Archive for Exterior Improvements – Page 2

When It’s Time To Ask For a Design Consultation

Posted by Faith and Hope on

November 14, 2019

Building with Hope and Faith

When It’s Time To Ask For a Design Consultation

We’re often asked how to get started in any kind of construction or renovation project, so we wanted to describe WHY you would want a design consultation, how it works and what you’ll get out of it.

Are you a candidate for a Design Consultation? Here’s how to tell:

Are there certain features in your house that you don’t like, but are resigned to the fact that it’s “just the way this house is”?
Are you planning on a large construction project in the future, and are adding a list of small changes that are going to get done along with the larger project?
Are you planning a kitchen project, but wish you could discuss possibilities for what could also get done in the basement or master bath?
Does your family’s living space allow for connections from the kitchen to adjacent spaces so you don’t feel isolated while cooking?
Is your house configured for ease of entertaining or family gatherings you would like to have?
Do you wish you had more natural light or a better view to nature, or your yard?
Do you know your house doesn’t feel right, wish it could change, but don’t know how it should be different?

Here’s How It Works and What To Expect

If you said yes to any of these questions, you may indeed be ready for a Design Consultation, which, not surprisingly, takes place at the project site (in your home). We walk through and around the house with you and look at what you love, what you hate, and all the possibilities.

We ask tons of questions, and often questions you have never even considered. We discuss and weigh the merits of various possible design solutions. And we ask more questions. We LISTEN! Your ideas are tossed around with our ideas. We offer our knowledge and our expertise and possibly alternate options.

The Design Consultation could lead to a master plan for projects to be done over time, or it could lead to a small project to hold you over, or it could lead to that amazing full transformation of your house that you have been dreaming of for years.

It all boils down to this one BIG question: Are you ready to LOVE your home?

This is what we do – we make you fall in love with your home as if you’re seeing it for the first time; because in a sense, you are. It may not be the house you purchased, but it will be the house you’ll love coming home to, each and every day.

Your surroundings can totally affect your life,
your spirit, your emotional well being!

Do you have transformational dreams for your house and
simply can’t “see it happening?”
Click below to get started.

I would love to talk!

If a friend forwarded this to you, this does not mean that we have added you to our list.
However, if you would like to receive our updates, click below.

Yes, send me your design tips.

Categories : Design Accuracy, Exterior Improvements, Pergolas, Renovations, Residential Design

Dull to Dynamite – The Rear of Your House Can be as Exciting as the Front

Posted by Faith and Hope on

July 1, 2019

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Building with Hope and Faith

Dull to Dynamite
The Rear of Your House Can Be As Exciting as the Front

In our last Project Story, you came along with us on our tour of The Craftsman house, where we transformed the front of the home from bland to beautiful. If you missed it, you can catch up here.

In Part 2 of this story, we’re showing you how we transformed the rear of the home from dull to dynamite, giving the home owners a great deal more enjoyment of the back of their lovely property.

See below – quite the change, isn’t it?

The house is located on a good-sized property, with a spacious, private back yard. The home owners liked to garden, but overall, had no place to simply sit and enjoy their back yard. There was no deck, no patio.

A blank canvas! That works for us, and we set about designing 3 distinct areas for their enjoyment. Each of these spaces has a unique function and a different feel.

First is their new screened-in porch. This new space enables them to enjoy the outdoors – yet fully protected from the elements. It boasts a roof and interchangeable screen-to-storm windows to allow them to unwind in their new favorite spot most of the year.

Oh, did we mention it has a hot tub, too? A great place to de-stress!

Next, is an open deck – no roof or walls to obstruct their view of nature, their garden, and the back yard. So peaceful! (And a great place to enjoy the sunshine.)

And their unique “bonus” area – the pergola. This small but special space on the deck gave them built-in seating. With some covering overhead, it provides both shade and privacy from neighbors. It’s a more intimate outdoor place to hang out.

And Inside…

While the most dramatic transformations happened to the exterior of the structure, we didn’t forget to match the inside.

Continuing the Craftsman style, we designed some simple renovations to the inside of the house. While we didn’t rearrange any of the interior space, we did add craftsman style detailing.

Love Your Neighborhood, Hate Your House?

Many of our clients have lived in their home for years. It enabled them to see what was working and what they had issues with. While loving their area or neighborhood, they identified something about the house that “just had to go”. If you don’t love the way your house is working for you and your family at this time, does that mean you have to pick up and move?

Our clients will tell you that by staying put and having us design the dream home they can love again, they are now appreciating coming home every day to their newly transformed house.

