A Family Farmhouse with Rugged Mountain Character

The home is oriented to interact with the wooded property with views out to the trees. “It’s a retreat, and the homeowners come here to celebrate being outside,” says architect Clare Walton. | Photo: Paul Dyer

Among the amenities of Martis Camp, a luxury home community in the Lake Tahoe area, is the Family Barn. No hay or pitchforks here. Instead, a bowling alley, indoor basketball court and old-fashioned soda shop are part of a gathering space designed with wholesome family activities in mind. It was certainly an attraction for an El Dorado Hills, California, couple with three young children seeking a getaway. “We knew Martis Camp was a wonderful opportunity for us,” says the homeowner. “We love the property we chose for the nearby hiking and snowshoe trails, and the direct path to the Family Barn.”

Located near the golf course and with a heavily wooded side yard, their chosen building site cried out for an orientation that engaged the house with its forested surroundings. “They wanted a farmhouse style but one that also expressed a rugged mountain character,” says architect Clare Walton of Walton AE, who determined that a structure defined by classic alpine elements such as gabled roof forms was appropriate for the project site and goals. “This type of design echoes the peaked silhouette of the landscape and has proven to work well in the snow.”

The floral print fabric on the Nickey Kehoe sofa and the bouclé chairs by Lawson-Fenning provide soft counterpoints to the stacked-stone fireplace. The custom ottomans wear JAB Velluto, and the coffee table is from Shoppe Amber Interiors. | Photo: Paul Dyer

Similarly, stacked stone and reclaimed wood siding with brown tones—selected to reiterate the color and texture of the trees— provide contrast to the black standing-seam metal roof and are durable materials that can stand up to Tahoe’s extreme weather.

With a stated goal of establishing a strong indoor-outdoor connection, all the exterior materials are reprised inside. The double-sided fireplace in the great room and stone cladding on the kitchen range wall relate to the retaining walls and chimneys, the siding repeats as indoor wall paneling, and the continuation of heavy timber posts and beams further cements the bond. “Using the same materials throughout the exterior and interior helps to create a strong aesthetic identity and sense of place,” Walton says.

Cabinets by S&S Millworks painted in Farrow & Ball Studio Green offer a direct link to the landscape. The counters and backsplash are fashioned from honed soapstone slabs, and the counter stools are by McGee & Co. | Photo: Paul Dyer

Concrete floors were a natural complement, and builder Matt Heslin of Heslin Construction in Truckee, California, oversaw the labor-intensive process of pouring, spreading, grinding and polishing to get the desired result. Other specialized elements include reclaimed beams spanning 20 feet in the bunk room, and a custom metal-and-glass shower enclosure in the primary bathroom. “Showing these on paper is one thing, but actually getting these items correct takes quite a bit of effort from our team of managers and craftsmen,” Heslin says.

Meanwhile, interior designer Heidi Barnes, also of Walton AE, drew on the surroundings for finishes, colors and textures. “I treated the house as one color palette—not a series of distinctive rooms,” says Barnes, who used a floral print fabric featuring teal, rust and muted gold flowers on one great room sofa to establish the overall tone. “Those colors and, of course, dark green, drawn from the mountain setting, are repeated in every single space.”

Extra Touch Upholstery covered the banquette with durable Zak&Fox Ophir fabric. S&S Millworks built the white-oak table. | Photo: Paul Dyer

In the kitchen, for example, the dark-green cabinets offset by cream- colored rattan bar stools tie directly to the landscape. A screened outdoor room—outfitted with plexiglass windows in the winter—serves as a transitional space from public to private. “From day one the homeowners requested a swinging day bed, to which we added patterned pillows for warmth, and textured sheers on the exterior screen wall blur the distinction between inside and out,” says Barnes.

With the possible exception of a splash of red on the vintage rug, the muted hues ease the shift from great room to primary suite, where the dialed-back palette emphasizes the greens and teals viewed outside, and the use of white ties to the marble floors and walls in the bathroom. “Most choices we made were in keeping with alpine design, but nothing obvious like pillows with bears,” Barnes says. “In- stead, it’s a more elevated and subtle version that evokes that same feeling while reinforcing spaces that meld with the good things Tahoe has to offer.”

A vintage rug sourced from Passerine was the jumping-off point for the formal dining area, where upholstered A. Rudin side chairs surround a trestle table by Nickey Kehoe. Host chairs are by Palecek. | Photo: Paul Dyer