Mister Harrys

Taking full advantage of the view was more important than being close to the road, so the owners built their house toward the back of the lot on the uphill side. To gain even more height for the view from the living areas, these were put on the upper floor, the bedrooms below. Because all the materials had to be carried up the hill, the house was designed to be built from small wood members, and no large beams were used. The telephone pole stock used to support the deck was carried up the hill by a bulldozer. The poles were laid across the bulldozer scoop and tied on at both ends. Concrete was also carried up in the scoop.

A generous 32-foot overhang on the roof gives protection from sun glare during the snow season. The deck shown in the exterior photographs is used in summer for outdoor living; in winter it protects the main entry below. No water from rain or melting snow drips down through the 2 by 6-inch decking as it's caught underneath in plywood panels sprung in between the deck members and carried off to a concealed gutter.

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source: Sunset Books - Sunset Homes 1967

At first glance this mountain house may appear to be three A-frames pushed together, almost like separate cabins with one larger cabin slightly off to one side. They're all joined together, however, and form this home in Alpine Meadows, California. The largest of the peaked units includes the living room, family room, and kitchen; the smaller units contain the bedrooms.

The lofty quality of the peaked areas was balanced with changes of level and space. Lofts were put over the kitchen and in the children's room, and the dining room was dropped one step to give it a ceiling of conventional height.

Many features were included to make mountain living more comfortable. Electric heating wires under the slate, for example, melt the snow on the entry walk. There's a bench just inside the front door where you can sit to take off or put on ski boots or overshoes. An adjoining closet has a warm air vent to dry snowy or rain-damp clothing. A window up near the ceiling peak in the play loft can be opened to release excessive heat in summer; in winter a return air duct draws heated air back for recirculation.

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source: Sunset Books - Sunset Homes 1967

In Yreka, California, you naturally turn a house, if possible, to view Mount Shasta to the southeast. You also plan it for a climate of strong prevailing westerly winds, damp winters with perhaps two feet of snow, and 80° to 95° on summer days.

This medium-sized house does all of these things. The owners wanted a free-flowing house where they could entertain comfortably indoors and out. Their site has a view on all sides, which the house design takes full advantage of. With outdoor living and garden areas as varied as you can imagine, the demarcation between indoors and outdoors is often hardly noticeable. These areas, each matched to specific indoor spaces, range in scale from the intimate to the landscape of cosmic proportion. There is a small, sky-lit entry garden with a wall as backdrop; an enclosed garden court (off the guest bedroom); a garden patio off the master bedroom, elements of which the kitchen and study also share; a covered terrace off the dining room, easily accessible from the living room; and a terrace foreground to a wide living room vista of valley and mountains culminating in towering, snow-capped Mount Shasta.

The owners do not have children living at home, but the house provides for guest sleeping. The living and sleeping areas are treated as separate houses. This is clearly expressed in the roof configuration. An entry hallway links the two areas together and also minimizes foot traffic through rooms.

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source: Sunset Books - Sunset Homes 1967

A changing pattern of living for the owners is reflected in this country house. When their children were smaller, the owners lived in a two-story town house in Seattle, Washington. In their new home, rooms are all on one level and open on enclosed garden space. This makes for relaxed living, easy entertaining, and, most important, minimum maintenance.

Big front doors emphasize a welcome feeling at the end of a covered entry walk. Inside the entry hall, they look out at a garden court consisting of a lily pool and vine maples. The family room also looks out on an enclosed garden and has space for dancing and for enjoying family hobbies. From a roofed deck adjoining the living area, there is a view of the Cascades.

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source: Sunset Books - Sunset Homes 1967

Compact and with its areas carefully related, this small country house is a good example of design specifically intended for the needs of a retired couple. The combination entry hall-dining area makes it possible to have a choice of formal or informal living with a minimum of housekeeping and wasted space. The house reflects its rural setting in simplicity of line and materials. It is open to a view, yet it achieves the effect of enclosure desirable in an isolated home. It is oriented to balance sun and shade.

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source: Sunset Books - Sunset Homes 1967

In the wooded hills of Portland, this house seems as appropriate to its site as the trees themselves. This comes partly from its simple design and quiet, natural materials, and partly from its emphasis on privacy. At the front of the house, only the kitchen and den face the street. The south wall is almost entirely of glass. It opens onto a generous deck that serves as a light and sunny outdoor living area amid surrounding forest.