Considering moving because you can’t envision a “fix” for your house issue? Call us first! We have designed creative solutions to all kinds of challenges, so give us the opportunity to make you fall in love with your house all over again.

Your surroundings can totally affect your life,
your spirit, your emotional well being!

Do you have transformational dreams for your house and
simply can’t “see it happening?”
Click below to get started.

I would love to talk!

If a friend forwarded this to you, this does not mean that we have added you to our list.
However, if you would like to receive our updates, click below.

Yes, send me your design tips.

Categories : Exterior Improvements, Interior Renovations, Renovations, Residential Design

Boring Style? Change It To One You Love To Come Home To

Posted by Faith and Hope on

April 26, 2019

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Building with Hope and Faith

Boring Style?
Change It To One You Love To Come Home To

More than loving the reaction our clients have to our newly finished projects, we are honored and grateful to be able to see them still thrilled with their “new” house after several years.

Fourteen years ago we were engaged by a family who owned a simple, plain ranch-style home. It was ok but they weren’t loving the look of it.

Did you know that you can totally change the style of your home from its original design? Something we remind people about, all the time.

In this story, our clients always wanted a Craftsman style home. Yet here they were, living in a bland ranch. Problem? Not for us!

Curb appeal doesn’t always mean “prettying” up the outside of your home just because you’re getting ready to sell it. It means making it wonderful for YOU so that when you drive home every day you admire the beauty that is your very own house. And of course, so that your visitors and neighbors can also admire your attractive home.

So here’s the funny part – we had been planning on sharing this project with you for a while now, but other projects got pushed to the forefront.

While taking our afternoon walk the other day, a car slowed down next to us, a woman popped her head out the window and yelled, “you did a project for us 14 years ago and we still LOVE our house!” And we chatted in the street about living in a house that truly suits them and fills them with joy. We guess it was the universe telling us it was time to showcase and share this project with you today!

In addition to the happiness they experience every time they pull up to the front of their Craftsman house, they told us they use their new screened porch and their deck with accompanying pergola all the time.

Don’t worry, we’ll show you more photos of the back of their house at a later date. And while we added some craftsman details to the interior of the house, the family’s goal was to change the exterior from plain ranch to Craftsman, a style they’ve always admired.

When working with new clients, we always ask, “what’s your goal?” and in this case, they simply wanted to fall in love with the look of the house, to live in a Craftsman house, and to enhance the curb appeal for their own personal enjoyment for years to come.

And 14 years later, they still do. We took a look at it recently and while the landscaping has matured, the beauty of the house still shines through and warms their hearts every day.

Wouldn’t you love experiencing that same reaction pulling into your home every day? If it’s not happening today, and you feel “stuck” with a style of house you don’t like or that doesn’t work for you, reach out to us. We are willing to bet we can get you and your family “unstuck” and loving the look of your home for now and for years to come.

Your surroundings can totally affect your life,
your spirit, your emotional well being!

Do you have transformational dreams for your house and
simply can’t “see it happening?”
Click below to get started.

I would love to talk!

If a friend forwarded this to you, this does not mean that we have added you to our list.
However, if you would like to receive our updates, click below.

Yes, send me your design tips.

Categories : Exterior Improvements, Pergolas, Renovations

Transform Your House, Transform Your Life

Posted by Faith and Hope on

September 27, 2018

· No Comments

Building with Hope and Faith

Transform Your House, Transform Your Life

What happens when you live in a “nice” house? No huge problems, but no wow factor, either. When you come home at the end of the day, you can’t rejoice, “I love my house!”

We transformed a “nice” house into a “wow” house without adding to the footprint of the building . Working with the family, we figured out what the issues and problems were.

The first floor contained 2 of the 3 bedrooms, but this area was laid out in a “choppy” maze. Also, the front entry foyer was not only non-descript, there wasn’t much room for visitors to gather when they entered. This cramped entry wouldn’t allow for you to admire the home’s lovely circular grand staircase until after you walked through a tiny hallway.

By adding dormers and finishing what had been an attic, we were able to move the 2 bedrooms from the first to the second floor, where the master was already located. Then we were able to open up the first floor area where the bedrooms used to be and use that space for a family/game room.
We reconfigured the small, non-descript front entry foyer.

Now the homeowners have that wow factor and their guests have a place to “be” when they walk in. In the area in front of the staircase, we changed the walls to create an octagonal space with a new octagonal pattern design in the wood flooring. Anyone who walks in now has enough space to step inside a comfortably sized area and appreciate the staircase.

