Design with Jenn Martella: “The Water House” 

There are many architectural styles that I admire and at the top of the list is the Craftsman style. This exceptional property with one thousand linear feet of waterfront along Broad Creek was a close collaboration of a dream team of owner-architect-contractor, with several artisan subcontractors. The owners described their vision of a home to be “cozy, natural, classic, and welcoming”; with clear vistas from the house’s most significant spaces to Broad Creek and their cove; inspired by the Shingle architectural style in general, and the work of McKim, Mead & White in general and their “Ochre House” in particular. They also wanted their treasured furnishings, passed down by parents, to feel at home. Lastly, they added a medieval flair to the building program, the flourish of a turret with panoramic views of the water. One of their children suggested they name their new home “The Water House”.

The architect, Jeff Chown, listened carefully and gave the owners all of their programmatic needs and wants and much more. During his initial site visit to measure the perimeter of the existing house’s foundation to keep the new house design close to the water, he began to visualize how the house’s massing would belong equally in its setting of both water and woods. Inside the existing house on a coffee table, was the book “The Houses of McKim, Mead and White” with “Ochre Point”, the Robert Goelet house, on its cover. (I have the same book in my mini-architectural library and it is also my favorite MMW house). Ever mindful of the Critical Area requirements, Chown began to visualize a Craftsman style of a   “not so big house … with his penchant for providing many “layers” of spaces in the indoor-outdoor spectrum that helped to provide a sense of spatial release and relief to the cozy interiors”.  

This aerial photograph illustrates the compact floor plan with layers of multiple outdoor rooms from the  breezeway between the house and detached garage, decks, both open and screened porches and the “flourish” of a turret whose spiral shape provides egress on the exterior between the house’s two floors. I especially admired how Chown’s footprint offsets enabled the rooms have at the least dual aspect windows or full walls of windows and doors to maximize the water views from within. 

On the day of my preview, I drove along a meandering narrow gravel driveway through the woods and it was only after the final turn that I discovered this exquisite house. I admired how the garage with its guest suite above is angled from the house and how the turret design element also projects slightly beyond the front of the house as if the house were reaching out to welcome me.  

Many of the design elements were inspired by the “Ochre House”;  the shake siding in two different hues of green instead of one; tiled motifs between windows; multiple gables; flared eaves with bracket supports; bay windows; shed dormers and the slight window projection of the triple unit window of the main wing. The main entry dormer over the deep front porch cascades down from the second floor roof to relate to the other one-story elements of the breezeway and turret. The landscaping enhances the house in green and white colors to echo the siding and trim colors. Sheer perfection!

This nocturnal photograph highlights the house’s lively footprint and transparency that follows the shoreline to maximize the views from both the indoor and outdoor rooms. Screened panels and windows that wrap around corners of the house open up the house to the water. For his Eastern Shore houses, Architect Jeff Chown incorporates both a land “front door” at the main entry elevation and a water “front door”, the latter evoking the time when rivers were streets and visitors arrived by boat.

The rear elevation of the house with the focal point of the main floor living room and the primary suite on the second floor is closest to the water. The offsets in plan offer both south views across Broad Creek toward the mouth of the Choptank River for abundant daylight and west views of breathtaking sunsets.  The mix of fixed floor to ceiling glass units and lower operable units maximizes the water views. The nocturnal photograph highlights the second floor’s dormer window above one of the screened porches with the Craftsman detail of 12/1 windows with a picture plane below. 

After parking my car by the two-car garage, I walked along a path of random pavers that begins at the breezeway whose steps connect the front and rear of the property. I also admired the different colors and textures of the pavers and the gravel driveway. Looking up, I discovered charming details of the wood shake roofing that turns down over the second floor’s dormer walls and the clever juxtaposition of the square and rectangular windows at the corner of the dormer at the second floor. At the second floor gable wall’s bay window, the tiled panel of a “Tree of Life” design introduces the work of the artisan Scott Weaver.

