Backyard Reading Retreat

The Story

This is definitely one of my favorite projects that I worked on while at Board & Vellum. The folks own a bookstore and really wanted a quiet spot to read or entertain guests. The whole backyard was completely covered by overgrown shrubs, weeds, everything you can think of. We worked on cleaning up the yard and putting in a little backyard cottage. 

The clients really wanted the shed to be a part of the backyard. They also wanted it to look like a found object with modern updates. We used a lot of glass and geometric shapes to tie it all together. Some of my favorite features of this project are the folding ladder, how the siding comes into the shed and it’s also used as a backstop for the casework. Also I really like the back window, which perfectly picture frames a small tree. One of the funny things that happened on this project was how we ended up with wallpaper on the ceiling. We had speakers behind the drywall, but because we used only 2x6’s for the loft, we had some deflection and the drywall kept cracking around the speakers. We were thinking of solutions that were way too complicated for making it stronger and then the client suggests, “What about wallpaper?” You never know where a good idea will come from! This was such a fun project with a fantastic team and we received great recognition for the finished results, like being in Dwell and nominated for Best Small Space, 2018.

Collaborators

Firm: Board & Vellum
Project Lead: Ryan Adanalian, Board & Vellum
Interiors: Katie Mallory, Board & Vellum
Project Support: Matthew Hagen, Board & Vellum
Project Support: Renee Roman, Board & Vellum
Landscape: Derek Reeves, Board & Vellum
Contractor: Proform General Contractors
Structural Engineer: Bykonen Carter Quinn
Geotechnical Engineer: GeoResources
Photographer: Andrew Giammarc