My client for a remodel of a 1960s house on Galiano Island invited my family up to see the almost finished house. (a few details and exterior paint not finished yet)
The location is truly spectacular and I was very happy with the improvements that we made. Improvements included: on the practical side: tightening up the exterior envelope (including new fibercement rainscreen siding, all new windows, & insulation), upgrading to an energy efficient heating system, and adding a HRV, and then rearranging the interior extensively to simplifying and improve the transitions between spaces. The lower level was majorly improved, but it was a pretty straight forward rearrangement breaking it up into more usable rooms, guest suite, familyroom, office and storage. I didn’t include those photos.
The main event is the view to the south to Active Pass and all the way to the Olympic National Park 70 miles to the south. We spent many hours enjoying the view of wildlife and boats from the covered porch.
View of the house from the water. we simplified the roofline and deckView from the gate – Red windows and trim on this side to give it some personality from the road. New cedar entry porch with benches was a big improvement for easy access for all. (Old one had uneven stone steps down from driveway then back up several steps to the porch.) (I & AI added the ferns to the photo in the foreground, and strangely also a fish amongst the ferns) enjoying the viewBC Ferry Salish Heron with Mayne Island, Prevost Island, Pender Island, and The Olympics beyondEnjoying the viewLong south side covered porch. We eliminated the non structural posts that went to the roof and did not miss them despite my concerns that it might look odd without some posts. Enjoying the fir postkitchen transition to living and dining room – vaulted ceiling to flat ceiling. This was a tricky structural bit for the builder because he had to modify the existing trusses and I am thankful that the owners saw the value in making the transition what it should be rather than the easiest way. Kitchen counters are Paperstone – made from recycled paper and both warm to the touch and acoustically dampening. Livingroom – My favorite detail is the steel beam supporting the wood stove shelflooking downtown the bedroom hallway – we made it more private but kept a slot at the top of the wall to let light through. Aimable recessed light at the end illuminates a painting. Looking past entry toward kitchen – ceiling transition and four fir posts creating an elegant transitionmoonlight and ferryInterior window detail – painted wood jamb on all 4 sides. Another view of the window detailRelocated stairs to the lower level. (Old ones were in the prime real estate between kitchen and dining room.)
I have been spending some time enjoying the Pilates and Rehab studio that McBride Construction and I finished last year. At long last PGE hooked up the electricity and the mostly native plants that I helped select and install in front are growing in fast and the studio is shaping up nicely. Calscape has a tool where you can enter your address and it will give you a list of plants they consider native to that spot. This guided some of our choices.
The project involved remodeling the existing floor of the single family house into two residential units – a two bedroom in front and a one bedroom ADU in back, and adding a brand new accessible Commercial space below. (It was a dirt crawlspace)
In the afternoon sunlight streams into the entry making its way deep into the studioThe main studio – radiant heat in the floor and a way beyond code heat recovery ventilation system that keeps the air really clean during flu season and wildfire season.
Looking down on the big room – I love the flooring – It is existing, structural tongue and groove fir subfloor, but it was lighter and kind of pickled with dark marine grade caulk/ filler between the boards. We thought of putting new flooring on top, but the boards were so nice and long, which is unusual these days. Once we put on the dark stain the super nice figured grain popped and we loved it. The indirect LED strip lighting atop the collar ties also worked out well. The electrician did a great job and knew to stop the lights a bit shy of the ends to minimize bright spots. (This photo accentuates the bright spots) Before shot of the flooring/ structural subfloor with younger Èowyn.I had a goal to be very particular about the clips for the shower glass. So often the clips are not given much thought and they ruin the simple clean look. (First I tried to talk the builder into no clips at the bottom, recessing the glass into the curb, but they were not game to try this detail. The green floor tile is Arto and the shower floor and walls is Fireclay.Èowyn likes the big window looking into the woodsI was proud of this built-in brass towel bar. (Kind of wish the electrical devices were more orderly/ aligned and in a real photo shoot Id probably not have a used towel. Oh well)High tech- low tech – this is the bidet/ heated toilet seat controller and also the handmade wood toilet paper holder with a found gnarled stick. Another custom brass towel bar – this one with ash. You can also see the cool grain in the floor and the mudroom floor tile by Arto. I thought I maybe specified too many pegs in the mudroom, but every single one was being used on the day I was there. Another picture of the green hex Arto tile transitioning to fir flooring. The decorative cold air return cover for the forced air system is in the base of the linen cabinet – painted white to match the cabinet. We had fun with the sun rays over the back door (replacing glass that just caused the mudroom to overheat) and John McBride carved us some more diamond posts for the new covered porch. (Porch is the only addition to the house) This is a photo of the architect’s dog tracking water into the clients recently finished house. Also a photo of very nice green (Elder Green by Arto..photo doesn’t do it justice) tile floor in the entry that can take a little water no problem.This is another view of the big room. Big bifold doors connect the space to the garden and orchard to the west. Ample lighting in the room is provided by indirect LEDs shining up and cable lights for task lighting over the kitchen and dining room. You can’t see all the added insulation in the roof and air sealing and new windows and doors to keep the space warm in the rainy season.Here you can see the ash diamond posts at the end of island that match the redwood ones outside and also the tiled backsplash..somewhat random but also a pattern.A view of the mudroom – pendant by Metrolighting and painted shelving, pretty mushroom Arto tile floor, splash of color in the stained glass (fabricated by Feral Studios, designed by yours truly) I’m not going to bother with the not so nice before shot, but I was very happy with the lighting in this room after construction – Three of these large pendants from Metro Lighting in Berkeley.
