Benefits of a Minimalist Home

minimalist vanity

It’s true, according to Psychology Today, clutter has a negative effect on our brains and our lives. Clutter can induce stress and anxiety, making it difficult for us to focus or relax. It’s all about architectural balance: Finding a balance in your home that imbues peace, order and fulfillment. The means to that end is simple—minimalize your home. Our Vail Valley architects provide reasons why updating your home to a minimalist approach will benefit you both in the short- and long-term.

Benefits of a Minimalist Home in Vail Valley

When an outsider thinks of Vail Valley, they imagine majestic mountains, spas and an overall healthy lifestyles. And it’s true, this is the Vail Valley way, but it should also extend into your home. Here are five main reasons how a minimalist home benefits you.

  1. Have less stress. Clutter is a tangible representation of chaos, and chaos causes stress. Your mind can’t rest. Without clutter, comes peace of mind.
  2. Be more productive. Cleaning up the clutter and opening spaces in your home is literally opening spaces in your mind. You can be more productive and think more clearly.
  3. Experience more freedom. Having things, things and more things ties us to one place. Start donating unneeded items and feel how liberating it is.
  4. Feel a calming effect. This benefit is both internal and external. There’s a sense of order and calm within the house that affects everyone. There’s less cleaning to do. With fewer distractions, you are calmer and more relaxed.
  5. Maintain a clean appearance. It is easier to keep a minimalist home clean, but the appearance itself is simply clean. It’s free of distractions, free of unnecessary items, and free of things that complicate life.

If you want more productivity, freedom and relaxation, then you should consider a minimalist home. Contact a professional Vail Valley architect to start getting your life the way you want it!

Want to view more of our work, with luxurious features complemented by a beautiful babbling brook? See this article from Mountain Living.

3 Reasons to Finish Your Wood Décor

wood entryway

The wood in your home, such as wood flooring, with the addition of wood furniture, add dimensions of warm colors to any home.  Add that to a home designed by a top Vail Valley architectural firm, and you’ll have a beautiful home with rustic charm.  It’s important to properly finish your wood decor, especially in the Vail Valley area to keep the architectural balance of the home for years to come.

Keeping Wood Decor Clean

One reason to finish your wood decor is practicality.  Wood is porous, which means there is room for dirt, dust, and microorganisms to live.  Dust and microorganisms can cause health issues, especially for those with allergies.  A quick remedy is to finish the wood in your home.  Wood flooring takes on the majority of household activities, and the architects in Vail Valley understand the importance of a high-quality finish with a proper seal!

Stabilizing Wood Décor

Many do not think about finishing wood décor as a necessity to stabilize the wood material.  Wood is naturally unstable because it is able to absorb and release moisture from its environment.  As you may know, wood absorbing and releasing moisture will cause it to swell and shrink.  Untreated wood swelling and shrinking will lead to splitting, warping and overall deterioration over time.

Adding Beauty and Warmth

Finishing a home’s wood décor adds natural beauty, color and warmth.  Wood has its own depth of beauty unique to each piece that is easily brought out by finishing.  From new flooring to an antique piece of furniture, finishing will add a variety of warm colors to your home that easily blends together.  Create a gorgeous home effortlessly.

If you’re dreaming about a new home, imagine yourself entertaining and relaxing in a home with beautifully finished wood décor.  Contact a professional architect today to start making your dream a reality!

Want to view more of our work, with luxurious features complemented by a beautiful babbling brook? See this article from Mountain Living.

How to Mix Rustic and Traditional Decor Into Your Home

rustic and traditional decor

Eclectic is a design style of its own. Usually defined as a style that embraces influences from different eras, cultures and design aesthetics, it can represent a comfortable mix that appears to have evolved over time. In fact, most interiors evolve in just that way: Grandma’s dining room table is pulled into use alongside a newly-purchased china cabinet or buffet, and an inherited, refinished wood coffee table sits in front of a trendy new sofa.

Mixing Rustic and Traditional Decor in Your Home

Sometimes, however, the mix is a matter of preference and is purposeful and dramatic. Within Vail Valley architecture, the mix of rustic and traditional is especially appealing, as the stunning natural surroundings encourage a variety of architectural expressions. The juxtaposition of sleek and refined with weathered and timeless is always appealing.

