docilana That dining room is the most amazing idea.

minimumjoe Unfortunately, not much in article to do with LEED scoring and why/how this is a platinum build. It's stylish and works, but I suspect it wouldn't translate well if the design moved out of California. those glass walls and retractable ceiling wouldn't work either north or south. I love it, but I can't help but wonder how she weaved style with LEED function ....

midmodfan This home is adorable.

@minimumjoe: Glass walls do work in most climates. Ever heard of double and triple paned windows? ;-) I do agree, however, that information on the LEED certification and how it was achieved is totally lacking.

Becky Harris What a gorgeous home. So inspiring!

masnis I really love their updated take on the mid-century modern style. A lovely home. So many of the mid-century gems in this area of California are cobbled into something far from the original intention. It is great to see one that is celebrated for what it was in its heyday.

gknee The landscaping is beautifully done, softening the sharp exterior lines. Interior is equally gorgeous.

sclawson Would liked to have seen some "before" photos. I'm all for remodeling to make a house function better for the people who live there, or to update and replace. And, of course, when you do that you try to take advantage of appliances that are more energy efficient and other products that are more durable or sensible for whatever reasons. But I'm really tired of seeing showcases of "green" remodels or new builds. Is this how conspicuous consumption eases its conscience? By going for the green? In most cases, not doing anything is the greenest choice--living with what's there. I'm not advocating that, as I just remodeled my own 1980s condo over the summer. But let's stop pretending we're something we're not. All that old carpet and tile they ripped out of my condo went into a landfill. We sold the working appliances and gave away the nonworking ones to a dealer for parts. Of course the new ones are more energy efficient because that's how they make them now. In another year or so we'll have more tile that could last forever ripped out because it's ugly, and the perfectly adequate kitchen cabinets will go because I'm tired of oak and I want more deep drawers. But when this all does happen, I'm not going to pretend I'm a saint for making "green" choices. Puh-leez already!!

Gala Van Eaton Design I'd like to hear why they chose the fence material/design. It seemed inappropriate for this style.

tcufrog sclawson...

If you're concerned about throwing stuff into landfills there are many options such as listing stuff on Freecycle or for free on Craigslist. The bonus is that if someone takes it you'll get it hauled away for free. You can sometimes even get people to take stuff like tile for use in art projects. For stuff like cabinets and lighting you might check to see if your area has a Habitat Restore that will take it. The added bonus is that you know that your stuff is going to a worthy cause.

I'd love to see a Ideabook highlighting ecologically responsible ways to disposing of remodeling/construction debris.

stargazer51 sclawson -- Agreed, especially when the new "green" house is 4500 SF. I think the same about cars. The greenest thing would be to hold onto your car for more than 2-3 years.

tcufrog -- Thanks for the ideas. We're doing what's turned out to be a whole-house remodel and have produced 4 30-yard dumpsters full of debris from a 2000 sf house. In additiion to that, our contractor took some of the old windows and doors (1977 vintage builder grade). The roofing company workers wanted the old appliances (same vintage) to turn in for scrap metal and saved us $150 in haul-off fees.

stargazer51 Forgot to ask, anyone know specifics about the Ann Sacks tile in the master bath? Might be what I'm looking for for my kitchen backsplash.

newproject123 Love It ! ,, It;s just wat I have been looking for to do a bungalow project !

drsusan What product did you use for the white membrane for the roofing for solar reflectivity?

R. Martin Choate This home is beautiful! Great job!

Hanh I love the design/remodel of this home. Well updated with the mid-century modern flair. I'm curious type of flooring was used and what are the "small" changes that made this house Leed certified.

minimumjoe sclawson and stargazer -- certainly I agree. Note that it's not only LEED certified but wins PLATINUM certification. LEED is notorious for glass wall buildings that are quite large ... which is fine but I wonder what makes it so "green." Perhaps a large amount of tear out was recycled; that's one procedure that wins points, along with an urban location. Perhaps the glass walls and moveable roof don't leak air or water or even humidity ... but the fact remains that anywhere but in California's benign climate you wouldn't become eligible for certification. In Vermont or upstate New York ... in Louisiana or Houston ... you'd be driven to the poor house heating or cooling those beautiful rooms.

That's why I wondered out loud what pegs the architect was hanging the Green hat on. Even in California, that LEED Platinum recognition is demanding.

lcnmvoter These folks wanted a place to dine outside, thus the remodel? It seems to me that 2 of the last 3 photos show table and chairs outside. Am I missing something?

psp2pdx I'd like to know who the sofa manufacturer is. It is sized right for the space. I'm looking for one like this. Nice job with keeping the original flavor of the house. Lovely.

sclawson tcufrog...

All good ideas. We did some of that. Tried Habitat for Humanity when it came to the fully mirrored walls in the dining nook, but they said it was too much of a liability for them to handle it, so paid a glass company to remove and dispose. Even they had a tough time and one of the guys cut himself.

My main criticism was really just this idea of doing things "green" when really being green is living with what we have and wearing it out. I don't always do that either, but I don't try to pretend it's all okay because I'm choosing "green" options.

As for the article...it didn't really focus on the LEED restrictions, as others have said--what they were and how the house and homeowners complied. That would have been interesting to know.

frenchdecor The house is very nice looking. How practical is flat sink design with 5-10 degree inclination and about 10" high faucet, wouldn't one have splashes all over? As for LEED certified I was expecting something like solar panels in sunny California and certainly not push button moving roof for fresh air, as oppose to muscle movement to open window manually (plenty of them for light). Though I have in mind more concern about using so much glass. I grew up in seismic zone and glass would be last to use in building, even tempered.

tcufrog sclawson...

That's why we didn't build or buy a fixer upper. We decided to buy a 14 year old house that we could live with instead of one we hated cosmetically and thus would want to remodel. I The only major thing we've done was add radiant barrier to the attic and solar screens on the back side of the house where they wouldn't be noticeable. They didn't help as much with the electric bill as I had hoped but the made the hot Texas summers more bearable without spending a fortune upgrading the windows and throwing out the old ones. It felt wasteful to build a home when there were so many empty homes on the market.

usaswimmer Lots of beautiful finishes and design work...but oddly, not a single word about what makes the house "Carmel's first LEEDs rated home". Unsure why the owners would make this the headline and then avoid the question of what makes it so sustainable.

The house shows beautifully but we could all learn from what makes it "green" instead of cooing over porcelanosa kitchen backsplashes.

stevehill big deal

corpcon Love the deck off the Master Suite!! I want to be there.

norma034 I need help finishing decorating fire place.

wantsideas What a great remodel. As was mentioned before, would have loved to see the "before" pictures of this house.