Architecture Wednesday: Catskills Schoolhouse

The five-acre property includes a small cottage and a stunning main building—a yurt built by hand in the mid- 1970s which served as a pre-school. ​

The couple that bought the old school had a vision for the main building, dubbed the Octagon, and turned it into large, main living spaces with a kitchen tucked off to one side and a small study tucked into another; bedrooms and baths were added on to the same floor, and then downstairs as well. I love the yurt and the open ceilings with the skylight smack dab in the middle; I love a good black house; and I love the setting.

Peaceful.

Dwell

Architecture Wednesday: Black House Farm

This is Black House Farm; it’s surrounded by protected forests and fields within the South Downs National Park, close to the village and country estate of Hinton Ampner and the town of Alresford,. Now, most of you may not need to know that, but one of you may be so enchanted by the mix of old and new that you’ll travel to England just to see this house.

The original home is a meticulous renovation of a Grade II-listed 17th-century farmhouse and the conversion and modernization of the 19th-century threshing barn into a modern home. The combination of the old and the old-turned-new is as amazing house set on almost 20 acres.

To reach the house one must travel along a secluded woodland lane which ends in a private driveway with a plant room, garage, and parking space for several vehicles. From this vantage point you face the original 17th-century farmhouse, unable to see the modern black mass behind it.

The farmhouse is thatched and composed of flint walls of oak framing and hand-made red brick, all of which was repaired by local artisans and craftsmen to retain every inch of character; the only new part of the farmhouse are the new hardwood windows, a few spots of lime plastering and oak repairs.

The same care was taken inside the old house, where new oak doors have been handmade in traditional methods and the wide-board oak floors were repaired as needed. The home is three floors, with five bedrooms, two bathrooms, a guest cloakroom at ground level, and a stone-floored entrance with an inglenook fireplace and working bread oven as its central hub.

To the right of the entrance is a nearly 100-foot-long hallway that leads into the former threshing barn; the floor shifts from original, centuries old clay tiles to polished concrete with underfloor heating that runs through the entire home.

This single-story structure connects the historic buildings creating one magnificent home around a central courtyard. Inside the renovated barn you’ll see the timber cladding and old beams of the original structure set against black corrugated sheet steel over the high-pitched roof profile.

In this new section are the primary bedroom along with two more bedrooms each with its own bathroom, a cloakroom and a studio/study with full sliding doors looking out over a wildflower meadow and to the forest beyond.

The newly built section of the home wraps around the courtyard lawn moving from the atrium, with a large kitchen and family room beyond,  to the living room, where huge sliding doors open onto the enclosed garden.

From the atrium is another section of the barn, where the ancient beams are exposed, featuring the kitchen, dining room, and a sitting room. Enormous windows and a towering glass door flood the interior with light from three sides while framing views of the surrounding greenery.

The home sits in acres of wildflower borders and tall rye grass meadows, ideal for cultivating vines or fruits, bordered by an historic, protected and actively managed evergreen forest. There are tree-lined meadows to the north and another wild meadow to the east past the orchard garden and ending at a swimming lake fed naturally by rainwater.

It’s an amazing home, a monster of a home, but it mixes the centuries old way of living and then moves into a very modern space filled with light and incredible views. I’d maybe live in the new part and rent out the old as a B&B.

If I had £6.25M or $7.5M USD handy …

As always click to emBIGGERate …

The Spaces

Architecture Wednesday: Hilltop House

This home, in Poznan, Poland, was designed to combine the investor’s dreams of mountains, winter sports, cars, and architectural solutions into what resembles a modern barn, encased by three slopes of a green hill, and sitting at the edge of the woods.

The love of cars resulted in the three-car garage equipped with a car jack and yet they didn’t want a garage that overwhelmed the house; the solution was the green hill that wrapped over the spacious garage, the mechanical rooms and a small office. On top of the garage came the primary suite and bath in the shape of a cozy mountain hut that actually opens on top of the “hill.”

The designers combined simple geometrical forms and shapes with natural materials, like wood and concrete, dark metal sheeting and large glazed surfaces  that worked well with eh surrounding forest and meadows.

Hilltop House’s light and spacious interiors are thoughtfully illuminated, and its slanted ceilings together with the mezzanine overlooking the ground floor creates a space and airiness overhead. While the interior design is based on a limited and organic color palette, the daylight penetrating through the large-scale windows and occasional sunny spots on the concrete floors become unique ingredients of retreat-like ambiance of the house. This is especially found in the living room which is dominated by wooden and concrete elements that add elegance and rawness, while at the same time, the light and the views create that sense of being in nature.

I always love a black house—it’s so slimming, you know—and I love the modernity of this and the manmade hilltop upon which the house sits.

Amazing Architecture

Architecture Wednesday: Black Villa

I’ve always wanted to be a Bond villain, and this just could be my lair, where I take Daniel Craig, make him wear that little blue square cut swimsuit, and, well. since I’m not that evil, he could be my houseboy.

But I might have to wait a while as this house, designed by architect Reza Mohtashami has not yet been built, though it is panned to be constructed in a residential area near Harriman State Park, New York, about thirty miles outside the city.

The Black Villa offers stunning interior designs like an incredibly large open living area with a sky light that takes up most of the ceiling. Plus the home will be “burrowed” into a hillside in Harriman State Park. The house features a moody black exterior in an abstract design; to incorporate its modern facade into the rugged scenery, the home is covered with a living green roof. The interior, while mostly black—and that is so thinning—is a bright, airy contrast to the outside with warm wood floors and floor-to-ceiling glazing that wraps the living space in views of the landscape.

Upstairs, the primary bedroom features two king-size beds—I’m thinking one for Carlos and me, and one for the pets; a huge open closet, and a stone bathroom.

It’s like a modern all-black cave … perfect for a Bond villain. All I need now is a name for myself ….

Uncrate  Behance