Cool Stuff

An architect and construction engineer couple build a sustainable, 624-square-foot abode for $221,580 in their Southeast Portland backyard.

The kitchen is now part of the large open living space. The 1960s Hygena formica cabinets in Polyester Pumpkin were a vintage find. The white pendants are from IKEA and the blue is from Habitat.

Fields of native grasses connect the main residence, situated at the top of the slope, to the new structures scattered below. A pergola extends from the post-and-beam structure that was maintained during the remodel of the midcentury home.

Kitchen & Dining Room “This room really became the heart of the space,” Dawn Casale says. “If people are sitting at the dining table or in the living area, you’re able to have a really free-flowing conversation and there’s a nice dynamic happening on the entire floor.”

A band of precast concrete, which holds a custom bench, wraps around the downstairs living area. The striped cushion fabric was purchased in Antwerp. A wood-framed AP71 lounge chair by Hans Wegner and a seat by Wim Rietveld, the son of famed Dutch designer Gerrit Rietveld, outfit the space. Underfloor heating installed throughout the house allows for a flexible layout: “There aren’t any radiators cluttering up the rooms,” Jeffries explains.

Thanks to the rock climbing wall on the front facade, the Tiny Adventure Home allows the owners to practice bouldering whenever they like, no matter the time or place.

A reading nook in front of the "cabin" workspace at the top of the stairs.

“We both really love to cook, but the kitchen was so small, only one of us could be in there at a time,” says Emma.

For Urbanism Design's first project, interior designer Pamela Lin-Tam made the atrium the centerpiece of this Eichler. Here, the living area enticingly faces the swimming pool.

“Our goal was to construct a house with the lowest possible budget, while ensuring comfort and efficiency for the residents inside,” says Sergey Kolchin, founder of Le Atelier. The architects accented the home’s front door by painting it yellow, harmonizing the structure with the surrounding forest.

Jessica Helgerson Interior Design, with project manager and lead designer Emily Kudsen Leland at the helm, remade a Portland abode with a crisp paint palette: Benjamin Moore’s Wrought Iron for the cladding and Venetian Gold for the front door. The home was originally designed by Saul Zaik in Southwest Portland, complete with a wood-clad exterior, in 1956. As part of the renovation, landscape design was completed by Lilyvilla Gardens.

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Making use of a sculpted berm, Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects built identical 21,500-square-foot dormitory buildings at Haverford College without interior stairwells or elevators, freeing up room for courtyards and more generously sized common spaces.

Dufner organized the studio by using furniture and rugs to divide it into zones for different functions. In the dining area, the floor is fumed oak—a technique that incorporates the use of ammonia to deepen the wood’s color and bring out the grain. A pair of Grass-Seated chairs by Nakashima Studio surround a Tulip table by Eero Saarinen for Knoll.

Family Room

"A steep or unstable site can make it difficult and costly to seismically retrofit a structure, or stabilize the site,” says Thomas Schaer at SHED Architecture and Design, a Seattle-based firm with extensive experience in adaptive reuse, as well as midcentury remodel. “There also may be land-use code provisions that limit or prevent development on the lot."