Water Home

Tugging the banks of Lady Bird Johnson Lake in Austin and perpendicularly aligned along the scenic curve of Broken Arrow road is a spectacular residence, finely chiselled in a sleek avatar and habituating modern features. Nestled in a delightful waterscape with blooming natural vegetation all around, the Water Home designed by XXXX Architects is a one-of-a kind, all-inclusive contemporary dwelling tailored to unwind, groove and chill.

Water Home presents a leisure living canvas, with spaces expertly arranged in three levels on a terrain that runs down to a stunning lake. Sailing through the winding arcs of the waterway, you arrive at a boat deck protruding from the house. From the lake, the residence imparts a majestic vibe, with its upper tiers flaunting their terraced sun decks like a magnificent yacht in a harbour.

This luxurious home is designed to entertain with indoor and outdoor spaces that imbue resort-style living with modern, high-class elements. The staggered stepping forms of the residence become the perfect hang-out decks for sunset dinners and parties, along with a dreamy pool, harbouring your privacy and overlooking Lady Bird Johnson Lake.

The gorgeous setting of Horseshoe Bay, great for lakeside activities, golf and scenic landscapes, weaves a captivating layout for Water Home. The house design takes inspiration from nautical elements that unravel in its exterior form, interior expressions, and spatial configurations. The building’s projected style with decks dramatizes as a luxury yacht, with interiors akin to a cruise ship motif. Every room carries the spirit of elite hotels with vivid character and high-class finishes, accompanied by the architecture staging a vivifying ambience.

At its plan level, the residence trails a linear site, elongated towards the lake, with two prime levels of living space and a boat-deck level adjoining the lake. The living spaces are characterized around a central atrium, with rectilinear volumes establishing rooms that integrate private zones inward and public zones outward.

As you drive up the road, you arrive at an entrance porchway stacked along with a 3-bay garage. Moving in, the design unravels as an open floor plan with large accordion windows capturing scenic views of the surrounding landscape. The first level embraces a central foyer, kitchen and dining, which steps into a sunken family living that further leads to an open patio and outdoor dining space, and then it levels down to a tempting plunge pool. From there, a stairway leads down to the boat/watercraft deck. An L-shaped staircase leads up the foyer to the second level, which houses a lavish and plush penthouse with a spa-style bathroom, an outdoor bath for star gazing, and a huge private patio overlooking the lake. A gym at the front, along with its own deck, faces the street. Separated by a gallery corridor are a guest suite and a guest room, with private closets and patios bestowing picturesque street views.

Coupling cubic forms with deep recesses and large framed openings and awnings illustrate the exterior look of Water Home. The facades are dominantly dabbed in plain white stucco, and a centrally rising tower as a lighthouse feature above the main door, along with a few prominent walls, are etched in grey tiles. Some of the peripheral walls of the flex room, balcony and garage stand out with wooden facings, adding a nautical theme. Abutting the main door is a compact water feature, a soothing, welcoming element that yields spellbinding refractions at night as a nod to the lake at the other end of the house.

The residence dances with a configurational play of mass and void, defining comfortable contemporary living spaces. The entrance pathway leads to an open porch, wide and spacious like a plaza, which turns to glass-framed garage doors and the main door. Black metal framed windows massively screen the façade at every level while the abode glimmers at night through them. A golf kart ramp runs from the left wing of the garage all the way down to the boat deck. From the lakeside, the projected decks are exposed as two bold white slabs floating in the air, and the glazing below them can completely open to merge indoor and outdoor areas. The plunge pool edges out into a waterfall feature, lacing an aqua wall which shimmers at night, adding a surreal effect of pool waters merging with the lake.

With a neutral-themed palette and customized items, the ravishing interiors add a distinct flavour to the living experience. From a blend of floor finishes such as wood planks, polished concrete and terrazzo tiles to custom cabinets, wardrobes, shelves and racks, the interiors dab an expressive overlay, making spaces come to life. The various patterns of LED lights as spots, strips, coves and hanging chandeliers illume a sparkling aura to the inside and outside. Sequences of large windows seep in natural light from various angles, casting the interiors with dynamic tint and vigour.