Swim Spa Adds Function and Beauty to Home
Swim Spas are the fastest growing category in pools. Adding them to a home doesn’t have to mean sacrificing form and style.
Kitchen Renovation: Dysfunctional to Amazing
Undertaking a major renovation at the same time there isn’t anywhere to escape is not for the faint of heart. That said, our family certainly cannot be alone in realizing we needed to change some things when suddenly we weren’t able to just dash out to a restaurant when things were hectic.
Sharpsburg Home: historic renovation photo gallery
An inviting glow from the porch lights of the farmhouse as the sun sets. Harmon Builders is pleased to share this collection of images taken of the restoration work on this mid 18th century farmhouse taken during the course of the project. The photos provide some...
Historic construction in Sharpsburg
We are making diligent progress renovating the historic farmhouse in Sharpsburg. The original part of the home likely dates back to 1750s, with an addition likely in the early 1800s. Meticulous work guards the integrity of historic construction to avoid damaging...
Project update: A beautiful and functional family home–complete
This former rancher has been completely transformed by a garage addition, second story that represents a complete shift in the architectural style, and a kitchen open to the living space creating a contemporary interior feel. Paul and Jason worked closely with the...
Historic Renovation in Sharpsburg
We have been called upon to do a historic renovation job on an 18th century home with a somewhat deteriorated partially enclosed porch. The exterior renovation will involve creating a wraparound porch with a full roof. In the interior of the home the work will...
Happy Holidays from the Harmon Builders team
We want to extend holiday greetings to our valued clients, family, and friends near and far at this busy time of the year. As we prepare to celebrate a season of traditions and togetherness as this year closes and we welcome the next, we wish all the best to you....
Project update: rancher updated with second story addition
Unusually wet weather this year has us delighted to be making progress on this exciting remodel and addition. Wish as we might to control the elements, we can only roll with what mother nature delivers. This home began as a rancher that was passed down through a...
Fun Furniture Finds in Frederick
Update: The location of the former Smokestack Studios is now Industrial Home, which is Christopher Ritchie's current business, offering similar aesthetics and services to our area. Smokestack Studios has just come to Downtown Frederick with a new store on Market...
Versatile poolhouse transformation
The homeowners of this fabulous space that was renovated to fill in a pool and create a large and beautiful multifunctional room were …
An “Oldie” but a Goodie
I am impatient to share the latest beautiful work in our home by Harmon Builders, but this post is old news. The last remaining detail for the new work is carpet installation (scheduled on our own), before we move into the awesome new bedroom they just finished in the...
Practical planning: how a project idea becomes a reality
You may watch Chip and Joanna Gaines on Fixer Upper and wonder what the process is for obtaining financing for a construction project when the completed product is not yet there to assess. The same complication applies to construction loans. We are currently working...
Pool House Renovation: Spring 2018 in Progress
We are pleased to return and help clients we have had the opportunity to work with on a few previous jobs for a unique challenge. The family called upon us this time to convert a large indoor pool room at their Middletown farm where they raise amazing grass-fed beef...
Harmon Builders: building in every way
I have had the pleasure to see Harmon Builders at work as they have tackled a few different renovations in our home, as well as to work for them as a blogger to highlight the wonderful work that they do. As I wrote the client profile about the Miller-Varley family...
Client update: The Miller-Varley Family
Harmon Builders helped the Miller-Varley Family with a kitchen renovation in a house they relocated to after their previous home was lost to fire. Since then, they have moved on from their loss in an inspiring way. Starting small and moving several times into...
Harmon home office expansion plans
The existing workshop at Harmon Builders' home office site has limited finishing space available for cabinetry work. Plans for expanding the workshop are now in the early phase of construction. Once completed we also intend to add a separate structure that will...
The value of knowledgeable clients
It is easy for clients to see the progress that is made on the job site, but perhaps more difficult to visualize the behind-the-scenes work that takes place for things like ordering products, scheduling and paying subcontractors, and working with permitting...
Kicking Off 2018 at the Atkins’ Historic Home
Harmon Builders is starting our year continuing work at a phased construction project at the second of a pair of homes side-by-side on Jefferson Street in Frederick, the facade of which is pictured above. When completed this will become the second residence for a...
