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Adding On Instead of Moving Out

Text: Laurie Higgins | professional photography: Dan Cutrona

Lower Cape Project
Design & Construction: LaBarge Home Construction

Brewster Project
Design & Construction: Fellman Building Company

Owning a house is similar to being in a relationship. There are always things you’d like to change, and sometimes it seems easier to move on than put in the work. But for those fortunate people who make a house their true home, an addition offers a way to expand their living space to meet their needs. Having your home under construction for up to a year or more can be stressful, but we found two homeowners who discovered that finding a contractor they trusted completely eases the process.

A Lower Cape ranch enjoys a growth spurt

A Connecticut couple planning to retire to the Cape bought a second home here in 2000. They chose the house because they loved the neighborhood and the location just a few steps from the beach.

“The house was built in the 60’s and we knew when we bought the house that we were going to have to re-do the kitchen at some point,” the wife says.

That point came three years ago as the husband was readying for retirement and the couple wanted to spend more time on the Cape. After watching Todd LaBarge, owner of LaBarge Home Construction, build a house for some friends, they decided to hire him.
 
“We just liked his manner and we liked his approach and being long distance builders, there was a comfort level there,” the wife says.

At first they just wanted to enlarge the six by eight foot galley kitchen to make it more amenable to the entertaining they love to do, but after talking to Todd they decided to create a 16 by 24 foot combination kitchen and family room that is also open to the adjoining dining room.

“This is a great addition for a typical one-story floor plan because now they can have 40 or 50 people here and they never could have done it in the old house,” Todd says. “It goes from a ranch, which in the 60’s and 70’s were all compartmentalized, to an open floor plan with a cathedral ceiling.”

The centerpiece of the new kitchen is a 10 by 5 foot island with a granite countertop that the husband says seats up to 15 people who can chat with him while he cooks on the Jenn Air stove that’s set into the island.

High-end stainless steel appliances like an Amana refrigerator and Bosch dishwasher create a clean look and the white cabinetry with glass panes at the top echo the two transom windows in the peak of the cathedral ceiling.

White painted wainscoting and linen colored walls create a classic look throughout and custom molding makes the big screen TV blend right in. A bumped out window in the family room with recessed lighting above is the perfect size for a sofa.

Combining old with new can create challenges such as blending the new white oak flooring with the existing oak flooring that extends all the way down the hallway to the bedrooms. To make it seamless, Todd refinished the old flooring and you have to look closely to detect the place where the old meets the new.

The couple also decided to expand their living space outdoors and enlarged their deck and added a screened-in room to take advantage of their views of Cape Cod Bay. The screened-in room is nestled in the L between the family room and dining room and has access from both, providing overflow seating when company is there and a lovely place to relax when it’s just the two of them.

“It was probably one of the best decisions we made,” the homeowner says.

Todd began the project in early fall, and as promised, it was completed by Memorial Day. He says that when remodeling it is definitely cheaper to do everything you want at once, rather than doing it one small project at a time.

“We used the same methods of construction that we use for new construction, so one of the big things here was the insulation, which on a windy day makes a (huge) difference,” Todd says. “It’s called insulated concrete form.”

The husband, who does most of the cooking, says the new kitchen is a dream to cook in. “It’s wonderful,” he says. “You’re in the room with everyone while you’re cooking because everybody sits here. No one goes anywhere else in the house.”

A Brewster home is artfully expanded

Brewster homeowners Susan and Joe also got twice the square footage when they added a master suite onto their summer home with a media room and wine cellar beneath. The home was built in the 1930s for an artist. They bought the house in the winter of 2005 when they were still living in London.

“We loved the fact that it had the studio space, which is now converted into a library, as well as the wonderful large window that was part of the studio,” Susan says. “Above all we felt that the house offered that cozy feeling of a country house.”

Like all older houses, it needed some work and the addition was part of a full home restoration and remodel done by Peter Fellman of Fellman Building Company in East Orleans.

“This is going to be something that we own for a long time, and we’ll be here as we age, so we wanted a master bedroom that was on the ground floor,” Susan explains.           

One of the most important things to Susan and Joe was to maintain the original integrity of the house and make the addition look as if it had always been there. Architect Sara Jane Porter designed plans with roof cuts and peaks that are visually pleasing and yet look like part of the original design.

“When all these shingles are weathered in, you won’t be able to tell that this section was added on to the house,” Fellman says.

Inside the house, an entry alcove leads into the master suite where a 20 by 22 foot bedroom is airy and full of light from two walls of window offering gorgeous views of the lawn and pond.

In keeping with Susan’s love of antiques, the flooring is reclaimed longleaf pine which is over 100 years old. For the walls, she and Joe chose an old fashioned floral wallpaper design by Colefax and Fowler.

The adjoining master bath has been hand painted to match the bedroom wallpaper by Helen Doane and Dale Michaels Wade, owners of Two Decorative Painters in Orleans. They also painted a cabinet that Susan found in London and an antique mirror to coordinate with the colors in the floral theme.

“When we moved to London 20 years ago and were looking for places to rent you would be hard pressed to find any place with a shower,” Susan says. Her time overseas made her appreciate how relaxing a good soak can be, so they bought a Kohler Tea-for-Two bathtub and have a separate glass enclosed stand up shower. Floor and shower tiles are marble.

The master bedroom walk-in closet has a stackable washer and dryer, which will make laundry easy when Susan and Joe are older, but for now helps with the overflow of sheets and towels caused by summer guests.

The most challenging part of the project for builder Peter Fellman was removing part of the existing foundation to create access to the bottom part of the addition. Directly below the master bedroom is a media room with a four by seven foot big screen television with projector and sound system. An adjoining wine cellar has wallpaper that looks like the end of a cask, custom lighting, and a special air conditioning system to keep the wine cool, which Peter disguised with a custom built wood grate to make it blend in with the décor.

“We accomplished exactly what we wanted,” says Susan. “You think of the Cape as this small place but the level of craftsmanship is stunning.”       
          

Project Overviews

Lower Cape Project:
• Added onto back of home opening up and enlarging the kitchen and creating a great room.
• Expanded outdoor space with a screened-in porch and deck space.

Brewster Project:
• Added a two-story wing off the side of the home which is visually in keeping with historic property’s existing style.
• On the top floor, a master suite with sitting area and bath was added.
• On the lower level, a media room and wine cellar were created.

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