Attractive Stone Flooring, A Design Favorite

The global economy has greatly influenced home design, giving life to some unexpected trends. Consumers are building and buying homes that are smaller, smarter and greener; quite a contrast to the bigger-is-better, lavish-excess of recent years.

Whether you are planning to build a new home, buy or remodel, you should familiarize yourself with these emerging trends, which appear to be here to stay:

Energy Efficiency is Key, Smarter is Better

1. ENERGY STAR Appliances—Stylish, up-to-date kitchen appliances can make a great impact on your home’s visual appeal. But even more importantly these days—they can also save you money. With energy tax credits and the money you’ll save over time on utility bills, adding energy efficient appliances to your new home has never been so important.
2. Water Catchment Systems—Incorporating native, drought-resistant plants into your landscaping is great-looking and good for the planet. But did you know that you can make your yard even greener by installing a rainwater catchment system. Gutters deliver rainwater into insect and bacteria resistant barrels, which can later be used for watering gardens and several other non-drinking purposes.
3. Energy Saving Building Includes—With utility costs on the rise, homeowners are looking for houses that are well insulated and sealed from the beginning. Drafty, leaky houses are costing too much to maintain, and using up too much energy to heat and cool.
4. Tankless and Solar Water Heaters—Another way to quickly run up your monthly bills is by paying to much for those winter-defrosting hot baths.  Solar heating systems make great, natural use of existing sunshine to heat your hot water, leaving you paying for just those not-so-sunny days.
5. Natural Flooring—Bamboo, cork, wood and stone have long been favorite flooring choices of interior designers, but did you know that they also help create a healthier, chemical-free environment in your home.
6. Outdoor Rooms—With rarely used, formal living rooms becoming a thing of the past, outdoor living and dining spaces are quickly taking over. Some popular features include large, space-heating stone ovens, built-in seating made of natural materials and huge, welcoming dining tables.
7. Smaller, Smarter Spaces—Bigger-is-better is a mindset of the past. Huge homes with extra rooms mean higher monthly bills, and lower spacial efficiency. Homeowners are instead choosing open and accommodating floorplans.
8. Smarter Storage—Built-in kitchen islands, perfectly organized garages and tons of closets can help make better use of your square footage. Too little storage means clutter and large furniture pieces to accommodate closet overflow. But adding extra storage into your build means seamlessly making room for all of your belongings.
9. Smart Home Systems—If you knew how much energy it was actually using, you may be more likely to turn that light off when you leave the room. Smart Home Systems not only allow you to heat and cool based on the times of day that someone is home, but they can also tell you just how much power is being used at a given time.
10. Front and Side Porches—Outdoor spaces add square footage and traditional attractiveness to your home. Whether you’re enjoying a summer evening out front under a ceiling fan or rocking in a chair watching the sunrise, front and side porches enhance your home’s welcoming curbside appeal.

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Custom Home Theater System

Home theater systems are not just about picture and sound quality any longer.  This entertaining electronics trend has transformed into an interior design mainstay.  It doesn’t matter if you are installing your system into a new custom home or an existing remodel; visual congruency between your home and theater system is vital to maintaining design harmony throughout your house.  Theater systems should look good, even when the TV is not turned on.

The past 20 years have demonstrated a fast evolution of the home theater system design.  Bulky, big screen televisions and movie projection devices have been replaced by sleek plasma screens and Blu-Ray hi-def video systems.  Tiny speakers are seamlessly built into walls and ceilings.  Even flat screens are disguised behind paintings and tapestries.  Comfortable and flexible options for seating also abound.

Selecting a Home Theater System

The first step is considering your family’s viewing preferences.   Do you prefer a hi-resolution screen for savoring every detail of your favorite movies, a large screen television for gathering around during a big game, or a modest-yet-accommodating TV for enjoying family time?  Be sure to ask for professional advice from your builder and interior designer to ensure that you select a system that fits best with your viewing needs.  Keep in mind, the home theater’s design will need to incorporate a sound system that fulfills these and aesthetic needs.

Setting Up Your Theater System

The next step is to determine the size and configuration of the system you choose.  The size and shape of your viewing room will govern seating arrangements, placement of equipment, and storage options.  An electronics professional can work with you and your custom home contractor to determine the best usage for the space.

Seamlessly Incorporating Your System

Incorporating the system to suit your home’s look and feel can mean the difference between an eyesore of a room and an enjoyable space for gathering with friends and family. Comfortable chairs or sofas that recline, swivel, and allow the viewer to adjust are a few of the many popular seating options.  Eco-friendly dimmers on the lighting systems, attractive wall hangings or curtains for sound quality, and warm, non-distracting colors can help make your room design a success.  Luxury includes like a custom wet bar or vintage popcorn machine can also add to your viewing pleasure.

An effective home theater design is just one special way that you can transform your home.  Time spent viewing movies with family should be time enjoyed.

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Outdoor living space - Custom home by Brock Builders

Smaller Homes
The old adage of less is more is not always true, but with many trends in new homes, this is becoming more and more popular. Smaller doesn’t necessarily equal less quality, but having a smaller footprint can often create a larger impact on saving resources, time and money. With the rise of open floor plans, many smaller homes are still just as functional as larger ones, but are more practical in layout and functionality.

Flex Space
It might be a home office to you or a library to another, but whatever the reason, flex space is a frequent addition to new floor plans. A qualified general contractor can assist in altering a plan’s flex space to fit your needs. Work with your builder to create a black-out room for home theaters or the builder trend of built-in furniture and French doors for the home office.

Storage
With homes shrinking in size, storage remains a top priority among 2009 building trends. While closets are important, many homeowners are turning to the attic as a new functional space. Often thought of as dead space, the walk-out attic can now become additional square footage to store more than Christmas ornaments and old clothes.

Outdoor Living/Outdoor Rooms
You don’t need a sprawling back yard to have an enjoyable outdoor living area. Functional living space can include everything from an outdoor kitchen and fireplace, to a comfortable seating area and a water feature. How you choose to spend your time outdoors is entirely customizable with your vision and local home builder’s prowess. The recent increase in home technology and green building also expands to outdoor living spaces. Wire your outdoor room for football games and movies, while enjoying delicious meals and an on-site recycling station.

Green Features
One of the largest builder trends practiced today is green building. Whether the home is entirely green, such as a HealthyBuilt Home, or includes tankless water heaters, recycled materials, rainwater collection systems or energy-efficient appliances, green home builders are in high demand and with recent energy tax credits, any-size home can do its part to conserve energy.

Several other trends in new homes include the addition of technology throughout the home such as in security systems, cameras, built-in speakers and other technological conveniences. Custom kitchen design is still one of the most popular home building trends and includes functional spaces rather than rarely-used rooms, such as the formal dining room. Desks, computers, cell-phone recharging stations and multi-use islands are all easy additions yet popular examples of functional custom kitchen designs.

Trends in new homes come and go, but how you live in your home is always the most important part of any new home build.

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