Cozy Cottages - Builder Magazine

8/2/2019 Cozy Cottages - Builder Magazine

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From: BUILDER2010 Posted on: September 12, 2010 11:26:00 PM

Cozy CottagesTen little projects practice the art of thinking small.

By:

Jenny Sullivan

If it seems as though all of your prospects have become move-down buyers in this constrained market,try turning on the cottage charm. Trade in those stately manses in your portfolio for something morecompact and cocoon-like, which are housing options that make today's buyers feel safe and secure, notoverleveraged.

And be creative about where you look for inspiration. Theres no shortage of fine little structures out therewith lessons to be gleaned on how to build a tight ship, be they primary residences, weekend retreats,granny casitas, or outbuildings. Some are traditional, some are contemporary, and some are vernacularblends. Here are ten worth studying.

Sea Breeze

Credit: Paul Dyer

Located in the foothills of the Santa Lucia Mountains with a view of the ocean, this 600 square-footcottage (which complements a 2,800-square-foot main house) is not only therapeutic in its simplicity, itsalso eco-friendly. The shell incorporates recycled denim insulation in the walls, blown-in foam insulationin the roof, and low-E windows. Its interior is heated primarily by a central, high-efficiency, two-sided gasfireplace. Add to that a tankless hot water heater and energy-saving lighting, and youve got yourself asuper-performing little cabin.


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But passivity is the most important ingredient of all. When the weather is nice--the default setting in theCarmel Valley--windows and doors are positioned to grab prevailing breezes and keep the interiors cool.This, along with shading from existing oaks, prevents the need for air conditioning in hot summermonths, says architect Jonathan Feldman. He adds that raising the foundation helped to minimizeexcavation and potential root damage to the trees.

Credit: Paul Dyer

Designed with versatility in mind, the structure is alternately used as a guest house, yoga/meditationstudio, and social gathering spot for parties. The interiors are simple and clean, with Douglas fir trim(including the ceiling) and a rusted Cor-Ten steel fireplace surround as the centerpiece. The exterior isclad in stained cedar siding.

Project: Carmel CottageLocation: Carmel, Calif.Architect: Feldman ARCHITECTUREBuilder: Groza Construction

Petite Street

Credit: Courtesy Greenstone Homes

Resale homes in this stretch of country between Coeur dAlene, Idaho, and Spokane, Wash., have beenhard-pressed to compete with Greenstone Homes cottage series, which offers plans ranging from1,300 to 2,000 square feet. Buyer response to these sweet little houses has proven that charactercounts--from their playful roof monitors and porch brackets to their crisp picket fences.




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Constructed to Energy Star and Built Green specifications in several area communities, the houses areframed with 2x6 lumber at 24 inches on center to reduce waste, and are clad with various combinationsof shiplap, board and batten, and shingle fiber cement siding. Other goodies include low-E windows,structured floor panels (which create acoustical buffers), alley-loaded garages with keyless entries, andlow-VOC finishes.

Credit: Courtesy Greenstone Homes

Empty nesters have especially loved the master-down cottage plans in the Rocky Hill community (oneeven features two master suites on the ground floor), and the fact that yard work, mowing, and snowremoval are handled by the HOA.

We have been seeing a combination of young professionals and move-down buyers as thedemographic, says Jayson Hunnel, sales and marketing director for Greenstone. We just did eight ofthese in a block at our Ponderosa Ridge community and they were all purchased by empty nesters andsold before the first building was framed.

Project: Rocky HillLocation: Liberty Lake, Wash.Builder: Greenstone Homes

Trees Please

Credit: Courtesy Catskill Farms

There are few things in the world that one cant find in Manhattan. Pristine forest is one of them.

Which partly explains why Chuck Petersheim, a former urbanite himself, left Gotham and built abusiness for nature-deprived New Yorkers. Located in the mountains about 100 miles from the big city,his company, The Catskill Farms, specializes in cozy little houses on big, wooded lots. The offeringsinclude 1,300-square-foot cottages, 960-square-foot mini-cottages, 750-square-foot micro-cottages, and




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in the latest addition to the portfolio, a 450-square-foot Shack Series.

Marketed as an alternative to older weekend homes requiring extensive remodeling, the new residencesblend modern, open plans with nostalgic touches such as clapboard siding, broad porches, wide-plankfloors, Shaker-style cabinets, cast-iron radiators, and other reclaimed materials with vintage appeal.

All homes are built on contract, and Petersheim has a waiting list.

Credit: Courtesy Catskill Farms

We are selling to a very young, fast New York City set, he says, noting that many are first-time buyerswho rent in the city and therefore arent saddled by second mortgages. Weve found there is no bettertime to be busy than a recession. The entire pipeline of vendors, subcontractors, and suppliers are eagerto help, unlike during the boom where just getting a phone call back was challenging.

