Designing a Home That Balances Light, Privacy, and Place

The homeowners at Aldwick Circle came to us with a strong connection to the site. They were drawn to the quiet, tree-filled neighborhood and had already purchased the property before our first meeting. They wanted a modern home that felt open and full of light, but also one that would fit into the neighborhood in a respectful way—not a statement piece, but a warm and thoughtful place to live.

They also had practical goals: spaces that worked well for family life with high-school-aged children, an efficient and cost-effective structure, and materials that would be durable over time. Their vision aligned well with our design approach, and the project quickly became a collaboration between their needs and the constraints and opportunities of the site.

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Aldwick Circle is part of an established Dallas neighborhood filled with single-family homes. While the lot was surrounded by older homes with traditional materials—brick, siding, and cedar shakes—the clients wanted something more modern, with clean lines and a simpler palette.

 

Rather than contrast sharply with the neighborhood, we looked for ways to reinterpret familiar forms and materials. The exterior uses fiber cement board siding that mimics the look of cedar shakes but offers better durability and lower maintenance. The massing of the house steps back from the street, aligning with neighboring rooflines, while still establishing its own clear identity as a contemporary home.

The site also had some technical challenges. It slopes significantly from the front of the lot to the back, and Dallas’s expansive clay soils require thoughtful foundation solutions. We used a lift-slab construction system to manage costs while ensuring long-term performance. This approach gave us flexibility in floor levels and made it easier to adjust to the terrain without compromising the form of the house.

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Preserving Trees, Guiding Design

One of the early design priorities was preserving the mature trees on the site. These trees shaped both the floor plan and the window placement. Rather than clear the lot, we worked around the canopy and root zones, using the trees to provide privacy, natural shade, and visual connection to the landscape.

Several large windows were carefully located to frame views of the trees, allowing natural light while maintaining a strong connection to the outdoors. These trees aren’t just outside the house—they're part of how the house lives and feels every day.

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Natural Light as a Central Theme

Throughout the design process, we kept returning to the idea of how light moves through the house. The homeowners wanted a home that shifted with the day—a place where you could feel the passage of time in the way the light moved from room to room.

To support that, we included:

• A central stairwell, enclosed by a slatted wooden screen, that acts like a vertical light well. It pulls natural light into the center of the house, especially on cloudy days or in the early morning.

• Skylights and light wells in the kitchen, stairwell, and bathrooms, to bring daylight deeper into the home’s interior.

• A sculpted ceiling in the kitchen, angled to catch sunlight throughout the day and create a warm, uplifting central gathering space.
   

The goal wasn’t just to make the house bright, but to make light an active part of the experience of living there.

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A Home for Daily Life

The clients wanted their home to feel open but also provide comfort and privacy. The floor plan balances those goals by organizing spaces around a few core ideas:

• The kitchen and living areas are open, with long sight lines and visual connections to the outdoors. Large sliding doors connect the interior to an exterior patio, making it easy to move between inside and out.

• Private bedrooms and bathrooms are tucked away from the public spaces, offering quieter areas for retreat.

• Circulation paths through the house were designed to allow natural movement, with moments of openness and compression that support a sense of rhythm throughout the day.

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The Aldwick Circle Residence reflects our ongoing interest in designing homes that respond to place, support daily life, and grow with their occupants over time. It’s modern in form and construction, but it’s also warm, grounded, and respectful of its surroundings.

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By working closely with the homeowners, we were able to deliver a home that feels both personal and practical. It's a house that adapts to the seasons, uses light as a material, and makes space for quiet moments and everyday routines. And for us, it’s a clear example of what happens when architecture is rooted in thoughtful dialogue between client, site, and design team.