Architect Steve Hoedemaker will never forget the first time he saw the steep plot of land overlooking Puget Sound where his clients wanted him to design an art studio in the same style as the house they had recently built. The site is so high that some people have resorted to climbing up the final ascent with their hands on their knees. “It was definitely a pause-and-catch-your-breath kind of trip, but the sweeping views north toward Canada and west toward the San Juan Islands are exhilarating,” he describes.
Echoing the form of the main house, which he had also designed, the studio is clad with cedar accented by a standing seam metal roof. In addition, both structures include a lofted second level and a front porch. Hoedemaker admits that the designs are “a bit of a tongue-in-cheek image of a farmhouse. They are talking the same language.” Designed as a square within a square, the newly built studio’s first floor is split evenly between a covered front porch overlooking the San Juan Islands and a double-height living area with a built-in window banquette. A retractable ladder leads up to a suspended sleeping platform that comprises 50% of the interior floor plan. “It allows natural light to bleed down into the maker space.”
Mirroring the exterior, cedar planks line the interior walls and ceiling. Oak flooring and built-in kitchenette cabinetry made of Douglas fir complement the cozy milieu. “This building was intended to celebrate beautiful materials, and those materials are essentially the only décor needed,” he explains, noting that a wonderful cedar scent permeates the air. “It feels rooted in nature.”
On the lower level, a sleek black potbelly fireplace creates a focal point, where a graphic black-and-white-patterned rug anchors a pair of upholstered armchairs covered in complementary fabric. “We were playing with this idea of camp, a simple and intimate relationship with the most basic elements that you need to be comfortable,” he shares. “We wanted to lean into simplicity and allow the outside and all the beautiful materials to be the star of the show.”
A pulley system allows the stairway to be raised or lowered – an acknowledgment by Hoedemaker that it’s located in front of a large wall where the owners may want to someday display artwork. “It’s wired to a heavy counterbalance that allows you to easily unhook it and push it all the way up to the ceiling,” he adds. A simple metal railing with a wooden handhold separates the sleeping loft.
Doubling as a guesthouse, the studio also includes a bathroom with a clawfoot tub that looks out over the Puget Sound with views of Vashon, Blake and Bainbridge islands. “The husband takes at least one bath every day as a ritual,” Hoedemaker explains. “It’s a central element of living that really speaks to him.”
Hoedemaker attributes the success of the project, in part, to the client’s trust. “They appreciate our work and gave us the green light to pursue the kind of design that we like to do. This home is really about celebrating the outdoors and the incredible setting. It invites you to explore in every direction.”
Photography by Kevin Scott.
For more from Hoedemaker Pfeiffer, be sure to check out this hillside sanctuary.
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