New House Next to the Mountains - Final Photos

West Elevation View

The New House Next to the Mountains is located on a rural site with a spectacular view of the Catskill Mountains. This is an efficient new building, but was designed to look a bit like an historic farmhouse that had been across the street and in the family for generations. This house was constructed a few years ago, but I got out there today to take some final photographs. You can read some other posts on this project by clicking on these links:
cwb-architect.blogspot.com/2016//framing-another-new-house-next-door
cwb-architect.blogspot.com/2016//nhnd-in-mountains-update
cwb-architect.blogspot.com/2016/nhnd-to-mountains-interior-finishes

Front View of New House Next to the Mountains

Entry Side View of NHN2theMtns

BEFORE-Family Homestead that couldn't be renovated was demolished

 When the clients first hired me, the intention was to renovate the family homestead, but exploration of the neglected structure showed that it would be too costly, so that building was demolished. It was decided to build at a more advantageous spot on the site, but recall much of the former home's layout- with a lot of modern updates and efficiencies. See this link about the former house: (photo above)
cwb-architect.blogspot.com/2015/when-is-building-too-far-gone-to-renovate

Open Loft Space at the top of the stairs overlooks Living Room

Loft View -Nantucket Dormer

Living Room with custom wood whole-wall entertainment center

The many roof lines and porches and dormers create the idea of it being added to over time and create cozy nooks for desks and beds upstairs. The new location meant we could face the house toward the south and have lots of windows toward the sun and view. While the exterior is clean-line traditional with it's white clapboard siding and pitched gable roofs, the interior is very open and airy and feels decidedly updated and modern, even though we used some classic moulding profiles. I used a "Nantucket" dormer along the front to create more space for a larger second floor and a playful open space that looks down into the living room.

Living Room Fireplace

Vanity Cabinet

Elements from the demolished building were saved, like the heavy hand hand-hewn beams. This wood was reused creatively by the cabinet maker to create a unique kitchen island, master bath vanity, and living room entertainment center. Stones were gathered from the site to use around the wood burning fireplace.

Farmhouse Kitchen with so many windows

Dining Room View toward Kitchen

The kitchen exudes farmhouse charm with it's cheerful green painted wood cabinets, glass door fronts, bin pull style hardware, and open shelving either side of the farmhouse sink. Windows abound to and fill the spaces with natural light, bringing the outdoors in. The house was built to act as a weekend home during skiing and hunting seasons, to replace the family home that generations of the family had visited across the dirt road. But now that the owners have retired to live here full time, and they enjoy the feeling that this new clean house is reminiscent of other house, but with fresh air/light/life breathed into it.

Living Room with transom windows toward the back

Foyer- View toward Front Door & Living Room

Homeowners enjoying the view

NHND to the Mountains Gets Interior Finishes

Front /South  and Side/ East Exterior View

Here is the newest update on the New House Next Door to the Mountains. The exterior is all done, including all 3 porches. There will also be a future screened  porch to be accessed from French doors in back of the Living Room over the walk-out basement. Final grading is also complete. Just need the grass to grow, and the clouds to clear, so you can appreciate the surrounding mountain views on this property.

View from the Northeast- This is the Mud Room Entry nearest driveway

Back/Northwest View- Shows Walk-out basement

 The interior walls and ceilings are sheet-rocked and painted and the interior finish carpentry (window trim, door installation) is complete. Tiled surfaces (tub and shower surrounds and floors) have all been installed.

Standing in Living Room looking toward front door, triple window where window seat will be, and loft above- When one climbs to the top of the Foyer Stair, one would be standing up there near 3 square windows and able to see over the railing down into the Living Room

Standing in LR still looking toward front- see Fireplace on left and window seat area on right, loft above

Standing in Living Room looking toward back- Those French Doors on right will lead to a future screened porch

Looking through Foyer toward hall closet and passage to Dining Room. Temporary stair leads up to bedrooms.

 

Flat Panel Doors and Traditional Casing/Trim (this is the powder room on first floor)

Traditional Interior Window Casing and Sill/Stool Details- Dining Room

Tiled Shower

Tiled Floor in Mud Room/Side Entry (see pocket door on lower right, which leads into Kitchen and door on upper right of pic which leads to laundry/mechanical room)

Next up will be the finished stairs, (you still see the temporary construction stair in the photo above of the foyer) and railings along the loft, and built -ins like a window seat in the Living Room and shelves in Master Bedroom and cellar stairs- and the installation of plumbing fixtures, light fixtures, and cabinetry. Stay tuned for those final photos!

And if you want to see the earlier posts for this project, click on these links:

Post 1: Too Far Gone to Renovate?

Post 2: framing-another-new-house-next-door.html

Post 3: new-house-framing-picture.html

Post 4: nhnd-to-mountains.html

Post 5: new-house-next-door-in-mountains-update.html

Post 6: nhnd-in-mountains-update.html

Post 7: update-on-new-house-next-to-mountains.html

NHND in the Mountains update

Front now has it's two porches, exterior trim and casing is beginning to be installed

I went to the Catskills to check on the progress of the New House Next Door to the Mountains that is currently under construction and here is an update. (There are previous blog posts on this project that you can look at, too)

View from front porch/ front door looking south

The exterior isn't much changed since winter, but inside all rough HVAC, plumbing and electrical work is complete and spray foam insulation has been installed. Next step will be installing the wall board. Here are some photos. You can really appreciate the spectacular mountain vista from the front windows, which you could not in the previously posted over-cast winter photos.

