ALPINE NOIR
A PACIFIC NORTHWEST SKI CHALET WITH INTERNATIONAL ROOTS
WRITTEN BY MARESA GIOVANNINI
PHOTOGRAPHY BY MIKOLA ACCUARDI
Designer Casey Keasler loves a home with personality. The founder and principal designer of Portland, Oregon-based Casework Interior Design brings that passion to her company’s mission: to translate personalities into environments for everyday living. For a getaway at the base of Mount Hood, Keasler turned the concept of a traditional cabin on its head with this modern, globally inspired incarnation: Alpine Noir.
The 1,850-square-foot, three-story structure with a sloping roof by Keystone Architecture was built by Ethan Beck Homes. “My client has an engineer background, and the profile of the house was concepted as way to shed snow easily,” says Keasler. But her clients, a family who had just spent three years living in Amsterdam, wanted a getaway that was not only practical, but also reminded them fondly of their time abroad.
“We love working with a client who has a glimmer of a vision or an idea of what they want to create; it can be a phrase or even a vibe,” she says. In this case, Keasler worked with the homeowners to create a vision centered around three keywords: alpine, funk, and gezellig.
“Alpine because of the location, and it felt more specific and European than ski town,” says Keasler. “Funk, because why not? This is a place to have fun and they wanted to exude fun. Gezellig because of their time abroad. [It’s] a Dutch word that translates better as a vibe or feel than a single word. But it loosely means inviting, cozy, warmth.” At this chalet, gezellig looks like “gathering around the fireplace after a cold day on the mountain with a cup of cocoa.”
She set to work on a warm, modern aesthetic using a classic palette of custom black inside and out (coined Casework Black), white, and whitewashed wood. Layering that foundation with thoughtful color and pattern created a worldly, collected look.
Brass lighting from Portland-based Schoolhouse was used throughout. White quartz counters and black laminate cabinets kept costs down. A mix of flooring materials were used to suit each space: whitewashed maple wood on the main floor; wool carpet in the bedroom, stairs, and hallway; ceramic tile in the bathroom; and commercial rubber flooring in the entry, “because, snow boots,” says the designer.
The streamlined interiors and finishes are met with vibrant textiles including vintage Moroccan rugs. Although Keasler sourced vintage goods (for gezellig), custom is one of the best ways to imbue authentic personality. “I’m always working with my clients to create something that is unique and special for them, an heirloom piece,” she says. For this project it wasn’t just an heirloom piece—it was also the pièce de résistance of the home: the sectional in bloom.
Keasler started with a low-cost bare Ikea sectional that offered the right silhouette. Along with the homeowners, she scoured free high-resolution downloads from Amsterdam’s national Rijksmuseum—“Still Life with Flowers in a Glass Vase by Jan Davidsz de Heem was the favorite,” she says. Keasler photoshopped the image to create a custom pattern, had it printed on heavyweight canvas, then upholstered to the sectional for a bold marriage of the project’s style keywords.
“I want to challenge people who are starting out on this journey of working with a designer to take time and explore what home means to them,” says Keasler. “Home is so unique to everyone, and creating a space that is an expression of someone’s personality takes showing a bit of that personality for it to exist in home. This is partly why artists’ and creatives’ homes are so interesting to get a glimpse of—those people typically aren’t afraid to put their personality into it. And it shows!”
