House Museums

Katie Hutchison, over at House Enthusiast, posted a very nice piece about my Squidoo lens, Your Complete Guide to Residential Architecture.

She suggested that I add an architecture/house museum category. I think that’s a great idea and I am quite surprised that I don’t already have that list. My brothers and I grew up visiting every architecture/house museum within a day’s trip from home. It’s how Mom planned most Saturdays while Dad was working. (Now, as a father of three, I have a much better understanding of why Mom always had an interesting place for us to go… It’s called parent survival.) I am sure that our mini adventures to historic homes throughout the region had a huge influence on me becoming a residential architect.

Now, I just need to find the time to make the list for the lens. Maybe you can help. Send a link to your favorite architecture/house museum to blog@fivecat.com.

Here are a few to get us started.

• Fallingwater
• Philip Johnson’s Glass House
• Historic Hudson Valley (7 great locations in the Hudson Valley)
• Biltmore Estate
• Vanderbilt Mansion
• Boldt Castle
• Colonial Williamsburg

Thanks for the idea and the kind post, Katie.

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Great Westchester Kitchens

I enjoyed my afternoon at the offices of Westchester Magazine today. Nancy Claus and Esther Davidowitz invited Kim Freeman, Phyllis Harbinger and me to join them and Halina Sabath, Westchester Home Magazine’s Creative Director, to judge their 2009 Great Kitchen Contest. We were presented with a wonderful selection of entries from all over the county; a broad range of styles from sleek modern to very traditional… and many in between. The winners are very special spaces and I look forward to seeing them published in an upcoming issue of Westchester Magazine.

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AIA Westchester / Mid-Hudson: A Celebration of Architects

We finished up our boards for the local AIA chapter’s A Celebration of Architects exhibition scheduled for November 20 – 22.

Be sure to add the dates to your calendar. The event is one weekend only.

From AIA Architect Network:

On Thursday, November 19th, 2009, following their annual Awards ceremony, The American Institute of Architects – Mid Hudson Chapter, will present a major public exhibition entitled “A Celebration of Architects….. The Art of Architecture” exhibiting the work of regional architects.

This exhibition will be held at the Westchester Arts Exchange (ground floor gallery), 31 Mamaroneck Avenue, White Plains, New York. The exhibit will be opened to the public, free of charge, Friday, November 20th thru Sunday, November 22nd, 2009.

Download the event flyer here.

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New Westchester County Septic System Regulations

In December ‘08, the Westchester County Department of Health announced amendments to the law regulating Onsite Wastewater Treatment Systems (OWTS), better known as Septic Systems.

Boring stuff, right? Wrong!

Check this out… from Westchester County Law, Article VIII:

No person shall undertake to construct any major expansion of an existing building or structure requiring an onsite wastewater treatment system or to construct, install, replace, expand, remediate, alter, and/or modify such system without first having obtained the written approval for such system issued pursuant to the Public Health Law or by the commissioner.

Such onsite wastewater treatment system to serve any major expansion of an existing building or structure together with the existing building and structure shall comply with current standards, rules or regulations duly promulgated by the commissioner and with the terms or conditions of approval issued therefore or approved amendments thereto.

Major expansion of an existing building or structure shall be defined as any renovation or expansion of an existing residential building or structure resulting in a gross floor area increase of 100% or more, or 1,000 square feet or more, whichever is less, within any five year period; or resulting in an increase in the total number of bedrooms in such building or structure.

So, what does this mean?

It means that any project that expands a residence 1,000 square feet or more must comply with current septic design standards. Few current septic systems meet current standards.

If your home is served by a septic system and you are planning a project that will include a 1,000+ square foot addition and/or adding bedrooms, be prepared to include evaluation, modification or replacement of your septic system in your budget.

The County did a poor job of informing the public and professional community of the coming regulation changes. I recently attended a meeting of my local AIA chapter where this issue was discussed. An informal poll of 70+ architects in the room found that NONE were notified of the public hearings, which occurred in early ‘08. Most discovered the new rules earlier this year, only after submitting a 1,000+ square foot project to a local building department and triggering Health Department review.

Our job gets more difficult everyday.

This is going to get very interesting. Stay tuned…

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Restored Antiques by Rejuvenation

Rejuvenation is well known for their exceptional collection of historically inspired light fixtures. Throughout the past few years, they’ve introduced additional offerings, such as hardware and accessories.

