While living in Vancouver, Lisa Giroday and Tyler Lepore spent years imagining their dream home on the coast of British Columbia. “Ty was born on the Sunshine Coast, and we have a lot of family there,” says Lisa. “Roberts Creek was always where we wanted to live—the small community has everything we need, and it’s home to the best beaches on the coast.”

The couple searched and found a property that measures just over an acre and stands only a four-minute walk from the beach. “It has two of the largest, most magnificent redwoods,” says Lisa. The site is studded with cedar, fir, maple, and hemlock trees and huckleberry and salmonberry shrubs—and it also held a quaint 1960s beach house in need of an update.

“Originally, our plans were to renovate,” says Lisa. “We worked on drawings and even pulled permits, but when we started digging and opening up the walls, we discovered that we’d need to spend our entire renovation budget on bringing the house to code before doing any of the fun stuff we’d planned, like pushing out the rear wall and opening up the floor plan.”

Lisa and Tyler pivoted and decided to build their dream home from scratch. It was an easy decision, since Tyler is a metal fabricator by trade, and his brothers are the builders Marlin and Ryan Hanson of Hanson Land & Sea. The brothers teamed up to build the home, and Lisa, a landscape designer, started recreating the site.

But before the family dove into construction, Lisa and Tyler commissioned architects Brendan Callander and Shiloh Sukkau of September Architecture to help design their home. “Tyler has been our go-to fabricator for custom metalwork on our other projects,” says Callander, who worked from floor plans and elevations Tyler and Lisa developed with Hanson Land and Sea. “They wanted a modern house with minimal detailing that would age well and feel like a cozy home in the forest,” says Callander. “We worked closely with them to refine their design, selecting materials and finishes and ensuring functionality—and that the design was in line with the unique setting.”

Clad with inlaid brick, naturally stained vertical board-and-batten cedar siding, and a gray standing-seam metal roof, the 2,215-square-foot home reflects the vernacular of its waterfront community. “The materials and colors were drawn from the landscape,” says Callander. “The vertical planks reference the verticality of the surrounding trees—we used natural earth tones and local materials whenever possible.” The team employed a non-toxic stain for the exterior siding that will allow the cedar to silver and blend with the landscape.

For the brick cladding, which wraps the lower portion of the house, the team chose a rich shade of taupe. “The bricks were a challenge,” says Marlin. “They’re actually pavers, and they were a little harder to work with, but we pulled it off with putting in extra time. The final look is very unique and adds to the aesthetic.”

The house is marked by Tyler’s custom steelwork, including the pergola, window boxes, and gutters and downspouts. “I worked with Tyler to make sure all the metalwork would tie into the project as a whole,” says Marlin. “I love the contrast of materials—the cedar is rustic, and the brick has a look of permanence and a classic feeling that works with the lines of the house and the metal window boxes.”

For the interior, Tyler crafted stainless-steel kitchen counters and a metal stair railing. “The countertops blow my mind,” says Marlin. “Tyler welded an undermount sink into the counter and buffed it out to look like one piece. The steel has a surprisingly warm feeling—he left the mill scale on, which gives it a matte finish. It’s so cool.”

The home’s open floor plan was informed by the way Lisa, Tyler, and their two children—Wren, age 8, and Johnny, age 6—prefer to live. The kitchen is open to the living/dining area on the main floor, which also holds the primary suite. “All of the rooms are south-facing to maximize daylight,” says Callander. The children’s bedrooms and bathrooms and an office are arranged on the second level.

Polished concrete floors lend a cool feeling to the main level, where a built-in concrete bench and a wide set of steps provide places to sit and a plinth for the fireplace. Douglas fir flooring adds warmth upstairs, and a painted tongue-and-groove ceiling brings texture to the entire interior.

“We have a simple palette, and we originally didn’t want for much color” says Lisa—except when it came to the upstairs bathroom, which is outfitted with vibrant green tile and paint. “It’s my favorite room in the house,” says Lisa. “We were keen on pulling many elements of the outdoors into the house and when you’re in that space, the line between inside and outside feels almost nonexistent.”

Sustainability was also an important consideration for the entire team. “We wanted to work with regional suppliers and use materials we had on-site,” says Lisa. “We felled a few trees that were not safe, and used those materials throughout the house. While our home did not go through LEED certification, we implemented many of the systems to ensure efficiency and reduce impact on the land.”

According to Marlin, the home should provide energy savings for years to come. “The lower level is all insulated concrete forms, and the upper level and roof are structural insulated panels,” he says. “There’s also a solar bank on the roof that offsets hydro use.” In addition, two tanks near the master bedroom collect rainwater from the roof for the gardens.

“As a family, we’re very committed to connecting to our food, the land, and our community,” says Lisa. “Our kids have the privilege of being able to walk out our back door and pick berries from the garden, or walk to our neighbors’ place for some playtime. This is so valuable in our digitally focused time; having space to share with friends and family is so meaningful.”

Related Reading:

An Artist’s British Columbia Cabin Offers Peace and Perspective

When Living on the Edge is Super Comfortable

An Angled Cabin in British Columbia Makes an Ideal Island Retreat

Project Credits:

Architect of Record: September Architecture / @september_architecture

Construction: Hanson Land & Sea / @hansonlandandsea

Design: Tyler Lepore and Lisa Giroday in collaboration with Hanson Land & Sea and September Architecture

Landscape Design: Giroday Landscape and Design/@giroday_landscape_design

Metal Fabrication: TRL Weld/@trlwelding

Also Appears In

On British Columbia’s Sunshine Coast, a Family Builds an Environmentally Attuned Home