The Architect
For the home to be flexible enough to be loved through the upcoming years, it needed a new vision to go along with its revision. So even before Murray and his team had their forever home directive, the homeowners turned to Jeff Guggenheim, founder and principal architect (along with designer, and his wife, Jenny) of Guggenheim Architecture + Design Studio, to draw up plans for what the home could become.
Guggenheim came to the project with one of the highest forms of recommendation: a parental seal of approval. He and his firm had worked on a condo remodel, and then a house, for the homeowner’s parents along the Oregon coast. Guggenheim shared how being close to — and familiar with — the family helped make the design process sing.
“I think the level of trust they put in us to design something that's going to fit their lifestyle and aesthetic, and the general feelings they want to have when they open that door and arrive home is something we very much appreciate,” he said. “Creating that foundation of trust is really one of the most important parts of what we do.”
Guggenheim concluded with a laugh, “we're very much kind of like their family's architect now.”
Bigger Not Better
Situated on a leafy block not far from the shops and restaurants of the postcard-worthy main street of Multnomah Village, the homeowners were sensitive about keeping the home’s appearance, especially from the street side, in step with the neighborhood.
“The house fits in with all the other houses on the street. That was very important to them,” Murray said. “They didn't want to suddenly be the big, giant house on the street amongst other fairly modest homes here.”
Guggenheim concurred. “The scale of the home feels very appropriate to the neighborhood. It doesn't stick out and call attention to itself, which was a goal of ours,” he said.
Sum of Its Parts
Instead of building the house up and out, Guggenheim set out to reimagine the home from the inside out: interior spaces, the flow, the details, connecting the inner home to the outdoors. How could the existing footprint (with one tweak — more on that soon) become the highly useable dream house the homeowners were after?
“There's a process of moving through all the spaces and really beginning to understand how they come together to create something that's greater than the sum of its parts,” Guggenheim said. “How each of these spaces work together, how they open into each other.”
To achieve this goal of finding connections throughout the remodel, the design needed a central idea, a centerpiece for the home. It’s a place for family after all, with two younger kids, so finding a space where everyone could be together was high on the priority list. Here’s where the one big tweak came into play: a second-floor addition, cantilevered into the backyard, to accommodate a larger living room. Guggenheim explains the thinking that went into the decision:
“I think if I were to summarize the project in terms of the big idea, it was the living room,” he said. “We saw this as the gathering place and that it should be front and center, and then everything else works to support that one big move.” Thus, the need for a bit more space than the existing footprint allowed.
Centering the project around the living room helped carve out a space where the family could be together while still taking on different tasks. Think a great room with comfortable seating, welcoming nooks, a variety of views, and tabletops for everything from homework to an in-progress Lego set. Separate, but together.
“We wanted to be fun and create a space where kids can feel comfortable,” Guggenheim said, “and that it's a space that can support many uses and many different functions.”
Joy and Wonder
Sprinkled through the entire project, courtesy of some thoughtful design, is a word you don’t often hear associated with the home space: whimsy.
How else would you describe the perfect peek-a-boo window nestled among the bookshelves, or small stepstool that folds out of the kitchen cabinetry, or, on a much larger scale, a gleaming, metal slide (big enough for adults to take a turn) that runs from the upstairs deck to the lower-level patio?
“Early on in our design process, our client requested spaces that were modern, yet warm, and also contained an element of whimsy,” Guggenheim said. Whimsy definitely achieved.
A Welcoming Nature
It may seem like standard issue by now, and something that plays a part in every new build and remodel: a focus on natural surroundings, inside-outside living, and a dedication to fresh air and light. But in the Pacific Northwest, these pursuits take on an even greater importance for a range of reasons, from beautiful tree-lined streets and inspiring mountain views to gray, cloudy days and cool, rain-soaked winters. All of these ideas played a role in the home’s redesign.
“When designing a home in the Pacific Northwest, there's a handful of critical elements that you must get right,” Guggenheim said. “Natural light, natural ventilation, a connection to the surrounding landscape, and the use of natural materials that, while may be detailed in a modern way, really exude a feeling of warmth.”
One show-stopping inside-outside connector is the home’s massive Marvin Modern Multi-Slide door. Some 15 feet in length and supported by a roughly 25-foot steel beam, this movable wall of glass divides the kitchen from the upper deck, and when fully open, pockets itself in a space of roughly five feet. It’s a stunning transformation to see — and one that underlines the redesign’s dedication to blurring the lines between home and the natural world.
Here's to the Handcrafted
The Pacific Northwest prides itself on its over-indexing on artisans, woodworkers, tradespeople, and traditional handcrafting. The project benefitted from this focus on the attention to detail, attention to materials, and attention to fit and finish. Guggenheim explained:
“When we started this project, we recognized that we were going to be working with some of Oregon's finest craftspeople. From the cabinetry to the furniture to the fireplace to the cast concrete. Everyone came to the job site with a level of care and meticulousness that is what we would expect on a project.”
The focus on the handcrafted, custom nature of the home carried through to the windows and doors, where a host of Marvin products were used, including that immense Modern Multi-Slide door, an array of Ultimate windows and doors, and more. The rich wood trim of the living room’s Ultimate windows is especially in step with the warm, custom look and feel of the home — and right in line with its timeless, built-to-last aesthetic.
We knew we wanted a window system that was going to be on par with the level of quality that we were going to see throughout the space. And Marvin made sense for that.”
Jeff Guggenheim
Architect
Part of the Community
In the end, a perfectly remodeled forever home grew out of its forested lot, but stayed true to its original goal: a dream house that’s still part of the community.
“Last week I was driving away from here and I was looking at how understated the house was,” Guggenheim said. “And I thought that it's really nice it can be this high level of design, but from the street, be respectful to its neighbors and still want to be part of that community and not set itself apart from it.”
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