We recently had the pleasure of visiting one of our smaller structures as it is going through its final steps before completion. Derek Hurd of Gravitas worked with a couple from Texas that were permanently relocating to Boise, Idaho. They asked Derek to design for them a small accessory dwelling unit (ADU), behind the home they had owned for a few years, but rented out. They had decided to move permanently to Boise, and the small building would serve as a writing loft for the couple. They gave Derek a little direction to go by asking him to be inspired by Japanese Tea houses. The couple referred to the ADU as the “Writing Shed”. At Gravitas, we called it a “Zen-in-Law”. Either way, it got the point across, a small out-building, dedicated to the more contemplative things.
The owners came across our company through a mutual friend. We’re always appreciative when past clients, and future friends can pass along our name to those in need of thoughtful design. After the owners diligently investigated us, and our web presence, they called, and discussed their needs with Derek. What ensued was the typical package of sketches being sent, and descriptions of likes, and dislikes. Derek then integrated all of the ideas, and came up with a contemporary little writing studio.
We are only a few days away from the final punch list, and we hope to get photographs of the finished work in a few weeks. Good timing to enjoy the cool Boise evenings. I’ll be sure to include them in a future post.
Here we can see the little house in all of its glory. One of Derek’s soft spots is for the faithful ‘butterfly roof’. It’s simplicity in design ins contrasted with its complexity of construction. We were treated to some interesting stories of its construction by the crew from Green Remodeling, who did a terrific job helping to realize the owner’s dreams, and Derek’s vision. One of the wonderful things about this sort of roof, is the fact that all of the wall studs, and all of the roof rafters are unique in length. This, in addition to the compound angle makes a standard out of the box approach to construction unsuccessful. Thankfully, Kenji Wright, John King, and Josh Bogle were able to accommodate the design, and deal with the mathematics of the framing.
As with any remodel, or addition, staging the construction of the project can present some challenges. The site is located at the back of the lot, perched 30 feet above the road. Luckily there was a vacant lot behind the building (behind the fencing we see to the right). Through this lot, they were able to bring in the concrete for the foundation, and the floor, as well as the other building materials. Utilities had to be trenched out to the front of the house.
Siding is T-111 no groove panel, with 1×2” cedar battens at 16” on center. All earth tones on the finishes help to reinforce the timber feeling, and blend in with the surrounding landscape. One of the not so surprising ramifications of a ‘butterfly roof’ is the tremendous water collection that it affords. In this case, the runoff is channeled to a small spillway, that deflects the force of the water as it hits the ground. The rain is then allowed to gently seep into the soil. That’s the theory at least. I’ll check in next spring, and see how things are going.
A fish-eye perspective of Kenji finishing taping before the final finish is put on the loft floor. The open loft looks down into the common area, with a kitchenette, and writing bench below the window.
Family friend “Woody” stands at the ready to greet any new arrivals. The owners’ other pooch, a Corgi, is behind the scenes, making sure that everything is built according to plan. The deck makes a nice perch to view the rest of the yard, and the use of canted beams eliminates the columns breaking up the natural flow, and the site lines.
The landscape walls are made of lava rock, and they turned an aggressively sloping back yard into a series of terraces. This created much more usable space for the family to enjoy the Boise summers on, and it helps mitigate the runoff, allowing it to soak into the soil, and not run unhindered towards the house, and deck below. Again, this will be interesting to revisit, after the owner has had an opportunity to enjoy the home for a season or two.
The Laramie
We could tell that this was a special little home from the beginning. We’ve adopted it into our “Plan of the Month” series that we offer. We have renamed it to protect the innocent to the “Laramie”. We haven’t updated our plans list on the site yet, but if you are interested, here is a link to the plan information. We are currently working on the animation for the building, so check back with us next week, and it should be wrapped up.
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I think Derek did an outstanding job on this little home. It provides the owners with a little get-away retreat, as well as a working office to write from. It has a sleeping loft, kitchen, full bath, and an area to stretch out in. There is not much more you can ask for.
Mark Wagner<>Gravitas
