I’m going to share with you in my next five postings one of the biggest secrets that I can offer with regard to designing an attractive home.

Shhhhh, don’t tell anyone.

Let’s call this posting… House Design 101… part 1

When I draw a set of plans for a home, my focus is always on the elevations (profiles), not the floorplan. I want to see what the house will look like when one arrives home. That’s not the standard practice of many design firms who focus on room layout and traffic flow.

I want my houses to look good from the outside… I’ve always found that getting the inside to look good is easy… combine nice windows, the best materials, skilled craftsmen, and talented decorators, and Wallah! any interior space can pop.

I’ve also observed that in most houses, built by others, that once the plans are complete and construction has begun, any additional thought or consideration to the appearance of the outside of the house is completely ignored. To make a change at that point would cost additional money, and it might indicate that the designer had made mistakes in his design. You know, a pride issue.

I’ve got no ego in that department. I just want my houses to be as good as I can make them.

The fact is that a house is different than a drawing of a house. A structure that you walk around in…. one that you can walk through… is no longer an idea on a piece of paper.

Notice in this photo… the piece of plywood that is tacked to the wall at the top of the ladder? The idea of adding a window to the side of the chimney was being discussed at this time.

I needed a visualization to see how it would look.

Originally posted 2015-06-01 13:49:15.

A home office should have a “comfy place”… where guests or clients can feel valued and “at home”… or in the event that one should ever wish to get away the desk for a moment to gather their thoughts.

I like all the natural light that pours in through the dormer behind the couch… it’s so much better than the light provided by florescent tubes.

Originally posted 2015-05-31 14:03:57.

A new home made from the remains of a 200 year old home that was scheduled to be destroyed.

Originally posted 2015-05-29 20:13:03.

After we had attached the stress skin panels to the frame to create the outside walls, and we had framed the front porch and the dormer windows, the vision of a “tavern-inspired” home began to emerge.

Notice the three large openings onto the porch… the center one is for the old door unit previously posted. And, the ones on either side are for french doors that could be opened up on nice days to bring the outside in.

Originally posted 2015-05-29 20:03:41.

After we had attached the stress skin panels to the frame to create the outside walls, and we had framed the front porch and the dormer windows, the vision of a “tavern-inspired” home began to emerge.

Notice the three large openings onto the porch… the center one is for the old door unit previously posted. And, the ones on either side are for french doors that could be opened up on nice days to bring the outside in.

Originally posted 2015-05-29 18:52:35.

Here’s my recipe for building a fine entrance to a new home.

Start with a nice view that will be outside your door.

Build a porch outside that door, one that will pull you outside to enjoy that view.

Build your home out of an old timber-frame, one that will give you the feeling of warmth and security.

Make sure and install old heart pine flooring, which is not only a pleasure to look at but to walk on also.

Then add an old entrance door unit to let you know that you are at home. (Make sure and paint it with some nice colors).

And then finally, get a good dog, one that will meander in and out at his leisure.

Originally posted 2015-05-29 13:33:26.

We had salvaged another old house that was originally built in the very late 1800’s or perhaps early 1900’s for replacement materials to use on this new home.

The framing on that house had no value, but the flooring, and doors were perfect for this new home. You can see the front door unit from that older home, laying here on it’s side, awaiting installation on this new home.

Originally posted 2015-05-29 13:20:38.

Here’s a corner of the enlarged, upgraded, kitchen that adjoins the dining room within this “connector” area that is between the log cabin and the new/old timber framed addition.

We made the cabinets ourselves out of chestnut paneling that we salvaged from an old 1920’s vintage home. The countertop and farm sink is made of green slate.

Not too shabby huh? 🙂

Ok… that ought to keep everyone happy for a while that wants to see what this home looks like inside… now let me get back to construction photos and tell the story behind the building of the timber frame section of this home…

Originally posted 2015-05-27 21:37:05.

Here is the wainscoting that I used in the dining room, it was just laying there in that old dirty straw like a piece of discarded trash.

But, I could see from the backside that this was piece of fine woodwork, crafted from the best of materials, starting with an axe, then with adzes, and then on to hand planes, nearly two hundred years ago, by someone much more talented than I.

I didn’t need to roll it over to be impressed… I knew I was looking at a treasure. I was practically shaking with anticipation.

Originally posted 2015-05-27 21:16:32.

Here’s the finished dining room which is positioned in the connector area between the little log cabin (which is to the right in this image) and the new timber frame section (which you can barely peer into on the left).

Notice the bow window in the background… and the antique heart-pine wainscoting underneath it?… I’ll post a photo of it as it was salvaged next. You’ll get a kick out of the “before” photo.

Originally posted 2015-05-27 20:52:50.