Summer Mooring
Summer Mooring sits at the tip of a small peninsula surrounded by a picturesque salt pond and marshes. As a protected harbor, it is a popular spot for boaters, and Summer Mooring’s pier is an important focal point of life there. Regulatory requirements on the environmentally-sensitive site dictated that the new house use the footprint and height of a banal house that previously stood on the property. From the front, entry side of the house, an organized appearance breaks the house down into distinct but attached pieces that appear as if they could have been built accretively over time. The angled garage wing (with the primary bedroom suite above) was treated like a barn, simpler and bulkier than the main house. An existing hill side was cut back slightly to create a small but welcoming front yard.
| Project Category | Harborfront |
|---|---|
| Scope of Work | Architecture, Construction |
| Finished Space Above Grade | 5,299 |
| Photography | Brian Vanden Brink |
The relatively buttoned-down character of the exterior gives way to a wonderland of fancifully shaped and detailed interior spaces.
Inspired by nautical forms, yacht interiors, and Greek revival imagery, the evocative interiors are specifically crafted for family and friends to escape into a world of fun and relaxation. Details are contemporary in their abstraction, but classical enough to suggest the 19th Century revivalism common to vernacular homes in the region.
The bunk room received a BRICC Award from the Home Builders & Remodelers Association of Cape Cod.
This room is accessible from the living space as well as via a hidden door off the stairs. Inside, one can climb a pair of ship’s ladders to travel between two levels. Special details like waves and a tugboat carved into the walls, and real ship’s portholes, delight, entertain, and reinforce the fantastical nature of the place.
Like captain’s quarters on a classic yacht, a small first-floor study is entirely clad in mahogany.
The eye is tricked into thinking the relatively low ceiling is higher than it is because of a false perspective created by descending board widths in the horizontal paneling from the floor at the bottom of the walls to the peak of the ceiling.
The entry/stair hall ceiling has mahogany ribs like the inside of an inverted boat hull.
The abstracted Greek revival banisters are simplified Ionic columns, distorted to follow the slope of the railing. Other whimsical details include a back-lit star patterned panel above a curvaceous window seat, and a built-in wooden canopy over the primary bed. Mahogany beams stand out against white woodwork, curves and swooping arches define spaces, and meticulously-crafted cabinetry can be found throughout.
The water-facing side of the house has a projecting bay window at its center, gesturing toward the water and the sweeping lawn and pier. Outdoor living takes place between the house and the lawn. A fire pit is centered on the bay window and an extensive outdoor kitchen occurs just off the interior kitchen.
