Ashley River Colonial Revival

When a young couple with deep roots in Charleston moved back to the neighborhood, SvMA was hired to reimagine their newly-purchased ​property.  In addition to renovating and adding to the 1930s Colonial Revival House, the firm was asked to design a garage, an orangery, and a swimming pool.  At the back of the house, SvMA designed a large, eat-in kitchen which connected to the primary circulation axis by a generous butler’s pantry and bar.  The combined spaces provide a new focal point for entertaining and living with sweeping views of the garden, while preserving most of the historic plan.  The addition also provided an opportunity for a new primary bedroom suite on the second floor, complete with his and hers closets, an expansive primary bath, and a vaulted ceiling above the primary bedroom.  

West-facing windows fill the rooms with afternoon light, providing views of the Ashley River beyond.  The new garage and orangery were located in the far corner of the lot, aligned with an existing driveway and sheltering the area for a new swimming pool.  ​Because the combined garage and orangery are visible from most spaces within the house, their location and design were carefully considered to create an appealing fixture in the landscape.  SvMA drew inspiration from similar accessory buildings ​found on the western end of the Charleston peninsula, combining vernacular massing at the garage with sophisticated detailing on the glazed orangery.  The result is a building with one elevation scaled for the car, and a more intimate, human-scaled elevation facing the pool.