Boston Common - Niche Media - A side of Boston that's anything but common.
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photography by brian Vanden brink (room, porch, fireplace); dorothy greco/polhemus saVery dasilVa architects builders (dasilVa); opposite page: photography by sam gray photography (porch) "the challenge, of course, with a sunroom on the north side of the house is that it's not necessarily much of a sunroom." —john dasilva NortherN exposure This sunlit sanctuary is built for couples only. When a sunroom is part of the building plan, access to abun- dant sunlight would seem to be a common-sense prerequisite. "The challenge, of course, with a sunroom on the north side of the house is that it's not necessarily much of a sunroom," says John Da Silva, desig n pr incipa l at Polhemus Saver y DaSilva Architects Builders (101 depot road, chatham, 508- 945-4500; psdab.com). DaSilva was faced with this problem when designing a Cape Cod home for a newly retired couple with eclectic, worldly tastes and an extensive art collection. T he house, nest led on a woodsy lot dow n a long dir t road, opens up to lovely layered views of nature: tall trees, salt marsh, pond, bay, and ocean—all on the north. To com- pensate, Da Silva says, "we had to use va r ious dev ices." Most dramatically, he pulled the sunroom out and rotated it at a 45 -degree angle to the house, so that all four sides of the room have glass. From the exterior, the cubelike space with a cupola looks like a sepa rate, specia l object , a lt hough it shares the main house's red cedar siding and zinc-coated copper roof. Because it juts out, the sunroom is completely surrounded by nature and natural light. So many windows means very little wall, so the entire space has a hidden steel subst r ucture to meet w ind a nd snow-load codes. A ll t he lower windows are casement, opening 100 percent for max- imum a ir f low. The owners wanted a more rustic st yle, although that's fairly unusual for Cape Cod. The home's design inf luences include mountain retreats of the western United States, old i ndust r ia l m i l l bu i ld i ng s, a nd t he Got h ic Rev iva l st yle found in New E ngla nd's ca mp meet ing g rounds, such a s Oak Bluffs on Martha's Vineyard. The Gothic style is most apparent in the sunroom's upper windows. Looking up, the vertical-grain fir ceiling opens to the cupola and a hanging Monrovian star. At its highest point, the ceiling is 21 feet up. "The hope is that it's uplifting," says DaSilva. "It draws your focus to the heavens." Not wanting it to be a social space, the owners asked that the room be designed as a retreat for just the two of them. As such, it's just large enough for two carefully selected chairs and side tables, some houseplants—and that's it. And there is no exterior door in the room itself, but in the connector on the way in. "You don't want to pass through a space like that," DaSilva says. "You want it to be a destination unto itself." Your Perfect Sunroom Creating the right sunny space requires a precise checklist. Whether you're building new or renovating an existing sun- room, know thyself before breaking ground. Is it a sunroom or a screened porch you really want? Do you want to be able to use it during the winter? If so, you'll need an interior sunroom, with proper heating and cooling. Casement windows on three sides can give you a signifcant cross-breeze but can be closed for winter use. If you only want to use the space during the summer, consider a screened porch. "In general," says designer John DaSilva (pictured), "it's not a sunroom if it doesn't have wraparound glass." how will sunlight patterns mesh with how you utilize the space? If you're using the room primarily for dining in July and August, consider deep exterior overhangs that block light in the summer but allow lower-angled light during winter. What are your landscaping needs? If you plan to use the sun- room year-round, deciduous trees flter light in the summer and lose their leaves to allow light through in the winter. A sunroom with con- stant exposure may need more evergreen trees or screening. clockwise from top left: The Cotchpinicut Road house is suffused with natural light; the window details are continued outside on the porch; the two-story stone fireplace. 108 bostoncommon-magazine.com HAUTE PROPERTY