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Usually, a move involves a change of scenery: new neighbors, landmarks, ways of being.
But after 24 years in the Annapolis Roads Community, Rod and Robin Jabin didn’t want to leave their beloved street. The family business, Bert Jabin Yacht Yard, was just a short drive away and Lyon Drive, where they had raised their two children, had so much history.
So when a house five lots down hit the market, they acted quickly, enlisting Purple Cherry Architects to design their waterfront dream. “We had driven around and seen Cathy Purple Cherry’s houses, and I loved the staircases,” Robin said. “That’s always been one of my favorite things.”
Set on a slim peninsula overlooking the Severn River and Heron Lake, the plot offered the architect little margin. To avoid lengthy public hearings and maximize the incredible views, Purple Cherry adopted a linear plan that—inconceivably—tucked 6,500 square feet of living space into an area just one-room deep. Her other challenge was mitigating the property’s severe grade, which placed the front door at basement level.
“You want the entrance to fall away into the landscape, but also to be elegant,” Purple Cherry explained. A ground-level entry wouldn’t do the gabled roof justice. So Purple Cherry added a second-floor portico 9-feet up, with a wrought iron railing and stonework to eliminate any hint of “beach house.”
On the interiors, Lisa Publicover took the lead, with Joni Zimmerman in charge of the open kitchen. “It was a true collaboration,” Publicover said. “Robin had definite ideas; she knew all the fabric lines and furniture.” And they shared a love of color—deep blues and greens that dress every pillow, chair and drapery.
The screened porch was the only exception to their scheme. There, the duo opted for neutral tones, so the scenery could speak for itself. With the warmth of a wood fire, regular wildlife sightings and the moon’s reflections on the water, it’s become the Jabins’ refuge. “We’ve never spent so much time outside,” Robin said.
But even inside, nature is kept close: bare, outsize windows turn one’s gaze to the horizon, and rooms transition without seam, mirroring the limitless blue. “I love the wow that happens when you open the door,” Purple Cherry said. Dining room flows to kitchen, to great room, with the water always beckoning.
Design-wise, another favorite is the powder room, with its whimsical wallpaper and funky sconces, from Jones Lighting in Baltimore. “My husband accuses me of being an old lady,” Robin said—owing to a certain Majolica collection in the kitchen. “But the powder room is proof that I’m not!”
And so is the the tenant living in the baseboard. “Have you seen the mouse?” Publicover asks, in the middle of the tour. Of course, she’s not referring to a living pest. The mouse was a special idea Zimmerman came up with, a signature piece by kitchen cabinet maker Woodland Furniture. “I was scared … I didn’t know what my husband was going to say,” Robin confessed. And at first, Rod said nothing. But one night, he couldn’t take the suspense anymore. “Have you seen the mouse?” he asked his wife. “He thought the joke was on me!” Robin said.
It’s the same life—full of jokes—in a new home, where bay and earth collide. The muskrat eats the fish, the sun illumes the docks and trees; the Jabins take it all in, from their sanctum on the point.
RESOURCES:
ARCHITECTURE: Purple Cherry Architects (Cathy Purple Cherry AIA), purplecherry.com, Annapolis, Maryland | INTERIOR DESIGN: Lisa Publicover, lpiddesign.com, Annapolis, Maryland | KITCHEN DESIGNER: Design Solutions, Inc. (Joni Zimmerman), dsikitchens.com, Annapolis, Maryland | BUILDER: Bayview Builders (Dave Carlisle), bayviewbuildersmd.com, Annapolis, Maryland | LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT: Heike Nolker, heikenolker.com, Annapolis, Maryland | LANDSCAPE INSTALLATION: Evergro Landscaping, evergrolandscaping.com, Glenn Dale, Maryland | COUNTERTOPS: In Home Stone, inhomestone.com, Annapolis, Maryland | FLOOR TILE: Compass Stone & Tile Studio, cst-studio.com, Annapolis, Maryland | KITCHEN BACKSPLASH: Atlas Marble & Tile, Inc., atlastile.com, Arnold, Maryland | LIGHTING: Jones Lighting Specialists, joneslighting.com, Baltimore, Maryland | HARDWOOD FLOORS: Burchette & Burchette Hardwood Floors, realhardwoodfloors.com, Elkin, North Carolina | DOORS AND MILLWORK: TW Perry, twperry.com, Annapolis, Maryland | APPLIANCES: The Appliance Source, theappliancesource.com, Annapolis, Maryland
Annapolis Home Magazine
Vol. 8, No. 6 2017