Watershed House sits concealed behind a dense screen of greenery, its low roofline and timber beams hinting at what lies beyond. Built in 1953 by its first owner, engineer Ernest Wellwood, the house was designed by a UBC architecture student working in the spirit of Ron Thom, and has since been significantly reshaped by the family that would call it home for nearly four decades.

Inside, Watershed House reveals itself slowly rather than all at once. Rift-cut white oak floors and painted fir beams run beneath a ceiling that seems to float — a transformation, as the story goes, from a single decision to lighten the once-dark timber. Clerestory glazing draws deep, low winter light into the main living spaces, while a tiled entrance flows quietly down the hall, past a wall-hung toilet and into the practical rhythm of daily life. Built-in cabinetry throughout adds both convenience and a sense of spaciousness, and the quiet hush between floors — the product of careful sound insulation — lends the home an unusual calm.