The treehouse
OVERVIEW
Location
Nyack, NY
Type
Full Home Renovation
Set on a wooded hillside above the Hudson River, this mid-century home was designed by architect Charles Winter in close relationship with its landscape. Its tiered structure, expansive glass, and long horizontal sightlines created a feeling of living among the trees. But after decades of use, the house had grown worn and required extensive renovation.
The goal was to preserve the qualities that made the architecture distinctive while creating a home better suited to daily life. The renovation addressed structural deterioration, outdated systems, lighting, materials, and safety. At the same time, it strengthened the connection between the interior, the landscape, and the people living there.
The project became both a restoration and a reimagining: a home designed to support gathering, rest, connection, and a more present rhythm of living.
Working With the Existing Architecture
The home’s original spatial composition was already one of its strengths. Across six split levels, distinct areas remained visually connected through long sightlines and shifts in elevation.
Our interventions focused on redefining several smaller spaces, giving each a clearer purpose while preserving the movement, sightlines, and openness that made the original architecture so compelling.
Area
2402 sf
Scope
Architecture and Interior Design
Architectural Changes
The doors and windows were replaced, and the partial-height wall between the kitchen and sitting area was relocated to improve circulation within the kitchen. At the platform, which had previously been open to the level below, a glass guardrail was added so the area could be used safely without interrupting the views.
The existing red oak floors were refinished with a natural sealer, creating a lighter surface throughout the room. The walls were re-spackled and sanded to achieve a smooth, soft finish. This brought greater warmth to the space, allowing the paint to read as a continuous surface and reflect light more evenly.
Lighting
Strategy
A new, fully dimmable lighting strategy was developed in response to the architecture and extensive glazing. Coved uplighting follows the structural beams, globe lights define the dining area, and a large saucer bubble pendant illuminates the platform. Each source was carefully positioned to minimize glare while preserving the views after dark.
In the kitchen, five globe sconces are fastened to the structural beam above the sink. Their light radiates in all directions and reflects across the surrounding surfaces, creating even illumination throughout the kitchen. Task lighting integrated beneath the long stretch of upper cabinetry provides focused light across the work surface.
The grand room
The home has two entrances: one on the lower level, midway up the driveway, and another on level four that opens directly into the main living space. From this upper entry, the Grand Room becomes the first experience of the interior.
The 600-square-foot room brings together the kitchen, dining, living, and play areas within one open volume. Continuous horizontal windows frame the Hudson River, forest, and sky, while the room’s scale allows daily life to unfold collectively without each activity losing its own place. Direct access to the tiered decks allows life to move easily between inside and out.
Kitchen before renovation
The former pantry was opened to the kitchen and reimagined as a smaller, connected workspace. We widened the opening between the two spaces to improve circulation and strengthen their visual connection. A new window frames the forest, bringing natural light and a sense of openness into an area that had previously felt enclosed.
Full-height cabinetry spans the wall to the left, providing ample storage. We retained the wall dividing this space from the main kitchen to preserve the kitchen’s symmetry and balanced composition. While the wall continues to define the two areas, the cabinetry carries the same wood, detailing, and proportions through both, creating a cohesive design.
The cabinetry was designed to continue the horizontal language of the Grand Room. Upper and lower cabinets extend from wall to wall in a balanced composition, while drawer refrigerators are incorporated into the continuous lines. The sink remained in its original position, where washing dishes comes with a view of the Hudson River.
White upper cabinets bring lightness and stillness to the room, while wood lower cabinets add warmth. The terrazzo countertops were selected for their coloration and movement, creating a lively counterpoint to the quiet white cabinetry. A dark gray base creates a clear separation between the cabinetry and the red oak floor, laid in a herringbone pattern. The backsplash follows a simple grid, adding rhythm without competing with the architecture.
kitchen
The kitchen was completely gutted. Removing the faux beams revealed the height and geometry of the room, allowing daylight from the two existing skylights to enter the space and reflect more freely. The wood ceiling was replaced, restoring warmth and reinforcing the architectural character of the Grand Room.
Previously, the kitchen had felt dark and compressed. Laminate countertops, plywood cabinetry painted a burnt orange, and tile flooring with wide, darkened grout lines gave the space a visual heaviness. The faux beams housed uplighting, yet the kitchen remained poorly illuminated. Along one side, an equally dark pantry relied on open shelving, leaving everyday provisions and appliances exposed.
A Favorite deatil
IN THIS KITCHEN, THE EVERYDAY ACT OF COOKING UNFOLDS BETWEEN THE FOREST AND THE RIVER.
Lounge
One split level below the Grand Room, the lounge is experienced through a sequence of contraction and expansion. At the bottom of the stairs, a generous landing holds the bar, where daylight from an opening to the right hints at what lies beyond.
The beauty of this home is that it does not reveal itself all at once.
Each turn offers a new perspective, allowing the home to unfold through moments of discovery.
Turning the corner, the space opens dramatically. Floor-to-ceiling glass extends across two sides, revealing broad views of the Hudson River and the wooded edge of the property. Facing east, the lounge receives the morning sun, making sunrise part of the daily experience of the room.
A stone fireplace anchors one side of the lounge, while the deck extends from the other, placing the sitting area between warmth and landscape. Here, the ceiling lowers beneath the platform above, drawing the room back into a more intimate scale. The experience moves from the compression of the landing to the openness of the glass-wrapped lounge, and finally to the sense of shelter created beneath the platform.
Throughout the home, shifts in light, scale, and perspective create different ways of experiencing both the architecture and the landscape. Rooms open and contract, while changing views of the forest, river, and sky reveal the landscape from different perspectives. Together, these moments create a home that continues to reveal itself through the rhythms of daily life.
