Scandinavian Farmstead Blends Modern with Rural and Rustic

A Modern Vision That Honors the Past

Hilltop Farm is located in a rural development just outside Grand Rapids, Michigan. The land was once used as a goat farm, and while the goats have long since gone, the old, weathered fence that kept the goats from wandering remains. As soon as they saw the location, Becky and Nate knew they wanted to build a home that would honor and reflect the history of the property. They worked with Architect Chad Gould, of Progressive AE, to help bring their design vision to life.

More Than a Farmhouse

With the intention of capturing the character of a working farmstead and not just an individual farmhouse, Becky and Nate created four distinct barn-like structures. The Living Barn houses the living room, kitchen, dining room, and lower-level family room. The Sleeping Barn has two bedrooms up and two bedrooms down. The three-stall garage is called The Storage Barn. And the Adventure Barn is where all the fun stuff is kept, like kayaks, snowboards, bikes, and woodworking tools.

Bringing Modern to Michigan

One motivation in establishing Hygge Custom Homes was to create another option for homeowners looking for a type of architecture somewhat rare to Grand Rapids.

“It’s not that nobody is building contemporary homes in this area, but overall, Western Michigan is relatively traditional.” Becky says. “If you look at the homes featured in the local Parade of Homes tour, the majority of the houses look pretty much the same.”

To achieve the modern aesthetic they were looking for on the exterior, the couple combined uncomplicated shapes, steel roofing, natural cedar siding, and expansive Marvin Essential™ Casement windows.

“When we compared Marvin windows and doors to other competitors, it was night and day. We just really loved the clean sightlines and modern look of Marvin products compared to how chunky the other offerings we looked at were.”