A stunning restoration and renovation of a historic plantation home on the Eastern Shore of Virginia by Stephen Muse and William Kiwan of Muse Architects, this project was awarded because of its meticulous attention to detail, authenticity and preservation.

Originally constructed in 1784 and expanded in 1829, the brick-ended clapboard structure with twin Georgian entry porches follows a one bay deep linear plan typical of Tidewater homes.

Along with complete renovation and restoration of the original house, the scope of work included removal of recent out-of-character additions and construction of additional living space capturing the view of nearby Hungar’s Creek.

To accomplish this, the twin porches from the drive side of the house were replicated on the waterfront side and a new kitchen with breakfast bay was connected to the existing structure by a one-story hyphen.

Additional work included the restoration of all outbuildings, construction of a new garage and the restoration of all driveways, walkways and gardens.

Marvin products used in the project included Ultimate Double Hung Windows, French Casement Windows, Ultimate Casement Windows, Stationary Windows and Transom Windows.

To see more winners and learn more about the Architect’s Challenge, please visit Marvin.

Today the marketing department at Marvin Windows and Doors had the privilege of hearing Sarah Susanka talk to us about her work. Sarah has been a long-time friend of Marvin and we are huge fans of her. She’s a top architect, designer, author, visionary and all-around good person.

Sarah talked about her new showhouse in Libertyville, Ill., which feature both Marvin and Integrity windows. She shared some of her design tips with us. Here’s a sampling.

• Varied ceiling heights. This makes a room feel cozy instead of stark.
• Aligning the house so that the eye has something to be drawn towards. For instance, Sarah designed the entry of the Libertyville house with a recessed shelf that can hold some artwork or a vase of flowers. You see the focal point as soon as you enter in through the door.
• Walking towards light. As Sarah reminded us, human beings are drawn towards light, so when designing a home, it’s important that we are able to move towards light-filled spaces, whether that is a window, a door, or just a lighted area on a wall.
• Multi-use spaces. Sarah showed us a floor plan that could be switched around to include large gatherings. As she pointed out, in traditional home plans, there are often spaces that get used once or twice a year. Why not design homes to be as flexible as possible?

Learn more about Sarah and her Not So Big philosophy here.

Image courtesy of Susanka.com.

This meticulously considered renovation by Douglas Larson of Larson and Paul Architects transformed a decrepit 19th-century farmhouse in Stanfordville, N.Y., into a weekend retreat for a New York City family. It also was a winner in the 2011 myMarvin Architect’s Challenge.

A plan to preserve the original structure as well as harvest as many reusable materials as possible, resulted in the creation of a comfortable, modern, green design while maintaining the simplicity and charm of the home’s history.

Of particular note, restoration of the original post and beam framing allowed for installation of an open wall of glass featuring Marvin Wood Ultimate Sliding French Doors to showcase a stunning mountain view on one of Duchess County’s most scenic country roads.

Marvin products used in the project included in sash wood polygons, Ultimate Casement windows, the Ultimate Sliding French Door, Ultimate Double Hung windows and Tilt Turn windows.

Learn more about the project on Marvin.com.

Look around the SchoolStreet housing development in the northern Chicago suburb of Libertyville and you’ll witness a trend that’s experiencing a major resurgence across the country: front porches.

Increasingly, American homeowners are tired of hiding out in their backyards. A recent study by the National Association of Home Builders found 50 percent of all new single-family homes now feature a front porch, an increase of eight percent from just a few years ago.

Why the sudden interest in front porches?

Paddy Steinschneider, chief operating officer for the New York Chapter of the Congress of the New Urbanism, offered an interesting theory in a New York Times feature earlier this year:

When we embraced this weird thing called suburbanization, homeowners started living in their backyards. Front porches fell out of favor, especially in the late 1900s. Now people are turning back to them… New urbanism didn’t invent front porches, but it recognizes the importance of the porch in making the idea of community work. You can sit on your porch and watch the comings and goings of your neighbors and share a friendly hello. A deck in the backyard can’t do that for you.

Among the SchoolStreet homes prominently featuring a front porch is the Not So Big Showhouse, which was designed by architect and author Sarah Susanka. The front porch is no small feature, either. Susanka positioned the kitchen toward the front of the house, so homeowners are invited to enjoy their meals on the porch while taking in the vitality of the surrounding neighborhood.

(Of course, there’s another charming feature we enjoy about Susanka’s Not So Big Showhouse — the special Marvin window Susanka designed as part of the myMarvin Artist Project.)