How to Blend Furnishings with Great Effect

It’s all about balance. Only in museums is every piece of furniture and architectural trim a similar style. But knowing when to stray from the primary design aesthetic can require a sure sense of what is appropriate. Polished woods and refined color schemes just “ooze” traditional, but even a club chair with traditional lines can be made to feel slightly rustic if you choose a homespun weave for its upholstery. In the same way, a distressed wood floor will feel appropriately elegant in a room filled with traditional furnishings, if you add a hand-woven Oriental rug.

If you adore Vail Valley architecture with a hand-hewn vibe, you can still furnish rooms with some fine antiques. Just pick colors and add accessories that complement both designs, perhaps even adding some Native American designs or displaying ethnic themes from foreign travel.

That’s the beauty of eclectic design—ignore the rules as long as you have a good eye and keep your eye on quality. If you need advice about balancing your Vail Valley home’s architectural or interior design, why not give us a call today?

The Enduring Beauty of Stone for Homes

stone wallWhat better material to bring out the natural, soul-refreshing beauty of living in the Vail Valley than stone? Imagine the perfect home for all seasons. Chances are, you’re envisioning stone within the architectural balance of the space.

Stone Is a Mass that Works for You

Today, with the importance of energy conservation for our environment is well-understood and stone comes forward for its energy-saving properties. Its heat retention powers are outstanding, creating a reliably cozy warmth in the Colorado winter. Yet it has an equally remarkable capacity for helping to keep indoor spaces cool under the summer sun.

Passive eco-aware and solar design features boost these natural benefits considerably. To build with stone is to blend inherently good insulation—and the all-season comfort it brings—with timeless elegance.

Stone Endures

It is famously beautiful, with many hues & textures, and eminently durable. It resists insects and stands up to all of nature’s elements. Maintenance is simple and minimal. With neither painting nor siding needed, a stone exterior retains its appeal through the years.

Great design work with stone exteriors and interior touches will combine form and function, selecting the best stone for each feature. Whether creating a home from the start, or redesigning a specific area, we often call upon stone to dramatically offset key architectural features in the home—a fireplace, a classic hearth, a Kitchen stove surround, an entry vestibule into a Master Suite or Entry Vestibule into the home.

Stone also performs as an enhancement of lasting beauty when surrounding metal, glass, or wood features. It offers a luxurious and serene wall setting in a bathroom, kitchen, or space for relaxation such as a den.  It can also enhance a water feature within or outside a home.

Call Upon Our Expertise

If you are seeking an architectural firm with decades of experience, we invite you to get to know TAB Associates. Our reputation for design and timely completion of projects within the budgets of our clientele is as solid as our construction. To discuss the future of your home with our leading architects, call (970) 766-1470.

4 Tips To Help Maintain Beautiful Hardwood Flooring

game roomHardwood floors bring a warm glow and elegance to any space. Whether you enjoy the luster of sturdy 18th Century flooring or contemporary hardwoods, it’s important to take a few precautions to protect their natural beauty from scratches and scuff marks. Our Vail Valley architectural firm understands the importance of vibrant living and work spaces. Consider these simple preventative measures to help maintain your floor’s long-lasting glow.

Pad Furniture Legs

One the most common ways that wood floors get scratched is from moving furniture across them. By fixing felt or other soft pads on the bottoms of chair legs, coffee tables and heavy pieces of furniture, wood-to-wood contact can be avoided.

Rugs and Carpets

Strategic use of floor coverings adds ambiance and mitigates impact on high traffic areas. A beautiful wood floor looks a little less so when some areas appear more worn out than others. Entryways, hallways and sinks can benefit from a little colorful foot traffic padding.

Shoe Check

Creating a place and policy that shoes come off and remain in mud rooms or by the door helps keep your space clean and avoids tracking grit across polished flooring. Obviously, foot traffic creates the most floor contact and wear. Think about all the potential scratches rolling through that door, from kids’ sports cleats to work boots to high heels. A solid shoes-off program will reduce the potential need for refinishing work.

