Expansive windows and clean lines make our AIA Editor's Choice award winner stand out.

The kitchen’s curved shape called for custom cabinetry. It also required that the vent hood be installed without interfering with the soffit lighting above the stove and cabinetry area.

John and Reiko Lewis spent 20 years admiring their future home from afar.

“We would see the house on the hill as we drove down Kalanianaole Highway, and I would always look at it and say, ‘You know, that’s an interesting-looking house,’” John says.

The couple lived in Japan and made frequent visits to Hawaii for vacation. Each time they came to the Islands, they would notice the structure. Then, in 2005, the Lewises decided to move to Hawaii permanently. And the “interesting” house became their home. “A friend of ours is an agent and we happened to see this house in the listings,” John says. “Turned out it was the house on Kalanianaole. We basically fell in love with it.”

A roll-away shelving unit doubles as a kitchen island and holds pots and pans for easy access.

The Lewises loved the home’s location, its overall design and its history: It was built 45 years ago as a teaching vehicle and design project for University of Hawaii architecture students working under architect Vladimir Ossipoff. The front of the structure featured original, 25-foot, floor-to ceiling windows, expansive enough to feature a panoramic view of Maunalua Bay. The main living area had an open-concept floor plan rarely found in homes built in Hawaii in the 1960s. Rather than a more conventional square or rectangular footprint, the kitchen was designed in the shape of a circle. From the driveway looking in, an expansive lanai and interior spiral staircase add to the visual interest.

The place still left a few things to be desired, however. On the third level, the master bedroom connected to a tiny master bath, while the guest bedroom featured a much larger bathroom. The front door took visitors immediately into the living space instead of allowing them to linger in the entryway. The outdated kitchen’s countertops sat at awkwardly high levels (48 inches high), rendering their surfaces unusable. The flooring and staircase needed a facelift as well.

The front door area, which features a spiral staircase, lets natural light into the kitchen.

Reiko, a certified interior designer, began drawing up the plans. The couple made a few improvements themselves. But they quickly realized they’d need an architect to coordinate and execute the renovation. Enter Sandi Quildon of PQ Architects. “I heard she and her firm had quite a good reputation,” Reiko says. The couple interviewed three architects before choosing Quildon. It turned out to be a great move. “Before Sandi, we had a problem finding the right team,” John says, but once Quildon was on board, things got a lot easier.






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