It's fun to sneak little details into a project, ones that make people say 'ooooh, that's so cool!'. It doesn't have to be an earth-shattering idea to make an impact. Much like fashion, where just a different color thread or an added zipper can make all the difference in a plain garment, architecture and building can have a freshness to it with just a surprising detail or two.
We at Camelot Custom Homes like taking ideas from our travels and putting them in the homes we build. In the photo below, look at the opening to the right. See that strip of light tucked inside a channel in the rock? We saw that detail in an airport in Europe and thought we'd try it in an Austin custom home. Just a little detail to create some interest, have a bit of impact -- because imagine the opening without the light...still a lovely home, but just a smidge less interesting.
One of our all-time favorite details were the skylights at a home we toured by Hugh Jefferson Randolph Architects. (<<< click for photos) Their 'Arrowhead' project had natural light spilling into the home from above the fireplace and above the kitchen island through intricately designed openings. The detail surrounding the skylights were unique, mostly hidden, yet produced some of the brightest light on a rainy day that we've ever seen. The way the drywall was angled, the perfect texture (or lack of), the paint color, the position of the glass. Exquisite! In lesser hands, it might have just been a skylight, but it's those little details that made these skylights perfect.
Funny enough, the photo below is Camelot Custom Home's most asked about. We have this photo on our Houzz page and in our paper brochure, and it's just a picture of a hallway with glass shelving. But everybody wants to know how it's done because the shelves look like they are floating. We're happy to share the secret, just give us a call. While they're just shelves, it makes the hallway a space instead of just a pass-through. How boring it would be without those cool shelves. In fact, we wouldn't even have a photo of it otherwise. Details make it interesting.
Another of our favorite little details is the subtle curve theme in this Austin area remodel designed by Arbib Hughey. (<<< click for more photos of this project), and built by Alex Pettitt with Spring Builders. The before/after pictures are amazing, but in the photo below take a look at the way the curved cabinetry mimics the curves in the ceiling. It would have been infinitely easier to just install the cabinetry and move on, neglecting to carry the theme into the next room. But they put in that extra detail, didn't over-do it, and the impact is huge.
There are builders and architects out there who truly are craftsmen, who really know how things fit together and how one little detail can make all the difference. Inspiration is everywhere -- are you noticing?