Phinney Modern by Elemental Architecture

The top-floor living room of this Seattle house projects across the garden in a twisted cantilever.

Local studio Elemental Architecture designed the three-storey house, where living rooms and a kitchen are unusually located on the cantilevering top storey.

Glass doors open the kitchen out to a large balcony.

A staircase leads up from here to a rooftop terrace that overlooks the neighbourhood.

Bedrooms occupy the first floor, while a utility room, office and garage are on the ground level.

Other cantilevering houses on Dezeen include one over that projects over a river and another with a base of stacked ceramic wine racks – see all our stories about cantilevers here.

Here are a few sentences from Elemental Architecture:

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Phinney Modern

2510 sqft single family home located in Seattles Phinney Ridge neighborhood.

This home was designed for a young family on a small in-fill lot.

The lot was very challenging just over 2000 sft with a access easement covering a portion of the southwest corner.

 

This created a situation where the building footprint covered the majority of the yard, so it was essential to capture outdoor space on the structure.

 

This led to the reverse floorplan (living on the third level), allowing the main spaces to easily access outdoor space, light and view.

The homeowners created a welcoming contrast by their choices in furniture and wall coverings.

The upper level opens to a west facing deck and exterior stair leading to a view roofdeck which overlooks Ballard and the Puget Sound.

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• Architecture