Community

Upcoming Events

Jan 15: Pasadena, CA- Sidney D. Gamble Lecture Series, "The Bungalow: From Pasadena to Australia"

Jan 21: New York, NY - Winter Antiques Show

Jan 22: Golden, CO - Colorado Arts and Crafts Society Annual Winter Symposium

February 5: Denver, CO - Old House Fair

February 12-13: Pasadena, CA - 12th Annual Los Angeles Pottery Show

Family Album - Issue 12

Geneva, NY, Ann McQuane and Bob O’Connor

“Our house had been left without care and we are restoring gradually. Inside, brass hinges and knobs are all black and the walls are dark yell ow with green paint everywhere. The porch is lovely, with stone arch- work below the railing, the brick fireplace is trimmed with wonderful molding, and built-in oak bookcases — with glassed doors — flank the living room doorway. Outside, we have removed the awnings and now need to repaint the exterior.”

Nevada City, CA, Patricia Green

“Most of the homes in this Gold Rush era town date back to the late 1800’s. However, there are also about a half-dozen bungalows on aptly named “Boulder Street.” My house, built in 1915, has a granite block porch — the granite likely quarried on the site. The former owners had painted all the interior woodwork white, and I spent 5 1/2 months, by myself, stripping all of it, including ceiling beams! In the future, I plan to reroof with a material that more closely resembles the original shingles (wood shingles are not allowed here).”

Peshastin, WA, John Marshall

“My 1926 stuccoed bungalow was constructed in 1926 by a company named Cedarquist. Peshastin is a fruit town, on the east slope of the Washington Cascades, with pear orchards behind the houses then nothing but forest all the way to Canada and beyond. When I bought my house in 1987 everything was original other than the green paint and orange/green shag carpet that hid a beautiful floor of clear, vertical-grain Douglas fir. I’ve had to replace most of the plumbing and upgrade the wiring. I also replaced the leaking aluminum roof with a new painted steel roof and flat roof dormers, which transformed the attic into an open space with a spectacular view of Icicle Ridge. I’m adding a winding staircase of antique brick, with a river-rock retaining wall, leading up to the very gracious front porch. Fixing my bungalow has been both a struggle and a great source of satisfaction.”

Dayton, OH, Joel Borchers

“I bought this 1914 bungalow in 1994. Downstairs there’s a living room, dining room and kitchen, and two bedrooms and a bath upstairs. Most interesting about it are the Gustav Stickley electrolier light fixtures in the living and dining rooms. and Stickley wall sconces in the bedrooms. I wonder if this bungalow is a Stickley design.”

Asheville, NC, Sarah Peacock

“Here is a snapshot of my ‘new’ house (my first). I am in the process of stripping paint and brass, plus the original front door that I found in the garage. It’s quite an exciting task (the siding will come off later). I had no idea what a prize I had bought!”

Anacortes, WA, Tim and Nancy Vogel

“Our bungalow style cottage is on Guernes Island. one of the San Juan Islands of Washington. We are very proud of the design, light fixtures and furnishings, most of which are from the Arts and Crafts era. The island has approximately 400 year-round residences, serviced by a 20-car ferry.”

Santa Monica, CA, Dr. Stanley Josephs

“I built this modern, two-home duplex a half block from the ocean, in 1994. It’s surrounded by period homes, and the architect, contractor and I worked hard to keep the turn-of-the-century style and to give the large rooms a warm Arts and Crafts feel. It’s rare that someone ‘mistakes’ it for new.”

Redwood City, CA, Katherin Fagin

“We just finished rebuilding the chimney and porch of our house in Redwood City. The porch now wraps around the house and all has been given a fresh coat of paint with white trim.”

Wanamassa, NJ, Barbara Hoelle and Robert Lee Hefter

“Here is a side view of our 1908. board and batten, foursquare house. Our neighborhood, on a peninsula between two fingers of our lake, abounds in bungalows. Its original name was Deal Lake Bungalow Park. I love my house, neighborhood and town, and hope to help preserve the area as much as possible.”

BY LARRY JOHNSON, AIA

Before

We see many people who either own an Arts and Crafts home that they want to redo — or are buying one. Or they’ve been looking for one, but have given up finding a house that can be updated the way they want, and have decided to build a new home in the Craftsman style. Building from scratch is a much more expensive choice, however, since the current costs of labor and materials have driven the cost of replicating a finely detailed Craftsman home well into the $130-plus per-square-foot range.

