Wooden You Know It
For a 620-square-foot addition to a spectacular wood-covered modern home in the northeast Los Angeles neighborhood of Hermon, architect Martin Fenlon was faced with the challenge of improving the original structure without compromising its pristine design and unique appearance.
One look at the “The Annex,” as the L.A.-based designer calls it, and it’s clear he succeeded.
“The Annex’s large multi-slide door was central to the design.” – Martin Fenlon, Martin Fenlon Architecture
Fenlon’s design approach was to create an addition that is both an extension of, and transition to, the home’s newly formed backyard while maintaining a separate identity from the original home.
It all started with the notion of the indoor-outdoor living concept so popular in Southern California.
“The Annex’s large multi-slide door was central to the design; the space, which is filled with natural light, was actually planned around it,” Fenlon says. “The multi-slide integrates the new family room with the yard.”
At 21 feet wide and 10 feet tall, the Series 2600 Aluminum-Clad Multi-Slide Wood Door also gave Fenlon the ability to maintain the wood-covered motif found throughout the home.
“The multi-slide integrates the new family room with the yard.” – Martin Fenlon, Martin Fenlon Architecture
For instance, the original home features walnut flooring and the Annex, completed in 2018, has acacia flooring. The exteriors doors and windows, including an eye-catching 9-foot-wide, 5.5-foot-high window on the front of the Annex that emulates a picture in a frame, are made of Douglas fir. The interior doors and cabinetry are clad in a teak veneer, and the home’s exterior siding is cedar.
Perpendicular to the new family room is an elevated pass-through window from a small outdoor bar to the kitchen. When the owners are entertaining, the huge picture window can slide completely open on barn door track system, further blurring the lines between indoors and the outside.
To top it off, literally and figuratively, a lovely rooftop deck sits above the Annex.
Says Fenlon: “When you’re up there, you feel like you’re nestled in between the original house, the tree canopies, and the hills in the distance. At night, you can sit up there and see the stars.”
One look at the “The Annex,” as the L.A.-based designer calls it, and it’s clear he succeeded.
“The Annex’s large multi-slide door was central to the design.” – Martin Fenlon, Martin Fenlon Architecture
Fenlon’s design approach was to create an addition that is both an extension of, and transition to, the home’s newly formed backyard while maintaining a separate identity from the original home.
It all started with the notion of the indoor-outdoor living concept so popular in Southern California.
“The Annex’s large multi-slide door was central to the design; the space, which is filled with natural light, was actually planned around it,” Fenlon says. “The multi-slide integrates the new family room with the yard.”
At 21 feet wide and 10 feet tall, the Series 2600 Aluminum-Clad Multi-Slide Wood Door also gave Fenlon the ability to maintain the wood-covered motif found throughout the home.
“The multi-slide integrates the new family room with the yard.” – Martin Fenlon, Martin Fenlon Architecture
For instance, the original home features walnut flooring and the Annex, completed in 2018, has acacia flooring. The exteriors doors and windows, including an eye-catching 9-foot-wide, 5.5-foot-high window on the front of the Annex that emulates a picture in a frame, are made of Douglas fir. The interior doors and cabinetry are clad in a teak veneer, and the home’s exterior siding is cedar.
Perpendicular to the new family room is an elevated pass-through window from a small outdoor bar to the kitchen. When the owners are entertaining, the huge picture window can slide completely open on barn door track system, further blurring the lines between indoors and the outside.
To top it off, literally and figuratively, a lovely rooftop deck sits above the Annex.
Says Fenlon: “When you’re up there, you feel like you’re nestled in between the original house, the tree canopies, and the hills in the distance. At night, you can sit up there and see the stars.”
Country: United States
