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A Luxurious yet Subtle House in Paradise

A simply gorgeous house in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico from Elias Rizo Arquitectos makes very adroit use of texture and color.

Designed with a sensitivity to the incredible setting, the architect uses delicacy and restraint.

The result is a featherweight touch that does not interfere with serene and stunning views.

The subtle shades of lavender to blue and turquoise washes are what you see, not look-at-me architecture.

The front of the house is completely open to the vast ocean.

Wooden baffles break up the stucco for an appealing texture and color contrast.

From inside, these also act to frame the infinite views.

Contrasting with the infinite airy and watery blues and greens of the setting, indoors there is a sumptuous and earthy decor.

Here the comfort of an abundance of natural colors, soft textures and thick woods draw the attention from the infinite back  to the immediate.

An entire chunk of a single sunbleached driftwood tree trunk is brought inside as if it is sculpture.

In one blissfully escapist bedroom a gorgeous palette of soft naturals is offset by dark woods and rich suede.

Beyond the wooden shutters, a bath is bathed in light from above.

In the interior, a screen wall of teak marks off the sleeping area from the ensuite.

Other bathrooms are glossy and cool, smooth and silky marble and glass, while continuing the natural shades throughout.

One bathroom has a heavenly shower that overlooks the vast blue waters beyond.

All the bedrooms feature these same soft natural colors and the warm “dry” textures of softness and comfort, contrasting whites and naturals against the rich dark woods.

The first welcome glimpse of the ocean is seen as you approach the generous gate, that swings open as you approach.

This high and wide gated entry continues the local colonial style inherited from 17th century Spain, where doors into courtyards were made ample enough to ride into the courtyard on horseback.

It’s a house that is both warm and cool, both comforting and inspiring, a luxurious and yet subtle house in paradise

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Design Dilemma: Indoor/Outdoor Living to the Max

It’s during the summer months that we really crave spaces that take advantage of the great outdoors. Indoor/outdoor living is where it’s at!

Here’s a house (above and below) in Nicaragua that is the closest one can come to living with nature while not living in a tent. Take a look:

And this:

And this:

And this:

Now obviously, such a home wouldn’t work in many climates, but in warm ones that are not rife with mosquitoes, this kind of home offers the absolute maximum in indoor/outdoor living. The owners, painter Peta Kaplan and sculptor Ben Sandzer-Bell have settled in Granada, Nicaragua. Their two-bedroom, two-bathroom home, only 1295 square feet, feels much, much bigger, thanks to its open floor plan in which rooms open onto a central courtyard featuring a small swimming pool. Here’s a better view of the pool:

The homes uses lots of natural, local materials and curvilinear shapes to continue the organic, outdoor theme. Most doors, for example are curved:

We can’t imagine anything better for those who crave proximity to nature. (On the other hand, those who don’t like insects and small critters in the home may be less enamored.)

So what’s the take away for most of us who may not live in such a mild climate, but who yearn to have more of an indoor/outdoor house?

• Install lots of big windows with direct access to the outdoors. If you can’t do that, at least bring in lots and lots of natural light whenever possible.
• If you’re building a new home, consider an interior courtyard onto which all rooms can open. Be sure to fill the courtyard with lots and lots of plants. If that’s not doable, invest in large, lush houseplants  or install window boxes filled with flowers. In colder or rainier climates, perhaps a centralized solarium might be an answer.
• Open up the roof somewhere in your home. Install a skylight that allow you to glimpse the big blue sky. If you can’t do that, consider a solar tube that will at least allow you to bring more light into dark spaces.
• Fill your home with natural materials. Bamboo, wood, stone and terra cotta have a way of bringing a little bit of nature indoors, even in the big city.

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Another iT House Snaps together in the California Desert

Designed for living lightly on the land, the iT House from Taalman Koch is a prefab erected in the desert lands of Pioneer Town, California.

7The design system utilizes a series of components prefabricated off-site.

Entirely constructed of lightweight aluminium and glass, this simple prefab snaps together in a trice.

Well, maybe not quite a trice! But certainly it is much faster. Prefabrication offsite definitely minimizes a building’s impact, which is especially helpful in undisturbed desert sites.

A prefab construction technique also ensures better control the construction waste, labor, and quality of the finished product. Read the rest of this entry »