The 1,500 square foot house on the upper slopes of Roberts Creek had a great view from the sundeck, land for a substantial garden and an efficient design layout. But the house had fallen into disrepair, and the vinyl siding needed replacing along with better insulation and a new roof. That didn’t deter Klaus Ferlow and Rose, his wife of 56 years, when they moved to the Sunshine Coast.
As an herbalist and author of a book about a medicinal tree, Neem: Nature’s Healing Gift to Humanity, Klaus was clear on what he needed in a home: a country-style place to live surrounded by the garden of his dreams. The couple liked the fixer-upper, bought it and set about hiring local tradespeople to bring it up to their standards.
Andy Koberwitz of Dakota Ridge Builders stepped up.
“He’s a super guy,” Klaus notes, and the new owners were delighted with the result that was transformed in record time—from the fall of 2019 to spring 2020. In addition to the new siding and insulation, the house acquired vaulted ceilings, a metal roof, skylights, a custom kitchen and dining area with hardwood floors. The two bedrooms with ensuite bathrooms are now roomy and comfortable while a small office serves Klaus for his writing and research.
“Come in and share the joy of living,” exclaims the inscription over the front porch. Visitors enter by the solid wooden door handcrafted by Bob Whitehead featuring a carved relief of an eagle gripping a salmon in its talons.
Stepping inside, visitors discover a breakfast nook tucked away, custom made for coziness by Klaus’s friend and master carpenter, Werner Roewekamp.
In the custom kitchen, with its marble counters and glossy tile backsplash, Klaus has installed Miele appliances that offer efficient cooking surfaces. German-style tilt-and-turn windows open easily for good ventilation; the simulated wooden frames resist weathering.
A Robert Bateman limited-edition print of a bald eagle hangs in the living room among the eclectic interior decoration of Persian rugs, an onyx table and chests. An empty space in the centre of the home awaits the construction of a crowning piece—a Kachelofen—a masonry and tile stove that will heat the whole house once it is built and stoked.
“The local trades do an excellent job,” he says. “I don’t understand why people order from off the Coast.” He’s keen to tell Coast Life his list: the seven wooden doors and Velux windows came from Sunco Building Supplies in Sechelt; Shane Wilson Roofing is from Halfmoon Bay; Pierce Drywall from Pender Harbour; the kitchen counter tops from Sundog Stone in Gibsons; and excavation by J.Flumerfelt in Halfmoon Bay. The list continues.
By the living room’s picture window, a parade of 30 plants stretches toward the light.
“I need plants, indoors and outdoors,” Klaus says, pointing to a favourite, a 25-year-old healthy jade plant by the door. “I need fruit trees, greenery—I need flowers.”
On a wide sundeck that overlooks a fenced-in vegetable garden he can enjoy his mornings watching the flowers bloom and the birds at play. A log bench on the sundeck celebrates the life of Rose. The home had been transformed just the way the couple wanted but Rose did not have long to enjoy it before passing away. Klaus has built a memorial to her at the foot of the garden.
Although the chilly spring weather inhibited his many plantings—he had 125 perennials just waiting for planting at the time this article was written—some hardy blooms grow beside his porch steps. Several varieties of colourful moss and lichen cover the many rocks on the property.
The home seems to work in harmony with the outdoors, the way Klaus wants it. A path leads from the porch down to a gazebo that houses a pizza oven. It’s a great place for a party, he explains, with its lighting, a heat lamp and picnic benches for visitors to sit and enjoy a homemade pizza. He looks forward to the summer when it’s safe to invite a few friends once more and he can celebrate his cozy country home.
