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A look inside some of Bainbridge Island’s most remarkable homes, the people who live there, and the architects, designers and builders who bring the projects to life.
The Chymiys’ forever home on Bainbridge Island is many miles—and many years—from Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, where Andrea and Thomas met in 1992, just days into their freshman year. The friendship that started at a dormitory mixer soon turned into more and by the second semester they were dating. The pair […]
By Alli Schuchman Perched on a north-facing hillside—across Eagle Harbor from the ferry maintenance yard—sits the stunning black home of interior designer Tracey Artiss. She describes it this way: “Somewhat a farmhouse with a rural vernacular and modern sensibility. Clean lines. A little bit industrial.” Though unquestionably bold, it nonetheless fits into her beloved Eagledale […]
In 2010 when Heather Paradis (formerly Moore) was housesitting at the beautiful dairy barn converted to a home on Windsong Loop, squirrels gnawed holes into the entire south wall of the barn. She could hear them chattering and running up and down within the walls. In a bit of a panic, she […]
“I wonder what’s over there?” Even though Joan Pearson had grown up in the Queen Anne Hill neighborhood, standing there years later, looking out over the familiar water, the Seattle native didn’t know how to answer her husband’s question as to where the distant green and white ferryboats were off to. The […]
The rule is that the grandkids can’t come down to the boathouse until at least 7 a.m. But as often happens with children, the excitement of a new day easily usurps any pleas or promises to hush. Starting around dawn, the squeals of joy and the sound of scampering feet radiate from […]
An ad for a pair of jeans interestingly described as “Americana workwear” recently made the rounds on social media. Brand new—but in order to look as if the wearer had just dug a ditch or some such labor, the distressed denim actually came smeared with reddish faux mud. The suggested retail price […]
Not long ago on Rockaway Beach two unlikely paths crossed. On one path, a man who over four decades has grown a benchmark business in the Northwest. On the other, a couple most recently from Texas, he a colorful retired shipping businessman, she a former bunker boat executive. At the intersection of […]
Darden of Eden Emily, Joel and son Calvin have carved out their own five acres of perfect on Darden Lane building a fabulous and functional home for three just west of Toe Jam Hill. Touches like gray-washed oak floors, an indoor-outdoor fireplace, open great room and south- and west-facing windows contribute to […]
Meet island-native-returned-home architect Michael Loverich, or as he’s known by his friends, Mikeylove. Loverich came home to Bainbridge just over a year ago, something he knew he’d always do but wasn’t sure how or when. He’s quintessentially Bainbridge. Birkenstocks with socks. A scooter. He bakes. In addition to being an architect, Loverich […]
Heron hall quite purposefully invites the question, how far can we go in making sure our homes are sustainable and healthy, to insist that our surroundings foster the best possible living environment? It’s that sentiment, said Jason F. McLennan—renowned commercial architect, designer, author and environmentalist—that inspired him to walk the walk when […]
If they had asked my opinion, I would have strongly urged them to reconsider.” But Daryn and Brooke Nakhuda sought no such input. By the time they met architect Matthew Coates, the pair had already taken a leap in the dark and bought the beachfront land where their home sits today. Daryn […]
When Karen Dacek first called architect Mark Olsen, she told him she wanted to build a home. And—by the way—she was on a serious budget. While working as a project manger for Clark Construction in 2015, Dacek had a strong sense of what she wanted but knew from experience that she didn’t […]
On a Brisk September Morning Above Fletcher Bay, Laura Holding sits on the deck of her new studio, recalling the twists and turns, the challenges and seized opportunities, and love that brought her here. Where once stood a dilapidated outbuilding, today stands a shiny new dual-use workshop and guest suite, home to […]
Falling head over heels with Bainbridge happened to George and Nancy Lobisser the same way it does for a lot of us—a day trip from Seattle that turned into never wanting to leave. Moved by its natural beauty and the rocky shores of the Puget Sound and impressed by the good schools […]
When it comes to holding up your house, a post is a post. Except when it’s wrapped in textured glass, artfully lit and intersects with an extra-thick slab of twinkling, glass-flecked countertop. Then it becomes much more. The newly renovated Eagle Harbor condo of architect Chris Eseman and wife Arlayne is full […]