Susanka’s Not So Big Showhouse — front porch and all — will go on public display this week. On Thursday, Susanka will appear at Libertyville High School to present her home, answer questions and sign books. On Saturday, Susanka’s Not So Big Showhouse will be open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The house is located at 138 School Street in Libertyville.

[Photo by Barry Rustin]

According to NewUrbanism.org, new urbanism ”promotes the creation and restoration of diverse, walkable, compact, vibrant, mixed-use communities composed of the same components as conventional development, but assembled in a more integrated fashion, in the form of complete communities.”

Perhaps no one has championed the benefits of New Urbanist construction like architect Sarah Susanka, author of the best-selling Not So Big book series that celebrates the smaller, more practical home without compromising quality.

This week marks the grand opening of Susanka’s Not So Big Showhouse in Libertyville, Ill., a northern suburb of Chicago. The 2,500-square-foot house emphasizes functionality and multipurpose spaces. For instance, there’s no formal dining room. (Who actually uses them anyway?) There’s a large front porch before floor-to-ceiling windows that overlook the neighborhood. There are no cathedral ceilings to be found and energy efficiency is a top consideration. There is no excess to be found — every room has its role.

The house also includes the special Marvin window Susanka designed as part of the myMarvin Artist Project.

Susanka’s Not So Big Showhouse is a part of the SchoolStreet housing development in downtown Libertyville, a new urbanist neighborhood that promotes a strong sense of community. So much so that most of the homes feature kitchens positioned toward the front of the house, inviting homeowners to eat and socialize on the front porch rather than be secluded in the back.

On Thursday, Susanka will appear at Libertyville High School to present her home, answer questions and sign books. On Saturday, Susanka’s Not So Big Showhouse will be open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The house is located at 138 School Street in Libertyville.

For more information, visit the SchoolStreet website.

Built in 1930 as an exclusive hunting lodge, the building was converted to a single family residence in the 1950s. In 1991, new owners began an extensive renovation of the home. More than 40 years of paint, plasterboard and paneling had all but hidden the original elegance of this exclusive hunting lodge.

Because the project called for custom windows and doors that would match the home’s original elegant character, architect Katherine Cartrett selected Marvin. Eight Marvin sliding French doors were used to create an over-sized wall opening. The home’s 46 aging windows were restored with a combination of new windows and replacement sash that look identical to the originals.

Marvin designers were there every step of the way to ensure that the windows and doors were created exactly to the homeowner’s specifications.

The owner loves spending time in the kitchen. She is an adventurous cook of different cuisines and wanted a large, homey, yet practical working kitchen that would give her plenty of scope to pursue her culinary aspirations.

That’s how architect Neil Peoples explained his client’s needs in a recent piece on TrendsIdeas.com. The kitchen has been divided into distinct work stations, which lets more than one person comfortably and conveniently work at the same time while also allowing for guests to be a part of the action without being in the way.

There’s also a designated clean-up zone in the part of the kitchen nearest the dining room, a space that’s more easily and more quickly accessible than the rest of the kitchen.

Architect Peoples put his chosen Marvin windows to good use in the remodeled kitchen:

The kitchen is on the upper, entry level of the house, and has a commanding view of the surrounding vineyards. Ample windows provide abundant natural light and also place this view front and center. The rustic, Tuscan feel of the interior design lends itself perfectly to the bucolic character of the view.

Read the full feature at TrendsIdeas.com.

Photo via TrendsIdeas.com

At just 1,768 square feet, Kent Chilcott’s KK Residence is the smallest house among the 2011 myMarvin Architect’s Challenge winners. That’s not by accident, either. Chilcott, of Kent Chilcott Studio in Santa Rosa, Calif., submitted a design that skillfully combines living and functional spaces to work in tandem within a limited footprint. There’s also several towering window walls to let in the surrounding valley views.

A repeat winner, this year, Chilcott gets to have his cake and eat it, too. The winning project? It’s actually his house. After reading the interview below, be sure to visit Marvin.com to see more photos from this project and the other 2011 myMarvin Architect’s Challenge winners.

Just like last year’s winner, this year’s house is relatively small. However, you make 1,768 square feet some much larger than the number suggests. How does skillful use of space factor into your design?
It doesn’t just “factor into.” It’s the primary objective. I am a true believer in the notion that space can go beyond practicality without sacrificing practicality. A space, say, a dining room, can be just a room to have a table and chairs for meals. Or, it can be a spatial companion to the living room and  kitchen, outdoor spaces, etc. It can share with other spaces a wall of glass or an outdoor terrace for example. By blending spaces rather than rigid functional separations, we get to enjoy larger shared volumes and the associated lifestyle benefits. This house has a living area that is 18’ x 48’. Separated into dining, kitchen, living, and entry, these would be uncomfortably small spaces, but, combined it is a large shared volume. This is especially important in smaller buildings.

