Rock the Casbah - Farmhouse 10 Complete
DISCLAIMER FROM THE WRITER - "I tried to mix it up and format the pics differently and it didn't work out so I promise not to do it again, but you are going to have to live with this one since I'm not uploading all these photos again. "
It was a long hard slough this winter, really brutal with crazy cold winter, sleet, ice, freezing temps and a lot of precipitation, but we are on the backside of it now, by no means finished, but the light at the end of the tunnel can be discerned, glimpsed, felt and even acknowledged. The picture of this classic farmhouse, with wide clapboard siding, the red 6 light door, simple front porch and the barn in the background stirs memories from past and evokes anticipation of the future. Amazing, this house sits on top of 10 acres (soon to be 22 acres), surrounded and framed by perfect old rock walls that some farmer and his sons, moved by hand, a hundred years ago. Since then, the
trees have grown back and the fields have disappeared - but back a few dozen decades ago, a poor farmer and clan called this mountain top part of their 55 acre farm. I love those crazy trees, with their Joshua tree type branches all wigwaggin' any way they see fit. People are spending their money quite cautiously these days, but as opposed to the headlines, they are still spending, but they are consuming carefully, thoughtfully - and we are flattered indeed that they believe Catskill Farms is a place that deserves some of their hard-earned savings. Seriously, we get it -
families are spending carefully, and we have been selected as a place to park their future. It's a vote of confidence in our efforts, our quality, and mostly our value. Bright blue winter sky on top of the hill. This was mostly a somewhat dense forest, we cleared some land to open it up. Lots of porches, simple lines. We will painting the trim black in the spring, keeping the siding white.
Straight-on shot of house and barn, with twisted tree.
We had our fair share of weather-induced emergencies this winter - anytime the the temps drop to -14 for a week, surprises are bound to happen. We had 22" ice dams on a roof, a frozen heat line in house (no damage), a winter storm that knocked out the electric with -10 temps, freezing rain and iced up roads.
The sun, the brick fireplace, the twisted tree and the simple hilltop farmhouse.
People like this design, and it's inspired by my friend's (yes I have friends) house in Cochecton, about 20 miles northeast.
Speaking of Amy, we are celebrating her birthday tonight (it fell on the 13th, same as mine).
The interior is straight-forward, clean, and functional.
Brick fireplace, bluestone hearth, lowboy radiator and black glass jelly jars for lighting.
A large 3 piece basemoulding sets this room off nicely.
Looking down the stairs, to the red double action barn door, and the horizontal wood 1x8 stained wainscotting.
This staircase is 4' wide, which is really a luxury.
Shot from the dining room - hand-hewn barn beam, horizontal wainscotting, red dutch door, jelly jar, 1x12 yellow pine flooring stained red mahoghany.
Now, the kitchen is very personalized with some fancy appliances, distressed black cabinets, rocket blue countertop.
This pics captures the essence of our homes - radiator, simple kitchen, jelly jar, wide plank floors. and an apron sink. Below we have the open distressed shelves, the 12 light doors, the sliding barn door and industrial range.
Refrigerator, barn door with large track and handle, and back door. Below is a pic of some fancy porcelain tub fixtures back-dropped with some simple white subway tile.
The red tile, white grout line in the basement bath.
Funky black on white floor tile, and the old style sink (below) complete the guest bath.
His and her faucets for those busy Sunday mornings after an all night jam, or even a baby washing tub for that first year of youngster bathing (would even work for twins).
And the master shower, doubles as a steam room, with the new glass door and simple porcelain shower faucet handles.
One of the things we like to do is to clad the foundation going to the basement with some brick - changes the entire feel of 'going downstairs'. Well, there you have it. Another masterpiece, brought to life by the successful collaboration between Catskill Farms and the soon-to-be homeowners. Each home is unique, inspired, carefully planned and quickly assembled.
For those who say 'you can't have it all' - we say 'pa shaw'.