House on Wooded Knoll Under Construction

Built on a wooded knoll, this 2,100 s.f. home (2,300 s.f. including the loft above the kids’ bedrooms) nestled in the trees packs a lot of design into a very small, energy-efficient footprint. The variety and sculptural quality of spaces both inside and out, and the interplay between interior and exterior make this three-bedroom home feel much bigger than it actually is.

Every space is unique–each has its own special view and relationship with the land. The property has so many distinctive natural features that instead of having a singular focus, the house has many foci and was shaped by the landscape on all sides.

Long before a building was conceived, the home owners worked with landscape architect Keith Wagner of Wagner Hodgson to create a phased plan to preserve and enhance the varied natural characteristics of the site. Selective thinning of undergrowth, mowing and subtle shaping of the property over several years set the stage for Elizabeth Herrmann to design a home that could readily respond to its surroundings. Three dimensional modeling of the house and land forms throughout the design process, including significant trees, made it possible to shape the house and fine-tune relationships with the ground plane and landscape.

Whereas the exterior’s warm, dark palette was designed to meld with its surrounds, the interior is a bright contrast of smooth, angular planes.