I’d like to share one of the most exciting concepts to come across my computer screen in the last year. The Builder Concept Home 2010 virtual tour is a project brought to us by several well-known names in the construction industry, including Builder Magazine, the official publication of the National Association of Home Builders. Sponsors include American Standard, Andersen Windows & Doors, KraftMaid, Propane Education & Research Council, and Whirlpool.
The concept home is the virtually realized picture of an ideally modern, yet family-friendly home. Within two stories and 1700 square feet, designer Marianne Cusato has captured the essentials; ‘The home for the new economy is a house that’s adaptable, sustainable, buildable but perhaps most importantly, livable space,’ as she explains it in one of the video clips accessible on the tour.
A Fact Sheet provides a quick look a the mechanics of the house. However, you should not miss out on the visual impact of the virtual tour. In collaboration with Mark LaLiberte, a prominent building scientist; Christian Wagley, a landscape architect; and Kendall Horne, a landscape designer; along with various virtual tour application specialists, Marianne has produced a fascinating glimpse at a home which adapts almost of its own accord to different climates, economical stresses, and family situations.
At the heart of her adaptability and livability cypher is the Adaptable Suite; a room in the back of the house created to function as a separate living apartment, complete with kitchenette. Alternatively, this room could be an extra master suite complete with bathroom, a separate office area, or whatever you need it to be at that moment.
One of the circumstances which makes this particular design so attractive to me, is that as I was perusing the virtual tour I kept running across materials which Schumacher Tile and Stone either sells or uses to install tile and slab. For example, DuPont Corian and Zodiac are among some of our more frequent countertop materials. Other familiar products include Whirlpool appliances, which our sister Kitchens by Design sells; Crossville tile, which we offer here at Schumacher Tile and Stone; Broan-NuTone fans, which provides fans for use from the kitchen to the bathroom; and James Hardie Hardiebacker board, which we have used for waterproof tile installations on various occasions.
I encourage you to take some time and visit the Builder Concept Home virtual tour – you won’t be disappointed by the inspiration you find there!
Heidi Breton
Schumacher Tile & Stone
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