Architect Rick Cook Designed a Home for His Family—Then Discovered Someone Had Done It Better

In 2000, after being urged by a friend to look at homes in Snedens Landing, a neighborhood in the hamlet of Palisades, New York, that’s filled with historic residences, architect Rick Cook and his wife, Ellen, toured a four-bedroom built in the early 1970s. The exterior wasn’t especially intriguing, but then they stepped inside. "I was like, Oh my goodness, this looks like what Rick designed," says Ellen. Rick had made a similar sketch when dreaming up his ideal home, though there were a few differences in the real building. "I really liked the way the proportions were tighter in the foyer and then opened up in the living room, where you get views of the woods," he says.