Our 2012 Fine Homebuilding energy efficient homes annual magazine contained an article by Wagner Zaun an architecture firm in Duluth, Minnesota - a few hours from our planned building site. This local company has been working to design and model energy efficient homes for a number of years. We have been following their website and reading their presentations from the Duluth Energy Conference. They seem to be a good fit for our philosophy and project - energy efficient, sustainable, and cost conscious.
Working with an architecture firm would be a new experience for us - the last time the builder did the design work in house. However, in this case, we are looking for very specific performance criteria in the home - and do not feel comfortable leaving it up to the builder to make the right choices.
We also appreciate the style of the homes they build - simple structures with craftsman details that are a bit modern at the same time.
This one has the trim line at the top of the windows on the outside - we'd like to carry that same feature to the inside of the house, in Frank Lloyd Wright tradition. This requires that all the windows and door heights be aligned (seems simple, but it's something that hasn't happened in our previous two lake homes).
Working with an architecture firm would be a new experience for us - the last time the builder did the design work in house. However, in this case, we are looking for very specific performance criteria in the home - and do not feel comfortable leaving it up to the builder to make the right choices.
We also appreciate the style of the homes they build - simple structures with craftsman details that are a bit modern at the same time.
This one has the trim line at the top of the windows on the outside - we'd like to carry that same feature to the inside of the house, in Frank Lloyd Wright tradition. This requires that all the windows and door heights be aligned (seems simple, but it's something that hasn't happened in our previous two lake homes).
Contemporary Exterior by Duluth Architects & Building Designers Wagner Zaun Architecture
We love the natural light in this room and the view out into nature:
We love the natural light in this room and the view out into nature: