AModern, warm and litRendered volumes over a stone base, timber slats, a glass balcony and a full-glass garage door, lit for the evening.
BBrick and steel, twin gablesPale brick, black steel windows two storeys tall, a slate roof and a glazed entry between the gables.
01Site the house for lightWhich way the living rooms face is worth more than any finish in the budget.
02Single-storey livingPrimary suite on the ground floor. The most requested plan change of the last decade.
03Open plan with defined zonesOne volume, but with ceiling changes and cased openings so it is not a hall.
04A real entrySomewhere to stop, put things down and take a coat off. Missing from most plans.
05Mudroom off the garageThe door the family actually uses, treated as the front door it really is.
06Scullery behind the kitchenA working second kitchen. The reason the main one stays clean.
07Ceiling height by roomTen feet where it counts, nine where it does not. Cheaper than raising everything.
08Vaulted great roomOne tall volume against the standard height rooms around it.
09Windows placed for the viewNot spaced evenly for the elevation. Decide which one you are designing.
10Covered outdoor roomRoofed, with a fireplace and a kitchen. Used more than any interior room in spring.
11Standing-seam metal roofLong life, no maintenance, and it sets the whole character of the elevation.
12Mixed claddingBrick or stone to a datum, board or stucco above. Grounds the house.
13Deep eaves and overhangsShade in summer, dry walls all year. Cheapest performance upgrade there is.
14A tight envelopeAir-sealing and insulation designed together. Comfort is a system, not a product.
15Conditioned attic or crawlBrings the ductwork inside the envelope. Pays for itself in comfort alone.
16Stair as an eventPosition it where it is seen. It is the largest piece of joinery in the house.
17Laundry near the bedroomsWhere the clothes are. Obvious, and still usually on the wrong floor.
18Every closet built outFitted from day one. Costs little on a new build, expensive to retrofit.
19Rough-in for laterEV charger, generator, elevator shaft, future bathroom. Conduit is cheap at framing.
20Landscape designed with the houseGrading, drainage, drive and planting drawn at the same time as the plan.
