In honor of the Academy Awards, which airs this Sunday on ABC, we wanted to feature some of our favorite set designs from the recent batch of Oscar-nominated movies. With a little help from our friends at Architectural Digest here are some of this year’s best backdrops.

The Artist- The black and white just adds to the drama.

Photo via Architectural Digest

Hugo- The sets were almost as magical as the movie.

Photo via Architectural Digest

Midnight in Paris- We almost felt like we were time-traveling with Gil to Paris in the 1920s.

Photo via Architectural Digest

To see more set designs visit architecturaldigest.com. You can also check out the backdrop of George Clooney’s The Descendants, which we featured last month.

We spoken about the importance of universal design on our blog and wanted to share a special project that partners renowned architect and designer Michael Graves and the US Army. The Wounded Warrior Home Project at Fort Belvoir in Virginia is helping to make coming home easier for wounded soldiers in the military.

Clark Realty Capital, the company that develops all the housing on Fort Belvoir, wanted to create a home for those who were injured and wanted to stay in the Army. 19 of these homes will be built to help accommodate wounded active-duty personnel.

Graves is a perfect fit for this project. He has been a champion for universal design since becoming paralyzed after he fell ill from an infection. Now together with the Army, Clark Realty Capital, IDEO and a number of other partners, he is on a mission to “improve quality of life for the increasing number of wounded warriors returning to active duty at Fort Belvoir.”

Photo via NPR

Read more about the Wounded Warrior Home Project at Fort Belvoir at woundedwarriorhome.org.

The Dirt has a great interview with one of the co-founders of New York City’s High Line. Living in Colorado we are surrounding by nature’s beauty, but in a city like New York, it is a little more difficult to find some green space, especially outside of Central Park.

Photo via High Line

Robert Hammond is Co-Founder and Co-Executive Director of Friends of the High Line, the public park that was built atop an old, abandoned rail line on the west side of Manhattan. Hammond and Joshua David’s account on transforming the rail line into an award-winning park can be read in “The High Line: The Inside Story of New York City’s Park in the Sky.” In it Hammond talks about how he used to see parts of the abandoned rail line walking around Chelsea. He recalls that he didn’t really think much of the line until news ran that is was going to demolished. In the news coverage he learned that the rail rail line ran all the way from the Meatpacking District to Hell’s Kitchen, over a mile and a half long. Might not see, far for those of us living in Colorado, but it New York City, that is prime real estate.

To read more about Robert Hammond’s and the High Lines story click here.

The New York Times is reporting that there is a new niche for designers in the interior design industry– the recently divorced man. There are basically two scenarios in most cases of divorce, the women keeps the house or both partners decide to sell the house, either way the man is left looking for a new residence.

The Times found one designer in Los Angeles who actually prefers the divorced man above all other clients. Designer Susan Manrao tells the NYT “I realized my role in this project wasn’t simply to design a space, but to help rebuild a home.”

Manrao finds a balance designing the home for the new “bachelor” and the man trying to raise his kids. One of the most common requests says Susan is the big screened television.

Photo via The New York Times

And for the divorced dad with kids, Susan tells the Times they “often want their homes done quickly, to make the transition as smooth as possible for their children, which means they are apt to agree with her design decisions.”

Photo via The New York Times

Click here to read the article in its entirety.

So Men’s Health Magazine has come up with 10 renovations that will “make you rich.” Those are their words, not ours. We must say the title caught our attention, it even made us glance at their top 10 list to see if these were viable options.

With the advice of DIY Network’s Million Dollar Contractor, Stephen Fanuka, these home improvements can help make your home the “envy of your block.”

We wanted to take you step by step through these renovations and help you determine which will get you the biggest bang for your buck. Let’s start first with Fanuka’s first five steps.

1. “Decorate Your Doors” – Fanuka recommends switching out your knobs, hinges and cabinet pulls with finished metal ones. Yes, yes, and yes. This is a very effective cosmetic change you can make to your home without dropping a lot of dough.

2. “Mold Your Environment”- The Million Dollar Contractor says that “Adding molding on doors, ceilings, walls, and windows brings a third dimension to rooms, making them look bigger and more lavish,” says Fanuka. Molding does add a certain charm to your  home, but we would recommend taking that money and buying some paint. If there is money left over, than by all means add molding.

3. “Refresh Your Tiles”- We completely  agree with Stephen. A buyer does not want to see your old, dingy grout. For less than $20 you can re-grout your tile and save yourself the embarrassment.

