Houzz Tours
Houzz Tour: Coastal New England Style Meets Pacific Northwest Modern
Homeowners ease into retirement in this Camano Island home, enjoying seaside views, cooking and gardening
At retirement time this Seattle couple decided to move to their weekend house on an island north of the city. But first the beach house needed some updating to become a comfortable full-time home. “The house was built in the 1940s and had been added on to over the years,” says architect Dan Nelson. The house had become very rundown, so they decided to start from scratch, saving the original foundation and building on top of it.
A flagstone path leads from the driveway through the courtyard to the front porch steps. One of the homeowners is an admitted plant nut. “The garden has been a particular joy for me for many reasons,” she says. “I moved to the island from Seattle, where I was a Master Gardener, but I had never had the opportunity to help create my own garden.”
She worked with landscape designer Andrea Becker of Studio AB, who provided schematics for the layout in the form of a master plan, worked with her on plant selection, and gave material suggestions and some coaching. The landscape designer wanted to create a beach-cottage-casual look for the home.
Becker’s goals included giving her clients a landscape to contrast the strong vertical lines, materials and scale of the house. She also wanted to provide color contrast to all of the gray on the concrete and siding with green foliage and seasonally bright flowers: digplexis, crocosmias, dahlias and nasturtiums. Finally, she wanted to help them plan gardens that they could enjoy maintaining and adding to, and that would stand up to the conditions of the site. “I made suggestions for container gardens, perennials and ground covers as well, but it was really the homeowner who fleshed it out and made it a garden,” Becker says.
She worked with landscape designer Andrea Becker of Studio AB, who provided schematics for the layout in the form of a master plan, worked with her on plant selection, and gave material suggestions and some coaching. The landscape designer wanted to create a beach-cottage-casual look for the home.
Becker’s goals included giving her clients a landscape to contrast the strong vertical lines, materials and scale of the house. She also wanted to provide color contrast to all of the gray on the concrete and siding with green foliage and seasonally bright flowers: digplexis, crocosmias, dahlias and nasturtiums. Finally, she wanted to help them plan gardens that they could enjoy maintaining and adding to, and that would stand up to the conditions of the site. “I made suggestions for container gardens, perennials and ground covers as well, but it was really the homeowner who fleshed it out and made it a garden,” Becker says.
“It’s been a really fun and manageable garden,” the homeowner says. She did her research on which plants could stand up to the salt spray and wind on the site. One of her favorites is the multistemmed tree seen here on the right, a Japanese Stewartia (Stewartia psuedocamellia). A summer favorite of her husband’s is the cardoon plant (Cynara cardunculus). “It’s a relative of the artichoke and is quite spectacular in the summer,” she says.
The homeowners wanted their home to be low maintenance as well, so the architects chose materials that could stand up to the seaside site. Shingles and board and batten fiber-cement boards nod to traditional design, while the Cor-Ten steel, vinyl windows and concrete have a more modern Pacific Northwest look. The deck material is composite, and the wood on the porch ceiling is clear cedar.
The homeowners wanted their home to be low maintenance as well, so the architects chose materials that could stand up to the seaside site. Shingles and board and batten fiber-cement boards nod to traditional design, while the Cor-Ten steel, vinyl windows and concrete have a more modern Pacific Northwest look. The deck material is composite, and the wood on the porch ceiling is clear cedar.
“The winds really pick up in the late afternoon here on the island,” Nelson says. Having outdoor space on the protected side is important. He created a protected courtyard between the house and the garage for hanging out, barbecuing and eating outdoors. There is another seating area just beyond the entry porch.
Between the loosely laid, randomly set flagstones are small steppable ground covers, such as creeping thyme (Thymmus subulata) and Corsican mint (Mentha requenii).
The compact size and mix of plants make the garden easy to maintain.
From the ground to the peak of the gable, the scale of the materials goes from very large to small, and from contemporary to traditional. Scoring on the substantial concrete columns and patio carves it into large chunks, echoed by the panels of Cor-Ten steel on the stairwell. The first floor is wrapped in board and batten siding. The peak’s facade is covered in shingles.
Cor-Ten steel develops a changing patina over time. The homeowners were concerned that the material could stain the concrete, so the architects created this gap detail to protect it. The homeowners filled it with their collection of pebbles, shells and sea glass, adding a coastal touch on the home’s street side.
At the end of the entry sequence, visitors are protected by a substantial front porch with a clear view of Skagit Bay.
The stairwell windows face south and bathe this side of the house in natural light, important for the region’s many gray days.
The former house was chopped up into small rooms. In the new house, the architects made the most of the modest footprint by making the living room, dining room and kitchen open to one another.
“My husband says that his favorite part of the house is the open kitchen. He is an avid cook and loves to feed people,” the homeowner says. “Last fall we seated 40 people for a brisket smackdown, and this is not a big house!”
