Ed's idea for the protrusions is actually a very good idea, I think, for a contemporary house. But, since I live in a 1950's house in a historic district, I was planning on giving my house a more historic look with the remodel. So, I guess, landmarker, the only option is to plant trees in front of my house to block solar gain in the summer from the east. I already have a couple of really nice trees there, including a full moon maple and a red horsechestnut. I really don't want to plant any more in the east, and even if I did, because of the steep slope of my lot, they would be planted downhill from the house, and would take years to grow tall enough to shade the house. I might not ever see it in my lifetime! The trees that I have are old, and tall, and not nearly shading the house, except really early in the morning, when the sun is low in the sky. I have actually considered putting a porch across the entire front of the house, but, I don't want to lose all of the solar gain that I get in the winter. So, I am strongly considering changing the roof lines in order to get the slope in the front. This is the best compromise that I can think of. Concerning the low-e glass then...Is it really better at keeping the heat in in the winter than it is at keeping the heat out in the summer? I keep my windows open almost all summer long anyway. So, the heat should be able to escape on it's own, right? We're also planning on installing a whole house fan for the evenings. The tintable windows are an option that I'm not really happy with, again, because of the loss of winter heat gain. Also, although they don't necessarily block the view, the tinting does affect the outdoor scene in a way that is unappealing to me.

Thanks so much for the "to do" list. I actually have a friend who is an architect, so that might help us out. It's a rowhouse, so it's not as though we can do any complicated curves or other designs on the structural walls. We want to do as much of the work ourselves as we can, but neither of us is willing to work with electricity. We're OK with plumbing, but given that the house was owner-rehabbed before and not done very well, I'd rather pay a professional to get it straight. We were hoping that we could move the tub into the house before the extension is built because we want a nice clawfoot, which will be impossible to get down the stairs. But all the interior design we can take care of. I'm an artist and have many plans for the interior.

Existing conditions are that there is no overhang. Not sure how else to describe it. None, nada. Roof stops at the top of the sides of the house. None of the houses in our old neighborhood have overhangs except in one case where the homeowner had it added. It doesn't extend out that much, 1 foot at most, but probably a little less. The roof is 17 years old and does need to be replaced. We just don't know whether we should add the task of adding an overhang to the job. Our climate is almost tropical here in Houston, TX. No snow but a lot of heat. The roofer "does do overhangs", at least according to what he says. Though this roofer was highly rated, we are going to at least interview another roofer. "require a canopy" means (I thought) require extra build out beneath the overhang (other than the standard extension of the studs that are part of the roof) in order to support the overhang. (Kind of like requiring the brackets under each shelf that are used when building a book shelf.) Don't want to have to add brackets underneath the overhang, I don't think.

Fabulous minimalist home. I'd remove the short columns with the light fixtures. They detract from the entrance door. I'd place large lighting fixtures on the wall on both sides of the door and down on the wall near the third large column. Remove rounded plants in front planter. Use wispy clumps of decorative grasses. Plant aloe or low clumps of decorative grasses along entrance walk. Remove shrubs in yard. Taller cactus or palms fronted by agave off to the right and left of house. It's not just a low box.