Loom House

Year: 2019
Category: Residential · Private House (M 2,000-4,000 sq ft)
Type: Residential
Status: Built
Firm: The Miller Hull Partnership
Location: Bainbridge Island, United States

Located on a beautifully landscaped bluff overlooking Puget Sound, Loom House is an extensive renovation of a classic 1960s mid-century home. Loom House achieved Living Building Challenge 4.0 Certification in early 2021, making it one of only four residences in the world, and the first renovated home, to do so. Inspired by weaving together people, place, community, and equity, Loom House provides owners with a prototype to renovate their homes using resilient retrofitting strategies. The design respects the original architectural character of Hal Moldstad’s mid-century bones and thrives in a rejuvenated Pacific Northwest landscape.

A new entry bridge curates a path through the mature site, including 200-foot evergreen trees and ornamental plantings that guide residents and visitors to a redefined main entry. The home’s previous maze of small rooms was transformed into an open great room with a new stair leading to a lower-level primary suite, replacing an underutilized garage. Triple-glazed windows and skylights throughout the project maintain a connection to the gardens, Puget Sound, and beyond. The impact of Loom House has continued to drive the project forward, advocating for change far beyond its property line.

From design through construction, the goal of the project was to create a global impact by showing a path to Living Building Challenge Certification for all residential remodels. Net positive energy and water were integrated seamlessly into the existing site and structures, and the project team successfully lobbied the City of Bainbridge Island to change the city code to treat grey and black water on-site, paving the way for other residents in the area to follow. The team went beyond Living Building Challenge requirements and extended Red List-free materials into all the home’s furniture and furnishings, permanently eliminating chemicals of concern from a wider group of craftspeople, installers, vendors, and manufacturers.