Happy Holidays from Our Home to Yours
As many of us welcome friends and family into our homes the kitchen becomes the hospitality center. If you plan to entertain during this holiday season, we have gathered up some of our favorite foods alongside some new ideas for this winter's celebrations. We hope you...
Welcome to Our New Website!
Harmon Builders is excited to announce our new website, which will allow us to showcase our body of work as it grows. The new format makes it easier to navigate through important information, and presents photo slideshows of our larger projects. This is a...
Trends in Home Design for 2017
Classic Workmanship Meets High Tech
At Harmon, we utilize the latest technology such as concept rendering to help you visualize the project.
We’re at the Office too!
Paul Harmon and Jason Airing had originally built a 12 ft. table, but a growing IT firm needed a longer extension. Two, 3 foot panels were added to the center, along with an IT console for Wi-fi, USB ports, etc., making this gorgeous custom office table a total of 18...
Hygge and Wabi-Sabi…
No, it’s not a poem from Alice in Wonderland…
An article from Mother Nature Network brought the concepts of hygge and wabi-sabi to mind as useful elements for a homeowner to put together. They may help decision making during the planning stages of custom building or renovation, as well as in the finishing stages of decorating and furnishin
Masonry Heating–Not Just a Fireplace
Masonry heating is an ancient technology that is still in use today. A masonry heater is a beautiful architectural feature that uses a quick burning fire to heat up the thermal material of a chimney to radiate heat throughout the house. The radiant heat may last 18 to...
Efficient Pellet Heating
Traditional pellet stoves can look like a charming Franklin stove, but rather than burning wood they burn compact pellets. Pellet fuel can be made of wood chips, nutshells or corn kernels, offering a sustainable heat source. According to the EPA these pellets are the...
Dreamy Basement Renovation Ideas
An unfinished basement means an uncharted world of possibility. In particular, it is possible to take advantage of things that might make the below level space unappealing at first thought, and turn that into the best part of your home. The word den truly evokes a...
Green Controversy Wood Stoves
If a wood stove burns dirtier than gas or oil, can it be a green source of heat? It is true that wood burning stoves produce more fine particle emissions than gas or oil, but depending on your circumstances, they can be a green option. They are not suitable for urban...
Hardware Store Cleaning Hacks
Who doesn't love using something you already have hanging around to tackle a job quickly and thoroughly? I noticed that a number of the things you might find in a hardware store can be put to good use for home cleaning and maintenance--especially a few of the big,...
Resources, Renewable Resources
If you are building or remodeling, or want to change systems in order to take advantage of some renewable energy incentives available to Maryland residents, these are some good starting points for fact finding. Geothermal Maryland offers a Geothermal Heat Pump Grant...
Bathroom Before and Afters
I ran across a slideshow of brilliant bathroom remodels. This Old House published their Reader Remodel Contest results from 2013. If you are planning a bathroom renovation, there are some great images to look through for ideas. My personal favorites: Clawfoot tubs,...
Making the Useful Beautiful in Universal Design: Grab Bars
William Morris is most known for being quoted that you should have nothing in the home that you don't know to be useful or beautiful. It is exciting to see his philosophy applied to utilitarian things such as grab bars. At last they are seen turned into decorative...
Deck Maintenance for Safety
Did you know that May was Deck Safety Month? I know that was news to me. A story in the news of a deck collapse at an inn on Pawleys Island in North Carolina called deck safety to my attention. You occasionally hear of a home deck failure when people have overloaded...
When It All Comes Together
The Harmon Builders team has done a number of projects for us recently, starting with replacing our windows and front door last summer. Things are coming together beautifully. I have always wanted to live in a home that looks just how I envision it should, and I...
Customize the Space Under Your Stairs
One of the best accomplishments of custom building and remodeling is that a custom project can make the best use of under-utilized spaces. One often overlooked spot in a home is the space under a staircase, and there are some truly brilliant ways to make something...
Space Saving Tools
Harmon Builders built our fabulous addition about seven years ago, and every day we love how it has made our home more beautiful and livable. Since then we have shuffled around pieces of furniture that we already owned, and we are only now buying most of the furniture...