Bostonians build their perfect retreat in Maine, Stoneview Spa.

The striking 14-foot-tall, solid quarried granite column atop a saw-cut natural boulder.

When Julien Jalbert, an architect and design studio leader at Knickerbocker Group (knickerbockergroup.com), began work on Stoneview Spa, he had only notes from an initial client meeting to go on. He knew that the Boston-based clients wanted a relaxing place surrounded by nature where they could unwind and rejuvenate from their fast-paced urban lives. In particular, they wanted a gym, sauna, steam room and outdoor dining and kitchen space. In tandem with the new spa build was an existing 100-plus-year-old barn on the property that the clients wanted to keep. Using the nearby river as a guide, the Knickerbocker team set out to create a haven that connects to and celebrates Maine’s natural beauty.

All of the building’s features blend seamlessly into the landscape.

The barn was moved about 100 feet up a hill, given a new foundation and a complete renovation with glue-laminated timbers and a big glass curtain wall that added a cool modern flair to its otherwise antique beauty.

A similar approach of mixing modernity and antiquity was taken when constructing the spa. Upon approach, Jalbert wanted the exterior to feel like an old Irish cottage nestled in the hillside. To achieve a nested feel, the team removed a significant amount of solid rock to recess the structure into the hillside and make the building feel less tall. When it came to the interior, which the Knickerbocker Group also did, the team and the clients explored a natural palette of soft finishes.

The wood floor is made from reclaimed wood custom-engineered for a rustic, unrefined feel.

A reclaimed wooden floor was custom-engineered for a rustic, unrefined feel full of life and character. For the walls, they chose Venetian plaster, which offers a warm aesthetic compared to painted drywall. The ceilings are stained Douglas fir for a pop of contrast that also showcases the personality of the wood within all of its grain and knots. Mainequarried granite and red cedar roofing and trim help foster a calm connection between the indoors and outdoors. Sleek, cool steel adds modernity and miscellany.

One outstanding feature of the spa is its striking 14-foot-tall solid quarried granite column anchor perched atop a saw-cut natural boulder. “That column was originally going to be a stone veneered column until Dan Ucci, owner of Ledge Hill Creations, suggested we make it one big rock. He and the landscape architect found the right stones...it took about a week to cut four feet off the top of a huge boulder with a giant wire saw,” says Jalbert.

Every room has a stunning view of either the water or the woods thanks to prominent floor-to-ceiling glass walls.

The spa and the barn together took approximately three years to complete, a longer time frame than is typical for Knickerbocker Group. However, this project functioned more like a commercial building because of the complicated detailing and nuanced hidden structural coordination. “Because there’s so much glass, we needed a lot of steel to ensure it wouldn’t fall over in a windstorm. There was a lot of coordination in the detailing, structural systems and mechanicals,” says Jalbert.

The antique barn with a new glass curtain wall.

But now, at long last, the Bostonians who are Mainers at heart have a multifunctional, indoor-outdoor retreat truly built for tranquility. The client often plays his saxophone from the second-floor balcony, its soothing melodies resonating and harmonizing with the sounds of the land.