Modern Update of Queen Anne Mid-Century House

Designed in 1966 by prominent Northwest architect Paul Hayden Kirk, 2430 sqf Queen Anne Mid-Century house has been extended and reordered in order to get a modern update, but keeping the original integrity at the same time. Without knowing the fact that the the Northwest contemporary house was a creation of a well-known architect, the owners have bought it years ago because they love the sense of serenity and peaceful calm that the house transmitted and later they wanted to find a good architect to reconfigure the space. Lane Williams of Coop 15 Architecture accepted the challenge of redesign the house, a process that wasn’t very difficult for him, although he should retain a lot of the original design while create more space and improve the rooms’ aesthetic that will provide a warm feeling. The big idea behind the original design was that the house was a compact composition with a roof that merged with its north- and south-side walls as a single, folded plane. By using cedar shingles on the exterior roof and siding and cedar paneling on its interior, it was created continuity. With very limited space for family activities, the architect pushed the footprint about 10 feet to the west, increasing the kitchen size on the upper level from 80 to 130 square feet and adding a new dining area (the old one was converted to a family room).

He reconfigured the entry from the carport to add a mudroom and powder room, and opened up the stairway to the lower level. To lighten things up, he added white-painted drywall to the cedar paneling along the interior partition walls, added more windows and slide-fold glass doors to the west end of the house, and refaced the original brick fireplace with off-white Milestone, a mix of cement and acrylic. On the lower level, the large space was reconfigured to create a more defined living area, a bedroom for each child, and a new children’s bathroom; the original lower-level bedroom is now a flexible media room that can be closed off with huge chalkboard-covered sliding doors to become a guest suite. To complete the new look, they added modern furniture, new appliances, all in a black and white theme which contrasts very well with the warmth of the wood.