Jay Sifford Garden Design What a great home..... the perfect combination of form, function and value. Plus, it's very user friendly... all the things that make a house a home. I'm sure the homeowners love to come home at the end of a long work day.

samlatricoteuse Wow! Kudos to the architect firm! I love this house and that just soldifies my idea to hire an architect for the chalet we want to build near the St-Lawrence river....

midmodfan There's a lot of IKEA stuff in this house, but it all looks very much grown-up. We have the same dark gray and white high gloss kitchen cabinets, by the way.

The walnut stained maple wall in the living room is awesome! I personally love one-room wide homes because they are so bright. Excellent use of the narrow lot and great attention to detail, e.g. the house numbers. Kudos to the architects and owners!

aeykelbo Cool, I was born in Edmonton. So I know how freaking cold it can get (and stay) for long periods of time. It would have been great to get some commentary on the energy efficiency features of this construction, especially with all the windows and the long, narrow footprint.

Just to be clear what we're talking about here... -20C is normal, -30C is frequent, and -40C happens. Winter is from Nov to March!

kaley woods so beatifull nice big house

SPACIALISTS This is Amazing! I love it.

Lisa A Now if one of the long sides just faced south, you'd be toasty on a sunny winter day.....

lonnaj This is such a great house - way to go, Thirdstone! Ikea taken to the next level. It just goes to show you that style can be affordable.

aekbranding I never thought I'd say this about a grey laminate floor, but this is one is really sexy!

storyscribe I love those floors, and once again a great-looking house uses Ikea kitchens. That further assures me that it's the way to go. But I still don't know about the waving to the neighbors from the bedroom thing.

Londonia Amazing Layouts, I Love how the sun invites itself through those beautiful glass walls, great view

The Color People I think this type of thing might well be the future of production housing. With expensive lots and the historic house reproduction thing waning it is quite likely that the suburbs may well end up looking like this.

Ross Longbottom Come on guys. Be good journalists and include prices. Although it hurts, we must know. LOL.

thirdstone inc. [^] Hi Ross - Thanks for your interest in the LG House.

To answer your question concerning costs, the article does state near the top that the budget was $450,000 (CAD). Our target construction cost was aimed at approx. $200+/SF (CAD) for Main and Second Floor.

The lot located in a highly sought-after mature neighbourhood near the Edmonton downtown core was purchased in 2008 for approx. $269K

Regards,

:: thirdstone inc [^]

Ross Longbottom That not be cheap!

Design Within Reach This is a beautiful structure and a great way to utilize a narrow space. I especially love the large windows which make the space look larger and airier. The Barcelona Collection is a fantastic touch too!

Best,
Jill@DWR

EMM Inspiring design! So light, airy, beautiful but absolutely practical too. Regarding the costs, was it $450K total budget (lot + construction and finishing) or was it $269 for the lot and then $450K total to build and finish the house? Wasn't 100% clear.

thirdstone inc. [^] Construction - $450K
Property - $269K

caitlinbrandon Can you tell me what exterior wall construction was (and how wide?)

patricia beharry I'm missing it all.

astor818 I would love to see a picture of the entrance and the positioning of the stairs. We have a similar layout and are contemplating moving our stair from the rear of the house to gain more space on the second floor. Does the entry have a closet for coats and shoes?

Harvest House Craftsmen Fabulous all around!

SAI desigh Someone really needs to come up with a better way to build mondern housing that is more affordable that $200 per foot. Time value of money, is not relevant. We need a building method that is attractive and affordable. Modular is fine as long as it does not look like a double wide trailer

thebuilder1980 This design is AWESOME! I would absolutely love to create a house similar to this in Florida in the coming years!

White Lotus Interiors Wow, I love everything about this home! And, it's in my home town.

garaujo It is great to see Ikea items used so beautifully. It is also great to see this kind of architecture in Edmonton. Having family there I know most of the houses are so traditional looking. Does this house have a basement?

Incite Design I really like the creativity used to bring light into the spaces in such a narrow configuration.The mix of materials brings an airy feel to the space and helps to bring the eye to settle on the feature items in the space (which often are the furniture pieces such as the Barcelona Chairs as DWR mentioned).
It's nice to see spaces which doesn't necessarily shout all together but that support what goes on inside in perhaps a supporting role.

We are doing a house for a client right now and we have been conscious to allow the spaces flow together and not compete with what the client has chosen for furniture as we believe in trying to build spaces for living rather than the spaces/materials being the focus.

Very nice project!

Trevor Hoover Congratulations Louis! It looks fantastic and is EXACTLY what Edmonton needs... some awesome designs to get us out of the hum drum boredom of suburbia-ville. Keep up the good work.

