BEST VACUUM FOR HARDWOOD FLOORS

The Not So Big House: A Blueprint for the Way We Really Live (Susanka)

Ten years ago, Sarah Susanka started a revolution in home design with a deceptively simple message: quality should always come before quantity. Now, the book that celebrated that bold declaration is back in a special anniversary edition. In this landmark home design book, America's superstar residential architect provides homeowners the guidance and language to get what they want: a house that is better not bigger and one that emphasizes comfort, beauty, and a high level of detail no matter how small it is. Featuring a new package and introduction by Susanka as well as 16 additional pages that explore three new Not So Big Houses, this 10th anniversary edition is very big news.

When describing a favorite room in the house, do you find yourself using terms such as "expansive," "formal," and "spacious"--a marble foyer or a formal dining room perhaps? Or do the words "cozy," "intimate," and "warm" come to mind--a cheery little breakfast nook or a window seat complete with plenty of pillows and a breathtaking view? More than likely, you--like thousands of other homeowners--are drawn to the more personal spaces in your home, where comfort, beauty, and efficiency meet. In The Not So Big House, respected architect Sarah Susanka and coauthor Kira Obolensky address our affinity for the "smaller, more personal spaces" and propose "clear, workable guidelines for creating homes that serve both our spiritual needs and our material requirements." The heart of the not-so-big house--which is not "just a small house ... [but] a smaller house," that uses "less space to give greater quality of life," and is designed to not only "accommodate the lifestyles of its occupants" but also to express "our values and our personalities," is discussed in chapter 1, entitled "Bigger Isn't Better." Susanka's urging for homeowners to get creative with their space as well as loads of ideas to encourage that creativity are covered in "Rethinking the House" and "Making Not So Big Work." Discussions of specific needs, such as a home for one and designing for kids, can be found in "Lifestyles of the Not So Rich and Famous," while "Dreams, Details, and Dollars" gets down to the nuts and bolts of the operation, looking at quality versus quantity, budgeting, and what "low end," "middle ground," and "high end" really mean in home design and construction. Lastly, the authors look at the home of the future, which involves simplifying, recycling, reducing waste, and using energy-efficient construction. With more than 200 color photographs, as well as floor plans and Susanka and Obolensky's intelligent and lively dialogue, The Not So Big House is perfect for homeowners ready to rethink their space. --Stefanie Hargreaves

Ok finally I loaded up the birdhouse model. It really is not all that much bigger than the very small house! In fach it is only 29 square meters bigger than the very tiny house! However it is 159 square meters smaller than the large floorplan! And this is a large house model? Perhaps it could be classified in the 14k range and have the number of drops limited?

The Big Tex is a 2,026 SqFt, four bedroom, two bath home. This is a very open floor plan with the kitchen, dining room and living room all open and the family room is only separated by an arch way.

Karsten Homes Model # 32BTX28764A-2876A or 93BTX28764A-2876A
"Karsten Homes is a proud member of the Clayton Family"

2006 Aurora Award Finalist

The Builders had made the House generations ago, to shelter the remnants of humanity from the poisons of the Outside. The Inners, the direct descendants of the Builders, now rule the House. The House protects the People, and the Inners protect the House. And Smoothers are the arms and legs of that protection.

Big G is a Smoother, ensuring that the daily activities of the House are not interrupted by "Harveys," citizens who suffer violent mental breakdowns in the claustrophobic House. But when Big G discovers a strange photograph of blue and white swirls of nothingness during a Harvey call, it leads him to world within the world he thought he knew--and a world outside it as well.

Note: includes an afterword by the author and excerpts from many of his other stories.

This story was originally published in Cicada (magazine, Carus Publishing, USA, Jan/Feb 2005) and is included in Doug's collection, Chimerascope (ChiZine Publications, Jan 2010)

Doug is an award-winning Canadian author of speculative fiction, whose stories have appeared in over a hundred professional magazines and anthologies and twenty-four languages around the world, including InterZone, Amazing Stories, Cicada, Baen's Universe, Weird Tales, The Mammoth Book of Best New Horror, Postscripts, On Spec, and The Third Alternative, as well as anthologies from Penguin/Roc, DAW, and others.

His newest collection, Chimerascope, including an Aurora winner, a Best New Horror selection, and nine Aurora finalists, is now available from ChiZine Publications. His first collection of short fiction, Impossibilia, is available from the award-winning UK press, PS Publishing.

Doug was a finalist for the international John W. Campbell Award for best new writer, and has twice won the Canadian Aurora Award. He's been an Aurora finalist seventeen times and has several honourable mentions in The Year's Best Fantasy & Horror. A complete list of Doug's published fiction is available on his web site at smithwriter.com along with reviews of his stories.

An independent film producer has just finished shooting a short film based on his story "By Her Hand, She Draws You Down." He recently completed his first novel, based on his award-winning short story, "Spirit Dance."

2006 Aurora Award Finalist

The Builders had made the House generations ago, to shelter the remnants of humanity from the poisons of the Outside. The Inners, the direct descendants of the Builders, now rule the House. The House protects the People, and the Inners protect the House. And Smoothers are the arms and legs of that protection.

Big G is a Smoother, ensuring that the daily activities of the House are not interrupted by "Harveys," citizens who suffer violent mental breakdowns in the claustrophobic House. But when Big G discovers a strange photograph of blue and white swirls of nothingness during a Harvey call, it leads him to world within the world he thought he knew--and a world outside it as well.

Note: includes an afterword by the author and excerpts from many of his other stories.

This story was originally published in Cicada (magazine, Carus Publishing, USA, Jan/Feb 2005) and is included in Doug's collection, Chimerascope (ChiZine Publications, Jan 2010)

Doug is an award-winning Canadian author of speculative fiction, whose stories have appeared in over a hundred professional magazines and anthologies and twenty-four languages around the world, including InterZone, Amazing Stories, Cicada, Baen's Universe, Weird Tales, The Mammoth Book of Best New Horror, Postscripts, On Spec, and The Third Alternative, as well as anthologies from Penguin/Roc, DAW, and others.

His newest collection, Chimerascope, including an Aurora winner, a Best New Horror selection, and nine Aurora finalists, is now available from ChiZine Publications. His first collection of short fiction, Impossibilia, is available from the award-winning UK press, PS Publishing.

Doug was a finalist for the international John W. Campbell Award for best new writer, and has twice won the Canadian Aurora Award. He's been an Aurora finalist seventeen times and has several honourable mentions in The Year's Best Fantasy & Horror. A complete list of Doug's published fiction is available on his web site at smithwriter.com along with reviews of his stories.

An independent film producer has just finished shooting a short film based on his story "By Her Hand, She Draws You Down." He recently completed his first novel, based on his award-winning short story, "Spirit Dance."