Maple Valley Farmhouse

Challenges/Discoveries:

• The dark kitchen needed a lift from dated cabinets, black countertops, and limited lighting.
• Simplified design for the fireplace. When the cabinets that flanked each side of the fireplace were removed, there was no drywall behind them. A shocking amount of bat guano was discovered from the floor all the way up to the roofline along the chimney case.

Solutions:

• Enlarged basement bathroom to accommodate walkers and wheelchair entry.
• New flooring in the basement, and refinished existing hardwoods on the main level to unify and support design.
• Mafi Flooring products selected for optimal air quality and moisture management in the basement. Sheep’s wool insulation removes environmental toxins and further controls moisture.
• Inviting landscape design included wheelchair access and biophilia concepts.
• All cedar ceiling boards were sealed for energy efficiency and improved air quality.

Featured kitchen solutions:

• Repainted cabinet boxes, new doors, and hardware.
• Removed three upper cabinets and replaced them with floating shelves.
• New induction cooktop for aging-in-place safety, plus energy efficiency.
• Island accent design was a sentimental salvaged collaboration between Tracy (Paul’s wife) and master carpenter, Jeremiah.
• Smart lighting was installed selectively through the home, instead of rewiring. Immense convenience and flexibility in designing task lighting and ambient lighting within the same switch. Opting out of rewiring saved time, money, and stress on the family during this remodel.
• The bat guano negatively impacted air quality. Opened, cleaned, and finished properly.

Results:

Multiple areas of this modern farmhouse were intentionally updated to promote emotional wellness, improve air quality for health, incorporate Universal Design elements, plus optimize energy efficiency with new technologies.