Check out these great views of some of our custom homes, organized into galleries by space/feature to allow for easy comparison between different styles across like spaces and features.
We introduce each gallery by relating our perspectives on and our approaches to each type of space or feature. If you are short on time, or just prefer visuals over reading, jump right into the pictures. You can always return later and browse the gallery intros.
We will be continually adding more content to the galleries as we finish new homes or come across additional images we hadn’t previously included.
Kitchens
In today’s homes, kitchens have become much more than simply a utility space used to prepare food. With design limitations left, in large part, only to the imagination, the kitchen is a great place to bring style and function together to meet any family’s needs with a result that may be striking and modern, traditional and warm, or somewhere in between, but one that is always beautiful no matter the style.
Pantry
A pantry is nearly always a ‘must have’ space in today’s homes. Though they may vary in size and configuration, they all serve to provide food and kitchen storage. However, the utilitarian nature of these spaces doesn’t prevent many homeowners from carrying the kitchen’s styling into the space, or from giving it a style of its own or some unique features, adding functionality, aesthetic effect or both.
The Master Suite
The Master Suite has become an element that is almost as important to homeowners, if not more so, as their kitchen. Where homes once had a specific number of bedrooms, often with the largest of them, or the one with an attached bath, being designated the ‘master bedroom’, the new homes of today feature a specific set of spaces, the master bedroom, master bath and walk-in closet. This set of spaces, the Master Suite, gets special consideration in each Braun home, with the ability of the homeowner to direct, specifically, how their personal retreat will look, how it will function, and what features it will include, to truly become a space of their own. Here are just a few examples of the finished product from some of our homes.
Bedroom
As the primary personal space in the home, the Bedroom is a primary consideration for prospective homeowners whether they are designing their future new home, or they are seeking an existing home on the market. Quantity, size and position in the layout are all top-of-the-list considerations for those who are in the process of designing, and those shopping on the market.
Custom home designs will see one of two distinctive approaches to bedroom spaces. We’ll call them Blank Canvas and Decor by Design.
Blank Canvas is the traditional, most common approach. Painting is generally the only treatment the space will receive. Any decor and personalization to the space will be done by the room’s eventual occupant(s) based on their own preferences.
Decor by Design is the alternative approach. Bedroom occupants have already been designated and room designs follow accordingly. Visual elements to walls and ceilings are built-in, permanent fixtures such as feature walls, built-in desks and bookcases and trimmed ceiling trays, to name a few. Semi-permanent elements such as murals on walls or ceilings may also be included.
Recognizing the particularly personal nature of these spaces, we make sure than even the most Blank Canvas style bedroom feels like something special but we’re always excited to bring a space to life when homeowner’s choose the Decor by Design approach. Take a look at some of our finished bedrooms
Bathrooms
Much like bedrooms, bathrooms are another space under key consideration by anyone designing or shopping for their new home. Every home spec, whether in the form of a real estate listing or in the floor plan for a new home lists ‘number of bathrooms’ immediately after ‘number of bedrooms’. When gathering information for clients inquiring about building a new home, one of they key pieces of information we ask for is “how many bedrooms, how many baths”. The answer to that questions has a huge impact on the overall design of the home given the vital nature of those spaces.
Though being essentially utilitarian in functions, bathrooms are also a place to relax and unwind by soaking in a warm bath after a long day or enjoying a warm shower. Due to that aspect of the bathroom space, you will likely never find a Braun home that merely consists of fixtures and plumbing. Bathrooms, especially in the Master Suite, are generally spaces full of stylish elements that do not sacrifice the essential utility and function of the space. Even the half-baths, or ‘powder rooms’, as they are commonly referred to, may be simple, yet stylish.
These are just a few examples of how owners of Braun homes chose to design their bathroom spaces.
Open Spaces
These spaces are common only in terms of being places where entire families gather to spend time together, prepare and share meals or entertain guests. We see to it that in every other aspect, they are completely uncommon.
As the primary spaces of any home, the look and feel that the homeowner envisions for, and the quality they expect in their new home, takes the stage, front and center. Each one is as unique as the family who will call it theirs. Take a look at some examples.
Dedicated Spaces
As the term suggests, Dedicated Spaces are rooms or areas that serve a specific, often sole purpose in the home. Some examples may include a theater room, billiards room, den or home office, play room and craft room, to name just a few. Often, a room that is designated as a bedroom on the floor plan will be used as a playroom, craft room or office. These spaces can easily be transformed back into the original bedroom role, if needed, due to the presence of a closet in the room.
However, many homeowners wish to have a designated space where the location, layout and features of the space are designed specifically to the intended purpose. Spaces to be used for home theater, pool/game/rec room, etc., will usually be designated and designed as such due to the specialized nature of the equipment, furniture and features required to accommodate those functions. This type of space offers many opportunities in terms of design, layout, style and decor.
Laundry Rooms
Laundry rooms, pet grooming stations, storage spaces and mechanical rooms are all examples of utility spaces commonly found in today’s homes.
Some will carry higher end materials and surfaces and bring the same style seen throughout the home. Whether a homeowner chooses this path, or opts to follow the more traditional, spartan utilitarian appearance, one thing that is common to all is the attention to quality and to detail.
The term “out of sight, out of mind” has no place in any finished space in a Braun home.
From frame to finish, these spaces receive the same commitment to quality as any other. That means tight, true corners, smooth walls, immaculate paint, trimmed shelf faces, and quality installation of flooring, base boards, and fixtures. Though not normally a showcase item, we want to make sure even these spaces are done in such a way that the homeowner would be proud to include them in the grand tour!
Special Features
It is not uncommon for Braun homes to include features, some small and subtle and others big and bold, that add that an extra ‘something’ to a space. In some, these special features were based on a concept discovered or devised by the homeowner and, therefore, the look, design and materials follow their lead. In others, Tom’s vision and craftsmanship take over when he or the homeowner feels a space is in need of something to add character or warmth. He often finds unique ways to transform an odd nook of unused space into a beautiful and often functional design element complementary to the overall look of the space and of the home. In a few, artisans have taken to the walls, transforming a plain surface into an incredible work of art.
Common to many Braun homes are the tray ceilings trimmed with wood or faux beams. Homes with vaulted ceilings often feature beautiful hewn-wood trusses handcrafted by Tom himself. Take a look at just a few examples of these special design elements from some of our homes.
Others
Unlike the use of the term ‘Common Spaces’ used above, the following spaces are actually uncommon to most homes. These spaces, however, also give us an uncommon opportunity to help the homeowner design a space that is not only uncommon to the average home, but also uncommon in the design sense, letting imagination take that space, and us, wherever it leads.
