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They are resilient and magnificent. We wanted the oaks to feel as though they grew around the house itself … Nearly every room has a connection to one of the three grand trees on the property.
Kirsten Schoettelkotte
MHK Architecture
To ensure the livelihood of the colossal oaks and to avoid hindering their growth, an arborist plotted their massive root system to help inform where to lay the home’s foundation. “In order to get as close as we did to the trees, we needed to tighten the footprint of the house at the canopies to limit our encroachment on the roots,” Schoettelkotte said.
Traditional Meets Timeless
A new build inspired by the historic farmsteads and traditional architectural styling of years’ past, this stunning home features a wide front porch atop a modest brick stairway, shimmering copper gutters, and a standalone carriage house.
Schoettelkotte’s design blended the indoor and outdoor spaces, as many historic southern homes do, taking full advantage of the warm seasons and the captivating wilderness.
“The series of unique indoor/outdoor experiences place you in the setting immediately,” Shoettelkotte said. “Whether you’re experiencing the sunset, the shade of the trees, the changing colors of the grass, watching the fish jump and the alligators lurk in the creek, seeing the osprey fly home to its nest next door and the sun filter through the Spanish moss on the live oaks, and feeling the cool breezes created by the space between the carriage house and the main house.” The natural environment is primed to impact every soul that fills the dwelling.
Peaceful with Peace-of-Mind Protection
The home, designed to comfortably host family, friends, and neighbors alike, sits a stone’s throw from the Kiawah River on the shore of South Carolina, in one of the state’s hurricane zones. To protect the inhabitants from harsh coastal conditions without compromising on the views of the surrounding fields, forest, and meadows, Schoettelkotte chose an expansive assortment of Marvin Elevate windows. The windows, manufactured with impact-resistant glass (Impact Zone 3-rated), durable Ultrex fiberglass exterior, and warm wood interior, were a pivotal piece to the home design according to Schoettelkotte, “The entire concept was to break down the barriers between inside and outside … [Nearly] every room in the house has a window, and that was intentional.”
The Southern Living Idea House encompasses the cutting-edge of the Southern architectural style. This year’s edition offers an elegant yet unrefined brilliance to living life in the Lowcountry, with ample comfort in store.
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