With our design, we enhanced the curb appeal while keeping the charm of an older house. We maintained and copied the attractive details, trim and overhangs of the home and then reconfigured the roof by adding larger dormers for more pop (and more room).

While we didn’t change the design of the main roof it now has more of a wow factor.

We also reconfigured the windows, most notably changing the window configuration of the wall you see when you approach the house.

Is your home just “nice”? Sometimes, it’s about taking the things that were already special and finding creative ways to accentuate them. It’s also advantageous to rework a poor layout so that you have a better use of the space.

We’re all about making our clients’ lives happy and giving them a transformation so they can have the experience of truly loving and enjoying their house. So we were thrilled later when the homeowner said:

“What an improvement this has made to our quality of life!”

If a friend forwarded this to you, this does not mean that we have added you to our list. However, if you would like to receive our updates, click below.

Yes, send me your design tips.

Your surroundings can totally affect your life,
your spirit, your emotional well being!

Do you have transformational dreams for your house and
simply can’t “see it happening?”
Click below to get started.

I would love to talk!

Categories : Exterior Improvements, Interior Renovations, Renovations, Residential Design

Designed & Built by Hope and Faith – the Family Edition

Posted by Faith and Hope on

May 3, 2018

· No Comments

Building with Hope and Faith

All in the Family

Before Contenporary Renovation by Zimmerman Architects Denville NJ

It’s typically not until you become an adult that you look back with appreciation on all that your parents have done to raise you in loving security and happiness. And if you’re a large family, that recognition is even more intense. Do you present your parents with flowers? A dinner out? A gift certificate?

When it came to saying ‘thank you’, we decided to “go big” when we approached adulthood as young architects in the 1980’s. We skipped the gift card and flowers, and instead, we renovated and added to our parents’ home and recruited all our siblings as workers. Yes, this construction project was designed AND built by Hope and Faith (and a supporting cast of Zimmermans and in-laws).

While Faith was the primary back hoe operator, everyone pitched in with building the foundation and the framing, doing the wiring, plumbing, and all the finish work. It’s important to note here that we didn’t waste time with guess work – we researched and learned beyond our architectural degrees – for example, to design the lighting we took a lighting class to understand what was possible and how to get it done.

This project gave us wonderful experience as new architects to see firsthand what the lines on the paper actually mean in the field.

Here was the challenge: the social space of the house was too small for our expanding extended family. We had 7 kids growing up in our family home. Even as the “kids” became adults, our large, close-knit family continued to get together on a regular basis. Although we grew up and moved out, married and had children, we would all come right back to the nest to celebrate all the birthdays and holidays.

Our family of 9 had expanded to 16 and then with grandkids quickly jumped to 27 (and that was without including any of the “extras” who often joined us). So it was getting tough to get all those people crammed into the modest-sized living room / dining room space in that home. It was a split level whose bedroom area had been previously expanded; so while the overall house size was not an issue, we couldn’t pull the bedroom space into the kitchen for an expansion.

The Truth Was…

The truth was that mom hated the 1950’s split level style of the house. She dreamed of a more contemporary house. Although Mom and Dad loved the neighborhood, they would go out searching for a more desirable house but couldn’t find the right house on the right property in right neighborhood.

The goal was not just to improve the functionality, but to totally transform the look and feel of the house to the contemporary beauty of her dreams.
While Mom deserved the best, she didn’t have a clear vision of what she wanted, just a general, vague idea. So the Zimmerman family worked on the design together. And while inside it’s still a split-level, it now has that contemporary feel, both inside and out, that Mom always wanted.

The Contemporary Home Transformation

At this point, that renovation is now 30 years old! Now the “new” kitchen is dated. What would we do today? If we decided to put on our hard hats again, we would open up the kitchen to the dining room so that it could feel more spacious.

If your family has been in your same home for generations, how has it stood the test of time? With new family members being added, are your holidays cramped for space? Call us to discuss your vision of your dream home.

Stay tuned for Episode Two – Special Touches!

Your surroundings can totally affect your life,
your spirit, your emotional well being!

Do you have transformational dreams for your house and
simply can’t “see it happening?”
Click below to get started.

I would love to talk!

If a friend forwarded this to you, this does not mean that we have added you to our list. However, if you would like to receive our updates, click below.

Yes, send me your design tips.