Drawing rooms. Parlors. Double height foyers with garish chandeliers. Useless, excessive features like these have been thrown on the demolition pile of architectural history. As we’ve become more intentional in the way we live, a dream home is often less ostentatious and more purpose-driven. Every room has to have a compelling reason […]
Thousands have lived without love, not one without water. —W. H. Auden It’s amazing that Jani and Bill Pauli do anything besides look out the window and daydream. From the moment you walk into their comfortably rambling one-story home, you are drawn to the wonderful wide-open, no-bank water view. Have a seat […]
When Birds search for the perfect nesting spot, they flit about from tree to tree looking for just the right place to build their home. When it came to nesting on Bainbridge Island, Zoe Bartlett and Ken Warman took a birdlike approach before finally landing on Pleasant Beach four years ago. Living […]
Terry Mundord and Marina Hessel decided to move to Bainbridge Island about five years ago. They knew it was time to flee the intensity of their high-density Seattle neighborhood of Wallingford. But finding their ideal landing spot on the island was not a quick process. They wanted to make sure they found […]
“If you take care of your heart, it will take care of you.” That quote is prominently featured on the cover of Susan Levy’s new book, The Eight Principles of a Heart Healthy Woman: Making Better Choices for Life. Spend an afternoon at home with Levy and her husband, retired custom builder […]
If things had gone as planned, Mike and Kathy Yates would be decades into living in a custom-designed, newly constructed home on Wing Point. Instead, in an unexpected turn of events, they make their home in a renovated log cabin whose origin can be traced back over a century ago to a […]
It all started with a notebook. A Pendleton notebook, in fact, covered in red plaid flannel. When it comes to the story of what brought the Cohen family—parents Brian and Liza, and their daughter Jessica (22) and son Steven (20)—to their woodsy retreat on the north end of Bainbridge two years ago, […]
On weekday mornings Cyndy Holtz and Paul Nishman rise before the birds, gather their gear for the day, and pedal five miles to catch an early ferry to their respective jobs in Seattle. Nishman works as a rehabilitation engineer, while Holtz manages watersheds for the city. Sometimes the ride can be quite […]
Finn O’Neill’s passport is chock-full of countries that would make a jetsetter swoon, especially considering his age hasn’t yet reached double digits. France twice. Denmark. Italy. Finland. “We love to travel,” said Bethany O’Neill, mother of 9-year-old Finn. “But it became more and more difficult once we had children.” Hotels are cramped […]
If it’s 2013, this must be Bainbridge Island. For the Perry family, the date is telling. In the 1990s, the location could have been England, Kenya, Uganda, Kazakhstan or Brazil. But since building their home on Wing Point in 2009, the Perrys—parents Dale and Carol and daughters Rachel (16), Shaila (13) and […]
What’s a Weekend?” says Maggie Smith, whom many of you know as the pithy Dowager Countess of Downton Abbey. The landed gentry of the early 20th century may not have known what a weekend was, but by 1981, the hair band Loverboy let us know that everyone was working for it. For […]
The Rock. That’s how many Bainbridge residents fondly refer to the island. Bainbridge Island is, in fact, a rock, composed of slate, greywacke and greenstone. But it is also euphemistically a rock to those who have chosen to live here; a place that provides comfort, beauty and serenity to those residing among […]
Bainbridge island is abuzz with prius-driving, bike commuting, composting locavores. Now a new community going up in Winslow will raise the island’s green cred even further. The Grow Community, taking shape at Wyatt and Grow, is one of only a handful of neighborhoods in the world endorsed by One Planet Living, a […]
For many islanders, working from home involves a reliable Internet provider, a smart phone and an extensive pajama collection. But for Bob and Nancy Fortner, proud proprietors of Sweetlife Farm, a wheelbarrow wins over Wi-Fi and compost comes before contracts. The bounty of their working farm—and their loving attention to it—produces beautifully […]
If you’ve ever forgotten your reusable grocery bags or dragged your overflowing recycling bin to the curb in the pouring rain, you know that sometimes doing the right thing can be, well, a bit of a hassle. But for Bainbridge Islanders Ed and Joanne Ellis, living green means living well. In fact, […]
