With views from the Coastal Range to the Cascades, the steep, wooded lot in Corvallis, Oregon presented a challenging site to build a home. For Erick Doolen and his wife, Toni, they saw an opportunity to bask in the natural beauty of the Willamette Valley and build a “forever home” where they could retire in comfort.
“We had awesome views at our current house and really were looking for a site that would also have great views,” said Doolen. “We found this location that has views of the Sisters, Mount Jefferson and Mount Hood, and the whole valley.”
Gathering the Team
To build their home above the valley, Doolen interviewed several architects and found that 2fORM Architecture’s Richard Shugar, AIA, LEED was equally excited about collaborating on creating a custom home to showcase the views and daylight. They also agreed on prioritizing design and materials with respect to the environment, local wildlife and seasonal changes.
Doolen and Shugar added a builder who shared their team-based approach and sustainable mindset. “To build people’s ‘forever home’ means a lot of attention to things that the homeowners may never see,” said Carson Benner, owner of Cellar Ridge Construction. “We want it to last forever, we want it to be beautiful and we want it to be energy efficient.”
Picking Kolbe windows was easy once I saw them. The very thin frames, the amount of light they let in and that simple design was really attractive.
Benner introduced Doolen to Portland Millwork as Cellar Ridge Construction’s window and door partner. Portland Millwork supplied the home’s custom-crafted Kolbe windows and doors as defining elements for the home and the owners’ lifelong enjoyment.
“We really worked closely together throughout the whole process,” said Doolen.
Designing a Forever Home
“The homeowner’s goals were to provide a home that took advantage of the site with natural light and expansive views, but also provided a home that he and his wife can age in place,” explained Shugar.
“We wanted to downsize. We didn’t need to live in a 5,000-square-foot house,” elaborated Doolen. “Our vision for the home is to create a modern space that felt warm and welcoming. The home had to have great views and it had to be bright and light inside--hence, all the windows.”
With their children grown and retirement approaching, Doolen and his wife also wanted to spend less time maintaining a house and more time enjoying their space and surroundings. A smaller, streamlined floorplan and durable, resilient, high-quality products that operated with ease were key considerations.
For the windows and doors, this led to selecting Kolbe VistaLuxe AL LINE products made with extruded aluminum. The metal framing was thermally broken for energy efficiency and finished in an Onyx color to showcase a consistent visual appearance throughout the home--inside and out.
“One of the most important decisions from my viewpoint was selection of the windows,” emphasized Doolen. “Picking Kolbe windows was easy once I saw them. The very thin frames, the amount of light they let in and that simple design was really attractive.”
Turning Constraints into Capabilities
Corvallis is nationally recognized as a bicycle-friendly, “Tree City USA” location. Its neighbors include Oregon State University and the Marys River, wineries, breweries and trails that reach to the Pacific. The city also ranks among national leaders in renewable energy and water conservation.
To capitalize on the views while respecting the surrounding environment, the home’s design and construction were shaped by the lot’s steep slopes. At the back of the lot looking toward the valley and mountaintops, the home’s main floor is approximately 30 feet above grade.
“On three sides, there was steep terrain and only a small area to build the house, yet there were a lot of things to achieve and accomplish on the property,” said Shugar. “One of the primary goals was to have a house feel like it was nestled into the property, instead of just sitting on top of the property.”
Your experience unfolds as you see every element, every view of this house. It’s like the house is a vessel for the views. It makes indoor and outdoor living almost seamless, not just visually, but physically.
“Having a property that is essentially a peninsula, it has a great opportunity to have incredible views (and) to take advantage of morning sun, late afternoon sun and evening sun downs. Because we were dealing with a site that was accessed from the street and had a small flat area, we knew that we needed to accommodate the idea of single level living in a very challenging way.”
The solution was a subtle H-shaped plan on a single floor. The connecting link hosts the main entry and vestibule. One leg of the “H” contains the communal spaces--the living room, kitchen and dining room--stretching toward the horizon and onto a covered deck overlooking the valley. The other leg of the “H” introduces itself with the garage and den, followed by the owners’ bedroom wing, which finds privacy amongst the treetops. A lower pedestal provides space for storage, guests and an 800-bottle wine room.
Connecting Indoors and Outdoors
“One of the primary reasons the owner selected this property was its expansive views,” reiterated Shugar. “It was important that when somebody arrives at this home, those views are presented to them right away. As you walk through it, the views unfold. Your experience unfolds as you see every element, every view of this house. It’s like the house is a vessel for the views. It makes indoor and outdoor living almost seamless, not just visually, but physically.”
The entry sequence sets the tone. Visitors are greeted by a floor-to-vaulted-ceiling composition that pairs a large fixed lite with an offset sliding panel leading directly to the deck. “It’s the very first window and door that you see when you enter the house,” noted Shugar. “Being able to have a large picture window as you walk in with a sliding door adjacent to it allowed us to maintain that beautiful view yet have easy access to the deck off the main entryway.”
Inside, rooms are wrapped in daylight. Corner window views are strategically placed throughout the home in the den, dining room, living room and bedroom. In the owners’ suite, a luxurious spa-like walk-in shower and soaking tub creates an immersive experience of water, light and 90-degree views, using the treetops for privacy.
