flexiblefullpage -
Currently Reading

Great Escapes: Tree House Timeout in Maine

Advertisement
billboard -
Design

Great Escapes: Tree House Timeout in Maine

Custom vacation houses that celebrate their natural surroundings; amid the trees in Maine


By Shelley D. Hutchins, LEED AP June 3, 2021
Vacation home on Maine's coastline
This article first appeared in the CB Summer 2021 issue of Custom Builder.

“Our clients brought with them imaginative and creative ideas of how they wanted to live on this land,” says architect Russ Tyson of Whitten Architects. Having grown up spending summers in Maine at his parents’ cabin, which is next door, the client wanted his daughters to enjoy similar explorations of the site as he did when he was a child.     

The client came to the process flush with ideas for the house, such as creating a stargazing roof deck, a balcony projecting into the treetops, and providing varied experiences based on the season. “We see this house as more of a device to occupy the land in different ways rather than as an object,” Tyson adds. “You can walk under it, through it, and be on top.”


Vacation Home kitchen in MaineBaltic birch cabinets in the kitchen create a sleeker palette against the strong grain of the eastern white pine walls. 


Galvanized steel piers pinned to the bedrock allow the U-shaped house to rest lightly on the land while elevating views to encompass more of Maine’s Englishman Bay. Three board-formed concrete segments provide a more solid connection to the ledge. One supports the entry tower topped by the stargazing deck, another conceals mechanical systems beneath bedrooms and baths, while the third rises up through the house as a freestanding fireplace in the three-season porch. 

More Vacation Homes

“That concrete has a natural texture, so it ties the foundation to the natural stone in a more sympathetic way,” explains project architect Tom Lane. “The fireplace expresses the board-formed concrete on the interior. It required real craftsmanship to do this delicate work.” The massive fireplace, with its 4-foot-by-4-foot double-sided fire box, also provides the only source of heat for the glass-walled porch that links public spaces to the bedroom wing. Exterior-grade, double-pane, insulated sliding doors on either end separate the porch from conditioned spaces. 


Maine vacation house with hemlock cladding
Many of the materials—including the eastern hemlock exterior cladding—were sourced locally.


The house features various elements that tie it to its locale and natural surroundings. After some research, the design team selected eastern hemlock for the exterior cladding. This hyper-local wood is used in barns throughout the Northeast and handles moisture well, turning gray over time. For the interior, a nearby sawmill made the eastern white pine interior walls and birch kitchen cabinets. 


Maine vacation home with fireplace


Tyson and Lane struggled to find the right contractor to build this locally sourced house, but they fully credit Nate Holyoke and his crew for meticulously realizing their design while working in a remote location with challenging weather. The result is a house that’s more than just an asset; it’s an inheritance for generations to come. 

“Our firm believes solidly in designing a home specifically for the people living in it,” Lane says. “These homeowners will live here for the rest of their lives and pass it along to their children.”


Project: Englishman Bay Retreat
Architect: Whitten Architects, Portland, Maine
Builder: Nate Holyoke Builders, Bucksport, Maine
Structural engineer: Albert Putnam Associates, Brunswick, Maine
Interiors: Krista Stokes, Kennebunkport, Maine
Landscape design: Atlantic Landscape Construction, Ellsworth, Maine
Photos: Trent Bell Photography

Related Stories

Custom Builder

Floodproof on a Floodplain

An impressive addition to the IDEA Home series, the NEWLOOK Experience Home is a master class in engineering and creative design, with builder Michael Freiburger out-thinking an exceptionally tricky lot

Custom Builder

3 Questions Answered About Reliable Energy in Home Construction

Energy expert Bryan Cordill makes a case for why and how propane is an answer to growing concerns about reliability and resilience in home construction 

Business

Custom Builder to Talk Color Design with Becki Owens at IBS

At this year's IBS, renowned designer Becki Owens will sit down with host James McClister, editor of Custom Builder, to discuss a variety of topics from basic color play in design to the Allura Spectrum palette, a collection of Sherwin-Williams colors curated for the benefit of pros

Business

PERC Highlights Sustainability and Efficiency at IBS with 'Clean Build Conversations'

Hear from industry standouts Matt Blashaw and Anthony Carrino at this hour-long Show Village event

Custom Builder

Telling a Story That Preserves the Past

Custom builder and historic restoration and preservation expert Brent Hull walks us through the careful details of his Pennsylvania Farmhouse project

Business

Defining Outdoor Living in 2024

Residential experts weigh in on outdoor living trends in new report

Construction

How to Air Seal the Garage

A poorly sealed wall or ceiling between the garage and the main house can let harmful fumes into the living space

Business

Taking Advantage of Incentives Through Weatherization

Industry insider Kristen Lewis walks us through the basics and benefits of weatherization

Custom Builder

2023: A Year of Case Studies

A look back at the custom homes and craftsman details we spotlighted last year

Customer Service

A Smart Home Built Smart

Custom builder August Homes blends efficient, hi-tech home automation systems with high-performance, sustainable building strategies
 

Advertisement
boombox1 -
Advertisement
boombox2 -
Advertisement
boombox3 -
Advertisement
native1 -

More in Category

Custom Builder

Floodproof on a Floodplain

An impressive addition to the IDEA Home series, the NEWLOOK Experience Home is a master class in engineering and creative design, with builder Michael Freiburger out-thinking an exceptionally tricky lot

Custom Builder

3 Questions Answered About Reliable Energy in Home Construction

Energy expert Bryan Cordill makes a case for why and how propane is an answer to growing concerns about reliability and resilience in home construction 

boombox4 -
Business

Custom Builder to Talk Color Design with Becki Owens at IBS

At this year's IBS, renowned designer Becki Owens will sit down with host James McClister, editor of Custom Builder, to discuss a variety of topics from basic color play in design to the Allura Spectrum palette, a collection of Sherwin-Williams colors curated for the benefit of pros

Business

PERC Highlights Sustainability and Efficiency at IBS with 'Clean Build Conversations'

Hear from industry standouts Matt Blashaw and Anthony Carrino at this hour-long Show Village event

boombox4 -
Advertisement
native2 -
Advertisement
halfpage1 -