This imaginative homeowner made good use of some unused space in his Kennebunk, Maine attic. Creating a library/study using old furniture, simple bookshelves, oriental rugs and other items to make…
From corn cobs, to baskets, to spinning wheels, this photograph by Chansonetta Stanley Emmons typified her interest in rural New England life. Emmons traveled with her daughter Dorothy throughout New England, the Carolinas and Canada photographing and presenting prepared presentations of her work. Emmons' nostalgic aesthetic was featured within her traveling slide show lectures.
Gallery of the best attic storage ideas including clever organization ideas such as fitted wardrobes, attic storage and more.
Hamilton House, in South Berwick, Maine is one of the finest historic homes in the state. A masterpiece of the Georgian Style, it was built on the banks of the…
June 2009 by Rebecca FalzanoPhotography Trent Bell If we listen closely, houses will sometimes speak to us. Queen Annes overlooking brick-lined streets share secrets of the past. Farmhouses lining snowy country roads whisper of the warmth within. Rustic camps beside … Continue reading →
Weaver Emi Ito invites us into her Bath studio.
“Looks like a broken window you’ve got there.” I repeat at an awkward volume for this still wilderness, pointing my words at the leathery hand cupped at Bill Coperthwaite’s ear. At eighty-four, his hearing is going. We are standing in his guest yurt, a one-and-a-half story stack of his first yurt design (which is now the smaller, inner story) and the later, larger addition which wraps concentrically around it. The western side of the room is constellated with a small blast of glass bits. “Ah.” Bill responds. Opening the door slowly, as to avoid disturbing the nesting hornets that live by the hinges, Bill steps backwards out of the yurt (his preferred method, which keeps one from banging their forehead on the low doorways) into the bright sun. He pads through the grass to inspect the broken window, and happens upon a dead grouse. “Ah”, he repeats, musing on the development. When he is lost in thought like this, he absentmindedly knocks his false teeth around in his mouth. It sounds like a kid with a jawbreaker. We stand in silence for a moment or two, both staring at the poor thing. And then, with one word, “Dinner!”, he scoops up the dead bird by the feet and carries it, head loosely swinging, down the footpath to his yurt’s kitchen, which is a marvel in and of itself. Darkly patinated, wide-plank countertops hand carved to match the curving walls, his ingenious water-tank made from a cylinder of birch bark, and a filthy glass pitcher of furiously fermenting, neon-pink liquid Bill lovingly dubs “hooch”, a concoction made up of Welch’s grape juice concentrate and a few hibiscus tea bags. It sounds like an inexhaustible bowl of Rice Krispies. In 1973 the ocean front of Northern Maine was a different place. Clearcut, infertile, and hours from even the most minor convenience, the land was not widely considered desirable. At the time, Bill heard the logging companies were offering land in Machiasport at six dollars per acre. He bought 300, which seemed outlandish and selfish to him then, but now, as the waterfront condo developments hedge in his boundary lines, a move he thanks himself for. Since that day, he’s spent the better part of forty years playing around with house design, specifically yurt design. His simple structures are efficient and nicely suited to the climate here. Being essentially a series of stacked circles, heat circulates easily during winter, and the long, low rooflines keep the sun from penetrating deep into the rooms during summer. And though the walls are thin pine boards, he burns very little wood during the winter, even without sealing his windows. When I ask about the total lack of weatherproofing, he tilts his head in curiosity and smiles a little. “What do you mean? I need to breathe. The fire needs to breathe. If I burned more wood, than I guess I’d worry about it. Why is everybody so scared of a little air?” It’s not the yurt that specifically interests Bill. Having mastered that one form allows him to use it as a template, but he is an ecologist before he is a designer. It is clear, after spending a bit of time by his side, that his interest is in the materials; how to most comfortably and enjoyably articulate space with a minimum of highly valued materials. Emphasis here on the value of materials, hard-won by slow and labored work. Bill wastes very little material in his work, as would anyone if they had to pull tied flotillas of lumber behind their canoe, many miles from the sawmill to the work site. And while his lifestyle is admittedly at the boundaries of what most people would accept as comfortable, he has lived out an incredible experiment, whittling away every bit of excess from his life and his building methods. Almost nothing is wasted. Even his broken tools, having worn themselves to relative uselessness, are thoughtfully repurposed to new ends. We spent a couple of days working on his newest design, a single-room yurt with a bizarrely folded roof design; the ceiling is plywood tortured into compound curves. The walls are lapstrake cedar, and it requires two people to clinch the nails through the overlaps in the boards- I backed up and bent the nails into a semi-circle while he drove them through the walls. Bill spent most of the time talking about the merits of efficiency that an electric screwgun would have in this situation. We finished work and gathered up some food for dinner, and Bill chatted aimlessly while plucking the dead grouse free of its feathers. Dinner was two or three times as much food as we should have eaten, grouse and sauteed vegetables. Out of politeness, (and against my better judgement), I shared the meat with him, which was fantastic; winey and tender. After a day of carpentry in the brisk October wind and light, we ate in the warm wooden room without much talk. The hooch’s dense crackling padded the quiet of the room. During the long drive home, it was not any conversation or particular building that stood out most in my memory, but his sinewy and ancient hands. They were transfixing. Constantly mobile. Palms like hide. The back of the hand soft, smooth, mottled and almost translucently thin. Old but sure. On Wednesday morning, our pant legs damp and heavy from the walk through the tall wild grasses, we set to work on his new yurt, and he fumbled the first nail. Searching through the dirt and leaves, he grumbled “Dropped my first nail. Might as well go back to bed.” We worked until lunch, when I had to leave, and after eating I packed my bag in the stream of brilliant sunlight that shot down through the the aligned doorways of each of the yurt’s floors. When Bill thanked me for visiting, and climbed—brightly backlit—into the loft for his afternoon nap, it looked as though he was tugging his rangy body into the sky.
