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Since moving in three years ago, the family has adapted to the smaller size of the home, especially as the children have become teenagers. “There's a shed outside that was for our gardening tools and surf boards and stuff, and we've just converted that into a living room for them,” says Maclean.

Wood salvaged from the remnants of a silo taken down by the previous owner was used to frame the kitchen cabinets and make sliding doors. The Bonnie and Clyde sectional is from Blu Dot.

The view from the courtyard at the Casita, added in 2020.

The patio outside the primary suite is made of bluestone pavers. The gabion walls were “a cost-effective way to build retaining walls, which we needed because of the slope, and for privacy,” says David.

Turkel Design built and outfitted this multi-generational home for Canadian clients. They start the process with a detailed questionnaire, and then hone in on the details.

“From anywhere in the house, you have a sense of the outdoors,” says Melonie, “and yet it’s very private.” Ikegami agrees. “The building was really about the landscape—it can dissolve into the background,” he says. In the master bedroom, Japanese Tansu chests from the couple’s previous home flank a Duxiana bed. The full-height windows and swing door are from Western Window Systems.

The primary bedroom cabin sits in a natural clearing amongst the trees, allowing for a water view and copious sunlight. The boulder-studded coast offers gently sloping paths to the ocean for a quick dip.

After staying in a tree house listed on Airbnb, Remo Kommnick and Emi Moore wanted their own getaway in the woods. "It was amazing being up in the trees,

Shaw and the clients talked a lot about materials and how they would weather. “As Cor-Ten ages, it darkens to the color of the pine needs on the forest floor so the building will recede into the site,” Shaw says.

A new retaining wall lines the exterior walkway to form a light well for the large glass doors in the basement. This level has become a flex space for the owners, where they can watch TV as a family, host guests in their own suite, or set up an office space.

Plywood panels reach up to the high ceilings in every room.

Before: The original pointing around the stonework was dated, so Cameron painstakingly chipped out the mortar and repointed it himself. “I wanted to keep it because it’s pretty unique – some of those pieces of stone are heavier than most men can lift.”

Brian pulled out the wall-to-wall carpeting that was installed throughout much of the home to reveal the original concrete floors underneath, which had rampant cracks. He grinded the floors down and sealed them as matte as possible.

The renovation didn't change the structure of the home, and although it was nearly 70 years old when the project started, it was in good condition.