Renovation of Breezy Point retreat garners awards for construction firm
Rich colors, Craftsman style and a historic home nestled in the woods combined in a renovated home project that garnered national honors for Baxter-based Nor-son.
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The home, called the Wright Retreat, is located on Lake Ossawinnamakee in Breezy Point. Nor-son documented the home's characteristics for award consideration.
Broad trim pieces over the doors and windows and straight, clean lines on the ceilings reflect the Arts and Crafts era.
"Nor-son architect Paul Maki created a distinctive exterior to meet with the homeowner John Wright's goals for Old World craftsmanship," the design/build company stated. "The home's exterior appearance projects an understated beauty through the use of cedar shakes, small windows, quaint dormers and stone columns. A mix of stream stone from Montana and local fieldstone were used on the exterior foundation, columns and two interior fireplaces."
The home features a 225-square-foot four-season porch. Cherrywood flooring is throughout with tongue and groove cherrywood wainscoting and a cherrywood ceiling custom stained to match a piece of furniture the clients provided from the original cabin, Nor-son reported.
The home also has a 600-square-foot corridor-style four-season porch that runs the full length of the house and, according to Nor-son, gives the home its authentic character.
"The cozy living room is sandwiched between both porches and adorned with cherrywood beams. The focal point is the fieldstone fireplace with inscribed granite lintel hearth, 'To Every Thing There is A Season,' from Ecclesiastes 3:1, topped with a cherrywood mantel. The end to the verse, 'And a Time for Every Purpose under Heaven' is on the hearth of the original cabin Nor-son renovated for the Wrights to use as a guesthouse," the company stated.
The 254-square-foot kitchen is open to the living room. Features include a solid maple butcher block island in the center with custom cherrywood crystal inset style cabinets.
The Arts and Crafts era features broad trim pieces and straight, clean lines. The Breezy Point home includes cherrywood floors, ceiling and wainscoting. In addition, the home features four-season porches that help give the house its character.
The island includes features such as an apron front sink, two under-counter Sub Zero freezer drawers decorated with cherrywood panels and "ample storage" for pots and pans.
In addition, Nor-son reported matching Klondike refrigerators are 1910 reproductions and also have cherry framed doors. Other 19th century accents include bead board wainscoting on the island and above the refrigerators. The 1917 Universal stove is retrofitted to the standards of a modern day kitchen with 100-year-old charm.
Oversized French doors separate the 252-square-foot formal dining room from the kitchen and living room areas.
"Surrounding double hung style windows and a 16-foot vaulted ceiling allow natural light to flow into the room. A focal point is the arch topped window standing 11 feet wide and 10 feet tall that provides a view of treetops for all diners," Nor-son stated.
One of the two master suites is located on the home's main level.
"Simplistically decorated in white, this room is reminiscent of grandmother's house. The attached bath has a large soaking tub resting under an arch topped window similar to the dining room window but smaller in scale. Cherry vanity cabinets are topped with solid surfaced countertops. An enormous ceramic tile shower is complemented with running bond tile and octagon floors.
"The upper level master suite is a very cozy retreat with a corner fieldstone fireplace. The 14-foot vaulted ceiling covered with rich cherrywood is also accented with cherry trusses, giving the room a unique grandness and scale."
Features include an angle topped bookcase, small arched top window with French style panes, an attached bathroom that has cherry inset style cabinets with solid surfaced countertops, and aa private balcony that has a view of the bay.
The upstairs children's bedroom mirrors the upper level master suite's floor plan, ceiling, windows and balcony. It has a built-in queen window bed.
In a letter to Nor-son, homeowner Wright stated the work brought 1917 back to life on the longtime family property. Write wrote: "Every person who visits our house, whether from New York or New Delhi, comments on its unique features and craftsmanship."