Shelter Island Remodel

The Shelter Island Remodel involves the selective renovation and expansion of a large, late twentieth century home on the water. The multi-generational family has been in the house for a few years and began to realize the limitations of the previous incremental additions and renovations. These previous changes do not align with how they utilized the weekend and summer getaway.

The new design reorganizes the circulation to reflect the centrality of the kitchen in the life of the house. The main entrance is shifted closer to this important space benefiting from a new generous patio on the north side of the house adjacent to a recently added swimming pool. The new front door is part of a new corridor that connects the land side to the water side of the property while also providing a generous space to shed and to store the tools of vacation, towels, and flip-flops.

A dis-used enclosed pool sunroom is re-built as a new covered screen porch with over-sized operable units to facilitate ping-pong, dining, and other family activities. In the living room, a fresh layer of wood details unifies the home renovation with the other spaces in the home. A new bris-soleil will cut down on the solar exposure within the double height space during the warm summer and maximize it during the winter months.

Shelter Island, NY

2021

 

A new over-sized dormer window draws early morning light into the kitchen. An interior window follows the profile of the roof line and visually connects the living room.

The design creates a new entrance that fits with the “learned use” of the house since the client moved in a few years ago. The main cooking area of the kitchen occupies the central, lower portion of the ground floor, reserving the dining and entry areas for more generous and light filled spaces.

From the kitchen counter, a new line of casement windows and sliding doors frame views of the water.

The dining area enjoys higher ceilings that are adorned with framing elements that relate to the bris-soleil immediately outside. A simple board and batten ceiling break up the sound from lively dinner conversation below. In the distance a sliding door panel reveals the pantry and a staircase wall peels back to reveal more views toward the sunroom.

A new bris-soleil echoes the board and batten detail in the dining area to provide shade during a hot summer day.

This intersection depicts the language of ceiling materials being expressed in different ways to reflect their use. Simple board ceiling cladding, joists interrupted by skylights, board and batten sound dampening, and exterior boards forming a bris-soleil.

The sunroom echoes the bead board detailed walls of the kitchen. A full height sliding door panel enables the sunroom to be isolated from the rest of the house. A simple credenza operates as a simple wet bar for particularly intense ping pong tournaments.

An existing staircase is replaced with an open riser stair to enhance the vistas through the house and highlight the importance of the new pass-through corridor that was previously part of the garage.

In the living room, a new staircase and guardrail opens up the views through the house out to the water. A delicate painted steel guard rail is capped with a soft, rounded oak rail shaped to the hand.

An early section sketch depicts the connection of the north (land) and south (water) sides of the house.

The entry elevation introduces a new entry door and over-size dormer to draw light into the kitchen.

The existing plan was confused and did not reflect the manner by which the multi-generational family desired to use the home.

The new plan creates a new entrance, an updated kitchen and dining area and sun room for year round enjoyment of the vistas toward the water.