AS HE DROVE HOME from work one evening along Vermont’s Route 100, Andrew Volansky noticed flames from a massive fire. The next day, when the architect arrived at his office in Stowe, he learned that the fire, started by a propane tank, had destroyed a house his firm had renovated in Sterling Valley, some 10 miles from Route 100. Fortunately, no one was harmed.

“The homeowners showed up at our office the morning after the fire, wearing brand-new clothes — because they’d lost everything — and asked us to help figure out the best thing to do,” says Volansky, who works for Cushman Design Group. Ultimately, the owners decided to build a new home based on the original structure: a 12-sided form inspired by the architecture of Shaker barns.