Houzz Tours
Modern Architecture
Houzz Tour: Transparency Guides a Woodland Home
A midcentury gem's renovation brings in the light and the woods while respecting the original architecture
Two very detail-oriented clients lived in this midcentury modern house for years, contemplating how they'd like to remodel, completing a thorough search for an architect and mentally preparing for the vast undertaking.
They found Nils Finne, an architect who enjoys taking full advantage of the technologies available in Seattle to create intricate details for his designs. Finne is a believer in sustainable design, particularly "rightsizing," as well as in creating a design that will stand the test of time and using natural light. The resulting collaboration is a home that respects the original architecture, embraces its wooded setting, works for the residents' lifestyle and is at once modern and warm.
Houzz at a Glance
Location: Lake Forest, Washington (about 25 miles from Seattle)
Size: 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms
Year remodel completed: 2010
They found Nils Finne, an architect who enjoys taking full advantage of the technologies available in Seattle to create intricate details for his designs. Finne is a believer in sustainable design, particularly "rightsizing," as well as in creating a design that will stand the test of time and using natural light. The resulting collaboration is a home that respects the original architecture, embraces its wooded setting, works for the residents' lifestyle and is at once modern and warm.
Houzz at a Glance
Location: Lake Forest, Washington (about 25 miles from Seattle)
Size: 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms
Year remodel completed: 2010
One of the main goals was to create transparency between the interior and the 4-acre wooded parcel around it. "Natural light is critical to my projects," says Finne. "Especially here in the Pacific Northwest, natural light is a precious commodity." New windows, a new front door and a row of clerestory windows let in as much light as possible.
BEFORE: Here is the same view as in the previous photo, before the renovation. "We actually had a larger scope when we began the project than we wound up completing," says Finne. "Originally, we had a separate garage/guest room structure in the plans, but when forced to choose due to budget constraints, they picked high levels of details and craftsmanship over having more house." The existing carport was improved and enclosed, and the original footprint didn't gain an inch.
Finne removed a powder room on the left to open the entryway.
"I wanted the front door to serve as a visual stopping point," says Finne. He designed a woven-like pattern from Douglas fir and satin-edge glass. The door's intricate details foreshadow what's inside.
"I couldn't dream of crafting all these details without the sophisticated, cutting-edge fabricators and machine shops that are characteristic of Seattle," he says. Finne dubs his approach "crafted modernism — the enrichment of a modernist aesthetic with highly personal, crafted materials and objects."
"I couldn't dream of crafting all these details without the sophisticated, cutting-edge fabricators and machine shops that are characteristic of Seattle," he says. Finne dubs his approach "crafted modernism — the enrichment of a modernist aesthetic with highly personal, crafted materials and objects."
"I often push my clients to give up space by combining rooms," says Finne. "For example, having a family room where everyone hangs out and a formal living room no one ever uses is a waste of space."
A well-concealed TV means the living room and the family room no longer need to be separate spaces. Finne designed this custom cabinet with flat doors that slide back to reveal the plasma screen and a long vertical portion on the left to hold a speaker.
The wood drawers have a scoop-carved pattern Finne designed that was executed with a CNC (computer numerical control) router. The pattern is repeated in almost every room of the house, creating continuity.
The wood drawers have a scoop-carved pattern Finne designed that was executed with a CNC (computer numerical control) router. The pattern is repeated in almost every room of the house, creating continuity.
Architectural details throughout the house include cherry cabinets, stained Douglas fir window trim, original hemlock ceilings and fir beams. Weathered steel covers the staggered wall on the left. "It's kind of a homemade Cor-Ten," says Finne, laughing. "We let it rust outside and saved some money."
Finne designed the chandelier over the dining table with 33-inch tubes of cut glass.
Finne designed the chandelier over the dining table with 33-inch tubes of cut glass.
Built-in storage saves space in the dining room. The carved wood details continue along these drawers; Finne was careful to use the pattern in the right dosage. "The pattern is 12 inches high. I like to incorporate large, flat surfaces to provide relief," he says. In the dining room, he used resin panels.
BEFORE: The original kitchen was full of warm wood, but it felt dark and cramped.
The lighter flooring you see on the left is the original terrazzo. Rather than trying to match it exactly, Finne added a darker terrazzo for contrast. Further down the hallway he used a mottled concrete floor stained to resemble the original terrazzo.
Finne also designed the stools, which combine hard-edged blackened steel with handwoven rush seats.
Finne also designed the stools, which combine hard-edged blackened steel with handwoven rush seats.
Finne enlisted a local glass studio to kiln-fire shards of Starphire glass into a 1-inch-thick breakfast bar. Starphire is a brand of low-iron glass — the less iron, the less of a green hue glass has.
"The glass has a Milky Way–like wispy pattern to it," says Finne. "The glass becomes magical when you turn on the uplights."
"The glass has a Milky Way–like wispy pattern to it," says Finne. "The glass becomes magical when you turn on the uplights."
The master suite continues the feeling of transparency between the house and the woods.
"I wanted bathing in here to feel very au naturel, filled with light, almost primeval ... as if you're bathing outdoors in the woods," he says.
Finne's scooped wood pattern reappears on the cantilevered vanity. The floors and countertops are limestone, the shower door is Starphire glass and the pendant lights are by Bruck.
Go ahead and do a double take at this photo; can you tell where the mirrors above the vanity end and the glass begins?
Go ahead and do a double take at this photo; can you tell where the mirrors above the vanity end and the glass begins?
Lake Forest Park Renovation
If looking at the master bath pictures made you worry about peeping Toms, don't fret. A 1/4-inch-thick custom metal valence camouflages the bathroom window's extensive shades. "I am always interested in taking a cold, industrial material like steel and applying cutting-edge technology to transform it into something organic," Finne says. "This pattern is lyrical and delicate; the steel is no longer cold and industrial."
A sliding patterned glass panel separates the master bedroom from the hallway. Finne drew the pattern freehand with a pen, then digitized it and had it transfered to a film for the glass. The pattern is thickest at the bottom and lightens up as it goes higher.
The glass panels allow the room to receive natural light from other parts of the house while still closing it off. Finne also added fir to the ceilings that were not already covered in wood.
The completed renovations keep the spirit of the original architecture alive while strengthening a poetic relationship between the home and its sublime surroundings.
The completed renovations keep the spirit of the original architecture alive while strengthening a poetic relationship between the home and its sublime surroundings.