Northshore Home magazine highlights the best in architectural design, new construction and renovations, interiors, and landscape design.
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/1463863
80 landscape with a new set of stone steps leading down to the lawn and stone walls nestled into the sloping grade. This extra hardscaping echoes the foundation's stone and further connects structure and setting. Without changing the home's footprint greatly, Ahearn reworked the entire interior, bringing it back to its studs. "We had to rethink the whole circulation pattern and how you get from space to space," he explains. To create more modern living for a busy family of six, the architect delivered a brand-new kitchen open to an adjoining family room. "We kept some interior spaces private but definitely wanted openness around the kitchen," he relates. Ahearn made a conscious effort to temper the kitchen's newness with open shelving above the perimeter cabinets and around the 48-inch range. "Instead of traditional uppers, the shelving displays collectibles and makes the kitchen feel warm and lived in," he observes. Ceiling timbers and pumpkin pine flooring lend a sense of patina to not just the kitchen but also the family room beyond, where a gracious fireplace (crafted from dry-set New England fieldstone) contributes extra coziness. The home's eastern wing—consisting of the primary bedroom over a screened porch—looks out toward the neighboring marsh. Arranging this primary bedroom symmetrically within the sideways-facing gambrel resulted in a showcase cathedral ceiling. (Similarly, all the upstairs bedrooms assimilated former attic space, allowing for higher, more interesting ceiling shapes accentuated by wood paneling.) The primary bathroom, complete with soaking tub and glassed shower, also enjoys conservation-land views. One particular client request was for more bedrooms. To add more sleeping space on the second floor, Ahearn broke up several awkward double-height spaces, which only served to date the interior. "The large volumes weren't appropriate to the scale or style of a 100-year- old home," he explains. Reworking the entry sequence led to a new mudroom off the motor court, which is now the family's main point of entry. Improving the interior flow also involved creating a new central stair. "The previous stairway was very tight; there really wasn't a primary stair in the house," says Ahearn. The new and improved version's formal paneling adds to the home's period charm while strategic windows introduce streams of natural light. Ahearn's quest to maximize the property's livability resulted in a new structure: a separate barn for entertaining, recreation, and more storage space. It was inspired by the agrarian structures erected by the Amish for centuries. "It represents an important chapter of the story we wanted to tell," says Ahearn. "We placed it on the property as a companion to the house where we thought a traditional New England barn should be." Now that the renovation is complete, the property is ideal for every season. During summer, the kids can play in the yard or the barn while parents enjoy coffee or cocktails on the screened porch. Come winter, the norm is a roaring fire in the family room while dinner gets underway. "It's not a McMansion," says Ahearn of the finished product. "It's a large home but it really feels anchored in the community and very in tune with the North Shore." Patrick Ahearn Architect, patrickahearn.com; JW Construction, jwconstructioninc.com; Riles Construction; Interior Designer: Gauthier Stacy, gauthierstacy.com; Landscape: Mary Ann Alberts Malarkey Design Opposite, clockwise from above: Previously, the home lacked an inviting central stair, a deficiency that was remedied with this light-filled stairwell. French doors in the master bedroom frame the vibrant greens and blues of neighboring conservation land. Above top, A fieldstone fireplace anchors the living space. Above, Ahearn created a barn for entertaining, recreation, and storage.