Here is a house for a retired couple, for the amateur craftsman, for the hobby gardener, for the builder on a hillside, or for the small house planner building on a narrow beach or town lot.
The owners were all of these things. Furthermore, the man of the house, a retired architect, knew how to design a charming, warm, and livable house to serve these needs.
The site was a narrow 40 by 100-foot lot, fronted on the east by the street and sloping down from this level to the back property line. It included three fine trees-a pine and oak in the front, a second oak to the rear. Raising the main living area provided a full story on the downhill side of the lot for a studio work area; opening it to the trees with windows front and rear gave it light and privacy.
The generous-sized entryway, on eye-level with the street, has stairs leading up to the living area, down to the studio.
With approximately 1,200 square feet of space, the living area includes a laundry room, a second bath, and on a slightly higher level over the carport, a guest bedroom for visiting children.
Plastic skylights insure good light even on dark days in the kitchen, baths, and laundry room.
GALLEY-TYPE KITCHEN is convenient to dining area. Skylight adds a cheerful atmosphere. Balcony has plant shelves and a small, wall-hung, flip-up counter if the owners wish to eat outside.
The garden deck is fully protected from the street by trees, on the north by the entryway, and on the south by a lath and plastic screen. Hand hewn, random-spaced pergola beams overhead provide an effect of protection and a place for hanging plants.
Down the stairs from the entryway, the 800-square- foot studio is screened by a pierced, plywood panel. A door from the studio leads out to the back garden work area which is used entirely for plant cultivation.
All interior wall surfaces are 3/8-inch plywood painted white; the ceiling in the entry hall and upstairs living area is unpainted shiplap siding. In the downstairs studio, the walls are white, the floors unfinished plywood. The living area floors are carpeted except for baths, laundry, and kitchen.
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source: Sunset Books - Sunset Homes 1967
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