INSPIRED SURROUNDINGS

The Flack’s Courtyard House is designed around a central concept

BY JOANNA BASTIAN

For many years, Sean and Margot Flack spent long weekends in the Methow Valley where their kids learned to ski. When the time was right, they bought a parcel of land near Mazama and built the Courtyard House.

After many years of admiring other courtyard homes, and the homes of friends that were inspired by surrounding landscapes, the Flacks had collected ideas of what their Courtyard House should include.

They met with local designers/ builders Molly and Jeff Patterson of the Patterson Company to discuss a courtyard design with open communal spaces and efficient bedrooms. The three-bedroom, two-bath Courtyard House is orientated to look out onto a small creek and the ski trail, a choice that the Flacks felt strongly was most private for their surrounding neighbors, and a view that they desired. The home is designed around a central courtyard, with eight separate entryways that can be opened in pleasant weather. The three bedrooms, living area and a multi-purpose room all open up to the courtyard and the sound of the creek.

“The courtyard design pulled everything inward for both their privacy and that of their neighbors,” designer Molly Patterson said.

The combined kitchen and living area is a comfortable size with floor-to-ceiling windows to the courtyard overlooking the ski trail, and a two-sided fireplace that can be enjoyed from both inside the living area and outside in the courtyard. The window views and double-sided fireplace create a feeling of transparency between inside and outside. Unobtrusive lighting fixtures add to the ambiance of a spacious, naturally lit common room.

Patterson said, “I think the lighting in this house was really a spectacular addition. We went above and beyond with the details of lighting beams and walls.” Patterson noted that the exterior step lights are perfect for dark skies and are motion-detected. The kitchen island and bathroom vanities also have motion-detected lights.

Well-designed cabinetry blends into the surroundings, making the combined kitchen and living area feel less utilitarian, and more like a gathering space. The steel work and beams were done by Mark and Leone Edson of Methow Valley Industrial. The electrical work was completed by Jason Miller of Tamarack Electric.

BLENDING IN

The Flacks knew what they wanted on the exterior of the home. “We wanted the exterior to be environmentally friendly and blend in with surroundings,” Sean said. Margot continued, “We wanted an earthy look, and recommended the Japanese tradition of shou-sugi-ban.” This process preserves the wood by heavily charring it, making the wood fire-retardant and resistant to rot, insects and decay. The exterior of the Courtyard House is lightly torched fir siding and board form concrete wall. Two main entries are custom-made to blend into the cedar entrance areas. Patterson and her dad, Jerry Hickey, carefully selected vertical boards that lined up seamlessly to the exterior of the home, and Hickey built the custom doors. Inside, the pattern continues as the multi-hued boards are perfectly matched along the walls and extended onto the ceiling. This effect makes a small entryway look and feel spacious.

One entryway serves as a mudroom, with benches lining one wall for ease in removing boots and shoes, and cabinets and drawers to hold coats, hats, boots and more. The second entryway is the laundry room, perfect for peeling off soiled layers and tossing directly into the washing machine.

Both points of entry lead into the communal area that is anchored on one side by a floor-toceiling fireplace. The masonry is composed of grey stonework

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turned so that the smooth side of the stone is displayed, and no mortar shows. Graham Murray of Northern Stone Craft did the fireplace stonework. He purchased thin stone and cut each piece individually so that the face of the fireplace was flush, then painstakingly laid each piece to make sure it was flush and that the stone was “dry set,” Patterson said.

The large greenstone kitchen island is the centerpiece to the room, with an overhang on three sides for friends and family to sit around. The refrigerators delightfully blend into the cabinetry, with one small upright unit near a coffee counter, and two drawers under the center island. The dishwasher and the microwave are also artfully hidden behind seamless cabinet drawers. Jerry Cole did all the cabinetwork.

The kitchen sink and countertop are all one piece of steel. The

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clean lines and continuous surfaces make the communal area feel like one big gathering room instead of two separate areas. A woodstove in the corner of the kitchen creates a cozy nook.

BEDS AND BUNKS

Two hallways extend from the common room, along either side of the courtyard. Each hallway contains two rooms, separated by a bathroom. One of the bedroom areas was left open, and serves as a multipurpose room, with a piano in one corner, exercise mats and a puppy kennel. The light-filled bedrooms have floor-to-ceiling windows and sliding doors that open into the courtyard. The children’s room has one long bunk bed hanging from the ceiling that extends the length of one wall. Ladders on each side of the room lead to separate sleeping quarters — a bunk bed that sleeps two, but only takes up the width of one bunk. The arrangement is an efficient use of a small space. Barry Stromberger of Slagworks created the hanging steel bunk beds. One bathroom has a deep bathtub, and a separate large shower with a detachable showerhead. “We thought kids would enjoy the tub, and I wanted a shower with a hose to wash the dogs,” Margot laughed. The second bathroom has a smaller shower, and a spacious sauna.

The Courtyard House surrounds a garden filled with native grasses, berry bushes and aspens. Windy Valley Landscaping designed the garden areas around the home. A sitting area next to the doublesided fireplace completes the courtyard.

The home was designed following Firewise guidelines in the landscaping, fireproof building materials, and a fire suppression system inside the home.

“This house felt like home right away,” Margot said. “We’ve been coming to the valley for 15 years. I wanted it [the house] to be a place where my kids could feel at home and bring their friends.” The designers of Courtyard House took inspiration from the surrounding land and created a home of wood and rock, filled with sunshine. 

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