Adrienne and David Marcus’s kids, now ages 10 and 13, got quite the surprise after visiting David’s uncle and grandmother in Owl’s Head in August 2021. Rather than driving back down the coast to their home in Bedford, Massachusetts, the family headed west toward the White Mountains. The destination? South Bethel, where a concrete hole in the ground, a fabulous view, and the promise of a ski house awaited.

Earlier that year, spurred by the pandemic realization that childhood is fleeting, the couple purchased a densely wooded three-acre plot on which to build a second home. “We stayed in multiple ski towns in the Northeast over the years, and Sunday River was always special to us,” David says. “We decided to invest in family time and memories.”

After a few failed attempts at securing a place, David and their real estate agent drove up an unmarked dirt road and hiked through the woods to the summit of the plot in question. “I was sold the moment I turned around and saw the view to the White Mountains,” David says, noting that South Bethel properties are not typically known for capturing such stunning mountain views.

The couple worked closely with developers Rob Warren and Mark Ivanov, who are the co-owners of Northridge Group, to customize their home. The 3,400-square-foot mountain abode is one of 14 in the 40-acre subdivision. These homes are architecturally consistent, boasting a rustic contemporary style, but each is unique. “We’re always open to buyers putting their stamp on it,” Warren says. “We never do the same house twice.”

The couple handpicked the aged granite slabs that lead from the driveway to the home, which is clad in vertical board-and-batten siding painted in Benjamin Moore’s Dragon’s Breath, a deep, dark brown. “We all painted sample wood blocks on a tarp in our front yard to find the right color,” Adrienne says. A standing-seam metal roof accentuates the gable roof forms, black aluminum deck rails with steel cables add contemporary styling, and the stone-covered foundation ties to the stone steps and walls, connecting the dwelling to the site.

Jamie Keskin, who first worked with the couple when they built their Bedford home, detailed the interior with them. The concept? Moody ski chalet. “They wanted a funky, modern feel rather than a traditional Maine ski cabin,” the designer says. The resulting interiors are comfortable and inviting, with quirky touches that enhance an otherwise timeless aesthetic.

The covered front porch steps into a wood-lined mudroom with Prussian blue built-in cubbies resting on an eye-catching live-edge bench, playing off the rustic landscape. Opposite, a freestanding bentwood bench infuses midcentury modern sensibility—Keskin sprinkles midcentury silhouettes throughout—while a sepia-toned print of a vintage ski lift establishes a sense of place. “We didn’t want kitschy decor, but still wanted to acknowledge that it’s a ski house,” Adrienne says.

Beyond the parkas and ski boots, the home opens into a light-filled, 22-foot-high cathedral-ceilinged great room with dramatic views of Mount Washington Valley. Horizontal planks of knotty pine completely envelop the space, bestowing a woodsy warmth that channels the Montana lodge–like feel the owners were after. Again, the family got to work staining pieces of pine, this time in their Bedford basement, to find a tone that resembles white oak.

A sky-high, ironstone-clad chimney with a reclaimed beam mantel anchors the seating area, where a leather sectional sits atop a family-friendly rug with vintage appeal. A substantial oak coffee table that won’t suffer from propped-up feet services both a midcentury-style chaise perfect for curling up with a book by the window and a shaggy sheepskin lounge chair. A side table with funny hoofed feet is a quick hit of quiet whimsy.

The green kitchen brings the outdoors in with color. “We started out thinking about wood cabinetry but moved to a painted finish when we decided to go all the way with the wood walls,” Keskin says. Subway tile with dark gray grout runs to the ceiling on the perimeter, creating a timeless, no-fuss backdrop. Brass sconces and wood shelves add warmth around a window that frames the wooded view like a painting. Local weathered gran- ite countertops impart a pulled-from-the-outdoors vibe as well. “It mimics the look of soapstone but has a much easier upkeep,” David says.

Keskin went simple in the dining area, surrounding a reclaimed pine table with modern Windsor chairs with a wire-brushed black stain. “Black contrasts with the wood tone and connects to the black windows,” she says. Meanwhile, vintage paintings from a local antique store—a watercolor of sheep and an oil of a landscape in a carved frame—add the sense of age achieved with vintage rugs elsewhere. When the weather’s nice—the family visits year-round and spends two weeks here every August— there’s dining al fresco on the deck overlooking the views.

The team carried horizontal wood planking into the primary bedroom on the other side of the house to keep up the cozy factor. A midcentury-meets-Scandinavian spindle bed by Ethnicraft feels smooth and pared back against the rough boards, while the nightstands’ gray wood tone contrasts the bed’s whiter wood tone. “All the knots in the wallboards supply so many colors and tones to work with,” the designer says. “The nightstands grab a gray moment from the pine that also contrasts it.”

Keskin amps up the contrast in the primary bath, where color comes from hunter green Fireclay shower tiles. The mix of brass faucets, black metal shower doors, and basketweave floor tile show Keskin’s predilection for blending historical elegance, industrial flavor, and tradition, while the weathered granite atop the medium brown wood vanity brings the wooded landscape in. There’s an outdoor shower too, a surprise for Adrienne from David, who snuck it into the plan.

Despite limited square footage on the second floor from pushing up the great room ceiling, there are two guest bedrooms, which like the primary bedroom feature a wall of wood; each has an upholstered headboard, and they share a bath. There was a bit of a snafu surrounding the bath: the floor tiles were installed in a contemporary geometric pattern as opposed to the preferred plaid one. “Adrienne and David painfully ripped it out, bought more, and we had it rein- stalled properly,” Keskin says. “In the end, it was worth it.”

Woodsy wallpapers were the starting point for the kids’ bunk room and the double twin bedroom on the lower level. Pendleton blankets and a lighthearted snowy ski print that Adrienne found on Etsy layer color atop the tree-patterned papers. A major Etsy enthusiast, Adrienne scoured the site for a vintage map of Bethel for the downstairs seating area too, while the vintage snowshoes hail from an antique shop in Vermont.

The open hangout space is wrapped in the same horizontal pine planks as the great room, although the vibe is more loungey night- club than mountain lodge lobby. A built-in wet bar with a live-edge wood top lines one side of the room while a low-slung sectional invites lolling around, preferably after a soak in the hot tub on the patio. Like the firepit, the hot tub was a must.

Between the home’s “come in and chill” atmosphere, its ample guest accommodations, and the area’s plethora of outdoor activities, the entire family is enchanted. “We made a deal with the kids,” Adrienne says. “As long as they don’t complain about coming up here, then we won’t rent it.”