The Rambler Residence

THE RAMBLER RESIDENCE

Go'c

The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott

ARCHITECTS
Go'c

BUILDER
Sparrow Woodworks

STRUCTURAL ENGINEERING
SSF Engineers

CIVIL ENGINEERING
J Welch Engineering

PROJECT TEAM
Jon Gentry, Aimée O’Carroll, Yuchen Qiu

MANUFACTURERS
Grohe, Artemide, Article Furniture, Beko, Brizo, Calvin Fabrics, Cathy Conner, Cedar & Moss Alto Pendant, Cedar & Moss Wildwood, Color Atelier, Emtek Orb Knob, Fleetwood, Fritsjurgens System M+, GO'C, HAY, Joel Kikuchi, Kohler, Kraus, Lesley Petty Studio, Mark VonRosenstiel, +6

BUILDER TEAM
Jon Gentry, Lydia Ramsey

PHOTOGRAPHS
Kevin Scott, GO'C

AREA
1700 ft²

LOCATION
United States

CATEGORY
Houses

The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott

English description provided by the architects.

Located northwest of Seattle on the Kitsap Peninsula, a few blocks up from a small beach town, this residence takes its place on a cherished piece of family property.

The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott
The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott

On a secluded wooded site, the new structure grounds itself to the earth with its approach to material and form.

The project involved a close collaboration with friends and makers in the local community, exploring a level of craft made possible from relationships forged over years of making work together.

The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott
The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott

The program for the house was simple: a 3-bedroom / 2-bath house with space for playing music and drawing for a musician and an architect.

The house at 1,700 square feet is modest in size yet reaches into the landscape with a sheltering roof and screen walls to create usable outdoor spaces on all sides.

The site offers unique access to the sky and light for this heavily wooded part of the Kitsap Peninsula.

The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott
The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott
The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott

The roof becomes an additional level for more occupiable outdoor space and areas for an elevated herb garden.

The house was structured to support a second story along the north section if future expansion is needed.

Areas of the site were thoughtfully zoned, and the placement of the structure was carefully considered to maximize space for growing vegetables, a future shop/guest house, firepit gatherings, and stargazing from the roof terrace.

The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott
The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott

The design concept evolved out of a solid rectangular volume stretched across the site in a typical one-story "rambler" style.

The volume was carved away to create gathering spaces, sliced through to open axial views, and punctured and perforated to let in light and provide natural ventilation while maintaining privacy where needed.

Exploring the relationship of the ground-to-roof plane, the house stretches horizontally, emphasizing the connection to earth and creating opportunities for framing the sky.

The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott
The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott

The ground plane is established with a raised concrete base that provides physical and visual weight to the house and performs multiple tasks as structure, heating source (radiant hydronic piping), and finish surface (polished concrete slab).

The roof plane creates a large sheltering overhang that shades and protects the windows and provides ample space for a roof terrace, solar panels, and an herb garden.

The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott
The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott

Similar to the concept of subtracting from the volume of the walls to form windows and doors, the roof plane is carved away in select areas to open large voids with direct connection to the trees and sky, allowing access to the roof and slices of skylights to wash walls and activate the main spaces with plenty of light.

The single vertical element that breaks the horizontal datum of the roof is a site-cast fireplace and chimney that acts as a totem marking the heart of the living space - a space for family gatherings and music to be played.

The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott
The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott
The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott

The concrete base and full-height masonry walls serve to create a material language of visual mass and permanence for the home.

The masonry walls and deeply raked mortar joints are highly textured, countering the smooth finished concrete surfaces and lime-painted walls.

Materials that are low maintenance and that get better with age were very important from the outset of the project.

The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott
The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott
The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott

Douglas fir trees from the site that made way for the structure were milled and dried in situ during construction and used to create the finish lid of the roof plane, as well as the open kitchen shelves and coffee table.

Cedar milled on site was used to create the entry door, entry benches, and east privacy fence.

The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott
The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott
The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott

A strong connection between interior and exterior spaces was considered from the very beginning of the project.

Brick screen walls extend out into the landscape, creating semi-enclosed exterior rooms that filter light and views at the east and west ends of the site, dissolving the structure into the landscape.

The green of the landscape is invited right up to the perimeter walls and, in some cases, like the entry garden, right into the center of the home.

The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott


The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott
The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott
The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott
The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott


The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott
The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott
The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott
The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott
The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott
The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott
The Rambler Residence
© GO'C
The Rambler Residence
© Kevin Scott


The Rambler Residence
Exterior Rendering
The Rambler Residence
West Rendering


The Rambler Residence
Living Rendering
The Rambler Residence
Bath Rendering


The Rambler Residence
Main Level Plan
The Rambler Residence
Roof Plan
The Rambler Residence
Site Plan
The Rambler Residence
Location Plan


The Rambler Residence
N-S Cross Section
The Rambler Residence
E-W Longitudinal Section


The Rambler Residence
West Elevation
The Rambler Residence
West Elevation
The Rambler Residence
South Elevation
The Rambler Residence
East Elevation
The Rambler Residence
North Elevation
The Rambler Residence
Location Plan


The Rambler Residence
Sketch
The Rambler Residence
Sketch - Concept Plan