Beautiful Virgin Islands

Friday, Sep 05, 2025

A Seattle Couple Design a Home Around Indoor/Outdoor Gathering Spaces

A Seattle Couple Design a Home Around Indoor/Outdoor Gathering Spaces

A designer duo add 1,200 square feet to their petite bungalow and create a private courtyard where the whole family can converge near the garden.

When Sharon Khosla and Chris Armes, founders of furniture design studio 16th Workshop, were house hunting in Seattle in 2013, the couple were looking for a small residence. "As designers, we were looking for a home that we could add on to and make our own," says Sharon, who is also principal at Fivedot, a local architecture firm. The designer couple soon found an 825-square-foot bungalow on a corner lot in the Central Area neighborhood. Then, they hashed out plans for a brand-new addition that would help their family of four spread out.



A new, two-story wing now hosts all of the home’s bedrooms. On the main floor of the 1,200-square-foot addition, the couple incorporated an extra room to ensure that are enough accommodations if the grandparents come to live with them in the future. Consolidating the bedrooms to the new wing freed up the original home to become what the owners refer to as a "great room" that centers around the kitchen.

"We find that most of our activities, whether as an intimate family or with larger groups, always happen around food, or whatever comes in from the garden," Sharon says.



The centerpiece of the kitchen is a large island that sits under a skylight adorned with hanging orchids and tropical plants. The light-filled space features custom Oregon white oak cabinetry built by 16th Workshop, which is also integrated into the central kitchen island. This handcrafted feel threads throughout the rest of the home, where various spaces feature additional case goods by 16th Workshop, as well as bespoke light fixtures from the United Kingdom and Texas, and handmade Fireclay tiles.



The homeowners wanted the new wing to protect the lush backyard garden. "We pushed the addition as far to one side as possible to preserve as much space in the sun as we could," says Sharon. Now, the L-shaped home-which is clad with vertical cedar siding-encases a private rear courtyard.



Since the Central Area Home was completed in 2018, the serene outdoor courtyard has served as a site where the family gathers throughout the year. The married couple often drink their daily morning chai in the backyard and "watch the hummingbirds feed on the sage," Sharon says. Meanwhile, the children use the space to bounce on pogo sticks or have ping-pong competitions.



In the evening, the family sometimes hosts small gatherings around the fire pit. And the list goes on: "Dance parties. Dinner parties. Yoga and late afternoon naps. The courtyard also gets used for drying the garden harvest and making marigold garlands for Diwali," Sharon says. "How does it not get used!"



A peek at the Central Area Home before the 2018 renovation by Fivedot.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Putin Celebrates ‘Unprecedentedly High’ Ties with China as Gazprom Seals Power of Siberia-2 Deal
China Unveils New Weapons in Grand Military Parade as Xi Hosts Putin and Kim
Queen Camilla’s Teenage Courage: Fended Off Attempted Assault on London Train, New Biography Reveals
Scottish Brothers Set Record in Historic Pacific Row
Rapper Cardi B Cleared of Liability in Los Angeles Civil Assault Trial
Google Avoids Break-Up in U.S. Antitrust Case as Stocks Rise
Couple celebrates 80th wedding anniversary at assisted living facility in Lancaster
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
The White House on LinkedIn Has Changed Their Profile Picture to Donald Trump
"Insulted the Prophet Muhammad": Woman Burned Alive by Angry Mob in Niger State, Nigeria
Trump Responds to Death Rumors – Announces 'Missile City'
Court of Appeal Allows Asylum Seekers to Remain at Essex Hotel Amid Local Tax Boycott Threats
Germany in Turmoil: Ukrainian Teenage Girl Pushed to Death by Illegal Iraqi Migrant
United Krack down on human rights: Graham Linehan Arrested at Heathrow Over Three X Posts, Hospitalised, Released on Bail with Posting Ban
Asian and Middle Eastern Investors Avoid US Markets
Ray Dalio Warns of US Shift to Autocracy
Eurozone Inflation Rises to 2.1% in August
Russia and China Sign New Gas Pipeline Deal
China's Robotics Industry Fuels Export Surge
Suntory Chairman Resigns After Police Probe
Gold Price Hits New All-Time Record
Von der Leyen's Plane Hit by Suspected Russian GPS Interference in an Incident Believed to Be Caused by Russia or by Pro-Peace or by Anti-Corruption European Activists
UK Fintechs Explore Buying US Banks
Greece Suspends 5% of Schools as Birth Rate Drops
Apollo to Launch $5 Billion Sports Investment Vehicle
Bolsonaro Trial Nears Close Amid US-Brazil Tension
European Banks Push for Lower Cross-Border Barriers
Poland's Offshore Wind Sector Attracts Investors
Nvidia Reveals: Two Mystery Customers Account for About 40% of Revenue
Woody Allen: "I Would Be Happy to Direct Trump Again in a Film"
Pickles are the latest craze among Generation Z in the United States.
Deadline Day Delivers Record £125m Isak Move and Donnarumma to City
Nestlé Removes CEO Laurent Freixe Following Undisclosed Relationship with Subordinate
Giuliani Seriously Injured in Accident – Trump to Award Him the Presidential Medal of Freedom
EU is getting aggressive: Four AfD Candidates Die Unexpectedly Ahead of North Rhine-Westphalia Local Elections
Lula and Putin Hold Strategic BRICS Discussions Ahead of Trump–Putin Summit
WhatsApp is rolling out a feature that looks a lot like Telegram.
Investigations Reveal Rise in ‘Sex-for-Rent’ Listings Across Canada Exploiting Vulnerable Tenants
Chinese and Indian Leaders Pursue Amity Amid Global Shifts
European Union Plans for Ukraine Deployment
ECB Warns Against Inflation Complacency
Concerns Over North Cyprus Casino Development
Shipping Companies Look Beyond Chinese Finance
Rural Exodus Fueling European Wildfires
China Hosts Major Security Meeting
Chinese Police Successfully Recover Family's Savings from Livestream Purchases
Germany Marks a Decade Since Migrant Wave with Divisions, Success Stories, and Political Shifts
Liverpool Defeat Arsenal 1–0 with Szoboszlai Free-Kick to Stay Top of Premier League
Prince Harry and King Charles to Meet in First Reunion After 20 Months
Chinese Stock Market Rally Fueled by Domestic Investors
×