| We love these 60's ramblers that everyone loves to scorn! You can do
so much with them! This one is a lovely old-growth lot in Bellevue that
has very tight wetland restrictions due to the creek that runs through
it. Given the spectacular beauty of the property (newly restored to native
wetland vegetation as part of this project) our focus was to open the house
to connect with the exterior as much as possible, as well as to open up
the interior spaces for a more unified flow.
The existing house had awesome heavy timber beams but they were unnoticeable
in walls and small rooms. In opening up the entire main floor (kitchen,
dining and living areas), the space now has more the quality of a Japanese
pavilion in the woods, or a Northwest contemporary lodgehouse, with it's
huge beams and treetrunk posts, deep overhangs and sliding walls of glass.
The lower level of the house is a large entertainment room opening
entirely to a lower patio. The house is retrofitted
with wiring for whatever the next century might bring!
The interior shows-off a palette of simple natural materials: fir trim,
stone, slate, bold but earthy colors and striking steel and glass features
by local artisans... all in all, now a truly Northwest contemporary home
in the woods! |
