down during the summer months, eliminating the need for air-conditioning.

The window side of a room tends to be the least useable because...

Wed, 15 Sep 2010 09:43:00 +0100

The window side of a room tends to be the least useable because the focus is on natural light, so this combination of wall-to-wall window with wall-to-wall storage below is a great example of how to create more value in a small bedroom space. This kind of creative thinking has to be done at the design stage and sadly, we don’t see this level of thought going into mass-developed housing design.