Working with a familiar client, the architects were asked to design a 1,228-square-foot suite addition with a basement level of 1,072 square feet to a house they had renovated in the past. This time, the clients wanted a private world to themselves—separate yet connected to the main house.

Design concept and solution:
Within the simple white brick gable of the three-story addition, a wooden tower contains the bedroom, generous open bath, and dressing area on the main level, with a meditation space upstairs. A basement level has a gym, massage room, and storage. The tower, inside and out, and the stair that connects the three levels, have vertical-grain Douglas fir louvers that allow light to penetrate into the center of the rooms. When placed over solid walls, the slats are laid over a Galvalume skin to create shadows that form from light reflecting between the gaps. Douglas fir is also used for the cabinetry and furniture, all of which was designed by the architect. The bathroom features a 3,000-pound limestone bathtub, cut from a single block of stone.