Forgoing grand gestures, the focus of the building is on the creation of intimate moments, inspired by the sense of enclosure provided by the pines that gather on the edge of the dunes. “We had a discussion early on with the client around what it would mean to create something fora site that is coastal but also forested,” says Tim Hay, co-founder of Fearon Hay. “We developed a design direction around a ‘cabin in the woods’ concept.” Approaching the house through the trees, the timber structure that nestles into the gently undulating sand dunes could momentarily be mistaken for a barn, until the precision of the detailing marks the building as a distinctly more contemporary, considered entity.