In a monthly column, Christopher W. Closs, an expert with Maine Preservation, answers your questions about maintaining antique and vintage homes. Q. I live in a seaside clapboard house built in 1856. Three sides of my home need repainting desperately, as bare wood is showing where paint has peeled off. What are the considerations I […]
Kaplan Thompson Architects and Warren Construction Group designed this contemporary coastal house perched over Casco Bay in Yarmouth, Maine.
Louise har indrettet sine 47 kvadratmeter til rolig, rummelig perfektion. For at opnå det udtryk hun drømte om har hun truffet en noget utraditionel...
Rescued from the tide, a former general store in coastal Maine is reborn as a modern summer cottage. When Fiona Hooper first set foot in the dilapidated ge
There's just something about a Greek Revival. This one, built in 1840, requires plenty of work, especially inside, but what a beauty it could be once again!
Rescued from the tide, a former general store in coastal Maine is reborn as a modern summer cottage. When Fiona Hooper first set foot in the dilapidated ge
We've spent the last 5 years transforming the attic of our almost 100 year old bungalow home into a master bedroom. It's been a long process but we couldn't be happier with the results. It was really important to us that our upstairs matched the style of our 1920s home. Everything from trim pieces to the color of the hardwood floors matches the downstairs design that is the original part of our home. Utilizing space was also important so we incorporated lots of shelves. Our his and hers closets have sliding doors and drawers on each side that also act as bookshelves. The most expensive part of the project were the wood ceiling boards and floors. We had the option of cutting corners by using faux wood or beadboard but instead opted for the real thing and now our house smells amazing because of it. "We shape our dwellings, and afterwards, our dwellings shape us." - Winston Churchill What I love most about our master bedroom is that we had a hand in the creation of it. With the help of my in laws, we were able to complete our project without the help of a contractor. Everything from the bookcase for a bannister to the installation of the 3 sided gas fireplace purchased for $50 from Habitat Humanity Restore is our work. Because we created this space as a family, we can now look at any corner of the room and tell you the story behind it. As with any project, there were times we had to rework ideas or redo things because they didn't work out. Now that we see the end result we are happy for those minor edits and wouldn't change a thing.
These Great Depression era photographs taken in Maine are incredible!
(via 25 Amazing Attic Bedrooms That You Would Absolutely Enjoy Sleeping In)
From innovative use of space to luxurious touches and eco-friendly design, explore our top ten creative loft bathroom design ideas that will inspire you to transform your attic into a functional and aesthetically pleasing space.
These one-of-a-kind spaces—from a home theater for putting on plays, to a secret alcove with a special ladder—are sure to impress any kid.
The last thing you want to see added to your to-do list is "remove squirrel from attic", call in the professionals at Big Blue Bug Solutions today.
Hard to believe this price! This home was built in 1847. It is located on 6.42 acres in Pembroke, Maine. This home is being sold with all of the furnishings and antiques! A lot of the major repairs have been completed. New gas heating system, updated electric, new plumbing and new roof! The home also has new joists and sills. The current owners are selling at a loss as one person cannot continue the work on the house. Five bedrooms, two bathrooms, and 1,800 square feet. $25,000 From the Zillow listing: OPPORTUNITY KNOCKS! Built in 1847 and used as a summer home over the past several decades, this charming house has recently undergone major repairs/improvements including a new high-efficiency gas heating system, all new windows and doors, completely rewired electrical system with new 100-amp panel box, new plumbing, and new roof. Significant structural repairs have been completed including new joists and underlayment in kitchen and dining rooms and new sills, joists, and underlayment in the old woodshed, which is now a brightly lit workshop area. The old cedar shakes have been stripped from about half the house, the walls are Typar?d, and ready for new shingles. The bedrooms and […]
Stranger Things’ actor David Harbour’s Nolita loft apartment
The loft conversion of this Tudor style home in Wimbledon is light, bright and has a unique balcony, which is unlike others you may have seen.
As kitchens become more sociable spaces, functionally flexible and open, the island unit ceases to serve simply as furniture, taking on a more central,..
A primitive bothy on Jura, one of the Western Isles, has been converted into a comfortable summer bolthole
Circa 1850 Maine Farmhouse For Sale W/Views And Garage on 2.5 Acres 317 Main St, Stockton Springs, ME 04981 $365,000 House This charming, his
Vom Gästezimmer über den begehbaren Kleiderschrank bis zum heimischen Home-Spa: So wird ein ungenutzter Dachboden zum Wohntraum!
New cherry paneling and flooring throughout complements the original Douglas fir exposed beams. Tagged: Living Room, Sofa, Coffee Tables, Floor Lighting, Light Hardwood Floor, and Chair.
This Norwegian house has a history as storybook as its vernacular architecture.
A historic Kennebunkport home is remodeled for the needs of the present with a love for the past When Frank and Missy McDougald made the decision to move to Maine, they were living in Boston’s South End with their … Continue reading →
How old is too old for a slide? Asking for a friend.
