Story at a Glance:
- This 1,315-square-foot home blends modern and traditional styles for a truly curated look.
- The home features a double-height living room and large sliding glass doors that visually expand the space and connect indoor and outdoor areas.
- A strategic loft above the main floor provides additional flexible space for guests or family, accessed via a space-saving alternating-tread stair.
- Neutral colors, warm wood accents, and personalized art create a cozy, lived-in feel that reflects the homeowners' style.
Traditional design has been gaining traction as homeowners seek a more personalized, curated aesthetic that feels layered and lived-in. However, embracing this design style doesn’t necessarily mean giving up on the functionality or openness of a modern home—even when designing within a small footprint.
This balance was Best Practice Architecture’s philosophy when designing a custom home for a retired couple in Seattle’s Madison Park neighborhood. According to Sarah Smith, principal at the Seattle-based firm, the couple purchased a 1940s home with the goal of downsizing, but the space wasn’t exactly suited for modern living.
“The home had served many generations,” says Smith. “But it just didn't really lend itself to the way that people live now.”
But seeking the help of Best Practice as well as Seattle builder Summit Development, the homeowners were able to tear down the former home and reimagine the small lot with a 1,315-square-foot traditional home designed to better function in modern day.
Maximizing Space in Small Footprint
With just a 3,000-square-foot lot to work with, the home appears modest from the outside. Inside, the design team used a series of visual cues to draw the eye up and make the two-bedroom, one-bathroom home feel larger than it actually is.
The entry opens directly into the main living space, featuring a double-height living room with exposed wood collar ties, an open-concept kitchen, and a rear wall with large sliding glass doors that connect the home to a small outdoor space.
“The lot is really narrow, and we needed to figure out how to get all this stuff in there, all the program elements, but also not feel hemmed in,” says Smith. “We decided to do a single story home that has a loft above that can kind of function as a flex space.”
A Space-Saving Stair
Opting for a loft instead of a full second story was also a space-saving strategy, explains Smith.
At 175 square feet, the loft allowed them to save on both construction costs and space by eliminating the footprint of a full staircase. Residential code allows lofts to be accessed by an alternating-tread stair instead of a traditional one, which was ultimately selected for this home.
Already looking to downsize, the homeowners didn't have much use for a true two-story home, especially with a bedroom, office, and bathroom already located on the first floor. Instead, the loft holds two twin beds that can accomodate the homeowners' young grandchildren or other occasional overnight guests.
A Modern Take on Traditional Design
The homeowners had a strong preference for traditional design and wanted their home to feel curated and highly personal, filled with art and decor collected over the years, explains Smith.
At the same time, they wanted a space that felt cozy and lived-in without sacrificing too much on functionality or storage. To strike that balance, Smith says the team chose simple, neutral colors and timeless finishes that could be elevated through the homeowners’ personal belongings.
Wood, brass elements, and pops of warm greens and blues throughout the home also help to elevate the design.
“They hired us because they wanted to push their design taste a little bit,” says Smith. “... They want to have that open feel that modern design gives, with little bit of quirkiness that felt like their home.”
Smith explains that the homeowners' goal was to ensure the space was a reflection of their personality, ensuring that anyone who visited would immediately recognize it as their home.
“We worked with them to create this modern shell that had modern sensibilities in a modern foundation and ethos," says Smith, "but that could easily be filled with the finishes and the art and the belongings that feel like something that was collected over a lifetime.”
Project Details:
Location: Madison Park, Seattle
Area: 1,315 square feet | 3,000-square-foot lot
Builder: Summit Development
Architect: Best Practice Architecture
Landscape: Stillpoint Studio
Photography: Rafael Soldi
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About the Author
Catherine Sweeney
Catherine Sweeney is the associate editor for Pro Builder and Custom Builder, where she creates both digital and print content, including Pro Builder’s daily e-newsletter and various news stories for both brands. Before joining Endeavor, she began her career in local journalism, later pivoting to the commercial real estate industry where she worked for several years as a reporter and editor.