With views of Lake Washington, Mount Baker is one of Seattle’s most sought-after neighborhoods. It’s here that Alix Day of Alix Day Architecture + Design was tasked with reimagining a stately home. “It started as a kitchen remodel connecting to the backyard,” she recalls. “And then expanded to all the rooms in the house, adding layers of cabinetry, paint, wallpaper, carpeting, lighting and furniture.”
The clients are a couple who share four kids from separate marriages. “The top request was to make the home more personal and playful while reflecting their individual styles,” Alix explains. “The house was white inside with very little expression. She wanted nothing matchy-matchy, and for the home to have a more eclectic, artistic style. His desire was for everything to be comfortable and to keep the space feeling light. We didn’t always keep everything light, but it was those spaces that set the tone for going darker as they were already dark. They weren’t afraid to shy away from color, pattern and were open to an eclectic feeling of mixed eras of furniture and lighting.”
“They meet in the middle with their love of art and unique expression of materials,” adds Anna Thomassen, who works with Alix. “I would describe this style as traditional meets London boutique hotel. It has a foot in classic proportions with the architecture and floor plan layout but is very personal in the style story.”
The clients had one must-have. “Her one request was to use Sandberg Raphael wallpaper somewhere in the house,” Alix explains, adding that it became the springboard for the entire home’s design. “The wallpaper meets you at the entryway against the vintage runner on the stairs,” Anna adds. “This sets a tone for the palette of the house; primarily greens and blues, with little pinches of warmth through burgundy and rose-colored hues.”
The living room is painted in a soft ethereal gray and is an alchemy of all the colors used throughout the home. Moving to the sunroom, you’re greeted with gold hues from the House of Hackney Opia wallpaper. “This room was intended to feel den-like, and the trim is painted the same blue as the staircase,” Alix explains.
The dining room, kitchen, and powder room all take their cues from the same palette. “We played with dark and light variations in each of the rooms,” Anna tells us. “There is a rhythm of harmony even if the rooms are in contrasting tones. The client is inspired by art and vintage style, so each room has something a little unexpected or found from another era like the amethyst Murano chandelier in the living room and the combination of three Turkish runners for the stairs.”
The project took just nine months, and the result tells the story of the family that lives there. Take a tour in the slideshow.
