Nestled into a neighborhood of hills that roll down to Pleasant Bay, this home by Polhemus Savery DaSilva Architects Builders incorporates a combination of traditional forms and repetitive roof elements. Both the hilly terrain of the neighborhood and the specific natural characteristics of the site, provided us with inspiration for the design and helped dictate the form and the layout of the house. Windows and French doors on the south façade open from the main living spaces onto a garden terrace and large yard area beyond. Open interior spaces and easy connections to this outdoor living space are well-suited to an active family.

In pursuit of a spare, clean aesthetic, many traditional interior elements are simple and elegant. The living room fireplace mantel is an abstract, sculptural form that "floats" above the fireplace which is outlined by limestone. The dining room is the most dramatic space in the house. It has a high window bringing north light in from above and a pair of bowed "Romeo and Juliet" balconies effecting a transition between the room’s soaring cathedral ceiling and the lower ceiling of the living room beyond.

The balconies are a part of the second floor circulation above. At the southeast corner, an arrangement of tall windows welcomes morning and afternoon sun in the casual dining area. Custom kitchen cabinetry, made of clear maple in a simple Shaker style, reinforces the house’s spare aesthetic but is rich and warm in its color.

In the design of this house we sought a balance between the serenity implied by elegant details and close attention to the ideal uses of natural light, with the dynamism implied by dramatic spaces and forms.