Aidlin Darling Design
San Francisco–based Aidlin Darling Design crafted the program of this private spa retreat, located in the mountains of Sonoma, Calif., to serve as a place of respite for a businessman and his family. The structure is sited within a grove of oak , manzanita, and madrone trees, close enough to the main house so as to be convenient, but far enough to ensure privacy on the 10-acre site. The entry is situated behind two curving earthen walls that make the approach somewhat like moving through a concrete Richard Serra sculpture. Inside, the 1,802-square-foot structure includes a yoga and meditation studio, a steam room, changing rooms, and a refreshment bar. The spaces are organized on a wood deck surface that projects out over the landscape to the northeast and southeast to provide a private sundeck, which is shaded by a slatted canopy. Retractable glass walls open the interior spaces to the outdoors. “It was a controversial project because a 1,800-square-foot outbuilding struck some of us as being a little difficult to swallow,” juror Joel Sanders said. “But what won the jury over, was not only the exquisite detailing, but, most importantly, the way it is embedded in the landscape.”
Click here to see all of the winners of the 2014 Residential Architect Design Awards.
Drawings
Project Credits
Project Sonoma Spa Retreat, Sonoma, Calif.
Architect Aidlin Darling Design, San Francisco—David Darling, AIA, Joshua Aidlin, AIA, Paul Baird, Kent Chiang
General Contractor Burlington Construction—Steve Burlington
Structural Engineer Berkeley Structural Design—Bill Lynch
Civil Engineer Lescure Engineers—Maureen Wendle
Landscape Architect Landmark Landscape Co.—June King
Photography Bruce Damonte, Chris Gramly
Project Size 1,820 square feet
Construction Cost Withheld
Materials and Sources
Bathroom Cabinets Custom (painted MDF)
Bathroom Fittings Kohler kohler.com
Bathroom Fixtures Rhodes Architectural Stone rhodes-stone.com
Countertops Custom stone
Doors Fleetwood Windows & Doors fleetwoodusa.com
Exterior Siding Custom (1 x 3 split cedar palms)
Flooring Ann Sacks (tile) annsacks.com; Rode Bros. (reclaimed teak deck and floor) rodebros.com
Hardware Custom (bronze door pull); Omnia Industries (hinges and doors) omniaindustries.com; Rixson, an Assa Abloy Group Co. (pivot hinge) rixson.com
Insulation Thermafiber thermafiber.com
Kitchen Cabinets Custom (painted MDF)
Kitchen Fittings Kohler kohler.com
Kitchen Fixtures Elkay Manufacturing Co. elkay.com
Lighting Fixtures Bega-US bega-us.com; B-K Lighting bklighting.com; Litelab litelab.com; Lucifer Lighting Co. luciferlighting.com
Paints and Finishes Benjamin Moore & Co. benjaminmoore.com; Cabot (stain) cabotstain.com
Refrigerator Viking Range vikingrange.com
Roofing Johns Manville jm.com
Skylights Velux veluxusa.com
Solar Energy System Mitsubishi Electric US (solar panels) mitsubishielectricsolar.com
Steam Room Equipment ThermaSol thermasol.com
Windows Fleetwood Windows & Doors fleetwoodusa.com
