Black Pine Cabin / SHED Architecture

Reinforced the connection between the home and the lake, the pine cabin complements a large home and connects the family compound.

Architects: SHED Architecture
Location: Seattle, WA
Photography: Rafael Soldi

The building encompasses multiple programmatic elements in one structure, serving as guest quarters, a small refuge for reflection, writing, reading, or homework, boat storage, and a garage– all while anchoring the west side of the property to form the space through which a landscape path runs from the street to the water.

The structure borrows its form from the idea of an upturned boat, clad with sugi ban siding, and given a white pine interior. Using a series of gussets bent to create a wood skeleton, the DADU borrows structural elements from boatbuilding, with repetitive wood frames clad again with wood. The dark siding is anchored to the site through a concrete foundation.

A steel plate was used to define a hearth at the center of the boathouse, creating a divide behind which a bath finished in black milestone was located, opening up to a large skylight. In addition, the DADU contains a kitchenette and a working area. The interior was finished with pine, custom lighting, and custom garage door brackets to make them less obtrusive in the space. Each necessary component –including the heat exchanger– was painted to match the walls, creating a cohesive, polished space.