Before

This project involved the  remodel of a brick ranch house on Lookout Mountain, Georgia. The owners were unhappy with the hard sixties look of their house and its lack of connection to the outside, especially on the bluff side where the view is spectacular.

After

To give the house a softer, more natural feel, we replaced the existing brick veneer and siding with cedar shakes. To reconnect the front lawn with  adjacent woods, and to allow the  hill to continue down to the road, we removed half of the circular drive which had previously created isolated islands of green.

     Before

     After

Using a palette of cedar and mountain stone, we transformed the entry experience into one filled with light, shadow, and greenery.

Local mountain flagstone replaced all the old brick paving, integrating the outdoor spaces more directly with the surrounding rock ledges of the bluff.

What was basically a sidewalk with grass was replaced.....

After

....with generous bluff side terraces, creating inviting places to sit and enjoy the view.

Before

After

We extended the house to the outside with trellises, a screened porch, and stone terraces. 

Before

After

The stone paving wraps the pool, 

and  forms a base for the building, rising up in places as walls, a chimney and columns.

Before

A covered patio off the dining room was replaced...

After

with  a screened porch with fireplace and skylight, 

Before

After

was expanded with direct access to the screened porch and bluff beyond. The porch  now functions as an indoor/outdoor living space, extending  the living/dining room out and opening it up spatially.

Before

To build a stronger connection with the front yard of  the house, and to erase the cantilever line of the projected upper floor, a signature of  sixties ranch houses,

After

we projected out a large window seat.  A niche that catches the sun,

 with  lowered ceiling and its own vine-covered trellis,  you are invited to sit and enjoy the wooded western view.

Transforming the exterior spaces and boundaries of the house brought a new connection to, and appreciation of,  this unique spot on the side of  Lookout Mountain.