Separate Structures
A pair of vintage Adirondack chairs provides a place for admiring the pastoral views across the property. “The real consideration here was that it was affordable and easy for him to build himself,” Richardson says. The house was designed to stand up to abuse from grandkids, who should have the time of their lives here for many years to come.
As the plans progressed, the homeowners decided it would be worthwhile to add a bedroom so the building could double as a guesthouse. Board and batten walls and the X detail on the closet door nod to farm buildings, while red and white gingham bedding adds country charm. “The wide bats on the walls gussy it up a bit,” Richardson notes.
Trex decking continues from the porch into the bathhouse portion. “They wanted something that was durable, could take abuse and would not require much maintenance,” Richardson says. The room has two toilets, two shower stalls, two sinks and built-in storage for towels. The owners added storage for dishes and glasses, and a dishwasher so they could easily clean up snacks on movie night or after other events they host in the barn. Richardson provided some of the light fixtures herself, after replacing them with upgrades in her own home.
“Properly siting the building was a priority for the homeowners,” Richardson says. This included tucking it out of view from the main house, and making sure it related to the other buildings and the landscape. The tents, which sit on platforms also built by Grandpa, are sited nearby, as is a former dairy barn, where the family gathers to watch movies.
The structure looks as though it’s been there as long as the other farm buildings, thanks to the style, the corrugated red metal roof and the tongue and groove siding. Galvanized metal troughs from the feed store fit right in as planters. The blackboard is for posting daily schedules for activities like horseback riding, crafts, kayaking, planting projects, trips to the beach and caring for the chickens and donkeys on the property. The wraparound porch and the stoop serve as additional hangout spaces for the grandchildren.
The 16–by-24-foot studio has a simple open gable plan. Rough-cut pine shiplap, milled just down the road, warms the cathedral ceiling. Douglas fir beams (four-by-eights) break up the ceiling’s expanse. The flooring is engineered hickory. Browne sourced as many of his materials from Maine as possible. He wanted to include a loft in the design — until a friend sent over a photo of a lofted net. Browne took one look and thought, “This is going to be cheaper” — not to mention more fun. Natural light also wouldn’t be affected, since the netting wouldn’t obstruct any of the office’s windows. Using 4-by-8 Douglas fir beams to frame the 8-by-11-foot loft space, Browne secured a construction safety net using I-hooks and an aircraft cable. He says the net has stretched out a little, but he finds it even more loungeworthy now. (One of his sons is shown enjoying the net here.)
4. Energy-Efficient Outbuilding Location: Falmouth, Maine Size: 384 square feet (36 square meters) Architect: Kevin Browne After commuting to his office for an hour a day, architect Kevin Browne turned his sights to managing his one-person-firm closer to home, by building an office on his property. Browne envisioned a studio that felt very New England, but he wanted to explore contemporary materials and energy-efficient building techniques. He didn’t want a 19th-century replica. The studio’s exterior is covered in CertainTeed WeatherBoards. Browne chose a custom paint for the siding to match the metal roof. Solar panels cover the roof’s south side. They handle the studio’s heating and cooling needs; any leftover energy can be used for the main house. Browne built the studio using the Zip sheathing system, with a built-in energy-efficient barrier, to minimize air leakage and maintain a tighter building envelope. He used a flash-and-batt insulation method. He also performed a blower door test to ensure the shed was airtight.
For the exterior finishing, Fein used budget-friendly Hardie cement board siding and added vertical cedar battens to create the illusion of wooden board and batten. The shed’s bright orange front is another impactful, budget-friendly detail that guides visitors to the entry. Inside the main house, all the doors are painted the same orange as a way to tie the two structures together. But Fein also “tried to contrast [the shed] with the house so that you understand it’s a distinct, freestanding folly.” The structure has a mini split for heating and cooling. Though these upgrades have put the shed’s overall cost at about $18,000, roughly twice Fein’s estimate for the conversion, the studio is inviting and remains at a comfortable temperature year round. It was “well worth the expense,” Fein says. Orange paint: Daredevil, Sherwin-Williams
Inside, the office space is simple but not sparse, accommodating a comfortable workstation for one and storing Fein’s extensive library of architecture and design books. He designed the interior around his collection of George Nelson Omni shelving, accumulated over the years. The desk, which he designed, locks into the shelves. Seven-foot-tall walls house the bookcases and give the shed an intimate feel. “That was an attempt on my part to keep the scale down,” Fein says, to tie it in with the house and backyard. The room has a cork floor, laid on top of a slab-on-grade foundation. “We love cork floors, because they’re affordable, they wear well and you can put them on a slab,” Fein says. Desk chair: Maarten Van Severen for Vitra; light blue desk chair: Eero Saarinen for Knoll
3. Modern Minimalist Retreat Location: Prairie Village, Kansas (near Kansas City) Size: 120 square feet (11 square meters) Architect: Christopher Fein of Forward Design|Architecture Architect Chris Fein designed and built a 10-by-12-foot shed in his backyard originally as an office for his architecture firm, which has since outgrown the space. He now retreats to it to prepare for classes he teaches at Kansas State University’s architecture school. “People love the idea of escaping their house to work while still being at home,” he says. “That’s exactly why I like it.” The shed’s design was a study in economy. “It was generally an exercise in how cheaply we could build that space,” Fein says. Codes dictated that the shed be no larger than 10 by 12 feet, and Fein kept the roof slope as slight as possible. Choosing a simple rectangular shape and locating the door and window on the same wall also kept costs down. “The overall form and shape were really dictated by budget,” Fein says. The shed sits in the rear corner of the yard, with its own entrance from the street. It’s close to the fence, 2 feet from the property line, which is the closest permitted by local building regulations...
