Black Dog Farm

“This will be a working farm” the clients told me as they presented me with a long list of items that had to be included in the design - A huge mudroom, a sink big enough to park a VW in, a masonry heater, a living room that opens up to a covered porch… The challenge was to take this list of details and put them together so that they resonated as a unit – a simple design that reflected their lifestyle and could be appreciated from the outside as they were working around the property.

An open floor plan merged the living , dining and kitchen areas, delineated not by walls, but by changes in ceiling heights and a step down to the great room. Large windows bring light and landscape into the interior. The (huge) mudroom connects the garage to the house. Upstairs is an open loft, a studio, a guest bedroom and bath and a large master suite above the garage.

The large circular window in the great room lets light penetrate the entire length of the house to wake the owners on the winter solstice – OK, that was just dumb luck (in design and weather) But creating a simple, beautiful design out of a complex program is hard work, and it is rewarding when it comes together as neatly as it did in this house.