The house had suffered from neglect and then, in 2011, from the devastation of Hurricane Irene. With an L-shaped footprint, the big house boasts 10 bedrooms.
The building probably dates to ca. 1836, though the Italianate touches may have come a bit later. It's a country example of a Tuscan Villa-defined by the boxlike symmetry, a heavily bracketed cornice, and the belvedere on the roof. (That "cupola with a view" historically was used as a viewing pavilion. It is also a passive ventilation device.) Like this house, many Villas have a front verandah.
A rear ell had been constructed on stilts, without the basement that supported the front section. "It was so cold in that part of the house!" says Sarah Blank, the interior designer who worked with the family to design the kitchen and furnish the interior. Excavation, structural work, and new mechanical systems preceded final design of rooms inside.
1. A WELCOMING ENTRY
A new mudroom connects the back door to the kitchen. The antique settee came with the house. A Dutch (split) door is versatile, controlling egress and ventilation; it complements the simple battened wainscoting. The pine wide-plank floors are original.
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Navigating the Lumberyard - Here's some lumber lingo you should know before you venture into a lumberyard.
Here's some lumber lingo you should know before you venture into a lumberyard. Almost everyone fixing an old house will end up at a lumberyard-whether it's a local supplier or the organized aisles of a big-box home-improvement store.
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