Project: Catskill CottagesLocation: Sullivan County, N.Y.Builder/Designer: The Catskill Farms

Midwestern Modest

Credit: Ken Gutmaker

This whimsical cottage fits so seamlessly into its old-growth neighborhood that you might not realize itsnew construction. Thats exactly what architect Jean Rehkamp intended when she sketched out itsaffable faade.

The other surprise is that its not as small as it looks. Four bedrooms and a laundry room are tucked upunder the roof, stretching the plan to 4,100 square feet to accommodate a family of five.

There is a lot more space inside than you would expect, says Rehkamp. The scale of the house




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blends with the neighborhood because we essentially brought that gable down to the first floor in front,while allowing the house to stand taller in the back. The scalloping on the front gable end was inspired bya historic house here in the city that I have admired.

Credit: Ken Gutmaker

Inside, the plan is hybrid by design, blending open, fluid spaces with homespun details such aswainscoting, paneled transitions, beams, wood ceilings, and inset cabinets.

Its a pretty big house as far as cottages go, but then again, its for a pretty big family. The overall squarefootage is never the driver in our designs, Rehkamp explains. Its more about the client and what theyneed. We generally dont make things bigger than they need to be.

Project: Linden Hills CottageLocation: MinneapolisArchitect: Rehkamp Larson ArchitectsBuilder: JS Johnson & AssociatesInterior designer:Alecia Stevens

Desert Blooms




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Balf Walker (C) 2008

Credit: Balfour Walker

Doucette Communities had to be resourceful when it took on the 57 finished lots that would becomeSilverbell. One out of every three lots measured a scant 34-feet-by-100-feet, and the new homes had tomesh with 28 existing duplex-style rental units built by the city of Tucson for seniors and the disabled.

The city-owned units were sprinkled through the site, so our design had to be compatible, says

builder/owner Tom Doucette. We also had to develop a product that would accommodate both front-and rear-loaded conditions with affordable pricing. Plus, we chose to inflict the LEED process onourselves, as we felt this would be a positive since the project is adjacent to downtown and a majortransportation corridor with bus service and shopping close by.

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Simple by design and crisp against the Arizona sky, the homes of Silverbell feature 2x6-inch framing (24inches on center) with stacked roof elements and windows placed between stud bays. Other keyfeatures include sealed concrete floors, water-saving fixtures, Energy Star appliances, high-efficiency




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HVAC systems with duct testing, and rainwater harvesting.

The exteriors are neatly articulated with metal trim and fencing, with overhangs that create private porchareas. Priced under $160,000, the units also offer two-car garages with ventilation systems and areprepped for solar panels. Some plans offer a detached casita option. The project received LEED Goldcertification, hitting a base HERS rating of 60--and thats before the addition of photovoltaics.

Project: SilverbellLocation: Tucson, Ariz.

Builder: Doucette CommunitiesArchitect: CDG ArchitectsDeveloper: Pima County Building Department

All in the Family

Credit: Four Square Builders

If the phrase mother-in-law casita conjures up an unfavorable mental picture, this sleek accessory unitcertainly defies the stereotype. Designed as a companion residence for extended family, it is the

antithesis of dowdy.

It started when [my wifes mother] came back from Lowes with a little brochure on the KatrinaCottages, says builder Wes Wigginton, who partnered with designer Eric Brown on the concept. Shehad been living in the guest room of our home and was in need of her own space.

Located 200 feet uphill from the main house, the 1,070-square-foot MILHouse (gotta love the acronym)contains two bedrooms, two baths, and an open living/dining/kitchen zone. The structure was built onsite, although Brown designed its primary form as two modules, using standardized measurements forcost and material efficiencies. But the most unique thing of all is its exposed skeleton, which was adeliberate move with both aesthetic and performance benefits.

Steel has great structural capacity, but we removed it from the thermal envelope because it has thenegative of becoming a thermal conduit, explains Brown, who has since joined Wiggintons company,Foursquare Builders, as its in-house designer. Relegating those steel beams to the outside not onlyallowed an airtight shell with no thermal breaks, it maximized views to the outdoors. The vertical steelmembers are stronger and skinnier than the wood columns that would have been required to supportsuch a large porch. We painted them a neutral gray so they blend with the sites native oaks and cedartrees, he says.




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Credit: Four Square Builders

It wasnt long after the nifty little residence was featured as part of Austins summer 2009 Cool Housetour that Wigginton began receiving client requests for similar accessory units on Hill Country propertiesoutside of Austin. The builder is now close to finishing its second such structure, MILHouse 2.0, which isexpected to be completed by October 2010.

We are starting to see more clients who are thinking about the future needs of their in-laws and parentsand planning ahead, Wigginton says. As a result, these casita-type solutions are more a part of theconversation now.

Project: MILHouse 1.0Location: Austin

Builder: Foursquare BuildersDesigner: Thoughtcrib

Different Angle

Credit: Fabian Birgfeld

If you cover one eye and view the triangular roof form as half a gable, this 1,600 square foot infill homehas some cottage DNA, but it's not in a traditional, symmetrical sense. Call it a wacky cousin if you want,but its 30% more efficient than the average single-family home.

