Architectural Products

So What Is A Passive House?

  • Posted on Nov 9, 2016

Way back in 2012 we moved into our newly renovated townhouse here in Hoboken.  It was built to the Passive House standards and I had planned to do a post about this type of construction… well, better late than never! Here are three Passive house projects we have currently in the works…yes, THREE!   We’d like to ... Read More

Hoboken Brownstone- Electrical

  • Posted on Nov 16, 2014

Next up on our brownstone renovation… Electrical! Outlets, switching, light fixtures, fire detection, data… it’s a lot to think about.   It takes a methodical approach to get everything in just the right spot.  It starts with solid initial planning during the construction documents to get it all on paper. Not only will the building ... Read More

Hoboken Brownstone: Stairs

  • Posted on Jun 9, 2012

We had the stairs fixed pretty early on in the project.  At first I thought we would wait to do them so they didn’t get beaten up during the construction, but the fact is… the workers need to be able to get upstairs! And we didn’t want them to further deteriorate with all the traffic. The existing railing was ... Read More

Hoboken Brownstone: Basement Slab

  • Posted on Feb 5, 2012

On the last post, I talked about digging out the basement. Test holes showed that we could gain an additional 6″ in ceiling height if we aligned the top of the new slab with the top of the existing footing.  If we went deeper, we would have to underpin the foundation or create a new ... Read More

Architect’s Choice

  • Posted on Sep 28, 2011

Residential Architect is a magazine publication distributed within the architecture trade and each year they do the ‘Architect’s Choice‘ which highlights a few architects and the products they like to use in their projects.   I was fortunate to be asked to participate and offer up some of my own valuable product references for high and low budgets.  I was happy that ... Read More

Great Design Resource

  • Posted on Jul 24, 2010

Now that summer is in full swing (and whoa, is it swinging!), I’ve cut back on all the extra stuff I do (like blogging!) and I’m sticking with what has to be done.  However, I have continued to follow one blog… Remodelista. When I first started Cattywompus, I thought I should check out what’s out there in the blogging ... Read More

Double Island Counters

  • Posted on Jun 19, 2010

I’ve been working with a client on a kitchen with two islands.  It’s a big trend but there’s always the question whether you want to differentiate between them or tie them together stylistically.  Right now we’re trying to figure out the counters.  We are set on the surrounding counter as soap stone and we’re thinking about a big slab ... Read More

Still In The Kitchen- Choosing Appliances

  • Posted on Apr 18, 2010

We’ve started selecting replacement appliances for our kitchen renovation and the scope creep is happening!  This all started with just wanting a new counter and backsplash. My original thought was to only replace what wasn’t functioning or aesthetically appealing.  I thought the cooktop could stay since it works fine and the cream color isn’t objectionable.  I ... Read More

Back To The Kitchen

  • Posted on Mar 22, 2010

Wow, what a weekend…yes, spring is here! And with that comes the desire to fix up my house. We are back to thinking about our kitchen again.  It’s for real this time… my husband started sanding the cabinets! We’ve been debating what to do with the kitchen since it may get ripped out if we renovate the whole house. ... Read More