Ranch Rebirth (continued)
Photo: Mark Lohman
From the start, when the couple moved here in 1998, their goal was to update the four-bedroom, 5,000-square-foot ranch for comfortable, contemporary living while backdating it to spotlight its more traditional 1938 detailing. They loved the living room's original mahogany floors, tongue-and-groove paneled walls, and wood ceilings, and hoped to use these elements as inspiration in remedying such charmless additions as a 1970s office and a dark '80s bathroom. But in 1999 they started with the dated kitchen. And chaos ensued.
"Our first child—he's nine now—had just been born, and there we were, tearing down a wall to create one big, eat-in, kitchen–family room," the wife recalls. "I was heating bottles in the bathtub!" But not the tub in the master bathroom, she hastens to add, because there, two small baths and a closet were being transformed into a single large room. During that first remodel, the couple was also adding sunlight— and boosting the aesthetic impact of the exterior profile—by raising the entry's ceiling by about 4 feet, to almost tower height, and installing clerestory windows. Today that foyer is a charming dining room, courtesy of the second, 2005, renovation.
Though this was a two-stage remodel that was done without an architect, the overall plan of attack was consistent, says the husband. First, rip out anything that did not fit the style of the 1938 house, such as dropped kitchen ceilings, some wallboard, and any floors that weren't hardwood. Next, add wood-paneled walls, for example, in the master bath and new dining room, and cover the old brick living room fireplace with a classic wood surround. Then, paint all woodwork and baths white to give the furnishings a crisper background. And finally, he says, "layer on fun colors!"
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