Conceived as a prefab prototype for vacant urban infill sites, the quirky domicile fits comfortably on acompact, 22-foot-by-54-foot lot, and actually plays quite nicely into the funky housing mix in this emergingJersey City neighborhood. The main building components are precast concrete insulated panels (PIPs),which were craned and welded into place in three days.

To avoid a bunker effect, architects Richard Garber and Nicole Robertson added cedar screens and




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bands of windows to soften the aesthetic.

The south-facing, 30-degree pitched roof--which the architects conceived as a contemporary riff on therooflines of nearby homes--is equipped with photovoltaic panels on one half and low-impact greenvegetation on the other half. With tax incentives and utility bill savings, the solar panels are expected topay for themselves in five to seven years.

The prototype was also designed as a model for economic sustainability. Total design and constructioncosts were about $250,000, which is a fairly modest outlay for a single-family house so close to NewYork City.

Project: PREttyFABLocation: Jersey City, N.J.Architect: GRO ArchitectsManufacturer: Northeast Precast

Pretty Perch

Credit: Courtesy KodamaDiseno

The hills of San Francisco are a big part of what makes the city cool, but for builders and architects, theyare a force to be reckoned with. This clever outbuilding is anchored into the side of an urban cliff rising 30feet from the street.

A bookend for a 30-foot-by-110-foot city lot measuring 30 feet by 110 feet, the compact little outpoststacks a 326-square-foot entertainment pavilion on top of a 400-square-foot garage. The two-storymassing creates a sound buffer from the street below, as well as visual privacy for an heirloom rosegarden that connects the pavilion to the main house (a remodeled fishermans cottage). Anchored bydeep footers, the outbuilding also conceals an underground drainage system that invisibly routes waterthrough the hillside.




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Credit: Courtesy KodamaDiseno

But the site engineering isnt the only master stroke here. Inspired by medieval dovecotes orpigeonniers-- aviary structures used to house semi-wild birds--the pavilion incorporates a trove ofreclaimed and recycled artifacts, including old wood timbers, repurposed lumber, plank flooring, stainedglass windows, brick, ironwork, hardware, and lighting fixtures. It also has some good new stuff, such ashydronic radiant floor heating, hot water on demand, laminated glass windows, HCFC-free insulation, andlighting controls for all fixtures.

Project: Garden PavilionLocation: San FranciscoArchitect: Kodama Diseno ArchitectsBuilders: LH Construction;Add-a-Garage

View Finder

Credit: Eric Roth

Often the most powerful ideas are the simplest. Thats certainly true of this 1,800-square-footMassachusetts lakeside cottage (a 2008 Builders Choice Award winner) which takes its cues from ashack that once stood on the land. Architect Paul MacNeely thought of the new house as an aperturethrough which to view the water. Theres a nice water view but its not spectacular, MacNeely says.




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We created these transparent points as a way to celebrate the best views.

Credit: Eric Roth

At the center of the straightforward plan is a see-through entry hall. Like a break between two worlds, itseparates the private bedroom volume on the quiet north side from the sunny living hall on the south.

Those plan moves are also reflected in the exterior skin: board and batten on one side, clapboard on theother, and a red stain tying the two together. I had an image of a red house in winter, sitting in this whitefield, which is the lake, MacNeely says, and the notion that the red house standing out would be

beautiful.

Project: Wik CottageLocation:Auburn, Mass.Architect: Eck/ MacNeely ArchitectsBuilder: Kinsley Homes

Rustic Roots




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Credit: Rich Frutchey

Built on land that had been in the same family for generations, this 2,402-square-foot timber frame homecame with three caveats. First, it had to complement the other existing family home on the lakefrontproperty. Second, it had to play nice with nature. And third, the plan had to be designed with grandkids inmind.

The owner specifically asked for a house that looked as though it belonged to the land, and Timberpegdelivered. The first floor spills out in multiple directions onto three different porches, drawing longsightlines to nature. Conversely, elements from the landscape are brought indoors in the way ofabundant natural-sealed millwork and a massive stone fireplace. A second-floor loft for kids is accessedvia a ships ladder.

Credit: Timberpeg

All that and the house generates a good portion of the energy it uses on site. Built with SIPs, the home isoutfitted with geothermal heat, solar domestic hot water, and solar electricity. For healthier indoor airquality, a covered breezeway connects the house to a detached garage. The garage sits perpendicular tothe house, giving the site the feeling of a small family compound.




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Project: The Lakewood HouseLocation: Newbury, N.H.Designer: Jim Driesch, Timberpeg DesignBuilder: Timberpeg Independent Representative Old Hampshire Designs

Jenny Sullivan is a senior editor covering architecture and design for BUILDER.

Learn more about markets featured in this article: Tucson, AZ, San Francisco, CA, Austin, TX,New York, NY,

Coeur d'Alene, ID, Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN.

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