In the dining room, guests are surrounded on three sides by glass with a combination of direct set and tilt-turn windows plus a multi-slide door onto the deck. The living room features another deck entrance composed with a grand combination of windows atop a four-panel, center-split sliding door. In the kitchen, a tilt-turn above the sink is paired with a direct set and clerestory, creating a vertical stack of light.
“When you walk into the room, it just feels very open and like you’re almost a part of nature,” said Doolen.
“It’s no surprise that when you’re in this home, you don’t need a single light on to appreciate it. At the hottest part of the year, you don’t have any direct sunlight coming into the house generating heat. It’s all reflected light,” continued Shugar. “How we bring light into the home is a very important architectural aspect for us. How we control south facing sun in the Pacific Northwest is very important. We want to allow natural light to come in deep during the wintertime but also be shaded during the summertime. Having the windows go up to the ceiling allowed light to penetrate deep into the house.”
Adding light, height and continuity to the home’s design, trapezoidal windows trace the low-sloping roofline. The angle-topped windows ascend in scale until reaching the peak of both wings--above the communal areas, in the private spaces and even in the garage. Each of these upper windows is uniquely shaped and sized to be proportional to the room. Inside, the sunlight reflects off the ceiling, walls and cabinet tops for a diffused, gentle illumination within the rooms. Benner noted his appreciation for the intentional, unconventional geometry and Kolbe’s ability to “accommodate those wonderful shapes.”
Installing for Perfection
As a Kolbe partner, Portland Millwork coordinated all the details for the project’s windows and doors. “They’re our go-to for windows. Their focus and attention to detail are critical,” praised Benner. “They’re not going to let you hit the order button until everything’s perfect.”
Getting the installation perfect can make even the most experienced people anxious. Benner said, “There’s maybe 15 ways you can install window right, and there’s a million ways you can install it wrong.” Ensuring this installation went smoothly, Cellar Ridge’s production manager traveled to the Kolbe Windows & Doors facility in Wausau, Wisconsin, for an installation training class.
“I think that the training at Kolbe was really helpful for us. Having that in our pocket when we started the project made it very efficient,” continued Benner. “I would encourage people to send their staff out to the training.”
In addition to the training, Kolbe Windows & Doors also designated a contact person. Benner and his production manager were impressed to learn “it wasn’t a generic person who had never seen the order. The Kolbe employee knew exactly what project he was talking about when there were questions.”
Kolbe’s personalized, project-specific support assisted Cellar Ridge Construction’s team as the project progressed. “To put these giant windows in from the outside would have been nearly impossible. The fact that they’re field-glazed means that you can get the framing perfectly squared and then put the glass in. It allows a lot more flexibility, so you don’t have to lift the glass at the same time,” said Benner. “That made that whole process much easier.”
“When the windows went in, it was probably one of the biggest changes in the project overall,” Doolen said. “At the very end, when we could actually see the views, it was exciting and really a dream come true for us as we got to experience the house.”
Flowing with Ease
Views and daylight are prized, but the windows and doors also provide fresh air and access to the outdoors. “Sustainability, natural light, wind patterns, the sun patterns--all those things are part of my education and part of how we design this home. It’s embedded within a project,” said Shugar.
We can install these windows and have 100% confidence that I’m not going to have to be called back for some sort of issue.
“One of the most surprising ones to me was how much we like the tilt-turn windows,” Doolen said. “Being able to just tilt open and get some air flowing through was great and something we’ve used a lot.”
When family and guests visit, they also are drawn toward the outdoor views and fresh air. The sliding doors expand the entertaining options. “The large sliding doors really open up to the outdoor space,” said Doolen. “That’s been nice, having people flow between being inside and outside.”
Blending indoors and outdoors included harmonizing visual and tactile experiences with a natural material palette. The glass and Onyx-painted metal frames of the windows and doors present a continuous aesthetic throughout the house and from the exterior to the interior, as does the extensive use of wood and stone.
“Every material choice, both on the interior and exterior, was very much well considered, researched and understood,” said Shugar. “Appearance was one of the important qualities that we were looking for, but also durability and maintenance were very important ingredients in the materials selected.”
Complementing sustainability, reliable performance also guided the product selections. “As a builder, I’m concerned about durability and the warranty,” noted Benner. “We can install these windows and have 100% confidence that I’m not going to have to be called back for some sort of issue.”
Viewing Success
Moved in and already finding the rhythms of daily life at the home, Doolen said his favorite space is the combined living, kitchen and dining area, where long views and daylight change from sunrise to sunset. “The trees are right outside the windows. We’ve seen birds just soaring by the windows and deer running around back. It’s a beautiful spot that’s very relaxing and makes you feel part of nature.”
Visitors notice the same thing. He shared, “When people visit our home, they always comment on the great views that we have. Then, as you move throughout the house, you can continue to appreciate what an amazing location we have.”
“If you drive through this neighborhood, there’s a lot of wonderful houses,” said Benner. “This house really stands out. It’s very unique. Its shapes are unique, and the openness and the big windows are a big part of that.”
All involved credit the home’s success to their teamwork. “We had a trifecta of builder, architect and homeowner. The collaboration was wonderful,” said Benner. “They have the same passion as we do for making it fun and also ending up with a really beautiful project.”
Shugar echoed that sentiment. “The success of this project really is this great team of people that work together.”
“It really turned out awesome,” concluded Doolen.
Related Links: VistaLuxe® AL LINE
