Book House

DeForest Architects: John DeForest, Ted Cameron

Interior Design: NB Design Group

Structural: Evergreen Design Company

Contractor: Prestige Residential Construction

Location: Seattle WA

Approx. 4,500 square feet

2BR, 3.5Ba, 2 offices

Photography: Benjamin Benschneider

This whole-house remodel gives a venerable brick Tudor home a modern twist. Designed for two book (and dog!) lovers, it incorporates bookshelves and cozy seating areas throughout the house. Modern details complement traditional elements while steel windows, doors and exposed structure open the interior to light and views.

At the main stair, the “Word Wall” rises three floors to a pair of skylights and includes favorite writings–ranging from family recipes to quotes from literature to Yogi Berra–that were selected by seventeen members of the extended family. The stair itself is composed of a slender blackened steel railing, oak treads, and structural steel sections (used elsewhere to open up walls and form the entry arbor).

On the main floor, heavy plaster walls between the entry, kitchen, dining, and living rooms were replaced with steel beams and open bookshelves. Faux beams were removed to lighten the living room ceiling. Likewise, an awkward sunroom addition was replaced with an elegant glass volume surrounded on three sides by steel doors that fold back to open the room to a new bluestone terrace.

The interior palette is a dialogue of old and new. Minimal steel windows and doors provide a counterpoint to the heavy brick masonry and maximize light and views. Stained white oak floors, cabinets, and interior doors combine with natural stone and neutral paint colors to create a sense of calm and continuity. Classic modern furniture is surprisingly at home, as are the owners’ eclectic collections of ceramics, miniature chairs, and wood boxes.