Regular Maintenance

Hardwood floors enjoy tremendous strength, but the lovely sheen that gives them the warm glow may be subject to wear from everyday dirt, liquids and harsh cleaners. Sweep floors regularly and don’t allow spills to settle for very long. Everyday wear and tear may not cause permanent damage, but it will make your floors look unnecessarily dull. Select only cleaners designed to interact with wood floors.

We hope these suggestion prove valuable. If you are interested in professional services, contact our architects today!

Tips on Finishing Wood With Stain

wood headboardVail Valley architects love to include natural wood in their designs. Whether you’re finishing a new project or bringing life to an old piece, wood stain is the perfect way to get a smooth finish that enhances the natural character of the wood.

Prepare the Surface

Start by sanding the entire piece with 100-grit sandpaper, paying close attention to blemishes and rough spots to achieve a smooth surface. If you have large, flat areas to sand, a random orbital sander can speed up the task. Then, make sure all floors and nearby surfaces are cleaned as stirred up dust will land on your finish and stick. Once the area is clean, wipe down the wood with a tack cloth to be sure it’s spotless.

Apply Stain

Stir the stain well, but avoid shaking as that may cause bubbles. Use a natural-bristle brush to apply stain with the grain, making sure to use plenty of product so it can soak into the wood for a few seconds. Then, using a cotton rag, wipe off excess stain in the order you applied it. Use plenty of rags for even removal.

Seal and Finish

Once the stain is dry, apply a sanding sealer with a natural-bristle brush in the direction of the grain. When you reach an edge, quickly brush back lightly across the piece to eliminate brush marks. Once dry, lightly sand with a 280-grit sanding pad until all surfaces are smooth. Lastly, apply an oil-based varnish using the same technique.

Practice Makes Perfect

If you’re new to staining wood, try a practice run on a scrap piece to get a feel for the products and brushes. That way, you’ll be more confident and get better results when you do the final piece.

Want to incorporate wood into the look and feel of your home? Call TAB Associates to learn how we can integrate plenty of natural wood into your next home design.

How a Fireplace Benefits Your Home

The thought of sitting in front of a warm, crackling fireplace in your own home is something many buyers take into consideration when searching for the perfect place. TAB Associates, an architectural firm in Vail Valley, Colorado, understands how a fireplace brings structural integrity and value to any home. More than just a creature comfort, having a fireplace can bring many other benefits. Here is just a small sampling:

Cozy Environment

There’s just something about having a warm fire going, any time of the year, that brings a sense of comfort throughout the house. Gathering around an open hearth brings its own unique sense of ambiance and coziness, which is even better when it’s shared with friends and loved ones in your home.

Atmosphere

Dimming the lights and sitting in front of a bright, warm fire is a dream setting. Enjoying dinners and movie nights by firelight is truly second to none. As the sun sets, fire up your own fireplace to ensure you have a comfortable, relaxed evening at home.

Eco-Friendly Heating

Today’s wood-burning appliances have become incredibly efficient, and leave a zero-carbon footprint. Some of the higher-end wood-burning units qualify as smokeless heat sources because they produce such a small amount of emissions.

Cut Energy Costs

Electricity costs can become a source of stress as they continue to grow. Because of this, fireplaces are becoming a popular source of prime heating within the home. Some of the newer models have the possibility of distributing heat from the appliance through the existing ductwork to warm the entire home.

With the many benefits they offer, having a fireplace that is a sound and safe structure is also very important. Call the office today and learn how TAB Associates can design a fireplace for any home that is both safe and stylish!

5 Benefits of Designing With Wood

The architects at TAB Associates have been at the helm of many incredible wood designs. If you are thinking of designing or upgrading your next property with wood elements, take a look at 5 of the top benefits of designing with wood, here:

Infrastructure

Materials that are supposedly stronger than wood actually have a disadvantageous effect to heat. Wood actually dries when heated (not to a burning temperature, of course) and strengthens the infrastructure of your home.

Insulation

If you are building with glass, marble, aluminum or steel, you are working with materials that conduct heat exponentially faster than wood. Conducting heat means more energy leakage and more money spent on heating your home. Wood actually helps you save money in this regard—quite a lot of money over the life of a home.

