Historic Home gets Everyday Entry

 I had the opportunity to work at this historic brick home to fix a "remuddling" that was done to it and create an appropriate looking side entry porch fitting with the structure.

New Side Porch and New Entry Door & Windows

A one-story shed roof "storage" area had been added to this amazing brick center hall colonial. (scroll down to see before pics) It was so wrong architecturally, with it's short windows and wall height and "horse run-in shed" roof shape. But it was built poorly and connected to the house with low-pitched roofs that leaked and caused a mold issue. The best answer was to remove it and design a better roof shape that complimented the stately home and reoriented the everyday entry for the folks who live there.

Entry with corner bench & wall hooks

This was a not-so-complicated project that make a HUGE difference. Aesthetically and architecturally- this north end of the house now looks "correct" instead of having a shed unceremoniously tacked on to the north end. Functionally, we moved the entry door to face the parking area and added a new covered porch. On the interior, we added storage for coats, hats, and boots with built in cabinets. We used wood wainscoting, walls hooks, and a corner bench to create a pretty and functional mudroom entry that vibes with the modern needs and the age of the home. Windows were also added upstairs and in the powder room, ceilings were raised, and insulation was installed - fixing some of the old house issues of low, dark, cold spaces. And the gray paint color helped hide the electrical panel. :)

Window added to powder room

Simple updates- while keeping much of what existed
(like flooring and interior doors) can still make a big impact

Overall a complete success and a great update, that looks and feels like it's "always been there"!

BEFORE - back

BEFORE - front

BEFORE - person entry door moved,
but cat door stayed in same location

BEFORE - side view

Porches for the House on the Lake

The work at the family house on the lake is continuing with the framing inspection complete and now roofing and siding being applied and porch floors and roofs built.

Framed New Screened Porch

This house is all about the continuity of the family that has owned it and used it - first as a full time residence of grandparents starting in the 1920s - and now as a seasonal gathering place for extended families of multiple generations from throughout the country. Some aspects of the home that exist and have existed for as long as many can remember were not negotiable to change in the redesign. One of those elements is the green metal roof- which isn't that old, but lends real character to the home. Another is the white cedar siding which is very traditional and likely original to when it was first built before this family even owned it.

The other thing this house is about is gathering and enjoying the lake. This fact makes the back screened porch the most important "room" in the place. As the largest space, it is one of the few that can accommodate a large group- be it baby shower or marriage celebration or weekend reunion. It is literally the best place (other than sitting on the dock?) on the property to view the lake.

I changed the dimensions and orientation of the former screened porch, as well as how it connects to the house. I made it much deeper- before it was under a long continuation of the main roof and was limited to 9'-10" -way too narrow for comfortable outdoor furniture. I also increased the width by 2' and rotated the roof and removed any flat ceiling so the space is vaulted up to 12' tall at the center roof beam.

Framing of the New Screened Porch

Structural Ridge Beam allows for soaring high space

In addition, since I was giving the space it's own lake-facing-gable roof, not sharing the main roof, I could slide the whole space over a bit. This movement accomplished two things: One, even with the new porch 15' deep instead of 10', I could show the Town's Zoning Board that we hardly were building any closer to the edge of the water. This was important as the existing structure was already encroaching on the allowable 75' setback from the rear/lake. The other important gain of sliding the porch toward the east was that I could connect the kitchen to the screened porch. The old plan lacked this connection, so this will be a great change.

The home has a traditional street-side wrap-around front porch which remains and now ties into the new first floor bedroom with a glass door.

Door to Front Wrap-Around Porch from New Bedroom Addition

Wrap-Around Porch ties into new first floor bedroom addition

Lastly, there is a new small side porch that provides a way to get to the yard from the screened porch and from the yard into the kitchen/back of the house. When a porch is higher than 30" above the grade, the code requires a guard rail for safety. Since we don't want to obscure the lake view with a bunch of solid wood posts, I specified a cable railing system that becomes almost invisible and lends a sleek, nautical element on the mostly traditional exterior.

Side Porch connects house to yard and screened porch

Cable railing system

In addition to the functionality of these porches (outdoor rooms!) the site slopes down toward the lake, leaving lots of storage space under the almost 400SF screened porch. Some of this area will be tall and some low to store boats and other gear. The perimeter will have a traditional lattice treatment and a custom hinged door to easily access and keep hidden that storage space.

Lattice Detail (from another project)

Blue House update

First Floor Kitchen space is opened up to Office with beam in ceiling

New Master Bedroom with vaulted ceiling and sunset windows

Work has been progressing at the Blue House next to the School. The windows were installed, as well as rough electrical and plumbing. Then insulation was placed in the cavities of roofs and walls. (Remember all walls also have continuous insulation integral with the sheathing, which is great for better air sealing and reducing thermal bridges.) Exterior trim was installed around windows. Interior sheet rocking of walls and ceilings happened. With that surface applied, one can really see what the rooms will feel like! Next is shingle siding, flooring, painting, finish electric/plumbing, and interior cabinetry! (and the new screened porch those french doors will lead to!)

Back elevation

Site of the future second floor laundry and Master Batrh

Sheet rock on wall in Dressing Room / Walk in Closet/ Master Bathroom

Kitchen! Ready for cabinetry and flooring

Sunny Master Bedroom

Really Custom- photos from various projects

Mexican Tile and Wood Stove w/ Bread Baking compartment
in a Farmhouse Kitchen Addition to an Older Home

It's fun to be an architect, or hire an architect, and work on a design that creates something unique and personal as a result. It's part of why I enjoy being a residential architect. You can find out what the client really wishes they had in their home and build exactly that- a wine cellar? a wood stove to bake bread in? a library for a collection of books? a kitchen from which you can watch the game while cooking? I often urge my clients to dream of what they want from their home and not worry too much about how we get there. Use colors, styles, and materials that you will be happy looking at- for some that is clean and serene with a lot of white and cool colors, others keep wood accents natural and unpainted. And still others enjoy whimsy with bold and bright checkerboard patterns and unique tiles.