If you already own an early 20th century house that was stripped and modernized at some point, what do you do’? You can attempt a reasonably accurate, complete restoration — or renovate, respecting the original design intent of the house. Restoration is usually appropriate for only the best examples of the period — those of historic significance — and often costs more than most people want to spend. We help clients choose the most appropriate renovation particular to each instance.

The highest priority in renovation is to retain and enhance as much of the original design as possible, but replace where necessary. Remove any asbestos, aluminum or vinyl siding, and repair the original siding and trim, but you don’t need to replace the wood shingles.

Addition to rear of Seattle Bungalow using compatible detailing and scale

Asphalt/fiberglass shingles can be a visually acceptable and affordable roof replacement. Use double shingles along the roof edges and peak to give it a more authentic and attractive appearance. They don’t consume old-growth, Western red cedar, and are half the cost of their wood counterpart. If fire codes permit. and a cedar roof is a must, avoid heavy shakes on all but the most rural cabins, as sawn shingles were nearly the rule for Craftsman houses.

Window restoration is also extremely important to do. however most current building codes require that any replacement glazing be at least double-glazed. This can create problems if the original windows were individually divided by muntins. There are replacements available. hut true ‘divided light’ windows made today have a thicker muntin profile. so be careful in your select ion.

Be sure to utilize some of the many Arts and Crafts replica lighting fixtures for interior and exterior lighting. Until very recently, it was nearly impossible to find acceptable replacements for missing exterior fixtures, but they are becoming more available.

Any additions you make should be compatible to the style of the house. Remember that additions fall under the same building code as new construction and therefore may be more difficult to blend into the original construct ion.

Interior of addition, simply detailed

On the interior, the basic guideline is “keep it simple.” When the interior woodwork has been stripped out, it may not be worth the effort or expense to restore these areas. In one house we did, a 1909 Craftsman, we were able to renovate the entry, living and dining rooms. We obtained photographs of the original interiors and enough of the trim remained to allow us to have new moldings made where necessary. Where we were unable to determine the original molding, compatible moldings were designed. In the dining room the original wainscotting had been painted and gouged. These boards were carefully removed, planed, and reversed for reuse. The decision was made to add a compatible paneling in the living room. The required one-by-twelves were hand-selected “D” grade clear Douglas fir, a grade of finish wood that is usually considered paint grade, but often exhibits plain-sawn grain patterns. The result is different from the original, but in sympathy with the original design intent.

Click here to see more of the restoration process

In remodeling kitchens and bathrooms in period homes. I recommend that when these areas are visually separated from the main living areas that they be treated in a more contemporary manner consistent with the appliances and fixtures placed within them. But for not much more money, Arts and Crafts detailing for the cabinets or a bit of tile work can add an attractive consistency to the house — but remember, these rooms were originally very utilitarian.

Time has provided us with the retrospection that the houses produced during the Arts and Crafts period were some of the most comfortable, beautiful and functional homes ever built in the United States. If you are fortunate enough to own one, treat it with the same respect and care you would give to a prized Stickley rocker or plein-air painting. As designers, builders, and homeowners we should recognize that the timeless simplicity that the artisans of the Arts and Crafts period strove for is as approp riate today as it was 100 years ago.

New Craftsman styled Timberframe House near Mount Vernon, WA Designed by the Johnson Partnership

Larry Johnson. founder of the Johnson Partnership, an architectural firm in Seattle, is an old friend of the bungalow. Since forming his practice 14 years ago, Larry has designed a wide range of projects: from timber-frame structures to renovation and remodeling — espec ially in the Northwest Craftsman style tradition. He is currently Washington state preservation officer for the American Institute of Architects.

Table of Contents
Number 12

A Letter from the Publisher

Family Album

Craftsman Collection
A Tribute to Al Griffin

Open House: Letters and Comments

Unbungling Bungalows
by Larry Johnson

Castle in Spain
by Robert Winter

Restoration of the D.M. Francis House
by Ann Haskell

Events Calendar

Books
American Bungalow Style
by Robert Winter and Alexander Vertikoff
Review by Bob Gustafson.

From The Advisory Board
by Robert Schweitzer

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