Home, Sweet Retreat
A young Buckhead family builds an on-site oasis with the deft design hands of D. Stanley Dixon and John Howard.
When a pair of Buckhead dwellers approached D. Stanley Dixon to create their dream pool house, they knew the acclaimed architect would be an excellent fit; after all, he’d already won a Shutze award for his design of their main residence, commissioned by previous owners years before.
Naturally, he referenced the same New England Dutch Colonial hallmarks, including the gambrel roof, a mix of tumbled Tennessee fieldstone and reclaimed granite, painted wood siding and machine-split cedar shake shingles for a warm yet refined effect.
Other delightful details—such as the mock pigeonnier crowning the garden shed—further define what Dixon describes as a “destination pool,” set deep into the property, fairly removed from the house. For this reason, lauded landscape architect John Howard was instrumental in siting the structure beneath a curving oak tree.
Summer months are the family’s favorite for enjoying their sun-dappled retreat, dining alfresco on the loggia between its two main volumes and lounging on its boxwood-dotted patio.
“They spend entire Saturdays here, barbecue grilling, hanging out, watching TV, taking a nap (in the charming bunk room or loft, perhaps) and swimming,” says Dixon, who provided deft direction for the homeowners’ interior design, as well. “It’s youthful, sophisticated and a bit bohemian. The husband is an avid hunter and had a very large European mount that we used as a focal point. It says a lot about them and their personal tastes.”
A vintage teak coffee table, rush carpets, Mexican textiles and a sparkling Jean de Merry chandelier add eclectic elegance to the double-height living room, which also boasts limewashed wood beams, painted wood floors, boarded and skim-coated plaster walls, and whimsical windows that keep things light and bright.
“It’s old-fashioned, comfortable … a little bit unpredictable,” Dixon says. And what could be better in one’s own backyard?
ARCHITECT Stan Dixon, D. Stanley Dixon Architect. (404) 574-1430; dsdixonarchitect.com.