House on Cape Cod
“Our renovation of this Cape Cod cottage revivified the old house and gave it the character that it should have had in the first place. Channeling the Colonial Revival of the early twentieth century, as well as vernacular New England architecture, the house retains a very intimate scale with simple yet evocative details.”
Roger H. Seifter, Project Partner
The owners of this Cape Cod-style summer house asked us to preserve the character of their circa-1940’s cottage as it was expanded to accommodate themselves, their children, and grandchildren. While the core foundation and some perimeter framing were retained, most of the construction is new, yet respects the original structure in scale and proportion.
We drew inspiration from the historic New England houses that began as 2- or 4-room shingled capes or saltboxes and grew by accretion over successive generations, as well as the modest, yet exquisitely detailed, Colonial Revival work of architect Royal Barry Wills.
The design widens and lengthens the central core of the house to accommodate the primary suite and communal living rooms, extending the service wing to provide space on the main floor for two en-suite bedrooms, taking care to maintain the cottage scale of the house while ensuring privacy for the owners and their children’s families.
Following historic and local precedent, the first-floor ceilings are relatively low, while those in the rooms above gain architectural interest from the roof slopes into which they extend.
Interior detailing follows the local vernacular, with reclaimed wide plank pine floors and beams, blacksmith door hardware, flat painted casings set nearly flush with the walls as plaster stops, and a slightly uneven texture and open pore to the plaster itself, with the subtle imperfections in the finishes imparting a sense of age and use.
New dormers at the second floor allow for an additional three bedrooms and baths.
Project Partner: Roger H. Seifter
Interior Design: Buzz Kelly Interiors
Landscape Architect: Horiuchi & Solin
Photography: Frank Frances