We designed a dream retirement home for a client relocating from the DC area to a beautiful lot on Lake Murray, where friends and family also bought neighboring properties many years ago with a plan for the future. With retirement just a few years away, she envisioned a warm, welcoming home centered around entertaining family and friends and the stunning lake views.
The heart of this transitional-style home is its kitchen, designed without corners per the client’s request to maximize functionality. The kitchen anchors a spacious great room, flowing into a dining area and a large screened porch overlooking the pool and lake, creating an inviting extension of the living space. To the right, a cozy living area complements the dining space, while to the left, a sunroom—divided by a stylish wall with a bar facing the dining area and a fireplace toward the sunroom—offers a secondary lounging area.
When you step into the foyer of the home, you can see to the lake and living spaces, or enter the office on the left or powder room on the right. The main-level primary suite, located off the sunroom, is designed for aging in place, featuring a generous walk-in closet and a spacious bathroom with a walk-in shower.
Upstairs, the client’s personal primary suite includes a large bathroom, expansive walk-in closet, a coffee bar for quiet mornings before stepping into hosting chaos, and balcony access with windows showcasing the lake from its prime point location.
A guest room with lake-view balcony access, a guest bathroom, and a bunk room for visiting family complete the upper level.
Wrapped in light brick and Hardie siding with a crisp white-and-blue palette, this home blends timeless style with lakeside charm, complete with a private dock. Phase One provided the architectural design, and Morris Homes brought this vision to life, creating a retirement retreat perfect for gathering loved ones and making memories by the lake.
We are very happy with the work Phase One did designing our backyard building with garage, art studio, multipurpose room, bathroom, and kitchenette.
Claire, CJ, and Pam listened carefully to our needs and vision and helped us vet our options with excellent feedback and drafts before we settled on the final drawings.
The need for ample natural light in the studio led to a sawtooth roof design that provides light throughout the building, is visually appealing, and fits in the confined yard space we had to work with.
The building is almost two years old; we enjoy it every day and there is nothing we would change.
Morris Homes (Contractor)
