Hillside Haven

Tom and Mary Ryan may have moved from New England to Arizona in 1982, but in a sense they never left. They kept a modest condo in Vermont, where they returned most summers. When their children grew up and settled in New England, the Ryans realized their condo no longer could accommodate family and the many friends they enjoyed spending time with.

They bought a 1 & a quarter acre lot on a steeply sloping lot in 1993. They also knew they wanted a post-and-beam home because they had seen many in the region over the years and liked the open layouts and large timbers.

The Ryans also wanted to take an active role in its creation but were wary of handling the project from 2,500 miles away. Fortunately, they met Gordon Ware, a building contractor in Woodstock, Vermont, who helped them achieve their goal. "Others warned us that trying to build a home from a distance could be a nightmare," Mary observes. "But our experience couldn't have gone more smoothly."

The 4,200-square-foot hillside home has ample room. What's more, it offers pleasing aesthetics inside and out: graceful timbers, comfortable furnishings and a view of a picturesque New England village, a lake and a river below.

The Ryans credit Gordon with educating them to the finer points of timber homes. They looked at several that Gordon had built and were attracted to ones produced by Davis Frame Company of Claremont, New Hampshire. Besides favoring Douglas fir timbers because of their warmth and color, the couple liked the particular shape of Davis Frame's timbers, which are beveled at the edges rather than squared. This embellishment, called chamfering, adds a refined touch.

The couple arrived at a design first by looking at various homes and selecting elements they liked and didn't like. "I noticed a lot of staircases were too narrow in homes that we visited," Mary recalls, "so that made me want to widen ours and leave them open on both sides so you don't feel so closed in." A few design decisions were arrived at in Arizona, where they visited conventional model homes to get ideas for using space and materials.

The home starts with a 24-by-32-foot center section for the great room that has two ells going left and right. One ell is for the master bedroom, the other is for the kitchen and dining area. The Ryans also have an attached two-car garage off the kitchen.

The great room offers several focal points. Besides the frame, there is an eyecatching king post truss. A wall of windows at the gable end, framed with a queens post truss, adds even more drama by capturing the view to the east. A 6-foot fireplace was made with stone from the couple's land.

In the kitchen dining ell, the Ryans ordered an extra large beam to span the entire area, eliminating the need for support posts. "It's a very comfortable room," Tom says. "We didn't want a dining room that was separate, so the openness gives us a nice flow."

The kitchen features a large island with a countertop made from a single slab of travertine marble. Large casement windows over the kitchen sink frame a spectacular view. Between the kitchen and garage are a walk-in pantry and the laundry room.

The master bedroom adjoins the great room through double French doors. The master bath boasts a whirlpool tub, neatly fitted into a 4-foot gable extension with a double-wide casement window topped by a half-round window.

To the right of the entry are stairs leading to a loft overlooking the great room. It has a cozy nook above the covered entrance and an open hall leading to two bedrooms over the kitchen-dining area.

Downstairs are a large family room, a junior master bedroom suite and windows that, because the home sits so highs on the hillside, also capture the view. The space has an openness uncharacteristic of basements.

Work on the home began in November 1995 and was competed the following July. During construction, the Ryans flew back only three or four times and made several modifications. The key to the project's success, Tom emphasizes, was the extensive planning with Davis Frame and Gordon Ware.

Finishing and furnishing the home took an interesting twist. After being away from New England for so many years, Mary no longer knew places to shop. Instead, she bought many items in Arizona, including the leather living room set, and shipped them East. They also moved some furniture from their condo, including treasured antiques.

Since finishing their timber home, the Ryans find it even harder to stay away. Besides summers, they return for Thanksgiving with their children and grandchildren, and again for spring skiing season. With such a home to return to, Tom and Mary prove that indeed you can go home again.