Santa Rosa Retreat

This project is a retreat for a couple who lost their home to wildfires.  The key driver to the project was breaking up the program into different volumes on site, knit together by the landscape and an exterior canopy.

Using a modest material palette and a design aesthetic that took cues from Japanese Architecture and placemaking – we created a serene residence that sits gently within the landscape.

This creates an environment where the site itself is ‘home’ – not just the enclosure.

SADDLE TOP RESIDENCE

This project was a residence for a couple who were seeking to build a residence in the saddle of a ridge line that:

– opened up to the distant views

– created an indoor outdoor environment for entertaining

– provided areas of refuge from the more public areas of the home

We did this by clearly articulating a main living area under ‘butterfly’ roof, enclosed in steel and glass, while all support and private spaces were clad in simple monolithic stucco volumes.

Hilltop Mid-Century

This project was a weekend retreat for a young family.

The large hilltop site had an existing mid-century suburban home with little connection to the surrounding landscape.

Working with the Landscape Architects we developed a more integrated experience and doubled the square footage of the residence, adding a pool with a view, and new pool house and sauna.

Carefully keeping the ‘spirit’ of the original, but developing the additional program in such a way as to nestle it into the beautiful surrounding oaks.

 

Golden State Cider Tap Room

This project was a small tap room for a local cider company with a long connection to the area.  Golden State Cider company has roots in Sebastopol, and wanted to use their Tap Room as a way of expressing their respect for the apple and the rich agricultural heritage of the area.

Our response was to create a clean, ‘rustic’ environment that connected to the past, while maintaining a strong foothold in the present.  The client was looking for a space to both enjoy one of their many wonderful ciders, but also create an opportunity for education and connection to the great heritage of the locale.

Seismic Brewing Tap Room

For this project we were tasked with creating a Tap Room for a local brewery that expressed their commitment to craft, sustainability and place.   The Seismic Brewing Company ethos is rooted in a commitment to sustainability, and as such this project is seeking LEED Platinum Certification.

The manifestation of their commitment to craft was expressed in a design aesthetic that reflected a simple material palette, artfully and cleanly expressed.  Wood, steel, concrete and glass were the building blocks of this environment.  The client sought to create varied experiences within the Tap Room, so we created different environments within the project footprint.  Indoor and Outdoor spaces were blended to create multiple seating atmospheres.  We also included a unique sculptural bench; using wood to celebrate the craft of the Architecture of the space – reflecting the owner’s commitment to craft brewing.

Tasting Room – Dry Creek Valley

For this project we were tasked with creating a unique tasting experience within an existing functioning winery facility.  The client required the ability to close off the tasting room from the rest of the winery if needed, but still feel part of the flow of operations.

We created a small tasting area enclosed by sliding glass partitions to allow the client to regulate the interaction between the tasting room and winery facility.  We also created a unique tasting experience by repurposing barrel staves into a suspended ceiling.

Accessory Dwelling Unit

This project was a small Accessory Dwelling Unit for additional home space on a wonderful site in Healdsburg. The client wished to build the unit so that their children (and grandchild) would have a place to stay on weekend visits.

The project brief was to design a contemporary home that captured the view, and made the most of the indoor/outdoor living opportunities of the area.

Using a simple pallet of materials: Wood, Steel, Glass and Concrete, we developed a language of a simple ‘bar’ with the bedrooms and services (bathrooms and kitchen plumbing) wrapped in grey corrugated metal, and a shed roofed ‘Living’ portion of the home that had less clearly defined edges that helped feather the building into the landscape.  (Both from inside and outside.)

 

Mid-Century Rebirth

This project was for a young couple relocating back to Santa Rosa from New York.  They sought to update a mid-century ranch home they purchased in the hills of Santa Rosa – with a distinct vision.

The project brief could be boiled down to a single aesthetic directive: Scandinavia meets Japan.

The response was to eliminate any unnecessary barriers to the main living area, as well as creating a more layered approach to indoor/outdoor living through a new expansive window wall and outdoor covered area.

The material palette was kept simple and serene, with a simple pop of tile in the master bath and wardrobe.

Healdsburg House

This project was for a couple with an extensive relationship to the timber of the forest.  The house was designed to incorporate the stunning surrounding views into their everyday life, and to take advantage of some fallen redwood trees that they had saved for several years – with the hopes of honoring the trees in the Architecture of their home.

We responded to the view challenge by stretching the house along the contours of the hillside – with the main living spaces oriented towards the view.  We used a thick wall as an organizing spine upon which the roofs and rooms were arranged.  We carved out some outdoor space under the roof to extend the living area and blur the boundaries between indoors and outdoors.

We honored the fallen redwood trees by both using them as an exterior siding (with a large scale shiplap mill profile), specific interior ceiling applications, and for select structural elements.  These structural columns were sized to celebrate the strength of those great trees.

Notre Vue Tasting Room and Offices

This project was a complicated addition to an existing metal building in a working winery.

The existing barrel storage building was a typical agriculture metal building which was central to the operating winery.  Our charge was to create a destination tasting room on the north end of the existing building (to take advantage of the tremendous views of the vineyards) while also not physically connecting with the existing metal building due to structural seismic constraints.

Our solution was to cut a large hole in the end of the existing building, slide two floors of program into the end – office spaces below, tasting room and outdoor patio above.

The tasting room breaks free of the metal building and engages the view, creating a strong connection to the outdoors and surrounding vineyards.  The material palette of the project was meant to echo the simple elegance of the wine: stone, steel and wood.