We wound our way up the narrow stair to the top level under the roof. It rose and fell with ridges and valleys as we wandered the length of the attic from back to front. The attic space for this early 20th century Queen Anne style home was unfinished when this young family bought the home. The owners wanted this level to be theirs with a full ensuite and office while the kids had the 4 bedrooms and bathroom on the level below.
These complex roofs are a signature feature of the Queen Anne style. We used the high areas under the rafters for the major spaces and tucked the circulation and closets in between. We removed the entire end wall from one dormer and installed a full height triangular window to give light and air to a small office and used a glazed wall and door system from CR Laurence to bring that daylight into the central hall. We placed the bedroom at one end of the house and the bathroom at the other. With the exception of the triangular window in the office and 2 skylights we added in the bedroom, we limited exterior work and focused the scope towards utilizing what the roof shapes and existing windows provided. The most sustainable thing you can do is reuse or repurpose space that already exists. This project took space that had existing unused for over 100 years and turned it into a haven.
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