Patterson Addition
One of our favorite projects over the last year has been designing an addition to Ippy and Neil Patterson's home near Hillsborough. We grappled with the best location for the addition as well as the stylistic stance. Would it be a visually independent modernist box or a modern reinterpretation of their existing home? We decided on the latter.
We positioned the addition prioritizing the lovely views toward the pond through large retractable NanaWalls and allowed for the extension of two outdoor living areas.
We wanted to continue the warmth of the main house through the use of heated and tinted concrete floors, an accent wall of cork panels (installation soon), and bathing the space in natural light.
Another nod to the main house was the steeply pitched copper roof, taking Ippy back to her childhood home in a copper mining village in Chile. Bobby Yates did an outstanding job and the roof looks fantastic.
Our builder, Glen Schultz's craftsmanship is evident throughout the project, but most especially seen in the pine timber cross bracing which he harvested locally. In the course of clearing the site, pine trees became a bathroom ceiling, and two walnut trees became part of the library shelves in the front hall.
 
 
Thirst 4 Architecture at GRUB
If you missed the NCMH's Thirst4Architecure at GRUB last Thursday, you will be happy to know that they will be opening officially in the next two weeks. The event was great fun and very tasty. We had over 180 people on a lovely evening. Wendy pulled out all the stops with fabulous house-made pastrami sliders and a luscious Peruvian Sangria.
Wendy Woods and Stacey Poston, our clients, complied a local team that was full of girl power - everything from the metalwork on the bike racks by Cassandra Gooding, denim for banquettes by Raleigh Denim, graphics, interior, and wallpaper design by Bunker Design, and wallpaper by Spoonflower. This is our fourth smooth project we've done with Gateway Building Company. Thank you everyone! See you on the roof!
  
  
Shambhala Meditation Center
Over the last 7 years we have been working with the Shambhala Meditation Center on their master planning and adjustments to their existing building. It is a joy to assist such a worthwhile organization with their expansion; helping them to figure out their design, and phasing the project to work within their budget. Being a meditator for years myself, this project is near to my heart.
We have moved beyond master planning and are preparing the construction documents for their expansion. Hopefully groundbreaking will be this fall.
Still Hollow
We are so happy that construction is underway on our first net-zero home. Yes, it should generate as much energy as it will need to operate the home. We planned the building envelope (insulation and glazing) to meet the American PHIUS (PassiveHaus Institute US) certification. The PHIUS design methodology uses WUFI, a software package for modeling/predicting the energy usage of the building envelope for a specific region and placement on the site (orientation, shading). Feedback on the design from WUFI was valuable in designing the house, and we hope that the house will be certified as a Passive House once it is complete. It will have insulation values of R-60 in the roof, R-40 in the walls, and R-20 in the floors.
Because of the orientation, layout, and clerestories, the entire home is showered in natural daylight. The windows are triple pane with a U-value of 15. We are working with Kevin Murphy and Chris Kerscher at Newphire Building and it is moving ahead well.
We have done many homes that are very energy efficient and often times, when tough decisions need to be made in relation to the budget, scope, and sustainability, sustainability is typically the item that loses. Not so with Jeff Chase and Nonna Skumanich, they knew what they wanted from the start and have held steady. It is going to be a lovely, sustainable home.
View to the field Sample of ground and sealed concrete
 
NCSU Summer Design Build Studio
This summer the students are designing and building a post-harvest shade structure where the farmers at the Agroecology Farm at NCSU can clean and pack the vegetables that they grow and store them for short periods in cooled rooms. Their top customer for these lovely vegetables is the NCSU Dining Services. It's great to see the circle of production and consumption so small!
Dr. Michelle Schroeder-Moreno (in the light green shirt below) is the director of the program and Alison Reeves (in red t-shirt and coveralls below) is the farm manager. Together they are our main clients. They have been a joy to work with and very thoughtful throughout the process.
  
If you know a not-for-profit group in the triangle area, with roughly $25-$30K to invest in a small built structure to help the community, we are always looking for good candidates for future summer studio design/build projects. They can get in touch with me at ellen@ellencassillyarchitect.com.
New Summer Intern - Lotte Van Miegroet
We are so happy to have Lotte as our summer intern. She has been helping all over the office, especially on some great renderings (see the Still Hollow and Shambhala images). She will be finishing up her Masters in Architecture in December from NCSU.
FAIA
Here are a few images from my installation as a Fellow in the American Institute of Architects. It was humbling to be in a class of 180 outstanding architects who are working in their own ways to improve their communities and to elevate the profession of architecture.
 
 
Wishing you all a wonderful summer,
Ellen, Meredith, Keith, Megan, Esther, Lotte, and Niña
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