Contemporary Farmhouse- Glen Arbor

While the project in Montrose is still in progress, I wanted to check in briefly to introduce another project I’ve been working on for the past few months. It is 5800 square foot, five bedroom and 4.5 bath custom home here in Houston. The homeowners are going for a contemporary farmhouse style and it is going to be stunning. The home is being built in a flood zone, so in order to meet code it had to be built 6’ above ground on concrete blocks, which makes the scale of this two story home really impressive.

Love that wall of windows on the left + double steel front door.
Ignore the temporary garage door. 

We are already to the sheetrock phase so I’ve had several site appointments with the homeowner and builder. Our first walk-through was to discuss the framing and electrical placement, such as overhead lights, wall sconces, hanging fixtures, switch placement, etc. One issue that was caught was the placement of three small windows in the master. They were along the wall where the bed would be positioned and after checking the height, we realized they we would be partially, if not completely, covered by the headboard. Since this room has plenty of natural light coming from a large bank of windows on the adjoining wall, we decided to remove these and frame over them for a solid wall for the bed.

Homeowner, myself + Project Manager to discussing plans
while still in the framing stage.

Windows in the master that we decided to remove and close up.

Still plenty of natural light in the master.

During the second and most recent site visit we went over all the interior millwork. We went through the plans, room by room, making changes to the cabinetry as needed. While the kitchen stayed relatively the same to the architect drawings, we eliminated a few upper cabinets on either side of the sink and replaced them with open shelving instead. These will be 3” thick shelves with a rustic, natural wood finish. We’ll be accenting the range hood with a piece of natural wood as well. This, along with a few glass front cabinets, will nicely break up the white cabinets and walls.

Homeowner, Carpenter + Builder checking the plans

Range hood will have a similar wood accent,
but in a lighter color. 

Moving into the main living room, it was initially planned to keep this space more formal (i.e. no TV), but the homeowners decided it would be nice to have the option as long as the TV could be concealed. After discussing a few options with the builder and the carpenter, we came up with the idea of adding an automatic lift kit inside one of the built-in cabinets that would allow the TV to be raised up for normal, daily living and back down when they don’t want the “black box” to show.

Standing in kitchen, looking towards dining + living room

Fireplace will be stucco with shelves + cabinets on either side

My client and I were on the same page for wanting to make the bathroom vanities appear to be free-standing pieces of furniture versus a solid built-in vanity. Not only does this look more custom, it also adds a lighter quality to the space. We plan to paint the vanities in the kids’ bathrooms, but the master will likely be a white oak, which play nicely with the planked walls and dark floor we have planned. I can’t wait to share all the tile and lighting for this home--- it’s so good!

With that, I’m signing off for the rest of the week. I'm heading to Kansas City to cheer on my alma mater, the Iowa State Cyclones, at the Big 12 Tournament. Here’s hoping we aren’t leaving this beautiful Houston weather for nothing! Next week I’ll be back to share more of the design details for this contemporary farmhouse!  

Kitchen Update- Montrose Project

I cannot believe it’s Thursday already!!! We had family in town at the beginning of the week so I feel like I’m just now hitting my stride with work. It’s been a busy week- furniture was delivered for a living room and master bedroom design, I presented initial kitchen drawings to a client and will be meeting with them again next week with tile and countertop selections, and I have a walk-through appointment for cabinetry on a new build tomorrow morning. Add in a couple of out-of-state projects, a new spec home I’m assisting with, the Montrose project and a few other smaller designs and my days get filled up quickly. With that being said, I could not be luckier to work with/for such great contractors and clients! 

I promise to share more details on all of these projects in the next few weeks, but today I want to show you the updates happening in the kitchen in my Montrose project. Last time I shared the new island and the design plan for countertops, backsplash, paint color, and the fireplace tile. Well, it's all been installed and it's looking great! If you remember, this island is massive and required a seam for the stone counters. Fortunately, I work with a great fabricator who did a fabulous job matching the seams beautifully. I really love the movement of the stone and even the bits of burgundy that play off the accent pillows on my client’s new sectional. The island painted the dark gray is a nice contrast to the white perimeter cabinetry and coordinates nicely with the granite. 

Homeowner wanted a larger fridge,
so my carpenter built a new surround to fit it.

Countertop + Backsplash Demo

Lots of storage in the new island

Level surface is a must

All hands + paws on deck

Fitting the new cooktop in

Had to cut way for the new larger sink

Taller, industrial faucet to balance out the window

Enough space for seating on three sides

A little before and after on the island itself

Close up on one of the slabs

A quick sneak peak of the backsplash

The fireplace wall has also undergone quite a transformation from small and traditional to sleek and modern. Taking the fireplace tile to the ceiling really emphasized the height of the ceilings and feels for more proportionate to the scale of the room. We also removed the traditional built-in shelves for thicker, floating shelves. We were able to save the lower cabinets and painted them the same dark gray as the island. We added white + silver metallic grass cloth to the back of the bookcase for added texture, which we also used on a blank wall in the kitchen, tying the two spaces together nicely.

Can't wait to style out those shelves!

Cleaner and better scale

That's all I have for today. Next week I'm sharing a custom, modern farmhouse I'm helping to design. The house is still in the construction phase, but I have lots to catch you up on. Have a great weekend!!