A Quicker Build

Using wood is cheaper than alternative materials, and the job gets done more quickly as well. Master home manufacturers can erect a 1,000 square foot wooden home in 7 days. If you are looking to save money on labor costs while maintaining the quality of the building, use wood wherever you can.

Wood is Green

For every cubic meter of wood that you use in your construction, you save 0.8 tons of carbon emissions to the environment. Basically, every piece of wood that you are using in your home is helping to save the environment, no matter how small the construction.  Also, it is a renewable resource, as a forest can grow back after harvest.

Easily Modified

The different types of wood allow for a great deal of variety in design decisions—you currently have around 5,000 different types to choose from. Wood is also one of the easiest materials to modify once it has been set as the infrastructure of a piece of real estate.

For an architectural firm that can help perfect your wood designs, call the dedicated experts at TAB Associates. We look forward to helping you create the residence of your dreams!

Why Should You Hire an Architect?

TAB Associates Finished HouseVail Valley, Colorado is one of the most spectacular areas of the country, and residents take pride in their beautiful, impeccably designed houses. What’s their secret? They all worked with talented and experienced architects to create the home of their dreams. What are the benefits of hiring an architectural firm?

Architects can guide you through every stage of the building process, from early planning all the way through until your home is ready to be moved into. Keep reading to take a look at what an architect can offer and help you with.

Why You Need An Architect

  • Explore design options to achieve the look that you want.
  • Take full advantage of your site.  From figuring out the driveway to siting the home
  • Capturing all the views and blocking undesirable ones.
  • Exploring the possibility of water features to add to your outside enjoyment.
  • Optimize plans for eco-friendly features such as efficient heating, solar power, and smart water management.
  • Help you find creative ways to maximize your budget.

One of the most important decisions you’ll have to make is deciding on the interior design for your new home. A skilled architect can help you translate your vision into a stylish and functional living space. This may include locating stunning, one-of-a-kind artistic features and sourcing furniture, countertops, and flooring from locally produced materials.

An architect is also an invaluable resource for navigating the legal aspects of home construction. They can assist you with:

  • Vetting and supervising contractors at each stage of the process.
  • Navigating Home Owner Association and municipal building codes.
  • Ensuring compliance with local zoning laws.
  • On-site problem solving when surprises come up during construction.

As you can see, hiring an expert architect will save you a lot of time, money and frustration. TAB Associates is one of central Colorado’s leading architectural balance experts. We have been assisting clients with their home construction or renovation projects for over three decades and would be happy to lend our expertise to you. But don’t let locations stop you; we are able to get licensed in any state and now have an office in Western North Carolina!

Do you have any questions? Call our offices at TAB Associates and one of our friendly team members will be happy to discuss the project with you.

10 Important Questions to Ask an Architect in Vail Valley

Holzworth ResidenceSelecting an architectural firm in Vail Valley will impact your life not only during the construction of your dream project but for many additional years to come. Preparing a list of important questions can help you determine which firm will best meet your needs. Since every person is unique, it is important to rank the following questions in order of importance to you and compare the answers you receive accordingly.

Ten Questions to Ask an Architect

  1. What is unique about your philosophy of design that sets you apart from your competitors?
  2. Who will be designing my project and will this be the same person I will be communicating with throughout the project?
  3. What type of timeframe will you need to complete this project? Will your firm be able to prioritize the work or are you highly occupied at this time?
  4. Do you foresee any particular challenges and if so, are your architects experienced in dealing with similar situations?
  5. Will you utilize computer animation, drawings or other materials as visual aids while answering any questions I have?
  6. Will I need to directly communicate with the general contractor who oversees construction of my project?
  7. Is your firm well versed in sustainable or “green” building designs which will save significant amounts of money and energy?
  8. What are the estimated costs of your services for this project and how are your fees determined?
  9. What types of situations typically generate additional expenses?
  10. What percentage of your projects are completed within the initial budget or estimate you provide?

Choose Your Firm With Care

Regardless of whether you are planning construction for a single family home or a multi-million dollar retreat facility, working with the architectural firm which best meets your needs will significantly affect your overall satisfaction. Give our Vail Valley architects at TAB Associates a call when you are ready to discuss the details of your plan with qualified professionals.