As we enter the new year, everyone asks... "How were your holidays?!"
This year I wasn't sure how to respond, as it was much like any other holiday, but in many ways it felt very different. In broad terms, we are in a moment in our lives where we have parents that are getting older while our children are beginning to spread their wings.
It makes you reflect on the journey of ones entire lifetime and in our case the fortune of having great relationships with the families from which we came... and the family we've created. In the work we do, we have the opportunity to connect with so many families and it means the world to us that we can have such a sustainable impact on their lives creating the homes they inhabit every day.
Like this Jersey City brownstone where a wonderful (and patient!) family with two little kids were able to move into their new (or is it old?!) home near Van Vorst Park just days before Christmas morning. To get photos of them settling into their Living Room and Kitchen over the holiday was so rewarding knowing all the effort that was put in the weeks prior including Mex Construction who worked tirelessly to meet the deadline!
It was pretty exciting when furnishings started being put in place by
Elaine Santos and her team! It all started coming together and you could imagine a beautifully homey space to spend the holidays.
Brian went to such lengths as to craft tiny indiscreet hooks from brass dowels that would tuck under their gorgeous mantel stone to hang their Christmas stockings. He did a test run with 'little baby' Levi's stocking 💚
Only a dad who has hung his own kid's stockings year after year would ever think that this was an important detail! He was there almost every day toward the end making sure each finishing detail was just right...
Not only was great care given to the interiors, we also had the pleasure to work with Square Acre Studio on the backyard which feels like a charming cottage garden. The view through expansive windows into the backyard from the small but moody Media Room made the outdoor space that much more important to feel integrated with the interior aesthetic.
Square Acre also took on the roof deck garden design, which hopes to be shaping up by springtime ⚘
We look forward to getting ALL the details wrapped on this one with the team (... our work family!) for a photoshoot in the coming year.
Another couple in Jersey City moved in before last year's holiday season with their toddler and a newborn. You can just picture festive family entertaining...
and cozy family moments during the holidays...
This was another amazing project collaboration with Mex Construction and Elaine Santos where tireless effort was put in to get all the details just right... and before the holidays! We photographed the project last spring with the incredibly talented
Haris Kenjar, but it feels like just yesterday. Realizing how quickly this year has gone but the fond memories of reconnecting and working together again always remain.
Another photoshoot where we worked with Haris reminds be of all of our fantastic upstate families in the wintery countryside staying all toasty warm in their Passive Houses! We imagine snowy walks and time spent cuddled up with a good book and some hot chocolate in the kid loft bunks.
Or like last weekend when we visited and found their kids taking up this entire modern farm table for baking and decorating ginger bread houses...
And the collaboration continues in 2024 on this homestead as we develop new architectural opportunities to provide accommodations for friends and family to be able to enjoy this incredible property.
Then we also have families that are in the prime of their lives... where they are able to work less and enjoy life more! So we designed this couple a lakeside Passive House cabin in the Pocono mountains where they can do all the things they used to not have time for... like hunting, fishing and spending time in the outdoors...
Even the family dog has a new lease on life faithfully watching and protecting the house from the abundant wildlife...
Many thanks to Mike Van Tassel for his efforts and jumping in with us so seamlessly to capture all the splendor of the Fall season... it's a small window of gorgeousness! And to Anns Construction for all their hard work and dedication needed to build their first Passive House 👏
We appreciate the opportunity to work with families from around the world who have a great appreciation for sustainable and energy efficient construction. Like our project in Catskill region where an expat couple have decided to settle with their family of six and create their own homestead to bring a bit of their homeland to upstate NY.
Their English accents make everything seem more delightful, as does their take on a Cotswold country house with plenty of wallpaper, patterns, aged textures, vibrant colors and charming sensibilities. It wasn't quite ready for the holidays but it's getting closer everyday thanks to
Bill Stratton Building Company. So many details coming together so quickly we will be on site quite a bit in the coming weeks.
Loving the tile patterns...
And the material textures like limestone floors...
And wood ceilings...
The play of rustic against refined gives it such richness...
and wait until you see all the colors...this DeVol inspired pantry is going go wow!
Our family is at our own crossroads, looking at the next half of our lives imagining what it could be... maybe allowing some time for new adventures or just fine tuning priorities and what we already do. One new item of business is a revamped website! We have so many new projects documented to add, we felt it was time to make the site just as shiny and new as our work. We look forward to showcasing all the Passive Houses we have created for so many families so everyone can SEE the benefits and maybe build their own Passive Houses so they can FEEL the benefits 😜
And just last night we had the good fortune to be presented an AIA NJ Honor Award for our Passive Homestead in the Hudson Valley at their annual Design Awards Gala. That's another goal for our next phase! Start promoting this type of work with our professional colleagues so more of the industry can begin following our lead on how to do sustainable design with ALL their clients.
So that's where we stand! The holidays are gone and a new year has begun... time to be present, thankful, and always dreaming of what will come next for these two crazy kids 😂
