Beautiful all day, stunning by dusk, this luxurious Point Piper renovation is a quintessential ‘Sydney experience’. An enclave of relaxed understated elegance, the art-filled living level flows seamlessly out to terraces surrounded by lush gardens.

This is an example of a mid-sized contemporary formal open concept living room in Geelong with white walls, light hardwood floors, a standard fireplace, a brick fireplace surround and a wall-mounted tv.

First impression count as you enter this custom-built Horizon Homes property at Kellyville. The home opens into a stylish entryway, with soaring double height ceilings. It’s often said that the kitchen is the heart of the home. And that’s literally true with this home. With the kitchen in the centre of the ground floor, this home provides ample formal and informal living spaces on the ground floor. At the rear of the house, a rumpus room, living room and dining room overlooking a large alfresco kitchen and dining area make this house the perfect entertainer. It’s functional, too, with a butler’s pantry, and laundry (with outdoor access) leading off the kitchen. There’s also a mudroom – with bespoke joinery – next to the garage. Upstairs is a mezzanine office area and four bedrooms, including a luxurious main suite with dressing room, ensuite and private balcony. Outdoor areas were important to the owners of this knockdown rebuild. While the house is large at almost 454m2, it fills only half the block. That means there’s a generous backyard. A central courtyard provides further outdoor space. Of course, this courtyard – as well as being a gorgeous focal point – has the added advantage of bringing light into the centre of the house.

This renovated brick rowhome in Boston’s South End offers a modern aesthetic within a historic structure, creative use of space, exceptional thermal comfort, a reduced carbon footprint, and a passive stream of income. DESIGN PRIORITIES. The goals for the project were clear - design the primary unit to accommodate the family’s modern lifestyle, rework the layout to create a desirable rental unit, improve thermal comfort and introduce a modern aesthetic. We designed the street-level entry as a shared entrance for both the primary and rental unit. The family uses it as their everyday entrance - we planned for bike storage and an open mudroom with bench and shoe storage to facilitate the change from shoes to slippers or bare feet as they enter their home. On the main level, we expanded the kitchen into the dining room to create an eat-in space with generous counter space and storage, as well as a comfortable connection to the living space. The second floor serves as master suite for the couple - a bedroom with a walk-in-closet and ensuite bathroom, and an adjacent study, with refinished original pumpkin pine floors. The upper floor, aside from a guest bedroom, is the child's domain with interconnected spaces for sleeping, work and play. In the play space, which can be separated from the work space with new translucent sliding doors, we incorporated recreational features inspired by adventurous and competitive television shows, at their son’s request. MODERN MEETS TRADITIONAL. We left the historic front facade of the building largely unchanged - the security bars were removed from the windows and the single pane windows were replaced with higher performing historic replicas. We designed the interior and rear facade with a vision of warm modernism, weaving in the notable period features. Each element was either restored or reinterpreted to blend with the modern aesthetic. The detailed ceiling in the living space, for example, has a new matte monochromatic finish, and the wood stairs are covered in a dark grey floor paint, whereas the mahogany doors were simply refinished. New wide plank wood flooring with a neutral finish, floor-to-ceiling casework, and bold splashes of color in wall paint and tile, and oversized high-performance windows (on the rear facade) round out the modern aesthetic. RENTAL INCOME. The existing rowhome was zoned for a 2-family dwelling but included an undesirable, single-floor studio apartment at the garden level with low ceiling heights and questionable emergency egress. In order to increase the quality and quantity of space in the rental unit, we reimagined it as a two-floor, 1 or 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom apartment with a modern aesthetic, increased ceiling height on the lowest level and provided an in-unit washer/dryer. The apartment was listed with Jackie O'Connor Real Estate and rented immediately, providing the owners with a source of passive income. ENCLOSURE WITH BENEFITS. The homeowners sought a minimal carbon footprint, enabled by their urban location and lifestyle decisions, paired with the benefits of a high-performance home. The extent of the renovation allowed us to implement a deep energy retrofit (DER) to address air tightness, insulation, and high-performance windows. The historic front facade is insulated from the interior, while the rear facade is insulated on the exterior. Together with these building enclosure improvements, we designed an HVAC system comprised of continuous fresh air ventilation, and an efficient, all-electric heating and cooling system to decouple the house from natural gas. This strategy provides optimal thermal comfort and indoor air quality, improved acoustic isolation from street noise and neighbors, as well as a further reduced carbon footprint. We also took measures to prepare the roof for future solar panels, for when the South End neighborhood’s aging electrical infrastructure is upgraded to allow them. URBAN LIVING. The desirable neighborhood location allows the both the homeowners and tenant to walk, bike, and use public transportation to access the city, while each charging their respective plug-in electric cars behind the building to travel greater distances. OVERALL. The understated rowhouse is now ready for another century of urban living, offering the owners comfort and convenience as they live life as an expression of their values. Eric Roth Photo