4. “Single Out a Wall”- Fanuka recommends painting an accent wall to make the room pop. Beware of this advice and the color you choose. It could turn into a disaster if you go for a bold color choice that offends the eyes’ of your buyers. Or if you perhaps choose the wrong wall to accent.

5. “Lighten Up”- This is one change we stand behind 100%. Lighting makes all the difference in the world. It can really transform the appearance of a room.

Stay tuned for later in the week as we explore Fanuka next 5 design changes.

Source: Men’s Health Magazine

Colorado leads the USGBC’s (United States Green Building Council) 2011 list of the top 10 states for LEED-certified commercial and institutional green buildings. The finding are based on per capita and using the 2010 U.S. Census data. The list shows that the Colorado has close to 14 million square feet of LEED-certified space, and 2.74 square feet per person.

According to the USGBC there are over 44,000 commercial projects participating in the LEED program.

“Looking past the bricks and mortar, people are at the heart of what buildings are all about,” said Rick Fedrizzi, the president, CEO, and founding chair of the USGBC, in a press release. “Examining the per capita value of LEED square footage in these states allows us to focus on what matters most—the human elements of green buildings.”

Photo via USGBC

To see the entire list or to learn more about LEED visit www.usgbc.org.

Even the busiest owners of luxury mountain homes can benefit from a trip to the upcoming Colorado Garden and Home Show. The show is an unparalleled venue for viewing the latest trends in architecture and home improvement. February 11-19 at the Colorado Convention center in Denver, the event will feature over 600 vendors and dozens of seminars from experts.

Colorado Garden and Home Show

If you have plans for rejuvenating your home in Colorado, the Colorado Garden and Home Show will help you see firsthand the trends in luxury living. From full-sized landscape exhibitions to the trendiest new lighting fixtures, inspiration can surely be found in the fresh offerings featured at the show.

After walking through the expansive showroom you can attend a free seminar to learn about what is “hot” in remodeling, home improvements and interior decorating. Course offerings also include classes on the latest color trends and green landscape design that could take your home to the next level.

Whether you are planning a major overhaul or simply hoping to add fresh detailing to the exterior or interior of your luxury mountain home, a trip to the Colorado Home and Garden show can help you plan truly impressive improvements.

Trilogy Partners. First-ever Net-Zero Energy Home in Breckenridge, Colorado

Although the notion of an energy efficient or even solar home is not a new concept, there are many modern solutions to the age old problem of staying warm and comfortable within one’s house. Although mountain homes are located in particularly strenuous environments, they do offer many unique approaches to both luxurious comfort and energy efficiency.

The first approach is from the planning and construction. It is best to embed as much of the house as possible within the earth. Primarily it is the exposure to the cold mountainous air and high wind currents which compromises the ambient temperature of the home.

From there it is best to angle the home to maximize solar exposure and minimize exposure to the other elements. Window placement allows to both warm the house and feed the plants which will flourish in the direct sunlight, and the plants in turn stabilize the ambient temperature and humidity.

Water for the plants can be captured from rainfall and snow melt, and further more this same water base can be warmed with rooftop solar water heaters. This captured water can be used throughout the house with little or no filtration necessary depending on the use.

If you are planning on building an energy efficient and sustainable home please give Trilogy Partners a call at 970-453-2230.

Tom Brady has had quite a week, first his team clinches the AFC Championship Game, though barely, and it also seems he and his family are moving into a 22,000 square foot home in Los Angeles, California. This massive home– which features 8 bedrooms, lagoon-shaped pool with spa, wine cellar and its own bridge that adjoins the two wings– has reportedly set the Brady family back $20 million.

What really caught our eye is that Gisele has asked that her home be “eco-friendly”, which is quite a feat with 22,000 square feet of wasted space. The home comes equipped with solar panels, energy-efficient appliances and rainwater recovery programs.

Photo via Fashionista

What do you think of their new home?

Last night The Descendants took home two Golden Globe awards, one for Best Motion Picture – Drama and the other for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama for George Clooney. The Descendants tells the story of Matt King, played by George Clooney, who must come to terms with his wife’s betrayal, while she lays comatose in a hospital bed. A parallel storyline in the movie, that entwines with his wife’s affair, is a decision he must make on whether to sell his family shares in 25,000 acres of pristine land on the island of Kaua’i.

Hawaii plays an important part in this film and it’s beauty and poverty are both highlighted. We had a chance to experience the beauty of Hawaii, especially the island of  Kauai, while we remodeled the home of South Park’s Trey Parker. The scenery captured by director Alexander Payne reminds us of our time in this most magical and mystical place.

Take a look at our Kauai home below.

Trilogy Partners