2007 De Verne is a culmination of our work in the Zilker community of Austin. We teamed with Element 5 Architecture to develop our third design in a series of homes in Zilker featuring soft modern architecture. Our goal was to create a visually-striking home that is both modern (yet blends into the neighborhood vernacular with its clean, soft lines) and pragmatic (thoughtful use of space–a floor plan that flows, balancing everyday family life with entertaining). 

 The design was guided by the characteristics of the site and Austin’s unique development code. The site is a compact urban lot with views to the north and south and a beautiful cedar elm in the center of the east portion of the site. The intention was to maintain privacy from the front (north facing) and to open up the house to the rear (south facing) with public rooms opening up to a covered patio, pool and the elm. In fact, the cedar elm led the design to an “L-shaped” plan and vertical massing toward the center of the house. 

 The exterior material palette of lueders, stucco, Douglas fir and smooth siding was chosen to be low maintenance yet aesthetically intriguing, accentuating the bold forms. The natural stone, wood and stucco soften the lines of the architecture. Warm grays and taupes along with subdued whites balance out the charcoal kynar-coated standing seam metal roof. The focus of the front elevation is the peaked central mass and the contrast of its asymmetrically divided facade. The Douglas fir tongue-and-groove detail of the right side of the facade is juxtaposed with the soft white stucco of the left. 

 Inside, we sought to create a public area that was wide open for entertaining, as well as spending more time at home as part of the ‘new normal’. The entryway leads to an open plan kitchen, dining and living area seamlessly integrated with the outdoor living and dining area through a four-panel bipart sliding door. The kitchen features a massive island with a dark soapstone countertop, while the perimeter cabinets feature a dramatic Arabescato marble countertop that continues up the backsplash. The lighter perimeter contrasts with the dark wood island, while the warm tones of each element tie the design together. 

 Adjacent to the front entryway, just off the dining and living area is a full guest bath complete with a door that thoughtfully provides a direct connection to the pool deck. A home office that can double as a guest room is located on the first floor, convenient to the front door with great front-facing sight lines. The master and all other bedrooms are located on the second floor in order to better separate public and private spaces. The third floor features a small living room, bedroom, bath and closet – an extremely useful and flexible space for families schooling and working from home. 

 2007 De Verne not only boasts superior style and design–top-quality construction, Austin Energy Green Building 4-star performance, and an extremely robust/expandable home automation/security pre-wiring package make this home complete.