Luxury Housing Trends & Home Improvement Ideas

We’ve talked about using reclaimed wood to build your fabulous new/old hardwood floors, but wood isn’t the only thing you can salvage from around the world for use in your home. These art deco gate doors (circa 1930) are an example of the kind of things you can see at the Urban Archaeology web site. A portion of the site is devoted to the company’s latest finds, which are of course for sale. The collection ranges from wrought iron gates to cast iron urns to antique grand ballroom chandeliers to old-fashioned rolling library ladders. The items come from places like demolished libraries in New York City to old hotels in Paris. Don’t expect to get garage sale prices on these salvaged items though. These Edgar Brandt art deco gates will run you $27,500 for the pair.

http://www.urbanarchaeology.com/salvage/salvage1.html

Who says the kitchen sink needs to be a boring old rectangle or square? The Eleek Bow Tie Sink presents you with another option. It measures 25″ X 16.5″ X 8″ and is available in bronze (90% recycled materials) and aluminum (100% recycled), which can be given colored finishes. A built-in colander is designed to hold produce while washing it or ice if you’re throwing a party. The price for the bow tie sink is $1,295 for the bronze and $1,095 for the aluminum.

http://www.eleekinc.com/sinks.htm

Let’s face it: we have a tendency to forget about our ceilings when thinking of cool upgrades for our house. Oh, we might throw up some crown molding or maybe some pressed tin tiles in the kitchen, but have you ever thought of custom glass sculptures for the ceiling? If the idea piques your interest, you’ll want to visit Studio G3, a company that specializing in doing cool things with glass. Displayed here is a 3/8″ thick laminated mirror crafted using their sandblasting technique. You can have custom-made ceiling sculptures done, which can feature clear or colored glass, tempered or not. The design studio also makes glass countertops, fireplace surrounds, frameless doors, mirrors, glass murals, shower doors, room dividers, stairways, and sinks.

http://www.studiog3glass.com

The Whirlpool Duet Storage Pedestal is designed to fit under Whirlpool washers and dryers in order to give you extra storage in the laundry room without adding floor-hogging shelves or bulky cabinets. The storage drawer is 13″ high, which raises the height of your washer/dryer in order to decrease the strain on your back from bending to handle your clothes (no mention of the bending required in order to dig things out of the drawer though). The storage pedestal has three compartments and will run you about $170. The units can be stacked to give you more height and more storage.

http://www.whirlpool.com

Are you a connoisseur of fine cigars? Well, Life Luxury Marvel is ready to put a specialized cigar drawer right in your kitchen. Their “Humidrawer” fits in their luxury series wine coolers and is a self-contained humidor that maintains the optimum temperature and humidity for cigar storage. Lined with untreated aromatic Spanish cedar (the preferred wood for aging cigars), the drawer stores 150 to 200 cigars. The drawer and housing are made from sold walnut and walnut veneer, which is finished and sealed to keep moisture from escaping. Inside, adjustable dividers allow you to customize the compartment size.

Humidrawer

Whether you’re adding a bathroom or upgrading your existing one, you may be shopping for a new bathtub. If you’re looking for a luxury tub with massaging jets, you may want to check out Hot Tubs, Whirlpool Tubs, & Air Jet Tubs–What’s the Difference? Even if you’re just looking for the standard rectangle, there are a number of materials you can choose from. Let’s take a look at the pros and cons of each.

Fiberglass

Since fiberglass is a lightweight and inexpensive material, it can be easily molded to include handy extras such as seats, soap holders, and grab bars. These tubs are available in many colors, but one downside is that the color fades over time, and fiberglass bathtubs scratch easily.

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Looking for extra storage space in the kitchen? Pantries are popular additions, because they give you lots of room to tuck away groceries. Not every home has a lot of extra floor space to give up, though. Wood-Mode, a company that specializes in cabinets, has several pantry selections designed to make the most of your space. Some food storage options include shelves on the back of cabinet doors, swing-out spice racks, and under-the-counter models. Shown here is the Chef’s Pantry from Design Group 42, which is designed to store a lot of groceries without requiring a lot of wall depth.

http://www.wood-mode.com

Made by European architect, Richard Horden, the Ski Haus is a tiny portable home that’s designed to be moved from mountaintop to mountaintop via helicopter. It’s constructed of 2mm aluminum sheets with light foam insulation and, despite its compact 140-square-foot size, can sleep four on bunk beds. It is self-contained with solar cells and a wind generator to provide power. There’s even a tiny kitchen, which runs on propane. The portable vacation home will cost you $55,000–surely a small sum for people with the prerequisite helicopters at their disposal for transport.

Ski Haus
Source: Portable Houses

Hardwood flooring may be beautiful, but it’s not exactly environmentally friendly, since trees need to be cut to make the stuff. As an alternative, check out EnviroPlanks from EnviroGlas, a company that specializes in making hard surfaces from recycled glass. But don’t worry–your floor won’t look anything like the recycled soda bottles and such that it’s made from. The company adds color-pigmented epoxy resin to its Terazzo-style planks, so you can have any hue you wish. You can mix and match colors to create patterns in your floor. Just as color is customizable, so is the size of the planks, which install like tile. If you’re wondering about durability, the company promises their recycled glass flooring is durable and low maintenance, with no waxing or polishing needed to keep it gleaming. Prices start at $20 per square foot.

http://www.enviroglasproducts.com/plank.html

Hm, is it a coffee table or is it a sculpture? You’ll have to decide. For those of us who are more concerned about function than looks, the contemporary Alice Coffee Table from Unique Style Solutions offers plenty of room for beverages, magazines, feet, and another things that tend to end up in front of the couch. With all that glass, you will have to watch out for fingerprints though. The Alice table uses 3/8″ levels of clear glass, has chrome legs, and possesses dimensions of 28″ in diameter and 17″ in height. The price is $599.

http://www.uniquestylesolutions.com