Standing Tall

A view of the woods and a view of the lake with a little twist.  It's vertical living in northern Michigan.  A fresh little 1400 square foot, 3 story wood box that takes the living space to the top floor.  Killer views, open air and a ton of natural light.  I just love this idea and the creativity of the architecture that can follow with the surrounding landscape.

via homedsgn

Brick Tile

Waterworks has amazing product and this is a sweet little collection they call Grove Brickworks Field Tile. They are tiles cut from actual brick. They're rustic and raw and you'll find chips and pinholes throughout. A ton of character and a variety of colors. They are worth checking out. The faucet is also by Waterworks. It's part of their "Henry" collection. A line named after the automaker/industrialist Henry Ford.

photo via Cool Hunting

Detroit Architecture

We were downtown last night for an event and as we headed home we drove by the old General Motors Building (now called Cadillac Place). An architectural gem designed by Albert Kahn in 1919. Neo-Classical style architecture at it's finest and designated a National Historic Landmark back in June of 1978.

photo via Wikipedia

Gregor Affleck House

A Frank Lloyd Wright gem I drive by almost everyday. Built in the 1940's and located in Bloomfield Hills, MI.

via Michigan Modern

David Whitney House

A very cool gift from my sweet mom about Detroit architecture over the holidays. The book is filled with a ton of amazing buildings and great stories behind them. This is the David Whitney house. He basically was the lumber industry in Michigan back in his day and in 1894 he built this three-story, 21,000 square foot monster on the corner of Woodward Ave and Canfield. It is so sweet and so well done both inside and out. The detail is phenomenal.

The exterior is clad in a pink-hued granite called jasper which Whitney brought in from South Dakota.

It is now home to one of Detroit's finest restaurants, The Whitney.

images via The Detroit News and Flickr

Builder/Architect Collaboration

Earlier this year, we partnered with the Michigan Design Center in an event called Buy, Sell or Stay. It was an opportunity to show the public available real estate in the area and how you could utilize properties based on your particular lifestyle. Our task was to partner with an architect (Patrick Dyke Collaborative), take an existing home that was for sale in the area and detail what could be done within a predetermined budget. It was a great experience and really showcased to the audience how the two parties (builder and architect) worked together to put out an economical and state of the art product. The collaboration hinged on communication and an understanding of ideas and experiences. It was also a nice little way to show people out there how a builder and architect can work together from the ground up.

photo via Just Luxe

Burnt Salvage

I came across this yesterday via Core77 and thought it was definitely worthy of a post. Not only because it looks like such a cool project, but it's about Detroit's oldest neighborhood, Corktown. If it sounds familiar, I recently made mention in a previous post. The photo above is the work of architect Catie Newell. It's basically her spacial creation of burnt, charred wood. It's super cool and looks pretty sweet at night too.

The wood is from this arsoned home that was destined to be torn down. She created this 'landscape' and really brought the space back to life in a way. The project is part of a nonprofit group called The Imagination Station. They are renovating two abandoned houses, one for a community media center and the other for an art studio. Catie did this cool little video on their site where she talks about the construction challenges as well as the unique charred surfaces. You should definitely check it out.

photos via Core77

Corktown

This is Slows. It's this sweet BBQ place in Corktown, just outside of downtown Detroit. I read this article yesterday in the New York Times and immediately was inspired. If you're not from the area, you should still check out the article.

This is the Michigan Central Station. It's also in Corktown, almost right across the street from Slows. I posted about abandoned buildings in Detroit and I probably will again sometime soon. It's not because it's an easy target. It's just because I believe in this city.

photos via Metromode (Peter Schottenfels) and Big American Night

Duxbury Yellow

It's a 1930's Greek Revival and the color is Duxbury Yellow. A sweet renovation, and one of my favorite projects. It was on my mind since I talked to the owner that we did this renovation with yesterday. Actually it was two different renovations. I think that's a great honor when you can say that you've completed multiple projects with the same client.

There were a couple of challenges on this project. One was that the owner had a shade of yellow in her head, but couldn't find a match. The shade of yellow could only be found on a home in Duxbury, Massachusetts, where they had a summer home. We ended up calling he local hardware shop owner of Duxbury, having him drive to the house, match the shade, custom mix it, and Duxbury Yellow was born. Another challenge was matching the exterior molding detail. We had to fabricate the crown, the dental and the corner pilasters to match the existing. A ton of hours and some patience to get it all just right. Actually, I take that back, these weren't challenges, they were little details that took a little time, but made all the difference.

photos by Tim Capaldi

Pewabic Pottery

Being a Michigan builder, I am always trying to use local materials and vendors for our projects. I was researching fireplace surrounds and Pewabic Pottery immediately came to mind. Pewabic is a 100+ handmade pottery manufacturer right here in Detroit. I have seen these tiles used on fireplaces, backsplashes, bathrooms and floors. The glazing process they use and the unique colors they offer make Pewabic a unique product.

Pewabic is not only known for their craft, they are also known in the community for education. Their goal is to educate students each year that art actually can be a possible career path. It's a pretty amazing company.

(via Pewabic Pottery, The Urbane Life and Belle Isle Home)