“My husband says that his favorite part of the house is the open kitchen. He is an avid cook and loves to feed people,” the homeowner says. “Last fall we seated 40 people for a brisket smackdown, and this is not a big house!”
Until the room above the new garage is complete, the laundry room will serve as the homeowner’s art studio. “I love watercolor and particularly enjoy painting flowers,” she says. “The garden is definitely an inspiration — my painting space looks onto the garden beds.”
A custom window seat occupies the large curved stairwell on the landing partway up the stairs.
A small library-study is perched in this loft space. Just out of view is the upstairs family room.
Another one of the homeowner’s favorite things is this bathroom countertop, composed of sea glass that her daughter collected. “Because we tried to source things locally, we found a guy in Seattle, Aaron Cohen, who owns NovuStone and makes very interesting countertops from recycled materials,” she says.
The homeowners refer to this upstairs family room as “The Big Room.” The large doors and windows provide expansive views of Skagit Bay, and the owners love the angles of the high ceiling. The master bedroom, off this room to the left, offers the same views. One of the homeowners is a musician, and his equipment is up here.
Everyone involved in the project debates about which side of the house to call the front, so we’ll call this the water side and the other side the street side. The house sits on the original footprint very close to the water, which rises up to the wall seen here. Gray siding and shingles match the gray Pacific Northwest sky. Clear cedar underneath the porch roof picks up on the driftwood and forest.
A Cor-Ten steel detail on the facade connects the water side to the street side. The horizontal boards under the deck are a very traditional way to treat this area. Gaps between them allow them to dry quickly should the water rise during a storm. The gable and balcony are taken from the classic shingle-style homes of New England. A steel railing and steel cables are contemporary touches that keep the views open to the water from the deck.
A Cor-Ten steel detail on the facade connects the water side to the street side. The horizontal boards under the deck are a very traditional way to treat this area. Gaps between them allow them to dry quickly should the water rise during a storm. The gable and balcony are taken from the classic shingle-style homes of New England. A steel railing and steel cables are contemporary touches that keep the views open to the water from the deck.
On the water side, the seaside conditions make it particularly tough to grow plants. They kept the plantings low to keep the views out to the bay completely open. Rugosa roses (Rosa rugosa), black dragon Japanese cedars (Cryptomeria japonica ‘Black Dragon’) and shore pines (Pinus contorta) have stood up well to the winds and salt air.
The homeowners love the Black Dragon Japanese cedars that flank the steps on the water side, and the shore pine, known for its twisted form. They planted a second shore pine out by the street, creating another connection between both sides of the house.
The homeowners love the Black Dragon Japanese cedars that flank the steps on the water side, and the shore pine, known for its twisted form. They planted a second shore pine out by the street, creating another connection between both sides of the house.
The homeowners are happy that their home was awarded the highest level of Built Green certification and enjoy the lower energy bills that come along with that. “Building a custom home was a new and great experience for us both,” the homeowner says. “It gave us the opportunity to incorporate design elements and finishes that we love, and come up with a comfortable and very practical space.”
Architecture: principal architect: Dan Nelson; project architect: Matt Radach, both of Designs Northwest Architects
Landscape designer: Andrea Becker, Studio AB
Contractor: James Hall and Associates
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Architecture: principal architect: Dan Nelson; project architect: Matt Radach, both of Designs Northwest Architects
Landscape designer: Andrea Becker, Studio AB
Contractor: James Hall and Associates
Browse more homes by style: Small Homes | Colorful Homes | Eclectic Homes | Modern Homes | Contemporary Homes | Midcentury Homes | Ranch Homes | Traditional Homes | Barn Homes | Townhouses | Apartments | Lofts | Vacation Homes
Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: A retired couple
Location: Camano Island, about 65 miles north of Seattle
Size: 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms; 2,300 square feet (214 square meters)
Architect: Dan Nelson of Designs Northwest Architects
Not only do both of these Pacific Northwest homeowners hail from New England, but architect Nelson himself cut his teeth on the North Shore of Boston, getting to know the wonderful shingle-style houses on the opposite coast after he finished architecture school and before he moved west.
“They wanted a bit of a New England coastal style, but with a modern look,” Nelson says. The result is a familiar classic form with modern touches and a unique combination of materials, including shingles, board and batten, Cor-Ten steel, local stone and concrete.
The home’s shape recalls one you might find on Fairfield Beach, Cape Cod or Marblehead, places the homeowners have fond memories of. But it also has striking contemporary touches that give it a Pacific Northwest attitude. While the curved stairwell seen here on the street side was inspired by shingle-style forms, the Cor-Ten steel and 12 windows make it a striking contemporary element.
The path from the driveway to the house passes through beautiful gardens. The owners and Designs Northwest have plans to create a new garage with a studio on top for one of the homeowners, who loves painting watercolors inspired by their garden.