We often say that the land, the building site, teaches us how to design the home. This is simplistic. There are many inputs that are needed to start the design process, including:
Who will live here?
What is their lifestyle?
What are their tastes? Their loves? Their feelings about Home?
What are the needs and have-to-haves?
What is the budget?
But the land directs so much. The viewshed, the wind and sun conditions, the relationship of the drive and the entry, the natural movement of inside to outside, all play an important role. So much so that most of the architects with whom we work won’t actually begin the design process until they can walk the site.
We’re fortunate to have a variety of landscapes within New York State. Those who are passionate about the outdoors, mountains, lakes, and the accompanying passions of skiing, hiking, water sports, and more, can find a bit of it all “upstate”. The Adirondack Mountains, the Finger Lakes Region, and even Western NY each offer opportunity for these pastimes. Shane and his family found their East Coast calling near Old Forge in the Adirondacks.
Upon purchasing a special plot of land, planning and projects began. Beginning with a garage that included a living space, the family then spruced up the grounds, rebuilt the boathouse, and in the final stage, turned attention to creating the main house.
A deep wrap-around porch standing on stone pillars dominates one side of the home overlooking a pristine Adirondack lake. Materials and tones match across the property from garage, to boathouse, to house with two-tone brown cedar shakes, Saratoga granite, and timber trusses under gables.
Businesses around the country were forced to make significant changes to how they operate in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. When our friends at the Benedictine Brewery called with a need to raise an outdoor pavilion for their customers, we were happy to jump into action.
Designed to mimic the original brewery and taproom with their close to 14,000 board feet of Douglas fir, we created the structure of the pavilion with matching embellishments, using chamfered edges and a clear, natural finish to the wood. Just as the original raising started in 2017, the Douglas fir timbers quickly defined the shape of the pavilion and now serve as a way for the brewery to continue serving as a welcoming way for the community to gather, taste, and believe.
