Last week I featured a “Fixer Upper” that to me had great potential so this week, I was inspired by the Monty Python movie “And Now for Something Completely Different” to search for a small house that is renovated and move-in ready. Since I can’t resist cottages this one that was built in 1945 caught my eye. This small cottage has big architectural character from its dormer windows at the front of the house, the full shed dormer across the rear of the house for greater headroom, the box bay projection from the front wall that increases the floor area of the kitchen and the bay window at the dining area.
The house is set perpendicular to the street with a driveway that extends past the front door’s brick stoop then ends at the 600 sf detached shed. The drive also curves around to the rear porch at the kitchen for ease of unloading the car after an afternoon of running errands. The interior renovation began by removing all the interior finishes to expose the studs for installation of new wiring and insulation. The renovation continued with drywall and paint with the same neutral color used throughout the house. The hardwood floors on the main floor were refinished and carpet was installed on the second floor for sound insulation. The finishing touches included new doors, appliances, cabinets, moldings, plumbing and lighting fixtures.
The main floor contains the spacious living room with a picture window between two operable windows and another window on the side wall. The pastoral view from the picture window is of farmland across the road stretching to the distant background of dense trees. The wide cased opening on the interior side wall frames the view to the dining room’s wide bay projection with a triple window. Another wide cased opening in the dining room leads to the kitchen and between the two wall openings is an angled wall that has been built out slightly to perhaps cover a former fireplace. This could be a perfect spot for built-in corner cabinet for additional storage.
The kitchen has two windows for sunlight and views and here the flooring changes to gray to coordinate with white cabinets, white solid surface countertops and stainless steel appliances with black accents of the microwave above the range and the top and back panel of the range. To me, it would have been better to extend the upper cabinets to the ceiling for additional storage instead of having a gap and molding above the cabinets. The cased opening from the kitchen to the dining room frames the vista of the single window at the dining room.
At the corner of the living room is a recessed area with the stairs to the second floor opposite the door to the primary bedroom suite. The original iron grille in the bedroom floor has a new life as the HVAC supply air grille. Windows on both corner walls make the space sunny and bright. The primary bath’s lavatory cabinet is sized to contain two drawers for storage in addition to the space below the lavatory. White fixtures and cabinets with a solid surface countertop creates a neutral palette ready for the next owner’s colorful towels and accessories.
The second floor bedrooms share the hall bath with its white European style lavatory cabinet and white fixtures. Each bedroom has windows from the dormers at the front roof and the rear shed dormer.
This three bedroom, two bath home’s move-in ready renovation has a bonus of the detached 600 sf outbuilding. The lack of interior columns maximizes the space’s use for garage, office, workshop, etc. Looking at my long list of deferred maintenance items, having a fully renovated house with a main floor suite and a detached building for my office and storage is very tempting! The lot has been partially landscaped so the new owner can add their own hardscape and landscape.
For more information about this property, contact Joan Wetmore with Meredith Fine Properties at 410-822-6702 (o), 410-924-2432 (c) or [email protected]. For more photographs and pricing visit www.meredithfineproperties.com , “Equal Housing Opportunity”.
Photography by True Place, (301) 972-3201, www.go.truplace.com
Spy House of the Week is an ongoing series that selects a different home each week. The Spy’s Habitat editor Jennifer Martella makes these selections based exclusively on her experience as a architect.
Jennifer Martella has pursued her dual careers in architecture and real estate since she moved to the Eastern Shore in 2004. Her award winning work has ranged from revitalization projects to a collaboration with the Maya Lin Studio for the Children’s Defense Fund’s corporate retreat in her home state of Tennessee.
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