Deteriorated mid-1800's home, transformed into country retreat

When I first saw this structure in Scuffleburg VA, its walls were stripped down to the original log studs, and it had been empty and unmaintained for many many years.  The new owners, seeing great potential for the run-down home due to its location on a secluded 30+ acre site complete with pond, asked me to design a two-story addition to the left side. You'll notice that the new addition has a lower ridge,  and lower second story walls so as not to overshadow the original house.  The new shed roof over the new addition's kitchen aligns with the new porch roof on the front of the existing structure to blend old and new.   The final result was a lovely single-family home with three bedrooms, stone fireplace, sunken Great Room, open kitchen/nook area, and roomy covered porch with ceiling fans.  The owners anticipate screening in the porch, as it gets quite buggy in the country!

Here are some pictures of the home in its original condition:

And here are the after photos.  Keep in mind that the covered porch will ultimately be screened, and will have lattice installed between the porch piers.  Notice also that the client asked that we incorporate some of the original log studs as columns along the side of the new secondary staircase in the new addition.

"This home started out as a weekend retreat for the clients, but they have since sold their first home in Fairfax and now live in the country full-time. Their first home was larger, but the open feel of this addition keeps them and their several pets from feeling claustrophobic.

Recently we completed a set of plans to add on once more. The clients wanted a one-story Master Suite addition with screened porch and study to be added to the rear of the home, to be accessed through former twin windows at the back of the Great Room, now being turned into French Doors. They also requested that we design an extension to the front porch, making it a wrap-around porch with a storage room at the end. The homeowners are in possession of a large, antique locomotive bell, and part of the porch extension was created as a place to prominently display this bell. The contractor is building a large overhang at the end of the new storage room gable roof, and the bell will hang from the end of the extended timber ridge beam. It will be one of the first things that visitors to the home will see as they pull into the driveway, and will also be useful for bringing the family members back to the homestead from across the meadows at dinnertime!

Check back for photos of what promises to be another great improvement to this unique property.