The Owners greeted me at the massive front door with its half glass, half paneled sidelights crafted from sapele wood (a durable African hardwood from the mahogany family) that opened into a center hall with a clear vista to the rear wall’s pair of French doors.  One side of the hall has the stair to the second floor and the opposite wall has an arched opening to the service hall, containing a coat closet, powder room, laundry/mud room with a half bath. The exterior door opens onto the deck and grounds for clean-up after a day of kayaking off the pier at the cove. The hue of the blue wall color fulfilled the Owners’ desire to create a warm, welcoming feeling in each room, enhanced by family antiques, Oriental rugs over beautiful wood floors and subtle lighting. 

The wide and long living room has an inglenook at the interior wall with the fireplace surround of tiles and wood. Its area is defined by the coffered ceiling of stained beams and the warm white ceiling plane. The wing chairs can either flank the fireplace on cold winter nights or face the water in the warmer months. The living room’s pair of French doors open onto the adjacent screened porch opposite the wood trimmed wall opening that frames a vista through the foyer hall to the dining room. 

Beyond the inglenook, the living room’s coffered ceiling changes to white dropped beams with wood trim outlining each coffer of the ceiling. The floor to ceiling windows that wrap around each corner of the room offer panoramic views of the landscape and water that this diagonal vista perfectly captures. Sconces at the pilasters between the windows provide soft lighting.  I admired how the French doors to the adjacent screened porch have lower panels to hide the backs of the porch’s furnishings for a clear vista through the porch’s exterior wall.

The screened porch’s flooring extends seamlessly to the deck portion of the breezeway and the horizontal framing does not obstruct views of the landscape and water; one side panel thoughtfully contains a dog door for the family pet to enjoy the outdoors also. 

Turing around in the screened porch, I admired both the diagonal vista through the living room beyond which creates a panoramic view of the water from the screened porch and the purple brown color of the all the doors and windows. The bin with logs is conveniently ready for the living room’s fireplace in cooler weather to come. With its mix of both outdoor and indoor vistas, this photograph catches perfectly architect Jeff Chown’s incorporation of long visual-breeze-light vistas throughout the house.  

I retraced my steps through the living room and hall to reach the formal dining room with its furnishings of family antiques. The wall openings trimmed in wood, baseboard, moldings and dropped wood beams echo the inglenook’s design. I stood and admired the long vista to the screened porch and the short one to the adjacent kitchen.

The kitchen’s vista to the dining room shows the wrap-around windows of the dining room and French doors to the deck and the vista from the single French door and two windows overlooking the adjacent screened porch.  I admired the kitchen’s design that included two seats below the front wall’s windows as if this were an older home whose design incorporated the windows into the floor plan.

My fave room for its unique geometry is the main floor’s screened porch with its angled exterior at the side and rear of the space that is the base for the spiral shaped deck above. The segmented sides of the spiral shape creates a cozy dining space that blends into the larger angled area for seating facing the water views. The front exterior door leads to a landing with steps down to the driveway or up to the rooftop deck and the rear exterior door leads to another landing with steps to the lawn and pier beyond.

Before climbing the stair to the second floor, I walked down the service hall past a coat closet to the laundry room with an exterior door to the deck.  The mud room’s bespoke millwork and open cubbies has a place for everything. Behind the laundry is the half bath whose exterior door to the breezeway offers convenient clean-up after a day on the water or gardening.

The stair to the second floor opens into a family room with its rear shed dormer wall infilled with windows and a door to the adjacent deck for bird’s eye views of  the landscape and water. The second floor also contains the primary ensuite, three guest rooms and another deck.  

The deck off the family room is also accessed by the doors to the primary suite. It is a delightful outdoor room for the family to enjoy, especially for watching the sun set or star gazing at night. 