Categories : Exterior Improvements, Fun Projects, Paying It Forward, Renovations, Residential Design

Your Dream Home Is Closer Than You Think

Posted by Faith and Hope on

December 21, 2017

· No Comments

Building with Hope and Faith

Your Dream Home Is Closer Than You Think

Imagine if your house could undergo a major transformation that would not only help you fall in love with it, but it would also substantially increase the sale value. By investing in the right architectural services, there’s no need to put aside your vision: we can create it.

Even if selling your home is not in your plans, we know from watching all those HGTV shows that large scale home improvements usually enable you to sell your house at a much higher price. That’s a general statement, so here’s a true story to show you what’s possible.

Above, you see the house as our client purchased it.

We worked with clients who had purchased a small house. They had a “dream house” in mind, so, they brought us in to transform it into the home they envisioned. Once the renovation was done, they LOVED it! They wanted to live there forever!

A really big difference, right?

However, life happens, and an unforeseen job relocation required them to sell it almost immediately after it was done. They were devastated. How did their renovated modest home do on the market? They closed the sale at over a million dollars.

So even though resale value wasn’t a consideration when they hired us, it did help to ease the pain of having to leave their dream house behind.

We’d love to guarantee it will happen for you, but of course, we can’t. However, it has happened on more than one occasion, where the architectural services significantly increased the sale value of a house. And it dramatically increased the clients’ enjoyment of living in their newly transformed home.

Sometimes during a design consult, a potential client will say, “I just need more room; I don’t care what it looks like”. That just blows our minds!

When you build your addition, projects of the same size and scope will carry the same price tag, whether it’s “ugly or awesome”. Why would you want to do something that isn’t the best it could possibly be? We invite you count on us to make it awesome!

Your surroundings can totally affect your life,
your spirit, your emotional well being!

Do you have transformational dreams for your house and
simply can’t “see it happening?”
Click below to get started.

I would love to talk!

Categories : Exterior Improvements, Interior Renovations, Renovations, Residential Design

Sometimes Our Creativity Is Just For Fun – Part 2

Posted by Faith and Hope on

November 16, 2017

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Building with Hope and Faith

Sometimes Our Creativity Is Just For Fun

You may recall our giving you a sneak peek into our personal creativity when we showcased the building of Hope’s fire pit. We enjoy sharing with you our love of imaginative and fun design, and how we believe that the outside is an important component of your home.

So come outside with us, into that same backyard. This time Hope built a pergola, situated between the fire pit and the pond.

This pergola is a decorative outdoor structure that adds an artistic piece to the backyard, as well as a sense of enclosure. This unique design features a comfy swing. This pergola was designed by Hope and built by Hope and her husband Lee (and admired by Faith).

We built this ourselves, carefully detailed and meticulously handcrafted – applying our whimsical design – truly one of a kind. We did not start out with a kit of parts – we actually made everything ourselves.

Hope’s backyard “project” has been going on for quite a while; it’s becoming quite a backyard retreat. Hope wanted this to be a place where you can enjoy peaceful solitude, but also a place for family and friends to gather.

This is what Zimmerman Architects do – we help create a customized environment that speaks to you. Our personal backyard project is a well designed but small retreat. We make your property special to you whether or not you own a huge property. No matter the size, any space can be special if designed just right.

Your surroundings can totally affect your life,
your spirit, your emotional well being!

Do you have transformational dreams for your house and
simply can’t “see it happening?”
Click below to get started.

I would love to talk!

Categories : Exterior Improvements, Fun Projects, Pergolas, Working with Zimmerman Architects

Sometimes Our Creativity Is Just For Fun

Posted by Faith and Hope on

November 13, 2017

· No Comments

Building with Hope and Faith

Sometimes Our Creativity Is Just For Fun

You may know us simply as professionals in the architecture field, so we wanted to give you a glimpse at the side of us you haven’t seen before. We have an incurable love of creativity and are not at all afraid of getting our hands dirty. It’s important to us to discover and design creative uses for things and materials that we rescue from neglect. We can see potential value in lots of things most folks don’t consider highly valuable.

To show you what we mean, from time to time, we’ll be sharing some projects that we designed and built ourselves, not for clients, but just for fun — one of the many things we do in our “spare” time.

Some empty space, dirt and rocks – that’s what others see. We saw the perfect spot for a fire pit, so we set to work, moving each piece of material ourselves.

Yes, that’s Hope getting down and dirty into her creation! The fire pit was made from old Belgian blocks found on the property and re-purposed for our vision. The backyard had been sloped, so we terraced it into distinct levels. We built retaining walls from the large rocks that were conveniently already on site. Hope and her husband, Lee, hand-placed each patio block and stone with love and a joyous spirit of the fun of creating something new.