This is the second year in a row you’ve been selected as a winner of the myMarvin Architect’s Challenge. What’s your secret?
No secret really. I’ve been fortunate to have a good run of fantastic clients with interesting demands and high expectations.

Your winning house belongs to you and your wife. What are some of the features you included that you would never dare were this a spec house or build for someone else? In what ways were you allowed to take chances?
For a spec house, I wouldn’t try the window detail that I did here that includes a curved and mitered and grain-matched-inside-to-out system of installing our wood ceiling to terminate into the glass itself. It was a bit gratuitous. As for client/owner/user-driven design, that’s a different story. Every client has goals and limitations and a piece of land. My job is to make the most of those which invariably involves experimentation and risk. So far, those have been the high points and the areas folks seem to enjoy most about their homes – that they were part of an experiment tailored uniquely to their vision.

Really, it was little different than designing for others. Design is always a bit of a gamble but the alternative, to restrain the design process to insure minimal risk, seems an even bigger risk. Either I risk the failure of a sincere effort or I risk under-serving the project, my clients and myself for having not tried. I’ll stick with regretting the things I did rather than those that I didn’t.

What’s your favorite feature of the house?
The views and the way they become part of daily living.

Window walls were common among this year’s myMarvin Architect’s Challenge winners. Why are window walls becoming more popular?
Perhaps it’s due to a new and eclectic homebuyer demographic that’s leading a stylistic shift from nostalgia and tradition to one of experimentalism and innovation. Certainly, the popular home design magazines reinforce this. Design experimentation is all around us like never before – cars, fashion, music, etc. Expectations have come up a notch. Why not houses, too? Also, on the purely practical side, window walls are better quality now and in ways that improve perceived comfort. For example, low-e insulated glass really works and you can feel the difference.

Do you plan on keeping the streak alive next year? Are their any aces up your sleeve to make it three years in a row?
I’ll do my best!

When done just right, a backsplash can serve as the centerpiece of a kitchen.

In a recent project by Lenore Baigelman of Full Circle Architects (Northbrook, Ill.), the architect created a spacious country kitchen that’s primarily white with dark woods and tile, so when the red backsplash with a herringbone tile pattern appears from one of many sight lines, it really pops. That’s no mistake, either.

Baigelman tells TrendsIdeas.com, “I limited the use of this rich color to heighten its impact, only introducing it behind the cooktop. On the other walls, the backsplash is in a white tile to match the cabinets.”

Baigelman’s design includes arched doorways that lead to the living room and formal dining room, each of which provide a view of the red backsplash, which beams with warmth and vitality. The project also includes Marvin windows and doors. For those building or remodeling, this is a great example of how a little color in the right area can take a kitchen from bland to bold. When possible, accentuate an area that’s visible from multiple rooms. The effect is immediate, making family and guests feel drawn to what many consider the heart of any residence.

[Photos from TrendIdeas.com]

Here’s another look at the winning entries of the 2011 myMarvin Architect’s Challenge.

As a brand-new residential construction on an existing footprint, The Overlook House achieves light environmental impact while producing visually rich and architecturally satisfying spaces.

With the goal of replacing a structurally compromised house that couldn’t be renovated, Marcus Gleysteen of Gleysteen Design took great care to design sensibly with sustainable materials. Using the best in effective building technology and energy use, both design and environmental sensibilities are apparent throughout all interior and exterior surfaces.

Clean, sharp lines and details set the stage for inviting light, spatial flow and family interaction. Individual living and working spaces are arranged around a central hall and stair, lighting and uniting the house. Rather than a series of formal rooms, the main level of the house characterizes a large loft, where the kitchen, dining and living areas are integrated. The more private sleeping areas are located in the upper level of the house. In a dramatic design move, the master bedroom cantilevers over the first floor, shading the terraces below and extending into the rich landscape.

Marvin products were essential to the design, allowing abundant natural light as the vision intended. While smaller windows face north and east towards the street and nearby homes, walls of glass overlook a private, natural landscape. The use of high-efficiency windows and solar shading allow for these expansive window walls.

Clerestory windows located in the main living loft and above the stairwell bring light into the center of the house throughout the day, animating the space. The interior to exterior transition is blurred by broad sliding doors that open to a patio, which further terraces down to a secluded garden overlooking marshland.

MARVIN PRODUCTS USED:

Picture Windows
Casement Windows
Awning Windows
Sliding Patio Doors
Electronically Operable Awning Windows

Images courtesy of Marcus Gleysteen