I just realized that I never added this recent bathroom remodel to my digital diary. I wish I had a photo of the tiled shower surround because it is really pretty, but here is the vanity.
The countertop is Paperstone (FSC certified and also acoustically and thermally more like wood than most counters, but very durable) The bright purple floor is Marmoleum. The cabinet and mirror frame are ash. The light is from Metrolighting in Berkeley. The white rectangle is a secret cabinet. 🙂 There is space under the vanity for scale, stool, & waste bin….even a basket of bath toys.
We still are not ready for a full photo shoot, but we got a chance to visit this project in Inverness over the weekend. The remodel (Bay Builders general contractor) was extensive and included many upgrades to the exterior for energy efficiency, wild fire safety and general design improvement. We got to have some fun in the interior including the green Arto tile backsplash and the handmade ash island posts with diamonds cut into them. (They match the three redwood posts on the back porch)
I was admiring the artistic way these rafter tails wrap around the corner at the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley when I noticed the dark sky protection measures they implemented very economically with cut off black plastic waste bins. (and look at that black sky!) I recently updated my education on dark sky protection. I already knew that bright exterior lights are annoying to neighbors and that it would be nicer to see more stars at night, but I learned a few more reasons to avoid light pollution. So many nocturnal animals have their normal patterns disrupted by bright night time lights. Birds and insects in particular. I have a new love for curtains on windows to keep the interior lights from lighting up the outdoors. I had considered curtains mainly for privacy and keeping the sunshine out, but hadn’t worried about all the light that can spill out of a house when lights are on at night. Because LED lights use so little electricity the Earth’s light pollution problem is getting worse. It doesn’t cost very much to leave exterior lights on all night and this sometimes seems simpler than fancy lighting controls. Now I will be thinking of the nocturnal creatures as I plan my architectural lighting.
I was hunting for these pictures from 2018 and realized I never saved them to my blog. Super inspiring redwood shingles and other custom details in redwood and metal. (love the lights)
I went up to check out the lighting installation at the little music studio. Cable lighting can look very 80s…but sometimes it works well and allows for a very flexible solution. Exterior lights are large arts and crafts lanterns. No photo of the pathway lighting…stay tuned for a few more photos soon.
First here is a 3d model we built as a schematic design tool. A few things changed and not all the details are there, but you can get a sense of the overall layout.
This one was a rebuild of an existing garage. (We had to rebuild it to meet the energy standards for habitable space, but we had to keep it the same as the garage in footprint, height, and roofline. ) The owners wanted to keep it simple…and kind of traditional. We think it turned out well.
The heating is a Fujitsu minisplit, the insulation is beyond code including slab edge insulation, lighting is all LED, high efficacy, & high CRI. A spot HRV keeps the air fresh even when the owners are out of town.
Big doors to the patio open wide on a nice dayWe kept a flat ceiling and a traditional attic for simplicityA wall of cabinets on the property line side…120 Volt LED track lightingMcBride construction planned ahead and added flat blocks for mounting all the exterior electrical and plumbingVery durable solid oak counter and painted cabinets and shelving Kitchenette – induction cooktop with a toaster oven and microwave covers most cooking needs..and a remote fan in the ceiling The back side patioThe electrical panel got a little roof and side screensefficient full bathroomMy helper, Éowyn, enjoying the cool tiled shower
deedsdesign 