reclaiming the attic

Is your house bursting at the seams? Do you long for private office space, a guest retreat, or a kids’ bonus room? The solution might be right over your head: no need to leave the neighborhood, or even put on an addition.

displaying collections ARRANGE TO INSPIRE

Ideas, inspiration, and tidbits on the beautiful and safe arrangement and display of collectibles both traditional and eccentric.

A Home Full of Character

Smaller homes like this 1920s Dutch Colonial so often get overlooked as worthy of restoration. Owners don’t think they’re special . . . or they add on or remodel until the original is unrecognizable. This owner saw the potential.

A Furnished Bath

This elegant bathroom has fixture panels fabricated from parts of a Victorian armoire.

Holiday Home

Any of these would be a welcome gift for an old-house friend or for an artful home . . . including your own.

Simple Craftsman Roots Revived

A “clean but sterile” 1914 kitchen is treated to bungalow-era design.

MOVING toward

Changing energy markets and evolving technology make it possible to heat, cool, and ventilate homes of any age with (mostly) clean, all-electric power—and less of it. Heating home water, formerly an energy hog, is turning into an energy sipper, too.

The Rescue of Portland's FIREHOUSE 17

IN WHAT BECAME THE PROJECT OF A LIFETIME, THE REHABILITATION OF A 1912 FIREHOUSE IS ADAPTIVE REUSE WITH HEART AND SOUL. DECOMMISSIONED IN 1968, ALLOWED TO DETERIORATE AND LATER REMODELED, THE OLD FIREHOUSE HAD BEEN BUILT DURING THE DAYS OF HORSE-DRAWN ENGINES. THE PROJECT WAS SPEARHEADED BY RESTORAT ION CONSULTANT KARLA PEARLSTEIN, IN PORTLAND, OREGON. SHE NOW CALLS THE FIREHOUSE HOME.

Caring for Silverplate

Whether the design is Rococo, Aesthetic, or Art Deco, silverplate is collectible—and needs care.

MANTELS in a Holiday Mood

Pretty things from nature are always in style.

Diamonds!

An eternal motif for objects around the house.

A Surprisingly Authentic Bath

The replicated, late-Victorian master bathroom is in an 1892 brick manse in St. Louis, Missouri.

Quintessentially MAINE

A late Shingle Style house designed by John Calvin Stevens is sensitively brought back by owners who use patterns by William Morris in its casual, summer-house rooms.

Lacing in New Boards

Plank and strip flooring with isolated areas of damage can be saved with careful patching.

The Blues

Favorites, from pale azure to deep cobalt.

At the Windows

Shutters & screens: timeless essentials.

RESTORING REST HARROW IN ARDEN

Refurbishing an Arts & Crafts cottage designed by William Lightfoot Price, noted architect and founder of utopian communities.

Glass Room Screens

Old factory windows are repurposed as room dividers, adding dimension while letting light shine through.

a place for PROMISES

DENNIS AND KAYLA WHITE of Lynchburg, Tennessee, had long wanted to start their own business. “I’m a credit analyst, so I work with numbers all day,” Kayla says. “But that is so not me! I think of myself as a creative person, and I love design. When this house came up at auction in October of 2018, we thought it would be a chance for us to launch a venture of our own, and for me to do the work I love.” The house is a two-storey, 3800-square-foot I-house with Greek Revival influences. It was built in 1858 for Townsend Port Green, a lumber dealer and wealthy landowner. In this handsome manse, he and his wife, Mary Ann Landiss, raised 14 children. The family fortune declined after the Civil War; in the early 1880s, Green sold the house to local whiskey merchant Daniel S. Evans.

A BUNGALOW of seven gables

A 1915 Arts & Crafts house on Bainbridge Island, never substantially altered since it was built, is restored with regard for its history, architectural scale, and original style.

Wood Working

Five handy, high-quality devices make carpentry jobs go smoothly.

Glasgow School in the Bathroom

A tutorial in bracing color and geometric, stylized forms.

STUFF MY M-I-L SCREWED UP

My mother-in-law is an active 83-year-old who still lives in her own home of many years. When we last visited, we were horrified to discover that she has hung a collection of disused and out-of season clothing on Romex electrical cable, which runs through the joists under the basement ceiling. Now we’re worried about other safety issues down there, too. —Anthony (and Julia) Wisniewski

MATCHING INTERIOR MILLWORK

If one lacks professional expertise, installing crown moulding, replacing missing bits of casing or trim around windows, and retrofitting lost baseboards may be an exercise in frustration. Especially when nothing in an old house is square! First learn about the role of trimwork, building up profiles, turning corners with mitered and coped joints, and what tools to use where.

The Tradition of Burnt Wood

An ancient Japanese method for finishing woodwork was adapted by bungalow builders, and it’s back in style.

cutting corners

“Turning the corner” is easily the most challenging part of any moulding installation or repair. It helps if you aced geometry in high school. For all others, learn to use a miter box, preferably one with a clamp. More experienced? Upgrade to a compound miter saw.

ARTS & CRAFTS DO-OVER

With generous living space yet a focus on the outdoors, an undistinguished cottage is rebuilt in the Craftsman tradition.

Arresting Hardware

Salvaged icebox hinges make new cabinets look like vintage equipment.

ASK OLD HOUSE JOURNAL

ASK OLD HOUSE JOURNAL

A House unbungled

A couple embarks on the restoration of a diminutive house, aiming to reverse a mid-century Colonial style remodeling. Replacing one wall with a period colonnade lets light flow front to back.