This article originally appeared on Houzz.com.

In most scenarios, when a developer buys an older home on a large piece of property, the general rule is scrape, subdivide, build and sell. But when the principals of the Bellevue, Washington, building and development firm LimeLite Development came across a house set on 1.25 acres in nearby Sammamish, they realized they had stumbled upon a historic diamond in the rough.

Houzz at a Glance
Location: Sammamish, Washington
Who lives here: A private homeowner
Size: 1,500 square feet (139 square meters); three bedrooms, two bathrooms
BEFORE: The neglected house, it turned out, was designed in the Usonian style in 1965 by the late Seattle architect Milton Stricker, one of Frank Lloyd Wright’s apprentices, and constructed by builder Ray Brandes, whose own 1952 Wright-designed home sits on an adjacent property.

Related: Step Inside a Frank Lloyd Wright House Saved from Demolition

Stricker was a proponent of Wright’s simple Usonian home designs, characterized by indoor-outdoor connections; broad, overhanging rooflines; carports; radiant floor heating; and L-shaped floor plans. Stricker incorporated all these elements into a home for Barbara and James Taylor, set on a forested lot.

BEFORE: When LimeLite Development, a firm known for its green building practices, acquired the house, it had sat unoccupied for years, and the landscape had become overgrown, as seen here. It also lacked a historic overlay or designation, making it ripe for demolition and redevelopment.

“Financially, it would have made sense to tear down the home and build three new houses on the property,” says Todd Karam, LimeLite’s development director. “But when we realized the historical value of the house, it was a no-brainer to do restoration. It was the right thing to do for the community and for architectural history.”

Karam, who served as project manager for the restoration, located original blueprints as well as correspondence between Stricker and the Taylors. The Washington State Department of Archaeology and Historic Preservation also confirmed the house as a Stricker design.

AFTER: LimeLite’s design and building team restored the house with just a few tweaks for modern living preferences. The bottom line? The house had a buyer within three weeks of project completion, one who was only too happy to live in a polished historic jewel.

Here, the L-shaped home, with the living room volume on the right and the master suite on the left, glows at dusk. Restoration included sanding and resealing the wood exterior and interior cladding, as well as taking apart the original glass doors and windows to fix them.

Related: Find a Local General Contractor for Your Project

The landscape was also restored by clearing out the overgrowth and replacing the original lawn area with a combination of mulch and river rock, interspersed with shade-loving native plants.

Landscape design: Root of Design; landscape installation: Leonardi Landscaping

A new aggregate driveway replaces the original dirt and gravel drive, and leads to the carport. A workshop sits on the left. Clerestory windows, another hallmark of Wrightian-inspired Usonian residences, bring daylight into the bathrooms and laundry area. At night, they help illuminate the driveway.

The original integrally colored scored concrete flooring flows to walkways and patios, linking indoors to out. The flooring, colored a Wright-approved Cherokee red, was polished and resealed.

All of the bedrooms and the main living spaces have access to the outside through glass doors.

“This is not a large house,” Karam says. “The secondary bedrooms are maybe 9 by 9 feet, but they seem larger because of the extension of the flooring to the outdoors and the use of floor-to-ceiling glass.”

Viewed from the carport, the original building materials — concrete block and wood siding — have stood the test of time. LimeLite replaced the original front door, to which time had not been kind.

The red pot was placed strategically to catch rainwater from the roof’s downspout.

Front door: Frank Lumber Co.; pot: Leonardi Landscaping

BEFORE: The original living room sported a built-in banquette and bookshelves that emphasized the home’s horizontal lines.

AFTER: LimeLite kept the original shelving and the banquette, but refreshed the seating with new cushions.

Related: Revamp your Bedroom with a New Platform Bed

Soffits are uplit to emphasize the ceiling design and height.

The mitered corner window is another Usonian touch.

Cushions: HM Duke Design
LimeLite worked with Seattle Swank, an interior design and staging company, to furnish the house in a mix of classic and contemporary pieces that reference mid-1960s style, in a color palette inspired by the home’s woodsy setting.

Free-standing sofa: Area 51; Hans J. Wegner white Shell chairs: Carl Hansen & Son; coffee table: Moe’s Home Collection; area rug, footstools and floor lamps: Ikea

The living room opens onto a patio and dining area. The Danish modern-style credenza against the wall on the left came with the house.

The dining area is located between the living room and kitchen.

Dining chairs: Vitra New Panton; dining table: Area 51

BEFORE: The original kitchen was closed off from the rest of the house.

AFTER: The only major architectural modification LimeLite made to the interior was the removal of the two walls that surrounded the kitchen, opening it up to the dining area and creating space for an island.

“We had to balance restoration versus how people live today,” Karam says, “so we didn’t do a literal restoration in the kitchen and the bathrooms. We decided to make those areas appropriate for today’s lifestyle.”

The new island with waterfall countertop provides extra room for storage, prep and seating. New custom elm cabinetry warms the setting.

Countertops: Pental Granite & Marble; barstools: Area 51

The corner window looks out on the back patio and the carport.

Appliances: Monogram; faucet: Grohe

A small home office is warmed by the original shelving, built-in desk and shiplap wood paneling. Stricker wrapped the desk around the corner and added a mitered corner window to bring breathing space to the room.

Desk chair: Eames dowel leg side chair; armchairs: Room & Board; table lamp: Ikea

The master bedroom features a Stricker-designed floating desk, a functional solution for a relatively small space.

Bed, bedding, area rug and table lamps: West Elm; desk chairs: Eames dowel leg side chair; armchair and ottoman: Room & Board; nightstands: Blu Dot

The master bedroom’s closet includes built-in drawers.

“The closet system, including the accordion doors, was in pristine condition,” Karam says. “It was built so well that it was fully functional 50 years later.”

Mirror: CB2

Photo by LimeLite Development – Look for midcentury bedroom pictures

The master bathroom was updated with new plumbing fixtures and custom elm cabinetry. The home’s original radiant-floor heating system still worked, as did the baseboard heaters, installed in strategic spots throughout the house for extra warmth.

Lillis tile: Daltile; faucet and showerhead: Grohe; George Kovacs wall lamp: Minka Group

A Stricker-designed chair provides seating in a secondary bedroom, which also features original shelving.

Chair cushion: HM Duke Design

The other secondary bedroom.

Table and chairs: The Land of Nod

The secondary bathroom was also updated with new plumbing, tile, lighting and custom elm cabinetry. A clerestory window provides natural light.

Lillis tile: Daltile; faucet: Grohe; George Kovacs wall lamp: Minka Group

The post-restoration floor plan reveals the new, open kitchen layout.