Today we’re kicking off Design Week – or probably what will become the first of several recurring ‘design weeks’ as a project like ours just has so many different phases of the design process. This week we’ll be focusing on the architectural design.

When we decided to chase the dream, our goal was to create a home that embodied the feel of the open-concept, urban contemporary loft, while satisfying our need for the larger living space generally only found at affordable prices outside of the city.

To get started, we took to the web to figure out our likes and dislikes in terms of style and quickly found Houzz to be a fantastic resource for all things home.

Here’s a look at some of the houses that were the jumping off point of inspiration for us:

Linden Hills Contemporary – by Andrea Swan Architecture, Minneapolis, MN

LEED Platinum Home – by Natural Balance Home Builders, Vancouver, BC

Cortona Exterior – by Cornerstone Architects, Austin, TX

Hollcroft Residence – by Giulietti Schouten Architects, Portland, OR

Snug Harbor – by Brandon Architects, Inc., Costa Mesa, CA

Cat Mountain Residence – by Cornerstone Architects, Austin, TX

Check out our full set of ideabooks on Houzz!