Deep Cove has a character all its own — wooded, unhurried, a little apart from the rest of the city. When a family friend asked for a coach house that could serve as an art studio, hangout space for their young adult children, and occasional guest suite, the goal was a building that belonged to that spirit without swallowing the backyard it sat in.

The design response was a modern farmhouse form — warm and familiar in its massing, clean in its details — modest enough to sit lightly among the trees yet considered enough to feel like a real destination on the property.

The site presented two layers of complexity. First, preserving as many of the existing trees as possible shaped every decision about placement and footprint — the trees weren't a backdrop, they were a design partner. Second, a municipal quirk meant the backyard was technically classified as a front yard, requiring a variance application to proceed. Navigating that process successfully was as important to the outcome as any design decision.

At 600 sq ft, every inch had to work — flexible enough to shift between creative studio, social space, and guest accommodation depending on who's using it and when.