Skylights Bring in Space as Well as Light
Skylights are such a blessing in the Northwest where we are hungry for the sun on so many winter days. We added several to our own home, and we all really benefit from the light.
The client who requested the windows pictured here spends a lot of time in sunny Bend and grew up in California so she really misses the sun. When we were done she had lots of sun and an added sense of space in her kitchen. With no room to go out, going up through the attic with the skylight shaft adds the feel of additional square footage.
There is some interesting geometry contained in the walls of the skylight shafts of the kitchen and stairwell lights because the ceiling openings were made larger than the windows to allow for added light entry. The alternative would have been to make the ceiling opening a polygon without square corners, but because of the proximity of the cabinets in the kitchen and the walls in the stairwell, square lines provided a better design.
The kitchen skylights had the added benefit of being operable so the kitchen can be easily vented on those occasional hot days or when that accidental pot overheats. We have done many projects for this client over the years and she says the skylights were by far the best investment!
