Where others might have seen only rotted sills, sagging floorboards, and windows so drafty the kitchen cabinets blew open in a gale, Bill von Ochsen and Helen Moore von Oehsen saw beauty, history, and potential. They fell in love with the 1720 house sited along the Ipswich River and committed to its renewal, enlisting TOH home builder Charlie Silva for the 16-month renovation, which This Old House documented as part of its 44th television season. "Our main goals when we started this project were to bring this house back to its original beauty and to create a functional living space for today," says Bill. That meant making room to host four adult children, extended family, and friends, as well as home offices for Bill, an attorney, and Helen, a biologist, who both work remotely.
For the oldest part of the house, the guiding principle was to honor the integrity of its 1720 structure. Fortunately, the original timber frame was sound: Exposed oak and pine timbers form the framing, with pegs still holding the mortise-and-tenon joinery in place. To highlight those bones, the homeowners opted to gut walls, ceilings, cabinets, fireplaces, and woodstoves that were added later, to reveal as much of the original work as possible.
Today, the first-floor living room is the most authentic room in the old house, featuring exposed gunstock posts-narrow at the bottom and flared at the top-original pine floorboards, and a summer beam that is part of the 1720 timber frame. By contrast, the first-floor den ended up needing more work than anticipated to turn it into a comfortable office for Bill. It's now his favorite room in the house: "I walk in and see the gunstock posts and old pine floors, and I feel like I am stepping back in time," says Bill. "It's inspiring." The couple turned a space between the living room and Bill's office into a pantry-bar, with cabinets made from wood salvaged from the attic.
Denne historien er fra Fall 2023-utgaven av This Old House Magazine.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra Fall 2023-utgaven av This Old House Magazine.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Mobile kitchen island
TOH DIY expert Jenn Largesse shows how to build a rolling kitchen cart with a butcher-block top
Bathtub tray
TOH general contractor Tom Silva and TOH host Kevin O'Connor construct a slatted zebrawood caddy to hold grooming essentials, a book, and even a glass of wine, for those who like a long soak
Navigating the rise in mortgage rates
Looking to buy—or refinance—and feeling frustrated by lenders’ sky-high interest rates? Here’s how to get the best deal
Graceful grasses
With dramatic foliage and distinctive plumes, ornamental grasses come in sizes to suit virtually any garden
A better asphalt driveway
It's long-lasting and recyclable, and it weathers extreme temperatures. You can repair small cracks and divots in asphalt, too. Here's what you need to know to get-and maintain-a great-looking asphalt driveway
Modernizing a mid-century house
A family turns to TOH to renovate a 1960 house that had been awkwardly expanded over time. Their goal: to create a contemporary, energy-efficient, open-plan home that is fully accessible for a son with mobility issues
Making a house her own
Renovating in stages over nearly two decades, a homeowner transforms a once forlorn bungalow into a cozy, very personal space
A little house that lives large
A reimagined interior and second-story addition double the living area inside a narrow shotgun house, while respecting its historical roots
Before & After: Bath Fit for a Queen Anne
Classic meets modern in this primary-suite retreat
Before & After: Kitchen Moving a wall makes it work
Grabbing a few feet from the adjacent dining room yields major layout improvements
