An Idyllic Escape

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Relaxation and recreation beckon at a second home in Oregon

The living room, anchored by cabinetry fabricated by Bladt’s Custom Woodworking, includes a reclaimed oak coffee table by RH; a lounge chair from The Vintage Rug Shop; and Paavo Tynell’s 9602 floor lamp from 1stDibs.
Photos by George Barberis.

For years, Julie Hawkins’s clients vacationed with their two girls in Bend, Oregon—an outdoor enthusiast’s paradise for its river activities, hiking, biking, snow sports, climbing and more. The couple, who call the Bay Area home, and their now-adult daughters are “super active,” says the interior designer. “It was their tradition to go there, and they fell in love with the area.” An opportunity to purchase property—140 acres with views of Mt. Bachelor, Broken Top Mountain and the Sisters Mountains— allowed them to create the ultimate retreat for multiple generations to gather now and in the future.

The kitchen’s oak cabinetry and flooring are combined with honed concrete countertops and four-by-four-inch tiles from Zia Tile; the stools are from SummerHouse. Photos by George Barberis.
A Hector Finch adjustable pendant illuminates the breakfast nook, which also features a custom Michael McKenzie Designs table; cushions made by Pohan’s Upholstery, with Verellen leather; and chairs and vintage wooden cutting boards (on the wall) from SummerHouse. Photos by George Barberis.

Hawkins, whose namesake practice is based in Napa, met the clients through the original architecture firm on the project, Backen & Backen; she previously spent a decade working with its founder, Howard Backen. (A local architect was later consulted to complete the residence.) The siting of the house captures the scenic vista, which also includes a pond that the family added. “By putting the house where it is, when you enter the vestibule, there is a series of glass doors and windows that look out onto the mountains,” Hawkins elaborates. “It’s a very dramatic backdrop.”

The powder room’s stone wall and floating honed concrete vanity are complemented by an Obsolete pendant, a mahogany mirror from Chairish and a Waterworks faucet. Photos by George Barberis.
The dining area is appointed with a table by RH, slipcovered chairs from SummerHouse and window treatments fabricated by Martin Kobus Inc. using a C&C Milano linen from De Sousa Hughes. Photos by George Barberis.
Just outside the primary suite, a daybed from the Porch Swing Company, a side table from Borgo Rosati and vintage lanterns from SummerHouse create an inviting vignette. Photos by George Barberis.

There are four buildings on the site, with the main house just shy of 5,000 square feet. Hawkins sought to bring the warmth of the exterior—which includes stone walls, wood siding and a metal roof—inside as well. Hence, the oak flooring and cabinetry, honed concrete countertops, and grasscloth wallcoverings that permeate the interior. Additionally, the same stone that clads the outside is used for the entry, the powder room and the living room fireplace. The wife’s request for steel windows also informed Hawkins’s design decisions, like the steel-and-glass door and the transom window for the shower in the primary bathroom. “Keeping things consistent throughout a house helps the flow,” she explains.

In a guest bedroom, McLaurin & Piercy’s Shinto Jute grasscloth wallcovering backgrounds a Thuma bed, a West Elm nightstand and Soho Home lamp; the bed linens are from Zara Home. Photos by George Barberis.

Although it is not the clients’ full-time residence, since Bend is a year-round destination, Hawkins aimed for “a palette that works for all seasons and that they could live with for a long time,” she says. To that end, she relied on neutral tones and textural materiality. In the primary bedroom, the wife expressed that “she wanted it to feel like a cloud,” recalls Hawkins, who obliged with creamy elements like gauzy linen drapes and a bouclé-covered daybed, set against walls painted in Benjamin Moore’s Swiss Coffee.

Most of the primary bedroom’s furniture was sourced from SummerHouse—including the daybed, wing chair, console table, mirror and lamp—while the bed is by Shoppe Amber Interiors. Photos by George Barberis.
In the primary bathroom, a Schoolhouse chandelier is suspended above a Waterworks bathtub; the rustic side table and wooden bench are from SummerHouse. Photos by George Barberis.

Along with tactile fabrics, to further soften the home’s linear architecture, Hawkins introduced curved forms. In the dining room, for instance, slipcovered chairs from SummerHouse in Mill Valley surround the Oslo table by RH, which features rounded edges. Nearby, the wall decor consists of a trio of antique bowls converted into mirrors, found at Bend home goods shop Borgo Rosati. With the house imagined from the ground up, there is a prevailing sense of order and simplicity.

A sofa, chairs and side tables from Bertu Home, along with an Arhaus coffee table, make for the perfect spot to enjoy the pond and mountain views. Photos by George Barberis.

Everything has a thoughtfully considered spot, right down to the placemats that are stored in the breakfast nook’s banquette seating. In the living room, the television is concealed behind wood doors that manually slide to the side—no complicated automated system here. After all, this is a place to “rest and rejuvenate,” Hawkins says. The entire project took about six years to complete, with the designer tackling the guest house before the main house was constructed. “We got to know how they live, who they are, what they’re about,” she continues. “We have a tagline: ‘Come as our client, leave as our friend.’ It’s very important to me that we end on a good, happy note. And this was a success all around.”