A TRIO OF MODERN MASTERS

COLLECTING BRUTALIST AND MODERN PIECES 1950–1970.

Happy Kitchen for a Postwar Home

Most homebuyers would tear out a 1940s kitchen; this owner went in the opposite direction.

BENCH with a Secret

Found beadboard covers an HVAC return, providing seating and future access.

Bell Roof in Lanaudière

Two generations have contributed their talents to this picturesque house, built in 1920 and filled with old-fashioned charm: heavy beams, the ceilings, and a fieldstone fireplace.

A Modern House of stone+glass

DEFT UPDATES TO THIS 1951 SEATTLE HOUSE BROUGHT OUT ITS BEST ORIGINAL FEATURES: WALLS OF GLASS, BURNISHED WOODWORK AND BUILT-INS, CURVING GLASS BLOCK, AND MODERN ELEGANCE.

A CASE FOR PRESERVATION

A post-Civil war house in a historic district enjoys a dramatic reversal of fortune.

A Bathroom – Art Deco & Barrier Free

Kathy Adamson had very specific ideas about what she wanted for her octogenarian mother’s bathroom.

THE RESTORATION OF ancient Oaks

COMING HOME: OLD FAMILY STORIES AND LETTERS GUIDED THIS COUPLE AS THEY TOOK ON THE REFURBISHMENT OF A GRAND GREEK REVIVAL HOUSE BUILT IN 1856—BY HER THREE-TIMES GREAT-GRANDFATHER.

the UNIVERSAL HOME

For many old houses, it would be difficult and prohibitively expensive to create accessibility throughout. That doesn’t mean we should ignore the commonsense principles of Universal Design when adding on or renovating—especially when it comes to the entry, kitchen, and bath.

making their mark

LIVING IN AN OLD KENTUCKY HOUSE WITH A STORIED PAST.

Lights, Going Up!

Industrial-chic, oversize wall sconces can be made from repurposed elevator indicator lights.

FROM AWKWARD TO STYLISH

A bump-up in rear roof height, a new kitchen, and upgraded interior trim turned our charm-deficient house into a livable home.

ARTS & CRAFTS FOR 100 YEARS

The bungalow retained its original integrity, so our upgrades had to follow suit, and last.

AN AMERICAN HOUSE The Essence of Traditional Wills in Vermont

Nothing captures American tradition like the respectfully modest, perfectly proportioned houses of Royal Barry Wills, the mid-century New England firm that specialized in Colonial Revival homes and reintroduced Cape Cod style.

Keeping the Chimney Well-equipped and Safe

Liners, dampers, fire brick, and chimney caps all play protective roles in fireplace safety and comfort.

A NEIGHBORHOOD FOURSQUARE

Despite good bones, the house built in 1900“was in very poor condition,” says Aaron Pempel, who’d long wanted to restore a rundown house. “The first floor had been used as commercial office space without a kitchen or bath; the second floor was residential.”Indeed, the interior was a forlorn mash-up, made worse by the building sitting vacant. The Nike executive had discovered the abandoned house in the same Northwest Portland (Oregon) neighborhood where he and his wife, Kristen, and their son live.

Radical Restoration

After a 1960s remodeling that succeeded in changing its very style, the Craftsman house in Portland, Oregon, was virtually unrecognizable. Then the right family came along.

The Learning Curve

IT’S ONE THING TO LOVE AN OLD HOUSE, ANOTHER TO TAKE ONE ON. RESTORATION CAN BE INTIMIDATING; STILL, THE RARE SORT OF HOMEOWNER THRIVES ON THE WORK, TYPICALLY DESCRIBING THEIR CHARACTERFUL MONEY PIT AS “A FUN PROJECT.”

To The Last Detail

When you buy an old house, you will have to remodel the kitchen. Old houses never have enough storage space. Bachelors don’t cook. Wrong, wrong, and wrong—at least at Sconehenge, David Berman’s 1910 Shingle Style house in Plymouth, Mass. When he bought the place, it needed a level of cleanup and restoration that meant a dumpster was parked outside for months. Yet he didn’t touch the kitchen’s old-fashioned floor plan. In fact, David sings the praises of his original kitchen “suite” as he serves his trademark ginger scones.

Meet History In St. Louis

TIMES HAVE CHANGED since the 1944 release of the musical “Meet Me In St. Louis,” but the city is well preserved, full of fascinating buildings and neighborhoods of architectural interest.

Incentives For Preservation

Not every old house is destined for restoration in full period style. But more can be saved from demolition if tax credits are used to justify rehabilitation costs.

A Passion For History

BOB AND CAROL LEBEAU are Massachusetts transplants who moved to coastal Maine in the 1980s.

Spanish Revival

It was a style craze that promised History, Luxury, and Leisure.

For A Unique Backsplash

Embossed metal ceiling panels are perfect for this application. 

A Journal, An Old House & A Matter Of Time

As stewards of an 1867 Italianate mansion and carriage house in rural Vermont, we choose restoration over remodeling. After all, the fi rst owner is watching.

Lights Divided, Truly And Otherwise

It should be understood that conserving old windows is the “greenest” option: they are endlessly repairable and easy to upgrade for energy effciency and comfort. For those buying new windows, find good news in recent aesthetic improvements.

Stuff A Plumber Screwed Up

During renovation, we’d created a drain beneath new patio stone, and installed a hand-held shower for rinsing beach sand off kids and dogs. We shut the water off before frost each year, and all seemed well until my son gave the dog a pre-season, early spring bath. When he went to shut the water back off, he discovered a cascade in the crawl space under the shower. —Patty O’Donnell

A Farmhouse In Indiana

A straightforward approach brought back a farmstead on the brink of ruin. By Gene and Roseanna Hatke, Lafayette, Ind.

A Unique Kitchen Island

Cleaned up and repurposed, an old French dental-tools cabinet is nifty and functional in the kitchen.

A Cottage All Grown Up

Beautifully imagined and carefully edited, the 1886 house is a Victorian Revival jewel box, all in 1700 square feet (and that includes the basement).