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    Ultimate Southern Home

    The ultimate Southern home: Brother-sister builders make a dream almost reality in West U

    Joel Luks
    Nov 2, 2014 | 10:01 am
    The ultimate Southern home: Brother-sister builders make a dream almost reality in West U
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    A house isn't a home unless you feel as though you could drop your everyday stuff on the floor, sink into a comfy couch and cozy up with family.

    Southern living, after all, is about comfort, about the ability to entertain a small group of friends and a large rowdy crowd in the same space. Southern living means being able to enjoy a relaxed tête-à-tête in an intimate space and casual impromptu gatherings with unexpected guests.

    The front door is always open.

    It's with this in mind that siblings Sarah Lavine-Kass and Benjamin Lavine, owners of Stone Acorn Builders, set out to design their Southern Living Showcase Home, located in West University at 2718 Talbott St. Themed "Home for the Holidays," the 4,300-square-foot, four bedroom, four bathroom, two-story charmer — open for tours on the first two weekends in November — speaks to one of the builders' favorite aesthetics: The concept of an old-new home.

    "What we see a lot in our business now is that people are not as interested in formal living and dining rooms," Lavine-Kass says. "We really like the idea of a home where every bit of space is usable — both in the first and second floors."

    The floor plan, approved by Southern Living magazine, begins with a two-story foyer graced by stained beams and painted millwork, leading toward a long hallway that accesses a library with a full bathroom — which may function as a second bedroom downstairs — before reaching the family gathering area that's open to the dining room and an impressive kitchen with a butler's pantry.

    "We really like the idea of a home where every bit of space is usable."

    As for entertaining indoors and outdoors, a fabulous al fresco area with stone fireplace and summer kitchen has electronic screens that descend to create a charming sunroom. What's killer is the wall of exterior French doors that fold out of the way completely to render the lanai and the indoor public areas as one expansive party pad.

    Designed for a retired army general and a charming dame of a missus who's quite the cook, the decor mixes one-of-a-kind finds from Carl Moore Antiques, a stunning antique farmhouse dining table and repurposed materials sourced from military miscellanea, such as the boy's room headboard that's crafted from old wood slats taken from a vintage army truck.

    There's a catch, though — this family doesn't exist.

    Designer Edwina Vidosh of Edwina Alexis Interiors imagined a client profile in order to help her weave a fanciful story line when choosing decor elements. Paintings nod to the fictional family's travels, and handmade holiday ornaments appear as though they were collected heirlooms. In contrast, industrial items such as task lighting fixtures and rustic touches such as a barn door on an iron track update the aesthetic to reflect today's interpretation of Southern lifestyle.

    "The antiques, warm and special family heirlooms, truly represent the generational aspect of Southern life," Vidosh says. "But, as we all know, Southern living is all about entertaining, so I wanted to include modern items that make the home very livable."

    Proceeds from the $10 admission benefit Operational Finally Home, a nonprofit that builds and donates mortgage-free homes for injured veterans and their families. In addition to the home being open for touring, a myriad activities aim to entice visitors, including cookie decorating demonstrations, champagne and chocolate tastings, craft beer tastings, chef demonstrations and flower and centerpiece crafting workshops (see the complete schedule here).

    ___

    Stone Acorn Builders' Southern Living "Home for the Holidays" Showcase Home, located at 2718 Talbott St., is open on Sunday and Nov. 8 and 9, from 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

    The Stone Acorn Builders' Southern Living Showcase Home is located in West University at 2718 Talbott St.

    Stone Acorn Builders' Southern Living "Home for the Holidays" Showcase Home
      
    Photo by Joel Luks
    The Stone Acorn Builders' Southern Living Showcase Home is located in West University at 2718 Talbott St.
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    American made

    Top Houston restaurant builder now crafting custom furniture and lighting

    Emily Cotton
    May 9, 2025 | 3:00 pm
    Custom Concepts Furniture & Lighting office lobby The Kennedy
    Photo by Josh Gremillion
    The company designed and built the furniture and lighting for The Kennedy.

