Bright and Accessible West Seattle Addition That Honors the Home’s Style

If you’ve ever heard me talk about my favorite projects, you’ll know I have a soft spot for older homes. I love to update a home while maintaining the integrity of its original design. We did just that with this project.

These clients came to us with a request to add a full bathroom and bedroom on their main floor. The family needed to have at least one bedroom and one accessible bathroom on the main level as they have a family member facing mobility loss in the coming years. Before we added the space, their only bathrooms and bedrooms were either in the basement or on the top floor. While this house had a ton of stairs, the back deck connected directly to the carport and has no stairs. This was the clear location to add space to this home.

Our wonderful clients wanted to keep the design of their existing home and carry that through to the new addition. Accessibility was #1 but LIGHT was a very close second. We couldn’t avoid creating a hallway to reach the (now) smaller deck and carport without losing their custom pantry, which was not an option. They did not want this new hallway space to be a dark tunnel in an otherwise bright home. Our bright idea was to add skylights and a glass door to the end of the hall to flood the space with light.

We also wanted to make sure both new spaces were accessible. We accomplished this by making sure we had good clearances in the bathroom with a roll up vanity and a roll in shower with good turning radius for wheelchair accessibility.

The bedroom needs to do double duty. For now, it’s going to be a relaxing music space/guest bedroom. Down the road, it can accommodate a queen size bed or sofa bed along with a side chair while still maintaining a clear turning radius for a wheelchair.

A primary goal of this this addition was for it to feel that it was truly a part of the house from the exterior as well as the interior. There is a very distinct aesthetic on the exterior and we could not let this addition negatively impact the way the home looks from the outside.

Before:

Concept:

After:

We are proud to say that we honored this home’s aesthetic while giving the homeowners the crucial accessible space they needed. This new addition is light, bright and accessible.

 

For more photos check out our portfolio page here.