Sheldon Moser Wouldn't 200 SF come to a budget of 680,000? 200 SF to me looks about right based on custom design and finishings but if the budget was $450,000 then it would it be $132.4 SF?

Amantea Architects Beautiful Home...but I'm not convinced this cost 450K. Landscape elements aside, 200/sq.ft. at 3400 sq.ft. is 680K unless you are including the land cost in the 200/sq.ft. (which is not the convention). Am I missing something?...even if the 450K is net of design, engineering and construction fees, tax etc... that is a very aggressive budget - there is NO WAY you could build that house in Toronto for 450K!

Brett M. Garneau, C.E.T., CAPM, GSi The lot was purchased for $269k in 2008.... easily worth $400k these days... for a HALF LOT. This house is simply beautiful and inspiring. I would also like to know the exterior wall construction. It would be very challenging to maintain thermal balance with such low temp in winter and the amount of glass wall utilized

Weatherwell Elite - Aluminum Shutters Hi Mitchell, I love challenge of building on narrow lots. One of our clients split a larger lot into 2 narrow lots and built 2 very cleverly designed homes. We supplied the aluminum shutters which was essential to creating privacy but maintaining style.

Robin Nicely done. I always like to see the creativity used to leverage a small lot, small space.

wantsideas Very attractive house inside and out and I love the large windows.

paulinehealy BEAUTIFUL ... Congratulations Thirdstone!! I love the flooring - it said laminate - is it glossy - where can I find it?? Thank you!!

Londonia Projects like these, the prices are due to change, thou there was a specific budget for the House, most likely there will be additional materials needed, set aside the cost of the Property....

hotbred What kind of foundation does the LG house sit on? Slab or basement?

The Big Small A perfect example of site challenges resulting in a positive design solution. Gorgeous. Simply gorgeous. Light penetration is too often not given adequate consideration and this home showcases the upside of having a narrower structure. Like aeykelbo I wonder about energy use - with the long footprint, the exterior wall surface area to interior volume would be higher than in a square home - but with the increased light, this would probably be a compromise I would be willing to make. Is the majority of glazing oriented to the south? Am considering a similar build in Vancouver, possibly to PH standards.

Penelope Rogers - P. Rogers Designs.com Great design, very well thought out

lvstotrvl Love those laminate floors!!

hotallie Beautiful unique home but not sure how you would achieve 5 bedrooms unless there is a basement. Love the flooring, can you tell us the supplier?

sanovogo Incredible! Smart design with, what appears to be high function.

thirdstone inc. [^] Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to read and comment on the LG House! I aimed to provide answers and respond to as many of you as possible in this one reply.

@lvstotrvl - I love those laminate floors also. Too bad they're now discontinued (IKEA). Cue the sad trumpet song!

@Penelope Rogers - There was definitely a lot of planning that's for sure.

@The Big Small - Great name!...that's what we should called this house! :) You're absolutely right about the advantages of a narrow structure - greater solar access, cross and stack ventilation etc.

@hotbred - The LG House includes a full height basement (9' to u/s of ceiling)

@Lisa - Cost seems to hot topic here. Firstly, this budget is considered low in these here parts. Most of our projects push the $300/SF. It's all relative. It's certainly not what people are paying for a house in Atlanta.

@paulinehealy - A lot of people have asked about the flooring. check here. http://www.houzz.com/discussions/73939/Hi--this-room-is-gorgeous--I-would-love-to---

@wantsideas - hope you found some ideas here!

@Robin - We certainly want to set a precedent for narrow lot design here in Edmonton.

@Weatherwell Elite - Great looking houses. Love architecture from 'down-under'!

@Brett M. Garneau - The exterior wall construction is standard 2x6 stud with batt. The finish is a combo. of wood (rain-screen) hardie-panel. Believe it or not, the house is consistently comfortable throughout all seasons.

@Amantea Architects - You're right - it's impossible to build something like this for the same cost in some metropolitan areas - especially 'TO'. Around here, the standard is to include the SF unit cost as part of the main floor. Don't ask me why. So 2400 SF @ 200 /SF is actually $480 and i know first hand that it didn't cost quite that much.

@Sheldon Moser - See above!

@Trevor Hoover - hey bud! Thanks for chiming in. You guys are doing great work yourself!

@Incite Design - Amen!

@garaujo - Thanks! The LG House has a full height basement (9' floor to ceiling). Araujo...That's Portuguese...Maybe i know your family here!

@White Lotus Interiors - Yeah Edmonton!

@thebuilder1980 - How about giving me a call when you're ready. A site visit would be essential ;)

@SAI desigh - i couldn't agree more. Time is not relevant, but market is. Short of building this house ourselves, this is the best we could do.

