Where did they find space for a new family room and patio? An old basement

Sunset, Feb, 1988

Where did they find space for a new family room and patio? An old basement

Unearthing a basement wall helped turn a dark and gloomy space into a sun-filled family room that opens onto a small patio. Before, natural light entered the room only through a slender head-height window. Excavating to the basement's floor level made room for a 10-foot-long wall of windows and French doors.

From the patio, steps meander up past concrete retaining walls that double as planters. These are filled with delicate-looking plants--hosta (several varieties), rhododendron, star jasmine, and several Japanese snowdrop trees (Styrax japonicus) --to soften the mass of the concrete. The steps climb to a first-floor patio paved with concrete and bricks.

Replacing a little-used lawn off the house's living room, the new patio offers an expansive view of Seattle's Lake Washington. For wet-weather shelter, a glass-roofed trellis projects from the end of the house over part of the patio.

Landscape architect Thomas Berger designed the remodel for Michelle and William Krippaehne.

Photo: Concrete steps and planters rise from lower to upper patio. Wisteria at top climbs toward trellis

Photo: Buffet counter--black granite slab set flush in brick wall--doubles as roof of woodshed

Photo: French doors bring air and light into newly carpeted and paneled basement family room