A BUNGALOW of seven gables

A 1915 Arts & Crafts house on Bainbridge Island, never substantially altered since it was built, is restored with regard for its history, architectural scale, and original style.

- BRIAN D. COLEMAN

Heavily forested, Bainbridge Island is a 65-square-mile island in Puget Sound in the state of Washington. When Jill and Dean Sterrett went shopping for a new home near Seattle, they chose Bainbridge with its bluffs and bays, inlets and streams. The 35-minute ferry ride from downtown, they thought, would be more enjoyable than a traffic-clogged commute. The rural atmosphere appealed to them, more so than did shopping centers and suburban sprawl.

The two were thrilled when they saw the modest bungalow set high above the water. Dean and Jill had restored a small Craftsman house in California and they liked the straightforward styles of the times. This setting was magical; hidden in a clearing deep in the woods, amongst ferns and moss-covered trees, the house overlooked a bay and the Olympic Mountains beyond. The bungalow had an honest charm, having not been altered in any substantial way since it was built in 1915. A wide porch wrapped around the front, facing sunsets. Inside, a river-rock fireplace anchored the living room, which retained aged fir trim.