This project, tucked at the end of a small road behind the typical suburban sprawl neighborhoods, was sited like its own enclave, landscaped and decorated to feel like a Mediterranean style home. When we were asked to capture the large space under the expansive roof, we sat with the clients to determine how they wanted to utilize the new space and determined that they were looking for 2 large bedrooms, a sitting area and a common bathroom. They did want to somehow bring some drama to the house to complement the vaulted ceiling-ed family room which was their favorite room.
The first challenge we tackled was to determine where we would push through the roof expanse to create the openings to provide egress and light to the bedrooms. Rather than just punch dormers or gables through the sides of the house, we looked at these penetrations as a way to provide some additional style to the home by creating a tower element over the front entry. The structure of this house was a unique steel post and beam frame designed by the original builder, so we couldn’t move things around to accommodate layout options, so this decision drove the other design choices pretty quickly.
The other element we wanted to focus on was the sitting area, and we were able to locate this between the bedrooms on the front and the vaulted ceiling area over the family room in the back, finally developing a balcony element to this sitting room to enhance the drama of that space and the family room below. From there, the bathroom was located under the remaining high roof area with plenty of space for walk in shower, double vanities and a water closet. There was even enough space for a laundry and additional storage tucked under the eaves.
The tower element contained one of the bedrooms, and was enhanced by sliding it forward to give the bedroom plenty of space. This tower room has a dramatic high ceiling and will certainly be a sought-after room, while the other bedroom is nestled next to it with slightly larger windows to help it feel full of light. Moving the tower forward gave us the opportunity to enhance the main entry to the home with a portico space under the tower for even more Mediterranean flavor.
The subtle style enhancements and thoughtful design elements in this project really elevated more than just the spaces we were renovating, bringing drama to the whole house from the front façade to the family room and the new spaces upstairs. A real treat for the family who gets to come home to this every day!