In the end, a slim slice of land in Gloucester on Cape Ann—landlocked but loaded with unseen ocean views—came out on top.
That’s because its architects, owners, and interior designers took extra time for thinking and planning before building a new home there.
Its vistas were the main drivers in the process, but a limited budget and a respect for the surroundings played major roles too.
“The views meant exposing as many rooms as possible to the ocean,” says John MacDonald, principal in Morehouse MacDonald and Associates, the Melrose-based architecture firm responsible for its design. “Once we got up in the air, it became a juggling act to accomplish that.”
That’s no understatement. An existing 1950s ranch house on site provided a stage where MacDonald and fellow principal Anthony Frausto-Robledo could survey the surroundings. After all, their clients—a large family with big expectations—were looking to their architects for ideas, while the designers scoured the site for inspiration.
Their instincts were on target, though their primary viewpoint wasn’t easily accessible.
The original ’50s home blocked most views of the ocean. But its rooftop, with the help of a ladder, opened up endless possibilities. “We climbed to the apex of the roof and with the ladder, we could approximate the view from the third floor,” MacDonald says. “That made it clear that we needed to design an expanded series of spaces where we could step outside to see the Atlantic Ocean—and let the site speak to us.”
In essence, that ladder provided the necessary gymnastics to create a home especially suited to its new, third-floor views. And though the former ranch house had to go in order to make that happen, turning the new home on the old axis made all the difference in designing it. “We conjured up a grander scale than what was there,” Frausto-Robledo says.
They referred back to the Shingle Style that’s part of Gloucester’s rich history, so the new 4,600-square-foot house looks right at home. “If you go there now, you’ll see a lot of precedents, but the houses being built now are echoes of this one, especially with materials,” MacDonald says.
Its Western red cedar shingles received a semi-transparent stain to maintain color uniformity over time. Windows and doors are from Kolbe, the roof is a Timberline wood blend, and the chimney is a water-struck brick from Kane Gonic, with a Harvard smooth face. Decks are laid in Ipe wood, and pavers are Gustin Blue.
Because the clients didn’t have the budget to build their second home all at once, they opted for a two-phase design process. Living in the home’s first iteration helped them refine the program for its second phase more effectively. “We designed it in a way that was easy and less destructive when we started the second phase,” MacDonald says.
To ease the transition from the home’s first phase to its second, the architects turned to Abby Welling Forstall, owner of Embellishments Interior Design and Décor. She selected materials like stacked stone and a marble mantle for the fireplace, plus oatmeal-colored draperies and an oversized Persian Gabbeh rug, and then added glass tables.
“All the materials are light and airy with a nod to nautical themes, and to keep things cool in the summertime and cozy in the winter,” she says. “The finishes, furnishings, lighting, and draperies all convey the same feeling we achieved in the original house—it’s comfortable and quietly sophisticated, yet more casual than the client’s city home.”
So the new space delivers the same vibe as the first phase—and fits in well. “A visitor today wouldn’t realize the house was built in two separate phases,” she says.
Though the home is primarily a summer retreat, its location on Cape Ann makes it easy to access year-round. It’s been designed to be as comfortable for the Christmas holidays as it is for Fourth of July celebrations.
And with three bedrooms and a bunkhouse, it’s flexible enough to serve as a couple’s private retreat—or for larger gatherings that don’t disturb those in the rest of the house. Best of all, it now celebrates ocean views that once were inaccessible—before their time.