Ibsen Nelsen was a prominent figure in Northwest architecture in the midcentury, best known for designing the Museum of Flight and the Inn at the Market. The AIA Seattle Gold Medal winner also had a ton of homes to his credit and perhaps none stands out quite as much as Bali Modern House. Since "revisioned" by Mitchell Smith Design Build, the midcentury modern is a step above what we normally see from the era.
Before you even get to the Lake City residence itself you find yourself inside a 6,600 square-foot private compound that surrounds the 1954 home and makes you wonder if you're not, in fact, actually in the South Pacific (an effect that probably works much better in the summer than the winter). Loaded with wabi-sabi style, stop by the Japanese inspired koi ponds or zen garden before making your way inside.
Once in the house, all of the usual midcentury touches are there. Big ceilings, window walls and exposed beams. But then you get into details that you don't see very often at all. Leather-finish floors, hand-carved Indonesian columns and a back patio "dining room" flanked by solid fir planks on all sides. Every main room in the house also has it's own door to the exterior, making it abundantly clear that indoor/outdoor living comes with the territory.
There's plenty more details to discover about this place so do so on the site. Hopefully when you're exhausted from reading, you can go chill out in the five-person spa nestled between a Douglas fir and cedar tree out back. All you need is $700K and some very quick real estate agents.
· 11509 32nd Ave NE [Windermere]
· Bali Modern House [BMH]