Volunteer Park Villa

This stately Volunteer Park House needed to add more living spaces for a large, dynamic family. In the underutilized basement, the design team configured new large windows for daylight, a family room, guest room, a beautiful tiled bathroom and office that can convert into a secondary guest space with a murphy bed and hidden panels for privacy.

The existing wood columns and overhead structure were exposed and refinished. Seismic upgrades with handsome new black hardware were left as exposed details and columns were further outfitted with custom leather “jackets” to ease wear and tear. Some existing exposed wood paneling was re-used in the space as a concealed door to close the office, while the other privacy panel hides in the existing wall (with a pop of red behind!).

New window wells on the west side allow daylight to flood the family room and guest rooms, while an existing stair well on the East side was reused as a window well for the bathroom. Carrara marble and white tile create bright and welcome space, with new glass enclosed shower.

The rear yard backs up to Seattle’s Volunteer park and was reconfigured into an outdoor living room. The existing concrete retaining wall was exposed and a new glazed brick wall was added with wood burning grill and wood storage below. New ipe deck connects to the French doors to an interior sitting room and when open extends the inside sitting space to the exterior forming a lounge, while a new custom perforated metal screen surrounds the existing stair well to the basement. Large swaths of planting separate the lounge space from the dining and cooking area.