A STYLE THAT'S ALL THE RAGE, the "modern farmhouse" typically blends rural, vernacular architecture with a clean, white interior. Even before the idea had a name, David Spirakis and his wife, Penelope Chaplin, created just such a house, in western Massachusetts.
"We lived in New York City and came to the Berkshires to ski," explains David, a retired banker. "We'd rent a place every winter. Then, in 2011, we bought this old house."
Built in 1799, the substantial farmhouse on a narrow dirt road has a Georgian center-hall plan. (One previous owner was Janet G. Travell, personal physician of President John F. Kennedy and the first woman to hold that position in the White House.) When David and Penelope found the place, its most recent owner had abandoned it after beginning a renovation.
"while the house stood empty, a pipe burst, flooding the kitchen," David says. "Someone stole all the copper pipes. For me, it was in the perfect state of disrepair; though it looked like a wreck, the previous owner had put on a new roof, installed new plumbing and electrical systems, and added a new septic tank."
David and Penelope contacted Jimmy Crisp, an area architect who has both designed new houses and directed many restorations. "We work on a lot of historic homes," Crisp says, "because there are so many of them in this region. I love it."
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Denne historien er fra September - October 2024-utgaven av Old House Journal.
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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.
a farmhouse renewed
Sensitive renovations and restoration work preserved a house that dates to 1799.
AN OVERVIEW OF METAL ROOFING
METAL ROOFS ARE RESURGENT, FOR GOOD REASONS.
ENDURING BEAUTY IN WALLS of STONE
Now back in the family who had been here since 1830, the old farmhouse is again ready for generations to come. Additions dating to 1840 and the 1950s were preserved.
ARCHITECTURAL DETAILS COME TO LIFE
Owners and their designer celebrate the unique features of a 1912 Arts & Crafts Tudor.
For a Wet Basement Wall
If there's problem common to old houses, it's a wet basement. I'm not talking about occasional flooding, but rather a basement that apparently seeps or leaks after even a rain shower or during snowmelt. Several approaches are available; sustainable solutions will get to the root of the problem.
Patching a Plaster Wall
Fix a hole in the wall with a few common tools and some drywall supplies. Practice your technique!
Roofing & Siding
Make note of these historical and unusual materials for the building envelope.
The Riddle of the water
When water incursion happens, the roof isn't necessarily the culprit. Maybe snaking a drain line, or clearing debris from a clogged gutter, temporarily will stem a leak. But a recurring problem usually means other forces are at work. It takes persistence-and a team with the right skills and patience—to identify the source and apply a solution.
Light-filled Craftsman Redo
For a dark kitchen in a 1914 Illinois house, the trick was anchoring white expanses with woodsy warmth.
