Garage

“The stable/garage was built with two intersecting gable roof forms," Schaer says, which didn't match up with the inteiror spaces within. “In order to provide a unified, singular main space, we dropped a flat ceiling at the entrance and linked it up with the main gable visible from the street.”

“They are a very active family, with rowing and basketball at the top of the list,” Witt says. “Other activities include water sports, volleyball, and entertaining—even in the winter months, which have short, usually damp days.” Witt created a garage deep enough to hang rowing shelves and enclosed it in a Wayne Dalton garage door.

To allude to the nearby ocean, the architects designed a seaweed patterned for the interior of the garage door (seen here raised). It successfully reads like a leather padded wall and makes “the cube” feel that much more customized.

The first-floor exterior walls and fence are clad with horizontal survey stakes, identical to the ones that dotted the lot when the Weinsteins first bought it; the humble picket shapes pull off a graphic effect when collaged en masse.

The walkways are broom-finished concrete and the landscaping features low-maintenance, hardy perennials.

To reference the original structure and to offer privacy, Grizzle left two of the shingled walls standing. The building, accessed by a cedar deck, opens to its surroundings via a sliding glass wall by Fleetwood and a bifold steel-and-glass garage door from Wilson Doors.

The exterior mixes pale gray wood on the vertical volume, and fiber cement and black brick on the horiztonal volume. The three trees in the front yard were maintained during the renovation process.

At left, steps lead up to a sleeping loft. In the bathroom, Schaer installed a salvaged clawfoot bath and toilet and marmoleum click floorboards. Wainscoting on the walls adds a delicate touch.

A utilitarian core contains the kitchen, bathroom, closet, and loft ladder. The kitchen’s walls are clad with recycled wooden boards trimmed with horizontal battens that hide the oven and refrigerator from view.

The compact rental features plenty of wooden ledges, nooks, and shelves for keeping belongings organized. In the living room, a low white wall is capped with fir wood salvaged from the garage’s former posts. On the east wall, a half-door made of reclaimed cedar looks out on a garden. “It looks and lives a lot bigger than it is,” Schaer says.

BEFORE After being used as an auto repair shop, the garage had been subdivided to include a dark storage area with an unsettingly low ceiling. Schaer opened up the space, replacing the collar ties in the rafters with a sloping triangular plane that Schaer says “draws the eye from one end of the space to the other, increasing its perceived size.” It’s also utilitarian, providing natural ventilation by funneling hot air up through a triangular vent window.

BEFORE A view of the crumbling garage before renovation.

Schaer replaced the garage’s crumbling wooden posts with an earthquake-resistant steel frame. He also excavated beneath the building, establishing a basement level for a workshop, storage, laundry, and water heater. The earth removed in the process was shoveled into concrete “boxes” in the yard. These form a raised terrace from which you can see the Olympic mountains.

A shot at dusk shows off the garage door’s perfect mix of in and out for entertaining purposes.

The home’s lower level serves as a garage, allowing direct access to the house.

A Renlita Floataway garage door is shielded by one of the home’s many overhangs.

A garage full of cupboards can’t contain Orpilla’s toolkit.

A perpendicular walkway leads right to the garage and laundry areas.

One family in Seattle, Washington, looked past a sloping landscape and saw the opportunity to build their dream home. Resembling a modern-day metal treehouse, the Hale and Edmonds residence is nestled within the edges of a wooded park. The house’s exterior of paneled grey is perfectly balanced against the accent of the orange frame, proving that there’s a chance for subtlety with the bright color.