Like the other houses on the pedestrian-only street, their home comes right up to the pavement’s edge, but unlike any other, it greets passersby with a wide glass facade.
Majestic Valley Oak at home's main entrance
Like most of Wright’s designs, the house is completely integrated into the landscape and was designed to bring the outside in through its placement in nature and its usage of extensive windows.
At the meeting point of these two masses, public and private spaces, is a vertical axis that cuts the horizontal plane with the use of a staircase that goes through all levels of the house.
Our House - Exterior
Our House - Exterior
Photography by Matthew Millman
courtyard
lounge area / media room
night scene
curb appeal
"Key to the special nature of the pavilion’s purpose is that guests are immersed in the landscape and surrounded by the vines that produced the actual wine that they are tasting," Warner and McCabe say. We couldn't agree more. Head to quintessa.com to learn more about the winery and book a reservation to experience the pavilions firsthand.
Photography by Matthew Millman
A dishwasher by Miele, refrigerator by Mitsubishi, and Baumatic cooktop are nestled into the custom kitchen, which features laminate-covered cabinets and a stainless steel countertop.
In the living area, a sliding door conceals the loft from the hallway leading to the office, thus opening the space up by revealing extra square footage in the bedroom. When it’s time for bed, the door slides shut for privacy.
The mirror-top table in the living area is the Vanity table by Stefano Giovannoni for Magis. It’s surrounded by Naoto Fukasawa chairs. “The glass floor emerged as a way to visually interconnect the different spaces. It makes the living room feel twice as tall, and from the inside of the apartment on either floor you can look up and see the sky (very rare in Paris).”
Lewis draws back the curtains to reveal her “No Ordinary Kitchen.” True to her style, she chose a muted material palette to create a comforting and relaxed kitchen environment, from the white oak floors to the polished marble countertop on the island. Oil-rubbed bronze cabinet hardware provides a pop of contrast while stainless steel appliances by Signature Kitchen Suite make a sleek aesthetic statement.
The house, which is gently pushed into the hillside, has a large basement holding a garage, ski room, storage areas, and utility spaces as well as the entrance hall.
Mid-century designer Jens Risom's A-framed prefab family retreat, located on the northern portion of Block island, is bordered by a low stone wall, an aesthetic element that appears throughout the land.
“We really wanted to capture the ruinous quality of this old building rather than do something overtly new,” says Greg Blee, founding partner at Blee Halligan Architects. Before construction could begin, however, he and Halligan had to patch the remaining walls using stones found in the nearby river. Wherever a wall had collapsed, the designers inserted framing to create windows and doors. For the roof, they turned to the original tiles. “My father’s terrible at throwing things away,” Blee says. “We took the tiles off 30 years ago, as it was too dangerous to have them up there. They’ve been sitting in the fields ever since, and this was our last chance to use them.”
Nicknamed the Floating Farmhouse, this 200-year-old home inspired one former copywriter to delve into architecture as a living. Inside, renovator and owner Tom Givone mixes vintage and industrial decor. Photo by Mark Mahaney.
Constructed on land he had owned for years, this tiny cabin is also totally green.
After raising the rear patio to the level of the kitchen, the team reused the original redwood decking and supplemented it with recycled pieces from other projects. Recessed planters punctuate a garden wall. Scott and Regina warm themselves by a Solus fire pit on chilly evenings.
“When we first set out on this crazy adventure, we always pictured parking Woody in a place like this,” Brian says. “We honestly couldn’t have imagined it would be this spectacular.”
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