Did you know that they also offer restored antique originals?

From Rejuvenation.com:

As much as our own lighting and hardware reproductions are chips off the old blocks, the heart, soul, and origin of Rejuvenation is rooted in lighting restoration and architectural salvage.

We opened shop in 1977, and ever since then, preservation, restoration, and a great respect for tradition and craftsmanship have been at the core of our values.

Choose from original vintage lighting, shades, and hardware from Victorian to Mid-Century Modern styles in finishes that have been expertly revived, reconditioned, and protected.

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Marissa’s Kitchen | Westchester Home Magazine

Marissa's Kitchen from the new Ipe Wood Deck

Marissa’s Kitchen is featured in this month’s Westchester Home. Elzy Kolb penned an excellent article and Philip Jensen-Carter’s photos look great on the mag’s glossy paper. Check out the two-page spread on pages 68 and 69.

The faith and trust that Marissa Hardie granted us with this project (thanks again Marissa) resulted in a simply amazing space (in my very humble opinion). The only item of information that the editors omitted, is the outstanding work that Fivecat Studio Project Manager John Whalen contributed to the project. Successful projects are a the product of  dedicated, hard working teams and John was an integral part to the success of Marissa’s Kitchen.

For a complete list of specs for Marissa’s Kitchen, check out this previous post.

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Lake Katonah Project

I visited our project at Lake Katonah this morning.

Unfortunately, due to a slightly uncooperative contractor (nice guy, but a bit too slow), it’s not yet complete. With that said… I am loving it!

It’s so great to see our designs come to life.

Natural light floods the interiors through skylights, large windows, glass doors and strategically located openings at interior partitions. The custom maple built-in cabinets visually integrate the new spaces with the original kitchen and living room. The interior is complete, minus a few punchlist items.

The exterior is looking better and better every time I see it. The stainless cable rails were installed during the past few weeks. The standing seam metal siding still needs some attention to the details, but I love the modern look. The mahogany decks, and painted horizontal strapping below, beautifully integrate the new additions to the original cedar shingled structure.

Bjorn has done an outstanding job keeping everyone on the same page, focusing on the details. Our clients have been patient, understanding and very positive throughout the process (thank you J & I). We can all see the light at the end of the tunnel. A few more weeks of consistent work and it’s done.

It is truly an amazing house. I will share more when it’s complete.

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Antique Boats

The St. Lawrence River is filled with antique mahogany boats. In fact, just south of our little cottage, is Clayton, home of the Antique Boat Museum.

Each vessel is a work of art; from the precision cut pattern of the mahogany boards, to the perfect depth of the varnished finish, to the bright solid brass hardware. They’re simply beautiful.

Each summer, I love touring the river and spotting the antique boats tucked away from the rain and wind. Most of the boat houses on the river are slightly weathered, slightly skewed. Their interiors are dark and mysterious, but when you find a boat house with the stern of a sleek, shining mahogany boat peeking out, it’s like lifting the top on a jewelry box. The contrasts are wonderful.

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Simply a Perfect Place

About 15 years ago, when mom and dad started searching for a house on the St. Lawrence River, their number one priority was a sunset view. When they found Arcadia Park overlooking Mullet Creek Bay and gazed west across the river to Thousand Island Park on Wellesley Island, they knew they had found the place they would enjoy every new summer, happily ever after.

The cottage is small – less than 1000 square feet. The walls are open studs with no insulation. Windows remain open from June through September and the squeal of the screen door hinge is one of my top five favorite sounds. The white wicker furniture on the rear porch is a great place to read a novel or curl up with a blanket for a summer afternoon cat nap.

The River House – it’s simply a perfect place… with a perfect view.

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Rock Island Lighthouse

Long time readers know that each summer my boys and I head north to the Thousand Islands region of the St. Lawrence River. My parents’ little cottage is located at Fishers Landing, NY, just upriver from Alexandria Bay. It is truly one of my favorite places. So many great memories…

I will be here at the River for the week, so I thought I would share some images of this amazing place.

We had some rain this morning and the skies were overcast all day. The sun peeked out just before dusk, so we hopped into the boat for an hour or two of fishing. My seven year old was the only one with any luck. He caught a nice 16″ small mouth bass (…and was so excited).

Today’s image is of Rock Island Lighthouse taken from Mullet Creek Bay, where we started our short tour of the local islands.

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