Pastoral Paradise

In Vermont, one couple’s forever home takes its cue from an unlikely source.

BY ROBERT KIENER

hen asked what inspired the awardwinning design of this island home in northern Vermont, architect Brian Mac doesn’t hesitate when he answers, “A chicken coop.”

A chicken coop? Really?

After a pause and a wide smile, Mac adds, “Yes...and a barn.”

Mac explains that, while the multi-gabled home he designed is coolly contemporary, many of its cues come from the classic gambrel barn and gable-roofed chicken coop that are part of a farm adjacent to the new home’s 12.6-acre lot.

“The area is noted for its pastoral farms, and we wanted to use some elements and details of that agrarian design to help this home pay tribute to, and also fit in with, the neighboring landscape,” says Mac. Therefore, he kept the home just one story high and included features such as black-stained vertical cedar siding, a series of fortyeight identical double-hung, two-overtwo windows, a standing-seam roof, and four gables with the same pitches.

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“We loved Brian’s design because it was so sympathetic to the neighborhood and our lakeside lot while also giving us the low-maintenance, elegantly simple look we were hoping for,” says the owner who, with her husband, is retiring to what she calls “our forever home.”

CLOCKWISE FROM ABOVE: Interior designer Brooke Michelsen designed the kitchen cabinets, while the stained-oak island is topped with quartzite. The powder room includes a fossilized marble sink from Burlington Marble & Granite; the custom floating drawer holds essentials without overwhelming the small space. Original BTC pendants illuminate the hardworking blue-gray pantry.

CLOCKWISE FROM ABOVE: In the primary bath, the tile—zellige on the walls and herringbone cement on the floor—was sourced from Clé. To create a cozy TV room, both the walls and the ceiling were painted Farrow & Ball Down Pipe. Michelsen designed the built-in bunk room to include four beds, two ladders, a reading nook, and a dresser.

The home’s gabled structures, or wings, are connected by a corridor. Three bedrooms and a bunk room are located in the wing facing the lake to take full advantage of water views. (The owners plan to eventually build a three-season guest cottage on the lakefront.) Other wings house the kitchen, living, and dining rooms; the garage; and a mudroom and gym.

Mac’s wife, interior designer Brooke Michelsen, worked closely with the owners to create a minimal yet elegant open-plan design that features locally sourced natural materials such as oak, slate, and bluestone. A striking steel fireplace acts as the home’s centerpiece.

“We chose a largely neutral palette