Design ideas for a mid-sized country formal open concept living room in Salt Lake City with white walls, medium hardwood floors, a standard fireplace, a brick fireplace surround, a wall-mounted tv and brown floor.

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Transitional formal living room in Cedar Rapids with grey walls, dark hardwood floors, a ribbon fireplace, a stone fireplace surround and a freestanding tv.

Bill Taylor
Traditional formal open concept living room in Boston with white walls, dark hardwood floors, a standard fireplace, a stone fireplace surround and coffered.

Clients' first home and there forever home with a family of four and in laws close, this home needed to be able to grow with the family. This most recent growth included a few home additions including the kids bathrooms (on suite) added on to the East end, the two original bathrooms were converted into one larger hall bath, the kitchen wall was blown out, entrying into a complete 22'x22' great room addition with a mudroom and half bath leading to the garage and the final addition a third car garage. This space is transitional and classic to last the test of time.

Inspiration for a large contemporary formal enclosed living room in San Francisco with beige walls, light hardwood floors, a tile fireplace surround, a ribbon fireplace, no tv and beige floor.

James Kruger, LandMark Photography Interior Design: Martha O'Hara Interiors Architect: Sharratt Design & Company
Design ideas for a large formal open concept living room in Minneapolis with beige walls, dark hardwood floors, a standard fireplace, a stone fireplace surround and brown floor.

Large contemporary formal open concept living room in Salt Lake City with medium hardwood floors, a standard fireplace, a stone fireplace surround, white walls and no tv.

Warm white living room accented with natural jute rug and linen furniture. White brick fireplace with wood mantle compliments light tone wood floors.

photo: Tim Brown Media
Design ideas for a mid-sized country formal enclosed living room in Other with white walls, medium hardwood floors, a standard fireplace, no tv, brown floor and a stone fireplace surround.

Peter Bennetts
Photo of a large contemporary formal open concept living room in Melbourne with white walls, carpet, a two-sided fireplace, a plaster fireplace surround, no tv and grey floor.

Architectrure by TMS Architects Rob Karosis Photography
This is an example of a beach style formal living room in Boston with white walls, light hardwood floors, a standard fireplace, a stone fireplace surround and no tv.

This is an example of a large beach style formal open concept living room in Los Angeles with grey walls, medium hardwood floors, a standard fireplace, a tile fireplace surround, brown floor and no tv.

Inspiration for a mid-sized transitional formal open concept living room in Grand Rapids with beige walls, dark hardwood floors, a ribbon fireplace, a metal fireplace surround, no tv and brown floor.

Photo: Lisa Petrole
Photo of an expansive contemporary formal living room in San Francisco with white walls, porcelain floors, a ribbon fireplace, no tv, grey floor and a metal fireplace surround.

Photograph by Travis Peterson.
Large transitional formal open concept living room in Seattle with white walls, light hardwood floors, a standard fireplace, a tile fireplace surround, no tv and brown floor.