Halyard Studio
House, Marram Flats, Built 2021 (Sample)

Saltcourt House

A one-level house in Marram Flats, turned inward around a court to get out of the wind.

A plain white wall with one wood door. Behind it, low tile roofs ring a court with a fig tree, and dunes meet the sea.Concept image
From outside: One wall, one door

The brief

The site is a level lot on Wrackline Road, a short way behind the dunes. Sand blows across it, the salt air is hard on wood, and the houses on each side are close.

The clients wanted to live outdoors for most of the year without sitting in the wind. They asked for one level, no stairs, and a place to rinse off after the beach.

Client
A private client
Size
2,900 square feet, all on one level
Finished
2021
Court
30 feet wide, with a covered walk on all four sides
Built of
Plastered block, clay tile and stone paving

  • Site plan

    A site plan of the house from above. Four roofs slope in toward a square court with one round tree. The street runs along the bottom.

    Site plan

    A plain wall faces the street. The gate on the west side leads toward the beach.

The idea

We turned the house inward. Four low wings stand around a court, and the court is the main room. To the street the house shows a plain white wall and one door.

A court can be dark in winter, so we cut the model at noon in December. Here the winter sun stands 31 degrees above the horizon. A 9-foot eave throws a shadow 15 feet long.

So we made the court 30 feet wide. The winter sun clears the south wing and still reaches the rooms on the north side.

  • Plan

    A floor plan of four wings around a square court. A covered walk with posts lines the court, and every room opens onto it.

    Floor plan

    Four wings around one court. Every room opens to it.

  • Section

    A cut through the court at noon in midwinter. A dashed line for the sun passes the left eave and reaches the foot of the fig tree.

    Section through the court

    The cut at noon in midwinter. The dashed line is the sun. It clears the south eave and lands at the foot of the fig tree.

Sun study

Follow the sun

Drag the sun to December and watch the shadow stop halfway across the court.

31°COURT 30 FTEAVE 9 FTNORTHSOUTH

The sun at its highest in December. The sun is 31 degrees up. The shadow is 15 feet long and stops halfway across the court.

What was built

The house was finished in 2021. Its walls are block with white lime plaster, and its roofs are clay tile. A covered walk runs around the court, with a fig tree in the middle.

There are three bedrooms, all on one level, and each opens to the court. A gate on the beach side leads to an outdoor shower. Rain from the roofs runs to a tank under the paving.

  • The same house at dusk. Lamps glow under the covered walk around the court.Concept image
    From outside: At dusk
  • The paved court, seen from under the covered walk. White posts hold low tile roofs around a bare fig tree.Concept image
    Outdoor space: The court in winter
  • A white card model of the house on a desk. Four wings and a street wall enclose a court with one small tree.Concept image
    Model: The study model

  • Elevation

    The house from the street: one long, plain wall with a single door. The low roof and the top of the tree show above it.

    Street elevation

    One white wall and one door.

From the journal

  • June 18, 2026

    The low sun of December

    The winter sun sets the size of a court. Here is the sum we did for Saltcourt House. By Calla Verhoeven (Sample)

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