New Lake Home by Ron Brenner Architects

Ron Brenner Architects  has been working on a new Lake Home Design for a Twin Cities area client.  Check out the video below for a sneak preview.

 The design features a main floor master suite with open / connected living spaces taking advantage of  it's lake side setting.  Twin Gables connected by an eyebrow roof and window wall create an exciting entry and lake side image.

New Modern Farmhouse by Ron Brenner Architects

Ron Brenner Architects has been working on another new custom designed home to be constructed in Willernie, Minnesota.  The 4 bedroom home seamlessly incorporates contemporary siding and window patterns within classic mid-western farmhouse forms.  Check out the images below:

Entry Image - We conceived of a bosque of trees to delineate public entry from the private garage zone.  The wrapping front porch provides space to wait for oncoming guests.

Front Elevation Image - The garage is treated like a connected barn; right down to the red siding.  The elevation demonstrates the great attention we pay to scale and proportion on all of our designs.

Come see our 2014 Fall Parade Home

Over at Ron Brenner Architects we are proud to announce that we currently have a home on tour during the fall Parade of Homes.  This is a one of a kind custom designed home exquisitely crafted by Hendel Homes and supremely decorated by Martha O'Hara Interiors.

If you are in the twin cities area during the month of September (through September 28th) you should check it out.  Parade #309 - the home is located at 2309 Willow Drive in Orono, MN and can be toured Thursdays through Sundays from noon till 6 pm.

Check out a few of our scouting photos - more to follow:

Front Entry Image

Living Room study area beyond

Kitchen

Study Area / Library

Stair Tower

Main Floor Hall

Looking down through stair tower from upper hall

Upper Hall

Looking down towards living room from stair landing

Study Area / Library

Exterior Entry Side

Garage Door Detailing

New Greek Revival Farmhouse Photos

We have just received some new exterior photos of a Greek Revival Farmhouse designed by Ron Brenner Architects.  The Lake Elmo, MN home was exquisitely constructed by Hendel Homes in 2013 - and we are very proud of how it turned out.  Check out these shots.

Kind of Fancy Lake Home Update

In our previous blog we gave a sneak peak at a Northern Minnesota Lake Home that Ron Brenner Architects is designing.  Here is a quick little animation and an updated view of the lake side of the home.

Lots of glass, porch and patio spaces and even a second floor balcony - take advantage of this home's lake side setting.

New Lake Home Kind of Fancy!

Over at Ron Brenner Architects we are working on a new home design to be constructed on a Northern Minnesota Lake Lot.  The design is kind of fancy but adheres to our design principles; start with solid forms and good proportions then apply an appropriate amount of detail and ornament.  Here are a few preview images.

Front Entry Image.  A graceful entry porch is flanked by the dominant front facing gable.  Influence of the three garage doors is minimized by a deep sweeping overhang with timber brackets.

Lake Side Image.  An abundance of glass and a variety of porches take advantage of it's lake side setting.

Lake Side Image.  The front gable runs through to the rear elevation to provide balance and hierarchy to the composition.

 

Snappy Home Design by Ron Brenner Architects

At Ron Brenner Architects we have been working on a new model home design which will be constructed in Woodbury, Minnesota.  Below is a sneak preview (in animation form) of our first concept. 

If you expand the video make sure you increase the YouTube quality to 1080p.  It will look much more snappy.

 

This is a good example of how I like to work.  Firstly, get the overall form and plan working together in a harmonious way before moving on to window patterns, materials, textures, colors, etc...  I think this is a good first start, but we will also be fine tuning and exploring other options.

New Community Building by Ron Brenner Architects

Over at Ron Brenner Architects we are working on a new community building for the Stonemill Farms neighborhood in Woodbury, Minnesota.  The facility includes an indoor / outdoor meeting facility, teen center, splash pool and playground.  Check out the images below.

Houzz on Fire!

I was recently at the "Capture, Communicate, Create" event at the W Hotel in Minneapolis where Liza Hausman from Houzz was the featured guest.  If you have never heard of Houzz you should probably check it out.

Houzz is quickly becoming a leading destination site for home design enthusiasts.  It features over 200,000 high quality interior and exterior photos that have been uploaded by the original designers.  This makes Houzz the Internet's largest database of design and decorating ideas.

Houzz has a number of features for homeowners, but I think the coolest is that you can create your own ideabooks.  It's the modern day version of the old "cut and paste scrapbook" from magazines. Preparing to build a new home or take on a major remodeling?  Create an ideabook and share it with your Architect. In my own practice I love ideabooks because it helps me to understand my clients tastes and preferences. With this information I can design something new and fresh, but in a vein I know my client will love.

So do check it out.  You can view the Ron Brenner Architects Houzz page at http://www.houzz.com/ron-brenner-architects.  

And please don't forget to like us!

traditional yet contemporary home design

Over at ron brenner architects I am doing some design work for new clients of mine.  They are looking for a home that blends the contemporary with the traditional; something that is both yesterday and today.  I presented the following three concepts.

A double gable scheme.  This form being familiar without being common.  

Shed on shed scheme.  Here I utilized a classic saltbox colonial roof form; blended with a more contemporary arrangement of windows and use of color.

Gable on saltbox scheme.  The full front gable is an unusual variation.  Side bumpout and "link" between house and garage is clad with metal

My clients were very happy with the alternatives.  In my next article I'll show you which scheme they chose; along with the developments we have made since then.


Which scheme do you prefer?

granny flat featured in forbes

A few years ago I (ron brenner architects) designed an above garage studio apartment for the father (grandpa) of a client of mine.  The apartment was featured in a new book called In Laws, Out Laws and Granny Flats.  I have included a couple of images here.

Now Forbes.com  has picked up on the idea.  Check out the article by Ashlea Ebeling at 10 Chic Granny Flats.