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Project posted by Kim Weiss

A Jewel Box for a Special Ops Soldier

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Location
Hillsborough, North Carolina
Year
2022
Structure
House (Single Residence)
Style
Modern
Front Elevation
Front Elevation
Lanai, rear elevation
Lanai, rear elevation
Roof terrace
Roof terrace
Front door with metal protection from rain. The emerald-green exterior suggests the "jewel box" interior.
Front door with metal protection from rain. The emerald-green exterior suggests the "jewel box" interior.
Living Room portion of the home's core. Abundant glazing invites the outdoors inside, making the space seem larger than it is.
Living Room portion of the home's core. Abundant glazing invites the outdoors inside, making the space seem larger than it is.
The Living/Dining space. Clerestory windows draw sunshine deeper into the core of the house. The door (left) opens onto a screened porch. Isamu Noguchi's 1944 walnut and glass coffee table rests among the owner's collection of modern furnishings.
The Living/Dining space. Clerestory windows draw sunshine deeper into the core of the house. The door (left) opens onto a screened porch. Isamu Noguchi's 1944 walnut and glass coffee table rests among the owner's collection of modern furnishings.
View from the kitchen through the dining and living spaces to the forest beyond the house.
View from the kitchen through the dining and living spaces to the forest beyond the house.
"Floating" bookshelves designed by Arielle Condoret Schechter, AIA, and a freestanding fire place anchor the living space.
"Floating" bookshelves designed by Arielle Condoret Schechter, AIA, and a freestanding fire place anchor the living space.
The iconic Tulip Table and Chairs designed by Eero Saarinen in 1953 define the Dining section of the Jewel Box's open floor plan.
The iconic Tulip Table and Chairs designed by Eero Saarinen in 1953 define the Dining section of the Jewel Box's open floor plan.
Custom-designed cabinetry and shelving by Arielle Schechter, AIA, form the little kitchen. A window placed above the kitchen invites natural illumination.
Custom-designed cabinetry and shelving by Arielle Schechter, AIA, form the little kitchen. A window placed above the kitchen invites natural illumination.
The Jewel Box's ultra-efficient kitchen includes open shelving and a downdraft stove.
The Jewel Box's ultra-efficient kitchen includes open shelving and a downdraft stove.
More floating shelves designed by the architect accommodate the homeowner's book collection above the bar. To the left, the "sapphire" bedroom; to the right, the "emerald" bath.
More floating shelves designed by the architect accommodate the homeowner's book collection above the bar. To the left, the "sapphire" bedroom; to the right, the "emerald" bath.
The "emerald" bath
The "emerald" bath
The bedroom, painted a deep sapphire blue.
The bedroom, painted a deep sapphire blue.
In the Study, amber walls backdrop a Le Corbusier Lounge Chair originally designed in 1928, and an Eileen Gray side table,1927.
In the Study, amber walls backdrop a Le Corbusier Lounge Chair originally designed in 1928, and an Eileen Gray side table,1927.

Details

Square Feet
900
Bedrooms
1
Full Baths
1

Credits

Posted by
Architect
Interior Design
Builder
Newphire Building, Chapel Hill, NC

From Kim Weiss

Among the portfolio of customizable Micropolis® House plans designed by architect Arielle Condoret Schechter, AIA, the Tadpole plan offered everything that Mike Wolfe, a former member of the U.S. Army's Special Ops forces, wanted for his new home. At only 900 square feet, it would make a modest impact on the forested site he chose between Chapel Hill and Hillsborough before the Pandemic (a section of family-owned property). And like all Micropolis® houses, the Tadpole was designed to be net zero -- to generate as much energy as it uses. Wolfe was all-in. To achieve that functionality on this site, Schechter connected the house to a solar array in a nearby field.

Spatially, the little house its owner renamed "The Jewel Box," includes a U-shaped, super-efficient kitchen, which is open to the dining/living core. It also features the homeowner's bedroom; another bedroom-turned-study; an elegant bathroom; and three means of extending the interior living space outdoors: a roof terrace, a south-facing lanai; and a screened porch.

Another element of all the Micropolis® houses: "The Jewel Box" is decidedly modern, which makes its architectural vocabulary an ideal backdrop for Wolfe's collection of iconic modern furniture. He acquired his passion for modern architecture and furniture design, he said, while he was stationed throughout Europe and the Middle East. He stayed in fine accommodations, thanks to the Army's attitude towards members of its most elite forces, and developed keen observations of the built environment around him.

When Wolfe and Schechter discussed his wants and needs for his diminutive home, he decided to purchase the "Tadpole" plans and build it as she designed it with few, if any, customizations. Then he hired green home builder Kevin Murphy of Newphire Building in Chapel Hill to construct the house, knowing that Murphy has built many of the modern, net-zero houses Schechter has designed throughout the Triangle in various sizes and scopes. He did enlist the architect's help, however, with color choices. Inspired by her client's notion that his little house is a "jewel box," she suggested jewel tones for the interior: sapphire for his bedroom, emerald for the bath, and amber for his study.

Schechter refers to her client as a "man of the world -- just a very cool guy." She insists that his passion for design as well as his commitment to environmental sustainability are the true gems in the crown of this "Jewel Box."

"We really did make a great team and achieved a fabulous result together," homeowner Mike Wolfe insists.