the midcentury ranch for a new generation
21 min readToday, we have a fantastic chat lined up with Brandy McLain, co-founder and one of the creative geniuses behind Modern House Numbers.Â
Della and Brandy McLain, founder of Modern House Numbers, are digging in to discuss all things house number. From current requirements to history, plus tons of great style tips!
If you’ve been thinking about giving your home’s exterior a fresh look, you’ll want to keep reading!
Continue reading “House Number Basics with Modern House Numbers”16 min readEasy summer projects can help you kick-off this year’s (mid-century) home improvement season! Here are a few of my favorites.
What feels like the true beginning of summer to you? Memorial Day weekend? Seeing the first lightning bugs? The last day of school? For me, my birthday in early June is the real start of summer!
It kind of feels like we just dived into the middle of summer in the last week or two and I have a feeling you might be in exactly the right headspace to take on some easy summer projects to make your mid-century home a little more your own.
So, grab your lemonade and a lawn chair and listen in for a few fun (and, okay some less fun but more necessary) summer project you can tackle right now to kick off your mid-century home improvement season!
Continue reading “Easy Summer Projects to Tackle This Weekend”18 min readReady to Remodel students have the chance to get questions answered – live – every month during our Architect Office Hours. Â
Psst … Did you want Pass Go and Collect $200 by skipping Architect Office Hours and just asking me a question directly? Submit a question for my upcoming Ask Me Anything episode, coming May 11th.Â
Movies love to show architects creating away at a drafting table or sitting picturesquely at a cafe, sketchbook in hand. It’s romantic, this vision of a endlessly creative mind conjuring beautiful buildings from some eternal, internal well.  But *SPOILER ALERT* no one uses a drafting table anymore (except throwbacks and nostalgia lovers). In fact, I do all my sketching on a tablet.
There is another major element of architecture that is seldom shown in the movies…
An architect spends A LOT of time answering questions. I answer questions emailed in by my clients. I pick up a few queries from my instagram DMs every week. And once a month I hop into a zoom and hold …
Continue reading “At Architect Office Hours: how to hang pendants, choose great doors & focus any plans”24 min readOne of the easiest ways to make your front door shine is to upgrade your house numbers.
One of the easiest ways to make your front door shine is to upgrade your house numbers. I’ve been a big fan of Modern House Numbers, for quite a while.
I’ve got their numbers on my house, and I recommend them to a lot of my clients.
I didn’t even know how much I love this company until I sat down to chat with owner Brandy McLain recently.
Before we get to the goods … though, don’t miss this:
29 min readMid-century modern is so in right now, people are popping neutra type house numbers and modbox mailboxes onto just about any house type.
Note: this was originally posted in January of 2019. It has been updated and now includes a podcast episode and clinic for those who’d rather listen/watch than read!
Listen to last week’s Curb Appeal Lunch & Learn in podcast format right here!
We co-hosted a fun, front door focused Curb Appeal Lunch & Learn with Modern House Numbers. Catch that replay right here:
Mid-century modern has become such a buzzword, that people are applying it to just about any style element. How can you be sure you’re making true mid mod calls for your mid-century home?
You are in luck, Ranch Owner, because the mid-century front door was made for your house. I’ll break down how you can get or make your own perfect Mid-Century front door. This works whether you are simply aiming for a spin through Etsy or planning major renovation.
Listen Now On Apple | Google | Spotify | Stitcher
Continue reading “Perfect Your Mid-Century Front Door” 19 min readMost mid century homes lack a modern mudroom…or any practical dedicated entry/exit space designed to catch those things that belong to the outside edge of your life.
Fortunately, solving this problem doesn’t have to be that complicated!
Is your mid century home missing a modern mudroom … or any practical dedicated entry/exit space designed to catch those things that belong to the outside edge of your life?
If you are wishing for a little more storage at your doors … you’re not alone!
The typical mid century ranch house in the Midwest and the typical Eichler-style semi-custom home in the west are similar in that you come and to through the front door … right into the living area.
There is typically no more storage than a coat closet; a little two foot wide swing door framed closet that has a hanging rack and a single shelf.
Where did those original mid century moderns keep their outside things?
Continue reading “Modern Mudroom Updates for Mid-Century Homes”
