Overlooking the River
A repeat client, this talented designer and her husband engaged us to add a portico to the entry and renovate the main rooms of this classic colonial. The kitchen, family room and breakfast room were next. The beautiful garden setting, a regular on the Old Lyme Garden Tour, inspired the pavilion motif of the breakfast room. These spaces and a roof terrace above take better advantage of the view of the Lieutenant River. Details relate to the existing house and help unify the design.
Hilltop Prominence
The entire exterior of this existing home was reimagined for this growing young family to give a more cohesive look and accentuated entry. The home's prominent hilltop setting called for a structure with more presence. Shingle Style detailing gives a classic yet relaxed warmth.
Vest Pocket Villa
The home is new construction for an art collecting client whose intentions were to build small. Always the collector, he eventually created a collection of small buildings to include the main, one bedroom house, a library/guest house building and a working greenhouse with pergolas all in dialogue around a large exterior space. The stripped down Greek Revival theme reflects the architecture of a large percentage of the town of Chester, Connecticut.
Carpenter Gothic Rebirth
Completely gutted, the dilapidated Carpenter Gothic home was renovated from top to bottom. The eye-sore of the neighborhood, it was given new life and paired with a kitchen and master bedroom suite addition with covered porch. The underlying historical character of the structure was preserved and enhanced while the interior reflected today's lifestyle.
Shingle Style Sun Catcher
Through extensive renovation and additions this home in Darien, Connecticut was transformed into a cohesive Shingle Style Cottage. Inspired by an already angled living room, the new plan is a modified sun-catcher or butterfly shape facing south through which light is captured from the daily movement of the sun. This design has the added benefit of creating a variety of exterior "rooms" around the home. The interior now includes a domed foyer, master bedroom suite, two family rooms, butler's pantry, study and movie theater.
A Space for Family
This 750 s.f. addition is described by the owners as the adult children's hang out. It's a place where their children and their friends can watch movies, play games, billiards and access the pool area. When the children are grown it will be used as the main family room. The third project for this family, the addition compliments a previous renovation at the other side of the main house. The home's entry has been re-emphasized to help hierarchal issues.
Adding Character in Wilton
Through a reworking of key details, this design reveals the home's underlying classic beauty while creating a stronger sense of entry. The new portico affords a more appealing roof line while adding a functional arrival point. The end result is a more unified and elegant home.
Interiors were renovated from family room to kitchen to master bedroom suite.
Westport Boutique
The design for this boutique women's clothing store on Westport, Connecticut's Main Street shopping district totaled 1000 s.f. is based on a classical rhythm. This helped reproportion what is a very narrow space and slow down the eye. A more modern playfulness is overlaid on this design framework to produce a fresh look which incorporates and reshapes an existing skylight. Translucent sand blasted plexi panels and steel frame dressing room shapes add a focus, color and movement to the space through the play of muted shadow.
Quiet Appeal
The owners of this residence wanted to add two bedrooms upstairs, mudroom, and garage plus renovate kitchen and family room. However they preferred a more toned down appearance from the front. The new design manages to add the much needed spaces while preserving the under-stated character of the front elevation. A much stronger connection between kitchen and family room creates a nicely detailed yet comfortable center for the home.
Hearth Redefined
The second project for this repeat client entailed renovating the home's center, the kitchen, and reworking circulation which formerly passed through the kitchen to the master bedroom. A new mudroom entry hall acts as an organizer. A new family room replaces an existing screened porch, is open to the kitchen and is oriented toward the pool. Visually the kitchen and family room are one room, but their independently detailed ceilings give a feeling of two.
Re-imagined Cape Cod
This renovation and second floor addition to a graphic designer couple's Cape Cod Style House in Fairfield, Connecticut doubles the existing square footage while transforming its character. The plan for the house, which can be described as a suburban villa, includes a large kitchen and multipurpose living room for the activities of a growing family while situating all bedrooms on the second floor. Symmetrical pergola covered terraces are planned for each side of the main living space.
Classically Composed
This family who entered their home exclusively from the back desired to make the experience of coming home more pleasurable. This addition and renovation included a new mudroom, family room, breakfast room and kitchen. For the design, we were restricted to a one floor addition and did not want to block light to the second floor bedrooms. The solution was a composition with the existing structure, rather than an integration.
Pool House for Guests
An attached apartment for frequently visiting relatives is connected to the main house by a multi-purpose sun room. In the summer months, the addition's main living space opens to the pool area through large french doors and serves double duty as a pool house. The bathroom opens to the exterior to serve as a changing room.
Darien Redo
Design on the renovation and addition to this Darien, Connecticut home took the form of two projects for the owners. The first, on the right included moving garage doors to a less conspicuous location on the side and adding a mudroom between garage and kitchen. The second project, on the other side of the house involved the addition of a master bedroom suite above a renovated family room oriented toward the pool. A new front entry surround, a dressing up of the dormers and a white-washing to disguise two different types of stone all aid in the cohesive result.
