Located on a large, private lot in the Seattle suburb of Redmond, this custom home combines a clear and incisive plan, thoughtfully shaped spaces, inventive detailing, and meticulous craftsmanship in a tour-de-force of residential architecture and construction.
The building consists of two pavilions joined by a glass entry link, each with its own distinct character: a strikingly open kitchen great room and a long, private bedroom wing. The great room is dominated by a basket-like steel-and-wood roof structure, which rises to a large, central monitor that opens the room to the sky. Cooking, dining, living, and home office areas are delineated by built-in cherry cabinetry rather than partitions. The two-story bedroom wing arranges the house's more private spaces in linear fashion under a roof that rises from a low plate over the garage to a dramatic high point at the master bedroom's end wall. Tying the composition together is a limited palette of materials—blackened steel and fir structural members, fir trim and exposed roof decking, cherry cabinetry, and quartersawn oak flooring—and a family of details that share their own distinctive visual vocabulary.
Our judges' comments reflect the visual power of the result, even when the latter is presented only in photographs. “Structural elements are flying through the house,” marveled one judge. Another pointed out the “fabulous bathroom and fabulous kitchen.” A third remarked that “the detailing is spectacular, and there's a consistency all the way through.” All of our judges took their hats off to builder Mark Schilperoort. “The craftsmanship in this house is pretty incredible,” said one. “It is beautifully executed.”
Project Credits
Entrant/Architect: FINNE Architects, Seattle
Builder: SBI Construction, Mountlake Terrace, Wash.
Living space: 4,500 square feet
Site: 1.7 acres
Construction cost: Withheld
Photographer: Benjamin Benschneider
Product Resources
Bathroom plumbing fittings/fixtures: Duravit, Hansgrohe, Toto; Dishwasher: Miele; Flooring: Forbo; Hardware: FSB; HVAC equipment: Buderus; Kitchen plumbing fittings/fixtures: Elkay, Hansgrohe; Lighting fixtures: Bruck; Oven: Thermador; Paints: Cabot's; Patio doors/windows: Quantum; Refrigerator: GE.
