Architecture Wednesday: Country Garden House

This is one of those houses where the inside is beautiful, the outside is beautiful, and the gardens are beautiful. Plus, it has that whole ‘looks like a barn’ thing going for it and is located near one of my favorite cities in the world, Portland, Oregon.

The goal of the architects to designers to gardeners was to create a home that exists in harmony with its natural setting. A nearly seamless blending of indoor and outdoor spaces showcase how the house invites you in, and outside, all at once.

Rather than just let the gardens surround the house, designers chose to incorporate greenery into the home, starting at the entryway where visitors pass under a leafy trellis toward the front door and enter a living room with large windows to the outside.

The interiors are warm and comfortable … creating views without losing privacy … and are open and easy to move through. Large and energy efficient glazed windows serve several functions … they allow for the views, flood the house with natural light, and cut down on power requirements.

The exterior design says barn, as does the use of reclaimed barn wood in the cladding, though in a more contemporary style. But the emphasis on stained and locally reclaimed wood doesn’t stop at the home’s frame and façade, it was also used on floors, counters, shelving units, walls, ceiling, and some furnishings, while in the spaces where wood couldn’t be used, metals and stone were employed …as with the metal roof, a very intentional shade of green to further the sense that the whole house blends into its surroundings.

It's possibly the most serenely beautiful home I’ve seen, between the calming gardens and the warm interior. And them yes, there’s the barn element … and Portland.

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