View looking out South Windows in sitting area off Kitchen

 With the walls appearing to have more of a solid surface because of the trimmed spray-foam cavity insulation, you can see the shape of the interesting interior spaces created by the dormers, knee walls, and angled roof lines. You can also see the number of windows and the light and views they let inside.

Vaulted ceiling in Nantucket Dormer

My favorite space is the fun, open loft space over the living room and at the top of the stairs. With its wide, high, full-of-windows Nantucket dormer, it feels really unique and I like the way it allows the upstairs and downstairs rooms to connect with only a guard rail as separation. That seems to create a family connected-ness that I think makes sense for a house designed for extended family weekend gatherings.

Vaulted Ceiling in Nantucket Dormer- Partial view

Loft that Overlooks Double-Height Living Room (no guard rail yet- Akk!)

 

Second Floor Bedroom w/ Angled Ceilings and Dormers

 

Standing in Living Room looking toward front (south) showing loft above

 

New House Next Door in the Mountains update

 The New House next door to the mountains is coming along nicely. Framing of walls, floors, and roofs is complete. Roof shingles and flashing is all applied. Windows are installed. This means they are closed in- mostly air and water tight! Porch floors are beginning to be framed and the scratch coat of parging is being applied to the outside of the foundation insulation and the chimney.

Integral Exterior Window Trim -"Potter Casing"

Potter Casing on 1st floor windows, but not on 2nd floor windows

2 front doors - 2 porch floors being framed (and 1 side porch, at that gable on the left)

These windows have a simple "2 over 2" divided lite pattern. It's a classic style and was selected for this "rural farmhouse". These divided lites are the type called "simulated divided lite"(SDL) which means they try to look like a traditional window that was made up of many small panes of glass.

Our windows now-a-days are energy-efficient and super high-tech - not just a single pane- and they are now, of course, able to make glass in very large pieces. These windows have one large piece, with a special coating on the outside of the glass to limit the sun's rays, an argon-gas filled air space, and then another pane of glass to make it "insulated glass" (IG). The SDL is trim inside and out and has a spacer bar between the panes of glass to look as if it is a continuous frame around individual panes, but it's all just for looks. Sort of funny really that we want our insulated glass to look as if it isn't insulated.... but imitating history with our architecture - now that could be a whole different blog!

Marvin Potter Casing Catalog Pic

NHND to the Mountains

The New House Next Door to the Catskill Mountains is coming along nicely. Framing is mostly complete, including lots of complicated roof lines, dormers, and one porch roof. (there will be two more porches, plus a screened porch!)

Front - south/west view faces the mountain view and sunshine

Back- north/west view shows the side porch entry and the more simple dormer across the back

 This design has the second floor located within the roof, with dormers popping up in order to have enough head room and light/windows for comfortable living space. The front dormers are the more interesting "dog house" gable dormers, or what I've called a "Nantucket" dormer, which is two dog-house dormers with a shed dormer connected between them. This Nantucket dormer is quite long, and required a steel flitch beam in order to keep the interior open space.

The kitchen and mud room are located in the single-floor area you see on the west side with the small porch. This area has what is called a hip roof, keeping it low as it wraps around the corner, allowing for second floor windows above it. The master bedroom is located on the main level in this house, which is one of the reasons the second floor could be smaller and accomplished with dormers. There is a double-height family room space (where you see the fireplace chimney, and no dormer on the back view) on the east side stretching all the way from the front to the back of the house. In the last photo, you can see right through that Family Room (and it will stay that way) on the left. (the middle windows that seem like you can see straight through, will have interior partitions and will not stay that way)

Dark photo of back/north, but included so you can see some a peek at the spectacular mountain views

Building another New House Next Door

Here are some photos of another NHND being built for clients of mine. It is to be an eclectic farmhouse for a fun family weekends/vacations/retirement in the Catskill Mountains on land that has been in their family for generations. The original plan was to renovate the old, existing structure, (see Post "When is a building too far gone to renovate?") but the plan of upgrades was so great, and the existing framing was in such a bad state, so now a new, energy efficient "twin" to that building is being constructed on the property.

 The roof framing is very complex with structural ridge beams, and a flitch beam to accommodate front and back dormers and knee walls for the second floor so that there is more space/height than the original structure while still having a similar cozy/comfortable feel like the older home did with a second floor space up in the eaves of the roof.

The new family room will have a fireplace and a vaulted ceiling and glass doors to a deck/screened porch. The new bedrooms will be much larger, with multiple bathrooms and a master suite on the first floor. The kitchen will be open to a sitting and dining area and there are lots of windows and porches to enjoy the spectacular vistas.

 The new site (across the road from the old building site) is sloped, and therefore allowed for a walk-out basement door and some larger windows into what will be a workshop space below. It also afforded the plan to be rotated for better views of the mountains all around and better solar gain. And needless to say, the new home will have all new energy efficient windows and a tightly insulated and air-sealed building envelope, being infinitely more comfortable and using less fuel to heat than the century-old place.