    The last two decades have seen astronomical growth for Houston’s culinary and hospitality scene, even attracting the Michelin Guide to the Bayou City. While the fare remains of utmost importance, the most radical transformation in how diners select restaurants is all about aesthetics. If cozy dinners, matcha runs, and milestone celebrations don’t make “the ‘gram,” did they even happen?

    These days, hospitality design has to be bolder, swankier, and sexier than ever before in order to attract an elevated clientele, all while remaining practical and commercial grade in construction quality. While it has become de rigueur for restaurateurs to announce which top interior designer or architectural firm has created their latest opening, it is somewhat less common to hear about the construction firms who translate those designs into the physical realm, but that’s about to change.

    Construction Concepts — the award-winning build team behind some of Houston’s trendiest restaurants such as Marmo, Graffiti Raw, Doris Metropolitan, and Cocody, their collaboration with Houston design star Nina Magon (the full list is an astonishing 400 projects) — have launched an ambitious new venture in hopes of revolutionizing the furniture and other furnishings used in hospitality design throughout Houston. Joshua Weisman and Mark Bordman’s new stand alone project, Custom Concepts Furniture & Lighting, delivers bespoke furniture and lighting solutions for restaurants, hotels, hospitality, and corporate spaces.

    Trendy Houstonians have more than likely experienced the Custom Concepts Furniture & Lighting treatment without having realized it. New hot spots Chardon, Melrose, and Solarium have all been outfitted with Custom Concepts creations, with highly-anticipated Succulent and Recess both hot on their heels.

    After 20 years on the build side of the business and being recognized with 16 Houston Business Journal Landmark Awards for projects across four categories, the why behind creating the new company becomes clear.

    “We saw an incredible need for this product and service; it’s an underserved market. There’s very limited options for people to go find these products and we have a passion for unique designs and builds — eclectic, neat pieces,” Weisman tells CultureMap. “There’s just no big surplus for it. You’re either custom making it, or you’re going to a big box store and seeing what you can find.”

    With a robust team numbering almost 30 people, Custom Concepts handles everything for clients from design all the way to white glove delivery and installation, plus an absolutely unheard of two-year warranty on all of their products. Lead time on bespoke pieces is around 12 weeks, lighting is 8-10 weeks, and furniture requires 10-12. Amazingly, their in-stock catalog line of approximately 2,000 SKUs is ready-to-go. “You could call tomorrow and say ‘I need 40 stools with backs in this color,’ and we’d give you four or five models to choose from,” says Weisman.

    Given Custom Concepts’ quality and elite clientele, one could easily assume that services are mildly cost prohibitive. Shockingly, this isn’t the case. “Our pricing, being straight to manufacturer, is considerably less than retail. Our pricing is very aggressive and competitive compared to the national market — 40-50 percent less than nationwide retailers,” says Weisman. “We build things to last that are amazing and affordable,” adds Bordman.

    Restaurants and hospitality make up 90 percent of Custom Concepts’ business, but residential clients are not unheard of. Weisman tells CultureMap that some higher-end clients will reach out to them directly when in need of lighting and furnishings for an entire home. Otherwise, they work directly with designers. “We love having designers come in and run wild with it — and we manufacture it from scratch,” says Weisman. “Whatever their vision is, we will bring it to market for them.”

    Attention to detail is undoubtedly the cornerstone of Custom Concepts. Furnishings have felt padding to protect floors and all tables — like those at Chardon — have a velvety felt underlining to protect their clientele’s delicate garments from catching, no detail is insignificant.

    “Just being proactive in the design and product that we’re delivering, we’ve been in this arena for so long, why not go the extra step,” says Weisman. “Really refining your product and what you’re giving your client; let’s do these added features, let’s do the ‘wow’ factor. If you can make it flawless, why not?!” Why not, indeed.

    Custom Concepts Furniture & Lighting office lobby The Kennedy
      

    Photo by Josh Gremillion

    The company designed and built the furniture and lighting for The Kennedy.

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