Adam Lawler describes designing his parents’ home as the job of a lifetime. His mom and dad, a nurse and a retired judge, were looking to grow old in fresh yet familiar surroundings. They had their minds set on a new construction residence, and they asked their son to oversee it, all about a mile or so from his childhood home.

“It was an opportunity and a challenge,” Lawler says. “But also, they didn’t really have a choice,” he adds, laughing.

Lawler and his two siblings were raised in Lewis County, Washington, where the snowy peak of Mount Rainier is a backdrop as constant as the community. This is the type of place, Lawler jokes, where “everyone knows your sister, your cousin, and your grandma,” and the social calendar follows the familiar ebb and flow of the local sports teams. Lawler moved about an hour-and-a-half south to Portland, Oregon, to eventually start his own firm, and his siblings moved away to follow their own pursuits, too. Over time, the ’90s house where they all grew up started to seem unsuited for their parents’ current lives.

“Their old home was about five thousand square feet, and they wanted something that was closer to three thousand,” Lawler notes. His parents still desired a hub for their family and friends, and a place that reflected their interests. It just had to be more streamlined, with a clearer focus on their future.

It’s common for parcels of land in Lewis County to be divided into five acres a piece, and after beginning their search in 2018, Lawler’s parents found the right fit about three years later on an open stretch of land down a county road. The area’s landmark peak is visible to the east, just above a sweep of deciduous fir trees rising beyond a field. It was a blank slate indeed, but Lawler had a parental-approved plan to give it instant character.

“My paternal grandmother’s grandmother immigrated from Undredal, Norway, and I grew up hearing so much about it,” he says. “It has all of these tidy gable-roof houses, and I thought that style would fit in well with the vernacular of Lewis County.”

He created a one-level structure that references Scandinavia with a gable, metal roof and batten siding, and took into account two main requests: minimalism and views. His mom wanted spaces that were easy to keep clean, and both of his parents love the outdoors, a passion Lawler honored by framing the landscape with a generous arrangement of windows. The eastern wing holds three bedrooms and the western one has common areas, and a separate office and storage space are connected by a walkway. The feel throughout is light and airy.

“Nothing was too tricky about the budget,” Lawler remembers. “They were open with me and I was open with them. But, you know, my dad would say there were a lot of splurges, and my mom would say there were a lot of necessities.”

They spent a good portion of their budget on the exterior—it’s made of clear, locally sourced cedar with no knots—and windows and doors, but they saved by keeping the two guest suites compact. Lawler also notes that there weren’t any major hurdles with construction, either. The success came down to clear communication the builder and framer, who were high school classmates.

“The builds in the area are relatively simple, and they’re not doing some of the things I was asking for, like a ceiling that goes right to the window heads,” Lawler says. “But once we were on the same page, they were all in, and came up with easier ways to do it.”

$75,064 Site Work	$8,670 Foundation	$130,605 Structural (including exterior siding)
$50,935 Wall Finishes	$43,612 Flooring	$57,774 Roofing
$43,822 Electrical	$23,308 Plumbing (+ Kitchen & Bath Fixtures)	$15,900 HVAC
$82,517 Landscaping	$4,710 Lighting	$55,425 Cabinetry
$17,392 Countertops	$9,970 Kitchen Appliances	$48,655 Windows & Glazing
$16,435 Insulation	$30,927 Doors	$20,000 Finish labor for doors, trim, and pantry
$10,000 Tilework	$23,195 Furnishings & Decor	$81,043 General Contractor Fee
$47,632 Sales Tax
Grand Total: $897,591

As part of the mostly white-and-wood interior, Lawler incorporated details like a curbless shower, space for potential grab bars, and generous walkways. The accessible design moves are subtle, but will likely come in handy in the years to come.

A year after his parents moved in, Lawler still gets regular updates about how happy they are in their latest chapter. “The house I grew up in was a really special place, and it was hard to replace that,” he says. “But they’ll send me texts saying, ‘Thanks so much for this,’ and that feels exciting.”

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Project Details:

Architect of Record: Adam Lawler, Ment Architecture

Builder: Billy Naillon, Naillon Construction

Structural Engineer: Peter Kahn, Bridge City Engineering

Landscape Design: Mike Abbate, Abbate Designs

Lighting and Interior Design: Ment Architecture

Cabinetry Design: Warren Tilly, Wood-N-Things

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