Red Tile, Wood Beams and Kitchen open to Living Room

Bold Colors and Patterns in this Home Office

Understated Custom Tiled "Tree of Life" Back-splash over cook-top

Colorful Tiled Back-splash

A Bench and Cubbies in the Entry

Panels built to match cabinetry hide appliances for a very clean look (not painted yet)

I like to incorporate features into the design that will make life easier and work for the way my clients live - a bench, wall hooks & cubbies near the entry or a room with a dutch door to contain the dogs. I also like to problem-solve to use space and materials efficiently - like when I tucked a little shower seat into a nook created when an addition was built around an existing fireplace or when a sink was tucked into an artist's closet rather than using up the corner of a room. No room to call a library? How about shelves at the top of the stairs? An easy place to personalize is a tiled design over the stove.

Book shelves create a Library in the Hall

Artist's sink hidden in closet of Painting Studio

Dog Room has Dutch Door, Doggie Stair up to
Doggie Door leading to outdoor Fenced Kennel

Shower Bench tucked into an extra bit of space

Sometime we want to highlight a beautiful piece of art or re-purpose a found object into art- I encourage this, as long as we are not using old single-pane glass in our new building envelope. (Always use insulated doors and windows that exceed energy code! Reusing old windows or doors is NOT being green - but that is another post...)

One client had a stained glass window we placed among bookcases between the library and entry and back lite for a marvelous connection between rooms. Another had antique heavy wood doors that were re-used as a laundry room and panty door. Objects and antiques as art can be placed in your home for you to admire each day.

Art House- from left Stained glass window set in bookcases,
Iron gates mounted and lite on far wall at end of long view,
Large-format tiled wall wraps around side of refrigerator

Closer view of the Iron Gates as art - and Antique Columns used to partition the Room

Sometimes custom can be more expensive, but not always! So go for it next time you renovate or paint! Be brave! Chose a funky tile or different light fixture or an antique piece of furniture. Plan for a built-in so you can put stuff where you need it and save space. Add a root cellar or a greenhouse or even just window boxes, if you are a gardener. Put wood on the ceiling instead of the floor. If you want to bake bread, get an awesome oven and use cool tiles to accent it. Find an antique barn door or column or metal hinge that you love and re-purpose it inside. Make your space personal & beautiful so it brings you joy and ease in your daily life!

Antique Dry Sink re-purposed as Vanity Cabinet

Painted Kitchen Cabinets and Built-in Bench under Window

Built-in shelves in a Mud Room Entry

NHND to the Pond Framing Update

Front of the House - Screen Porch on left/west, Gable Roof for Front Porch

 

Lots has been happening at the New House Next Door to the Pond. The foundation for the garage is poured. The garage walls and roofs are framed. Forms are in place for pouring a large retaining wall. The front porch roof rafters and screen/sun porch roof rafters are in place. Some of the wall sheathing (which is insulated sheathing, offering continuous insulation - see former post HERE to read about CI) is being installed, as well as the roof sheathing to help keep it dry inside through all these summer thundershowers. (wall sheathing is green, roof sheathing is red) These solid surfaces help you see the shapes of the building more clearly in the photos while also starting to show the dormer design, window seat bump-outs in eating area and master bedroom, and window placement and size. You can see/feel how the light and views will be connected between inside and out as well as some of the intricacies of the massing. (exciting stuff!)

Back of the House - Dormer pops up in roof for stairway

Bump-out Window Seat in Master Bedroom Wing- Long Southern Dormer for Second Floor Bedrooms

Garage Wall poured and interior tamped down and ready for slab pour

Garage Walls & Roof Framed

Screen/Sun Porch- Looking toward Pond and Sunset Views

Stair Landing Window Frames Wooded View

Stair Railing and Closet Shelving

The stair handrails and closet shelves/clothes rods are installed. The interior trim is all done - including on the oval window, which isn't shown in this photo. The oval trim is made of a flexible synthetic material that will be painted to look like the rest of the wood casings.

Clothes closets have a simple rod with shelf above. Storage closets have shelves. By design, the New House Next Door has a lot of closets- 3 on the first floor, and 4 on the second floor! Two of the most unique closets are the one under the stairs and the one in the painting studio. (the largest second floor room will be used by my MIL as her painting studio, rather than as a master bedroom- view her fantastic work here on Face Book)

The under the stair closet has a sort of magical "The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe" quality to me because the coats will be hung across the width of the space, as usual, but one would part those coats and slip behind them to access the shelves against the back wall. I specified double doors for this closet, so that when open they do not block the hallway - a problem in their current house.

The painting studio closet is a wide closet with double doors. Inside will be a counter with a sink, for cleaning brushes, with storage shelves above. The second largest bedroom has a walk-in closet with a pocket door.

The largest storage area, though, is the attic. There is a pull-down stair from the studio ceiling to access the attic. The roof was framed with what is called an "attic truss", which leaves the center, highest space free of diagonal truss chords, so it is usable space. (click to go to wintertime post about roof trusses)

Smallest Bedroom Clothes Closet

Painting Studio Closet- see plumbing for sink poke through wall

Perfect for Hide and Seek - the Closet under the Stair

Attic Pull-Down Stair - before trim