To keep the small space from feeling overwhelmed, Mitchell included extensive storage and stuck with a mainly monochromatic color palette. “You can only choose so many focal points in a room,” she says. “You have to choose where things blend and recede.” The white bookcases match the white walls behind them, and storage bins and cabinets keep clutter at bay. Mitchell even painted the cork wall she installed behind her worktable the same white as the walls so it wouldn’t draw attention to itself. “I’ve been using it for six months now and haven’t had any trouble with chipping,” she says.
nside, she chose wall-to-wall-seagrass carpet, a mix of high and low furniture pieces and custom window treatments. The fabric Mitchell chose for the windows — a faded blush floral print with camel, steel and bronze accents — helped pull the design scheme together, inspiring the room’s color palette and balancing the various styles and themes Mitchell wanted to include. “[It] struck me as feminine cowgirl,” she says. The vintage Stickley desk is Mitchell’s primary workspace. With most of the furnishings coming from big-box retailers, she wanted a piece that would give a sense of heritage and a timeless quality. “I’m a sucker for really well-made furniture,” she says. An added budget bonus: Mitchell found the desk on consignment. Its wood stands out in the mostly white room, providing a place for the eye to rest.
2. Converted Blacksmith’s Shed Location: Hopkinton, New Hampshire, near Concord Size: 176 square feet (16 square meters); two-thirds-story loft above is used for storage Designer: Amy Mitchell of Home Glow Design Soon after Amy Mitchell opened her own interior design firm, she realized her family’s kitchen wouldn’t provide enough space to run her business and host clients — or show off her design skills. Fortunately, Mitchell didn’t have to look far for her next office. A 19th-century blacksmith shop sat on her family’s property, just on the other side of the driveway from the main house. “We had this space and we thought it would be perfect,” she says. “It was being underutilized as a storage shed.” The redesign started with some minor construction and demolition. Working with general contractor Brian J Barrett, the team ripped up the floors, repaired and painted walls and replaced two windows. Barrett installed antique wavy glass panes, new mullions and new sashes. Lenn Johnson added new electrical and lighting receptacles. “Other than that it was mostly decorative,” Mitchell says of the improvements.
Mennes’ office sits off the entry vestibule and next to the work den of her husband. The office walls and ceiling are white paneled wood. Exposed reclaimed-oak beams provide some structural support, but they’re mostly decorative. Mennes looked to East Coast farmhouses and Scandinavian style for inspiration. “The office is simple and utilitarian,” she says. Built-ins and organized storage contribute to the clean, functional look. A local builder designed and installed the 12-foot-long floating pine desk. Floating shelves are made from MDF painted to match the room. Plain white binders and boxes store materials and office supplies for the firm. A pegboard wall holds architectural tools, and white filing cabinets offer additional storage. “The idea was to hide everything in the white storage wall,” Mennes says. A leaning ladder with wire trays holds the materials and paperwork for the firm’s current project. The flooring is bleached oak and does not have radiant heating. “We do have a little Panasonic heat and AC unit in the main office. We tend to not need it,” Mennes says. The new shed’s tight envelope and the radiant heating in the other rooms keep the whole space comfortable.
Mennes’ office sits off the entry vestibule and next to the work den of her husband. The office walls and ceiling are white paneled wood. Exposed reclaimed-oak beams provide some structural support, but they’re mostly decorative. Mennes looked to East Coast farmhouses and Scandinavian style for inspiration. “The office is simple and utilitarian,” she says. Built-ins and organized storage contribute to the clean, functional look. A local builder designed and installed the 12-foot-long floating pine desk. Floating shelves are made from MDF painted to match the room. Plain white binders and boxes store materials and office supplies for the firm. A pegboard wall holds architectural tools, and white filing cabinets offer additional storage. “The idea was to hide everything in the white storage wall,” Mennes says. A leaning ladder with wire trays holds the materials and paperwork for the firm’s current project. The flooring is bleached oak and does not have radiant heating. “We do have a little Panasonic heat and AC unit in the main office. We tend to not need it,” Mennes says. The new shed’s tight envelope and the radiant heating in the other rooms keep the whole space comfortable.
1. Scandinavian-Inspired Barn Location: Garrison, New York Size: 400 square feet (37 square meters) Architect: Annie Mennes of Garrison Foundry Architecture + Decor Architect Annie Mennes and her family moved to New York’s Hudson Valley around the same time she started her own firm. After working out of their house for a few years, she decided to renovate a dilapidated barn on the property into a home office and guest suite. Though her plan to renovate the barn became a complete rebuild due to the building’s structural issues, Mennes was able to re-create what had attracted her to the barn in the first place. “It was such a charming size and shape,” she says. “We wanted to honor the vernacular that’s here on the site.” The new structure’s stucco siding, which was also used on the original barn exterior, nods to the past. Energy-efficient details and clean lines bring the building into the present. The building features warm, natural materials with simple details and clean lines, channeling Scandinavian design. “The idea was to bridge this rustic-modern vibe,” Mennes says.
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