Bainbridge.

The Bainbridge House is a secluded sanctuary on a wooded 3-acre island site. The house opens to a gently sloping meadow on the south side of a clearing.

Overall, the house is organized into two main volumes, with the glazed entry located in between these two volumes. The bedroom wing is to the west of the entry, and the living pavilion extends to the east, into the landscape. The living area has large glass walls to the south and north, allowing the landscape to surround the space, with the fireplace anchoring the east end.

The living pavilion ceiling has a dense pattern of exposed wood beams, interrupted by five shafts of light coming from roof light monitors. Each light monitor is rotated slightly from the orthogonal geometry of the wood beams, so there is a sense of movement across the wood ceiling.

Simplicity rules the choice of interior finishes. European beech cabinets and white stained oak floors are combined with serene grey walls. The kitchen island is a sculptural accent piece in white quartzite, with a cast-glass breakfast counter supported by a laser cut steel panel.

The continuing FINNE design work in crafted modernism can be seen in the gently undulating custom steel light fixtures suspended over the kitchen island and dining table, the cast-glass breakfast counter, the custom dining table, the spare steel and wood main stair, the undulating wood screen coat closet close to the front door, and the folded steel doors (hiding a flat screen TV) next to the fireplace.

The house was designed to be sustainable from the start, with broad 4-6 ft roof overhangs, 40% higher insulation values than required by code, efficient natural ventilation, large amounts of natural lighting, water-conserving plumbing fixtures, LED lighting, locally sourced materials and drought-tolerant landscaping. The high level of craft evident in the house reflects another key principle of sustainable design: eschew “throw-away-ism” and make the house last many years!