Who has memories of summer vacations in Maine, drinking in the turquoise blue water views, digging for clams on the rocky shorelines, lingering with friends over delicious meals with plenty of wine and good conversation?
For some lucky families, this is their year round lifestyle, and today, dear readers, we’re going to take you on a virtual summer vacation to a cottage in Boothbay Harbor, Maine, courtesy of one of Maine’s most well known architectural firms: Whitten Architects.
Started in 1986 by architect Rob Whitten, who spent his summers in Boothbay Harbor, Rob and his team at Whitten Architects have amassed an impressive portfolio of sensitively designed residential homes in Maine, that includes cottages like the one we’re going to share with you today, as well as camps and spectacular oceanfront residences.
As you would expect, the architectural realization of Pinewold Cottage, originally built in 1915, started with a site map, a vision, and a plan.
And as you will see in the pictures below, it was spectacularly realized by the Whitten team!
Let’s start with the welcoming entrance.
We are so in love with the large native rock that acts as the step up to the shingled porch as well as the tree in the small garden that’s been planted next to it, which acts as a graceful vertical counterpoint to the long expanse of the horizontal half wall.
Thoughtful details like this tie the home to its landscape.
Here you can see it from another angle.
We love the bright yellow daisies in the foreground and can definitely envision sitting in that rocking chair, can you?
And are you noticing the way the windows are glazed to reflect the outside and maintain privacy?
And here’s a side view. We love the design of the American flag’s pole, and with the 4th of July right around the corner, can visualize how beautiful our flag must look and sound, snapping proudly, on a windy day.
The family that lives here has 4 children.
Imagine the love for their country that’s being instilled in them when they view the flag like this every day.
And can we talk about the kitchen’s beadboard ceiling and how thoughtfully the lighting has been executed?
And those barstools!
And the way there is only one upper cabinet, to keep the focus on the vintage range hood {a close up of which has been saved over 70,000+ times on Houzz! }
Perfection.
Are you imagining yourself here, yet, having your coffee or tea here on a summer vacation morning, with your newspaper or favorite magazine folded open on that extra large round kitchen table?
We are!
Of course, every Maine cottage has to have a window seat, for curling up in for summer vacation naps, and Pinewold Cottage doesn’t disappoint.
However, it’s that exquisitely executed folding french door hardware with its matching hinges that got our attention…along with the bookcases that are at the perfect height for a child to reach in and pull out their favorite book to read or game to play on a lazy summer day.
We can imagine stringing this back porch with hundreds of white twinkle lights for nighttime birthday parties, can you?
And enjoying long, leisurely meals with our family and friends.
Can you hear the birds singing, the children splashing and swimming and the sound of the boats going by, as neighbors wave to one another?
Are you also noticing how sensitively Whitten Architects married a modern fence to the traditional architectural style of Pinewold Cottage?
From their site:
“In the original plan, the porch railing beautifully punctuated the outdoor living area, but it was far too low for current building codes. Our solution was to add a more modern cable railing with a red-cedar cap, lending a subtly contemporary element to the exterior and enhancing the structure’s original lines.”
Whitten Architects, we salute your team!
Do you think Whitten Architects has created a masterpiece of emotionally resonant architecture with Pinewold Cottage like we do?
We hope you’ve enjoyed this virtual summer vacation fun, dear readers, and if you’d like to see more images of the interior and exterior of Pinewold Cottage in Boothbay Harbor, Maine, we invite you to visit the site of Whitten Architects here:
http://whittenarchitects.com/projects/pinewold cottage
And…in case your taste runs to oceanfront grandeur, Whitten Architects does that, too, but at a human scale that’s beautiful to witness.
Click here for more.
Leslie Carothers
for
Leslie Hendrix Wood
Leslie Hendrix Wood Interiors
Interior Designer
Midland, Texas
Owner, the Hadley Court blog
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