Our fire pit is round and sunken below the level of the patio. The blocks are at same level as the patio. The design of the fire pit showcases lines radiating from it, as rays from the sun.
At the next higher level is a pond (not shown here), because we liked the play on juxtaposing fire and water.

This project has been ongoing from the last 5 years. What can we say — we just don’t get as much “spare time” as we’d like!

Your surroundings can totally affect your life,
your spirit, your emotional well being!

Do you have transformational dreams for your house and
simply can’t “see it happening?”
Click below to get started.

I would love to talk!

Categories : Exterior Improvements, Fun Projects

What You See Is What You Get

Posted by Faith and Hope on

November 3, 2017

· No Comments

Building with Hope and Faith

What You See Is What You Get:
The Accuracy of Our Drawings

As Architects, the most important thing to us is that you LOVE your completed project and that it is everything you dreamed it would be.

One of the ways we do this by making sure that you fully understand it, so that when you approve the design, you know what it is you are approving and can really see it in your mind’s eye.

In fact, we had a client who told us incredulously, “I went out in the back yard and looked at the finished addition… It looks exactly like your drawings!” So now we make sure all of our clients know this to be true. Read More→

Categories : Architectural drawings, Design Accuracy, Exterior Improvements, Porches, Renovations, Residential Design, Working with Zimmerman Architects

I Love My House

Posted by Faith and Hope on

October 18, 2017

· No Comments

Building with Hope and Faith

I Love My House

When is the last time YOU came home and said with pride, “I LOVE my house!” ?

Never? Well, we’re going to tell you the story of a homeowner who called on us to create the transformation of a lifetime for her house. Like many others, the owner purchased the house as their “starter home”, admitting it was not the most attractive – but it fit into their budget at the time.

During their Design Consultation, they stated their goal was not just to “fix” the issues they found in the design and functionality, they also finally wanted to be proud of their house and show it off to guests.

In fact, the changes we designed for their home were so dramatic, that we can’t feature them all in one campaign – so we’ll present the exterior renovations here, and unveil the interior improvements in Part 2, next week!

For the exterior of the house, we kept to the same basic style, but added better detailing, re-configuring the roof lines, which made a dramatic difference. Read More→

Categories : Exterior Improvements, Porches, Renovations, Residential Design

Archive for Exterior Improvements – Page 2

When It’s Time To Ask For a Design Consultation

Are you a candidate for a Design Consultation? Here’s how to tell:

Here’s How It Works and What To Expect

Your surroundings can totally affect your life, your spirit, your emotional well being!

Dull to Dynamite The Rear of Your House Can Be As Exciting as the Front

And Inside…

Love Your Neighborhood, Hate Your House?

Your surroundings can totally affect your life, your spirit, your emotional well being!

Boring Style? Change It To One You Love To Come Home To

Your surroundings can totally affect your life, your spirit, your emotional well being!

Transform Your House, Transform Your Life

Your surroundings can totally affect your life, your spirit, your emotional well being!

All in the Family

The Truth Was…

The Contemporary Home Transformation

Stay tuned for Episode Two – Special Touches!

Your surroundings can totally affect your life, your spirit, your emotional well being!

Your Dream Home Is Closer Than You Think

Above, you see the house as our client purchased it.

A really big difference, right?

Your surroundings can totally affect your life, your spirit, your emotional well being!

Sometimes Our Creativity Is Just For Fun

Your surroundings can totally affect your life, your spirit, your emotional well being!

Sometimes Our Creativity Is Just For Fun

Your surroundings can totally affect your life, your spirit, your emotional well being!

What You See Is What You Get: The Accuracy of Our Drawings

I Love My House

When is the last time YOU came home and said with pride, “I LOVE my house!” ?

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Your surroundings can totally affect your life,
your spirit, your emotional well being!

Dull to Dynamite
The Rear of Your House Can Be As Exciting as the Front

Your surroundings can totally affect your life,
your spirit, your emotional well being!

Boring Style?
Change It To One You Love To Come Home To

Your surroundings can totally affect your life,
your spirit, your emotional well being!

Your surroundings can totally affect your life,
your spirit, your emotional well being!

Your surroundings can totally affect your life,
your spirit, your emotional well being!

Your surroundings can totally affect your life,
your spirit, your emotional well being!

Your surroundings can totally affect your life,
your spirit, your emotional well being!

Your surroundings can totally affect your life,
your spirit, your emotional well being!

What You See Is What You Get:
The Accuracy of Our Drawings