Dream House | Blown away by a one-of-a-kind design

Over the years of writing this Dream House feature, I have only twice had to resort to a follow-up article on any of the houses presented. You may well wonder why.

Once in a rare while, a house comes along without warning, that unabashedly blows you away!

It seems that the Sunday article of March 8, 2020, has left some inspired readers helplessly yearning for more. Yes, they have been left in awe and excited, refusing to let it go! To put it bluntly: they have been turned on!

I completely empathise with them, and am not too surprised, though, with the influence of this previously featured one-of-a-kind design. A building that I referred to in the article, “that successfully combines clean, modernistic lines with traditional tenets of symmetry, proportion and balance.”

Let’s appease those unfulfilled desires out there and show some more on this home, because the more we know, the more we glow!

All bedrooms are furnished with king-size beds. What does not escape our attention is that these rooms know no boundaries, as you stare through wide openings to the outdoors. They are christened with various tropical names, such as the pineapple room, coconut room, safari room, etc – adding that personal touch.

It must be mentioned again that those independent wood beams above one’s head, yet way below the high ceilings, are a most arousing architectural display.

Bathrooms of glass and mirrors exercise so much freedom, with a part of their area inside the actual structure, and the other – on the outside among the scents and sounds of Mother Nature.

Glass has been part of mankind’s history for thousands of years and is one of the oldest known materials in the building industry. Its transparency, adopted by architecture, creates a visual connection to the world outside, where the fluidity of interior and exterior become one. This house’s exterior walls are virtually nothing but sheer glass.

With all this glass, the sea in the distance appears to come swimming in, submerging the interiors in absolute delight.

What was unintentionally omitted is the breakfast bar by the kitchen, ideal for a light meal.

I leave you with two relevant quotes in regards to this house.

Arthur Erickson, Canada’s most celebrated architect: “You have to see a building to comprehend it. Photographs cannot convey the experience, nor film.”

Helen Keller, American author, and the first deaf/blind person to receive a bachelor of arts degree: “The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt by the heart.”

Barry Rattray is a dream house designer and builder. Email: barry-rattray@hotmail.com, or outlook@gleanerjm.com