House on the East Shore Full Front House on the East Shore Front Elevation House on the East Shore Porch I House on the East Shore Porch II House on the East Shore Porch Detail
House on the East Shore Rear View House on the East Shore Living Room House on the East Shore Dining Room
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 Photos by Martha Coneybear


House on the East Shore

Eastern Connecticut


New Construction
Completed 1999
Builder: Wes Maxwell, Stonington, CT

The House at East shore is a new home in a small summer retreat community that was developed in the early part of this century on the Connecticut shore. The area has since suffered from the paradox of popularity; as larger homes have been built and older ones expanded and winterized, the simple and casual nature of the village has been changed. After the owners' previous home was destroyed by fire, we designed a new house seeking to recapture the qualities that made this area originally so attractive at the beginning of the century.

The scope of the work was to rebuild what had been, a three bedroom cottage with a porch facing south and east. The clients had little desire to change either the layout or aesthetics of the new house, but because of zoning and code regulations we were required to make significant interior changes while keeping within the original footprint. The design developed into a massing quite different from the original house even though the footprint remained the same.

The house is constructed of traditional materials: wood framing, white cedar shingles, painted cedar trim, and asphalt shingle roofing. We carefully designed the porch and roof details to achieve a precise sense of style and proportion. The treatment of the columns at the porch creates a sense of solidity and privacy while maintaining the view out.

At the heart of this project is the open first floor plan. The Kitchen, Dining Room, Entrance, and Living room are open to each other, share the same treatment of white pine flush board paneling, and are bathed in light from the South and East. Although open to one another, they are each defined by individual spatial qualities and functions. Connecting the public rooms is the porch which wraps around the front and side of the house and shelters it from the harsh seaside winds while still allowing the the owners the enjoyment of extensive views of Long Island Sound.


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