This home is located on a beautiful site overlooking Lake Champlain in Shelburne, Vermont. A home, located in this very spot and which subsequently burned to the ground, was previously featured on the cover of the 1998 Fine Homebuilding Houses (issue #116). All that remained was the stone retaining wall.
The current owner of this property, as a bachelor a few years ago, replaced burned structure with a shingle style two-story home. Later, married with young children, he wished to expand on the core concept to create greater family and visitor comfort. He commissioned Cushman Design Group to design a large addition and to renovate the existing home. The owners now use the property for most of the summer and long weekends throughout winter.
The kitchen was expanded within the footprint of the original house and the adjacent sitting area was retained for casual gathering and pick up meals. To the south and adjacent to the kitchen a dining room was added as a “connector” with light from the east and views to the west to the living room wing, the central focus of which is the granite fireplace, also visible from the kitchen sink. Above the dining room is a new master bedroom also with windows for light and views of the lake to the west. His study with gas fireplace, views to the lake and access to the master bedroom is above the living room.
On the north end of the original house, we added and expanded the mudroom, a powder room and connected garage, above which are two guest rooms, a shared bath, a laundry room and connecting hallway and stairs to the upper level bedrooms of the main cape.
A gracious porch with sweeping views was added on the lake side to provide covered summer outdoor living and BBQ cooking space as well as to better ground the original core building.
The character and materials of the original exterior were extended to additions. So too, the entry porch and roof were expanded to create an entry side mudroom door and to connect to the garage wing.
The Cushman Design Group collaborated with Truex Cullins Interiors, integrating the talents of both firms to provide the owner and his family with exceptional attention to fine detailing and professional services.
