Family home in Mill Valley provides welcoming living spaces

By One Kindesign August 14, 2016

3 comments

Mill Valley House-YamaMar Design-01-1 Kindesign

This lovely 3,200 square foot residence features a main home as well as an artists studio, the imagination of YamaMar Design in Mill Valley, Marin County, California. Two opposing roofs help to define the public and private zones of this tranquil dwelling built for a filmmaker and painter couple and their two small children. The design team took their inspiration cue from architect Glenn Murcutt’s notion that a well designed home requires both ‘prospect’ and ‘refuge’. This home fulfills this ideal perfectly. It is located in a densely wooded area and is bathed in southerly light. The topper, purified air coming across form the Pacific ocean just over the coastal ridge.

There are many material elements that were used in the construction of this home. This includes: high fly ash concrete, FSC certified and untreated knotty western red cedar siding, reclaimed Walnut floors and locally sourced ceramic and glass tiles. Natural light is brought into the interiors through thermally broken aluminum windows. Windows have been designed into the structure in order to optimize daylight. Natural ventilation was also key to the design, where sliding glass doors open to take advantage of the temperate climate. The home generates its electric power with the use of photovoltaic solar panels.

The exterior facade is comprised of naturally weathered cedar siding, with a standing seam metal roof. The swimming pool and spa appear very natural with the use of a rock surround. The outdoor balcony provides a nice extension off the living room, helping to create a seamless indoor-outdoor connection.

What We Love: From the entryway, you can see a beautiful presentation of the property with the main house ahead and the artist studio below. The property is surrounded by lush vegetation and mature growth trees, adding natural beauty that is very peaceful… exactly what you would want if you are an artist in need of inspiration.

Readers, what do you love most about this Mill Valley home? Is there anything you would change in the design? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

Photos: Bruce Damonte 

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Sherry Gregory

7 years ago

Looks perfect – would love to see the floor plan. Designed for easy living which is upper most in my mind these days.

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One Kindesign

Reply to Sherry Gregory

Hi Sherry, unfortunately there was not a floor plan available for this project. A lot of times architects do not like to share due to homeowners privacy or if the project was custom designed exclusively for their client. You may still contact the architect at yama@yamamardesign.com to see if they would be willing to share with you. Thanks!