The house at last light from above the approach, its roofs stepping down through the trees, the inlet and the far shore going gold behind it.

Shelter Cove

Central Saanich · New Build · 2025

The lot had just been subdivided, and it was a hard sell: spectacular, but so steep and so wooded that buyers could not picture a house on it. We were asked to draw one. The design is what sold the property — the buyers who answered it became our clients and built it largely as drawn. It stands on a point above Thompson Cove, turned west across the Saanich Inlet, with the ground falling to deep water below.

Builder
Terry Johal Developments
Interior Design
Mari Kushino Design
Photography
Jacob & Jaimie Photography
A double-height living room in pale plaster with an oak mantel and beamed vault, an open stair with a black iron rail beyond, and an arched niche between.
Left: the same room from the hearth, oak beams rising to the ridge and a wall of glass over the cove, green velvet chairs drawn up to it.
Right: a study lined floor to ceiling in dark green cabinetry with a brass library ladder, a cushioned window seat under a black-framed window.
A kitchen with a farmhouse sink under an arched plaster niche and patterned blue tile, a banquette and the water framed in the window beyond.
The length of a dark stone island with cane stools, oak cabinetry to the ceiling and the blue tile running behind.
A working pantry in soft green tile and dark counters, a farmhouse sink beneath a window filled entirely by cut rock.
A wine room lined in pale oak, angled racks and lit shelving to three walls.
A study under a long ridge skylight, desks in a row facing windows to the forest and a glazed room beyond.
A bathroom with a marble-clad tub set into a black-framed window, a long marble counter opposite and an arched steel shower door.
An infinity pool and spa at the edge of the drop, teak loungers alongside, the inlet and the far ridge past standing firs and arbutus.
The roofscape at dusk from higher still, the entry court lit below, the cove and a moored sailboat past the trees.
The house at dusk from across the pool, terraces and stone retaining walls stepping down to the water, forest closing behind.
The house at dusk from across the pool, terraces and stone retaining walls stepping down to the water, forest closing behind.
outdoor patio and infinity edge pool with ocean views in the background
outdoor patio and infinity edge pool with ocean views in the background
outdoor patio with lounge chairs by the pool
pool and lounge chairs overlooking the ocean
Victoria, BC