New Home with Porches Whenever we are asked to design any project, we approach it the same way the builders of my home did: design it as though a family will live there forever. The forever home starts with good design. Our preference is to avoid whatever the current fad is going around and to design each home or addition in a timeless manner that will look as good 25 years from now as it will 125 years [...]
Modern Farmhouse With Reflecting Pond This summer my family and I rented a home on a lake in Maine and it was wonderful. Other summers we stay in a cabin on a lake in the Adirondacks or on the ocean. Perhaps those water-connected homes are extra special to us because we live inland surrounded by trees with no water, but a pool. Some of our clients are lucky enough to own property on a lake, a pond, a [...]
Complete Home Renovation I live in a home that was built over 220 years ago. Of course, it has been added on to over the years and has been adapted to modern living, but much of the house exists as it did in 1790. The builders of my home knew only one way to construct a house, and that was to design it well and build it to last. They succeeded. We often are asked by clients to [...]
Front Entry Nestled into a wooded hillside, this home can see far but is hidden from the rest of the world. With simple lines and generous windows, our clients were hoping for an elegant get-away far from the crowded city. There is plenty of room for their kids to have family fun and outdoor adventures. Rear of Home Screened Porch Kitchen View to Porch Photos by Rob Karosis Curated Brochure [...]
Sun Room in the Snow Something magical happens to a home with the first snowfall of the season.  Around my house, the kids and the animals are even more excited than I am as we run and throw snowballs. Rosie, our mini Aussie, tracks in the snow, which melts on the floor, while I start a fire and my wife makes hot cocoa. The timing doesn’t always work, but when we can coordinate a photo shoot of one [...]
Formal Dining Room In an age where family time has been shortened by screen time, and we eat most our meals on the go, a formal dining room can bring us together. A dedicated dining room can change the atmosphere of a meal and provide a special grace to dinner time. I have a large dining room in my own old farm house, and we do enjoy more formal meals there. In our house, the dining room is [...]
Project Photo After 3-D Sketch Before The world of computer graphics has changed completely since I started my architectural practice.  We now regularly use computer imaging to make quick sketches of proposed design ideas and use renderings of projects to let our clients know exactly what their home or addition will look like. It is amazing to me how realistic these renderings can be.  Although we are known for our modern versions of traditional homes, sometimes our [...]
Living Room Sculpture Almost every home we renovate or design from the ground up, includes a generous amount of art.  Sometimes the homeowner has an extensive collection which we place in advance on our drawings.  Existing art objects can be placed  throughout the house providing 'art walls' or niches for specific pieces. More often the homeowner enjoys collecting art over time and placing it where it fits.  Either way, natural and artificial light plays an important role in how [...]
Pool and Pool House This pool house/guest house is set in a beautiful rural area of New York. Â It is part of a family compound including a main house, barn, and garage. Â This building will serve as a place for the owners to live while we work with them to design and build their main home. Kitchen Kitchen with Hidden Laundry Bathroom Covered Patio and Barbecue Front Door [...]
Garage-Guest House Garage-Guest House One of the most cost effective places to gain a bonus space is above a garage.  By picking up the roof a few feet when building a garage, you can gain usable space such as guest quarters, great storage, a painting studio, home theater, or an all purpose loft.  When we are designing a garage we always suggest adding those extra few feet of head room even if there are no immediate plans to finish [...]