The primary bedroom is located above the living room and also has floor to ceiling windows on all its three exterior walls for panoramic bird’s eye views of the landscape and water. Doors lead to the adjacent deck with its thin cable railing that blends into the trees.  

The spacious primary suite’s five piece bathroom has windows on all of its three exterior walls for abundant daylight. The partial height tiled walls add texture and also define both the toilet compartment and an alcove for the freestanding soaking tub while maintaining the spatial volume of the bathroom. I admired the detailing of the partial height walls that are capped with stained wood trim wrapping around the window and door trim.  

Each of the three cozy guest bedrooms have their own unique interior architecture and color accents. This guest bedroom has both a wide window in the side gable wall and the quirky corner windows that I had noticed when I approached the house for my preview. The windows, the blue accent wall broken by the slope of the gable and shed dormer walls and the door with a high trim with hooks for totes or backpacks creates an imaginative space.

This guest bedroom at the front of the house has a bonus of a long window seat  below two windows at each end.  Its green accent wall is the backdrop for the bed.

At the corner of the house is this bedroom with two double unit windows for great bird’s eye views of the landscape and water beyond. Its interior architecture with its red accent walls broken by the slope of the gable and shed dormer walls  creates a light and airy space.

The short hall at the “red” bedroom ends at another delightful outdoor room at the corner of the house over the screened porch with its spiral corner below. The chaise lounges are ready for sunbathing or spending an afternoon with a good book. The wall behind the Adirondack style chaises outlines the exterior stair to access the screened porch below-what a great flow for entertaining! I admired the architect’s detail of the cable railing’s stopping just short of the sloped gable wall of the house.

Having explored the house, I went up the stair to the space over the two-car garage that is an ensuite, accessed by a stair from the breezeway. Next to this sitting room is a bedroom and full bath that creates a private ensuite for extended stays.

This one of a kind, south and west facing property along Broad Creek is the result of a remarkable collaboration among the owners, their architect, their contractor and artisan subcontractors. This exquisite and very liveable Craftsman style house rose up from an existing foundation and was inspired by “Ochre Point”, a masterpiece by McKim, Mead and White. The owners and architect were perfectly in sync in their shared vision for a house that enhanced its site of water and woods. 

I was privileged to spend an hour with the owners touring the house; every elevation was a sheer delight from the massing, materials, details, textures, and color choices. The interiors with period details were enhanced by family furnishings that felt quite at home in their new environment. Rooms that I call “Goldilocks rooms” – just the right size- created a compact floor plan. Throughout the house, I looked right and left to savor architect Jeff Chown’s masterful stroke of his visual-breeze-light vistas that linked spaces of pure delight. The outdoor rooms of screened and open porches, decks, and the breezeway that connect the house to the two-car garage keeps one attuned to the woods and water.   

The owners intended for this house to be their forever home but family priorities have changed their plans and a very lucky buyer will be the next steward of this very special place. 

Architect Jeff Chown kindly shared with me a quote by the late, notable, architectural photographer Robert Lautman, when asked about his favorite houses: “the ones where the warmth of the inhabitants comes through”.  Chown thought Lautman would have liked “The Water House” and as a fellow architect, I couldn’t agree more. Bravissimo to the design and construction team!

For information about this property contact Benson & Mangold Real Estate agent Coard Benson, Associate Broker, at 410-770-9255 (o), 410-310-4909 (c) or  coard@coardbenson.com ; For more pictures and pricing, visit https://www.coardbenson.com/waterhouse, “Equal Housing Opportunity.”

Photography: Bill Whaley, www.billwhaleyphotography.com, 443- 477-1928
Architect: Jeff Chown, jschown@gmail.com, 202-603-6350
Contractor: West River Builders
Artisan Tile Designer: Scott Weaver,  www.weavertile.com (panel at the front Oriel, one at the front entrance, and the interior fireplace surround).
“The Houses of McKim, Mead and White”, by Samuel G. White, FAIA, Rizzoli International Publications, Inc.