@Harvest House Craftsmen - Thanks for the comment!

@caitlinbrandon - Wall construction is 2x6 stick frame on standard concrete foundation wall. Anything more like would be more expensive...and SAI desigh wouldn't like that ;)

@Design Within Reach - hey there Jill! Thanks for the great comments! Love DWR!!!

@The Color People - I wish there was no such thing as suburbs. But that's how they keep building cities :(

@Lisa - i wish you could see how bright every room is on a sunny day. The owners are cheerful people and so the house should reflect that.

@aekbranding, @storyscribe - sexy floor i agree. Markland Flooring. Their time on this planet was cut way too short (R.I.P)

@Lisa A - The long narrow side (right) faces south. Alberta Building Code requires that you limit the amount of glass openings toward your neighbour. That said there is still plenty of windows (floor to ceiling) facing south.

@SPACIALISTS - Thanks!

thirdstone inc. [^] @aeykelbo - The long narrow structure is able to capture sunlight better than most houses so it definitely comes into play during the winter months and the cross and stack ventilation play an equally important role during the warmer seasons.

@midmodfan - Thanks for the comments. IKEA can definitely look smart and 'grown up'. It's all in how you assemble standard materials to make it look as good as many other products out there.

@samlatricoteuse - All the best in realizing your dream to build your chalet near the St-Lawrence river. There are some great architects in your region.

@Jay Sifford Garden Design - Thanks for the kind words. Keep up the great work!

thirdstone inc. [^] A final note. A lot of people ask about the energy efficiency component of the project and what we did to make it 'green'. Although always important of course, there are many tangibles besides numbers and energy efficiency and what we can't overlook is that we made great use of infill property that may not otherwise have been developed due to the size of lot.

For instance, the owners are less car dependent (1 vehicle) based on its location to work and school(s); a new house meant re-investing in an older community; populating older neighbourhood schools, which struggle to remain open due to poor attendance;

We designed a house to have flexibility and adaptability allowing space do be re-arranged to meet future needs of the family without expensive retrofits and renovations. The result is a long term commitment to the community and to dispel the notion that you 'outgrow' a house when the house should instead change and adapt with the homeowner's needs. Even the city planning department failed to see these benefits when they initially declined the development application for this project. Thankfully, logic prevailed but only after an appeal board decision.

In the end we're extremely proud of the LG House and wish there will be a lasting investment in a family dwelling that will be appreciated for a lifetime and more.

:: thirdstone inc. [^]

dougroberts A very attractive house, no doubt, but not without issues. To start with, the house benefits hugely from the fact that the adjacent properties have not yet been redeveloped and still contain small older single storey bungalows on large lots with lots of mature trees and landscaping. Once those adjacent properties are redeveloped with much larger 2- or 3-storey infills with 4-ft side setbacks, most of the natural light and green views from this house's side-facing windows and courtyard will disappear. In the meantime, those large side-facing windows and side courtyard appear to directly overlook the adjacent properties' back yards, and therefore do not respect the neighbours' privacy.

Secondly, this 2-storey flat roof house appears to extend back virtually all the way to the back lane, where it connects with the 2-storey garage that you see behind the courtyard. This means that, but for the side-facing courtyard, this house has no back yard and the back yard of the adjacent property to the north is now bordered by a tall slab wall that blocks any view to the south and will significantly reduce the amount of sunlight reaching the adjacent property's back yard and rear-facing windows, particularly during the colder months when the sun is lower on the horizon.

Thirdly, it does not appear that any new trees have been planted on this parcel, and there appears to be little or no room left to plant trees. The lack of trees may not seem like much of a problem at the moment, as this house currently benefits from the adjacent properties' mature trees and landscaping. However, if the rest of this street were to be redeveloped in the same tree-less fashion as this house, then this house would suddenly find itself in the middle of a very cold and drab concrete jungle.

Studio NOO Design Great looking and functional !

sstosky I live very close to this house and love it! Very neat to see on houzz.com and get a sneak peak to the inside.

prepekka Can we get more specific information on those beautiful laminate floors?

rburrill Beautiful home! It's nice to see some home town talent in here. Kudos! Can't wait to see your next big project.

CAROLE MEYER I love this house.....beautiful design.

viladrau Beautiful design! Love it!!!

hotbred @archimoss
I live in Edmonton and have been by the house. It looks pretty accurate to me from the outside. Don't be a hater. Great job Thirdstone!!!

dougroberts Why can I not see the @archimoss comment that @hotbred is responding to?

Leanne Haltiner I see houses very similar to this in South Australia and they are beauties. About time we start seeing more here in Canada.