A traditional shingle-style home on Gibson Island embraces the active lifestyle of a water-loving, close-knit family.
When you live on the water, sometimes the most important elements of your home are the ones you don’t notice at first glance—the unseen structural details that enhance your access to the outdoors. So when the time came to completely revamp a weekend house on Gibson Island for a family of five, architect Jeff Penza knew just how to design a home that would please.
One of those hidden gems is at the back door. “Back entrances are very important in a waterfront home—there is a great deal of activity focused on coming from the water: often you are going to be soaking wet and be loaded down with life preservers and other gear,” reminds Penza, of Baltimore’s Penza Bailey Architects.
“We created a mudroom, full bathroom, and storage areas strategically placed between the garage and front entrance foyer.”Also of paramount importance to homes on the water are the views, something the original home, a one-story 1950s contemporary, lacked. After discussing their likes and dislikes about the original property with Penza, the homeowners realized there was quite a bit more in the “dislike” column. So, they decided to demolish the existing house and start anew, creating a two-story home in a traditional shingle style.
Although the new home is dramatically different from the old, the fact that it is located in the critical area of the Chesapeake Bay watershed prohibited Penza from designing a house outside the footprint of the original dwelling. He had to work creatively to produce a floor plan where one room flowed seamlessly into the next, and “there is not a single room in the house that doesn’t take advantage of the views,” he promises. “Because the primary living spaces of the house flow together as one single space, it becomes the heart and soul of the house, and I really think that reflects the personalities of the owners, a wonderful, unpretentious, close-knit family.”
Penza included custom touches like wing walls with handsome molding as well as a bar, and avoided the eyesores of HVAC output vents and grills by installing the crown slightly lower than where the wall meets the ceiling, allowing heat and air conditionaing to flow through that subtle gap.
Penza worked with Baltimore-based builder ILEX to ensure he met all of Anne Arundel County’s building mandates for properties on The Bay. Fortunately, this plot of land sits relatively high above the water, so it could be significantly closer to the water than comparable, low-level homes. “It’s high enough off the water so that tidal surges are not going to be a concern, yet they have Chesapeake Bay views,” adds ILEX’s Kent Darrell, the project manager. “[The family is] also on a large pond—Otter Pond—with their own pier, so they can enjoy the pond in summer and winter. Being on Gibson Island, the kids have these great opportunities for a little independence, but still a sense of security.”
Drywells gather rainwater that would otherwise collect on the ground, inevitably causing erosion. Also, “Anne Arundel County mandates a certain ratio of pervious to impervious areas, so Roland Harvey of Natural Concerns, a residential landscape service in Sparks, Maryland, was able to find a pervious concrete block for the driveway so that water is able to go through the surface rather than simply run off of it,” Darrell explains.
Just as important as meeting all the codes and requirements for the property was creating a place that worked for the homeowners. “This home allows us to keep up our normal routines,” says the homeowner, who spends weekends, holidays, and all summer on Gibson Island with her family. “We enjoy all-together family time and this home allows us to enjoy that as the kitchen, family room and dining area are all adjacent to each other.” If she had to pick a favorite room, however, it’d be the screened porch.
The screened porch is a favorite of Penza’s, too. “It projects out on three sides and feels as if it is at the water’s edge. The views from that room are wonderful, and it’s very restful and private even though it’s the most exposed room in the house.” The master bedroom is a close second. “[It’s] a very tranquil, yet dramatic space. …It does take advantage of the views, but still has a wonderful sense of privacy. And the master also has a wonderful little balcony for enjoying morning coffee.”
It is all of the dapper architectural design details that make this home so unique.Interior designer and project manager Jane Glick of Baltimore’s Hall & Company admired the interior architecture so much that she chose a color palette to accentuate it. “I wanted to bring out the casings and the moldings, so we used deeper colored walls,” Glick explains. “At first the walls were going to be neutral with dark floors. But in going with deeper colors, this draws more attention to the architecture.”
Beadboard ceilings, natural wood beams, intricate moldings, and unexpected alcoves give the master bedroom a cozy, quiet feeling that mimics the nature and stillness of the pond it looks out onto.
Glick was also careful to choose resilient furnishings that encouraged family interaction. “The house is beautiful, but it’s very ‘no-fuss’,” reflects fellow Hall & Company interior designer Mallory Branson, who assisted Glick with the project. “Everything’s about easy care. The oriental rugs are authentic, but the colors in them are such that if you drop something you’re not going to see it. The dining room chair fabric is an indoor/outdoor fabric, so like a lot of other things, it was very much about being beautiful but kid-friendly and durable at the same time.” In all, the interiors accomplish the main criteria given: “Simple, traditional, and durable décor that was casual, not formal,” says the homeowner.
Just as the golden rule for the interiors is “easy care,” the same applies for the landscaping, as the yards and gardens of weekend homes can’t afford to need constant attention. With this in mind, landscape pro Stuart Ortel, principal of Baltimore’s Stone Hill Design Associates, decided to plant primarily boxwoods and hydrangeas. A southern magnolia hybrid graces the front lawn while cherry laurels throughout the property help to disguise some of the utilities.
Plantings in the backyard were kept simple and low. “We did a modest perennial garden near the kitchen windows and that can also be enjoyed from the dining room and screened porch. We used butterfly bush, peonies, and lavender, which are nice for cutting,” Ortel says of the garden, which leaves plenty of room for the kids to play and does not obstruct any views of the water.
From the inside out, this home on the water embodies what weekends are all about: a laid-back attitude and taking a break from the hectic workweek to spend time with loved ones. “The home is very tailored, practical, and all about easy living, but it definitely reflects the water vacation home environment,” Glick affirms. “It’s about what they do on Gibson Island, and that’s what they love.”
Annliese Scott is the Assistant Editor for ChesapeakeHome.
Contacts:
Hall & Company: 410-296-8499
ILEX Construction: ilexconstruction.com or 410-243-6796
Natural Concerns: naturalconcerns.com or 410-472-6860
Penza Bailey Architects: penzabailey.com or 410-435-6677
Stone Hill Design Associates: stonehilldesignassociates.com or 410-464-2000
