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                • Home
                • Old House My House
                • Dressing Up the Front

                Old House My House

                Life in front of the camera and behind the scenes at a This Old House renovation.

                « Previous PostTaking Out the Dip
                Main
                • October 21, 2013

                  Dressing Up the Front

                  We had long felt that our house was missing something in the front. It had many lovely details, but the front porch was a bit bare. So we asked our architect, David Whitney, to work up some options for a railing (or balustrade). Here are the four options he came back with.

                  Arlington-railing-this-old-house
                  Flat
                  Geometric
                  Arlington-railing-this-old-house
                  Personally I liked the way the Geometric scheme picked up the angles of the house, but I was overruled. We went with the flat stock profiles, and handed the design over to Tom and Norm to take a crack at making them on site.

                  Here's a photo of them cuting the balusters with a template that Tom made. (Photo courtesy of Tom's Twitter feed.)

                  Making

                  And here is what they look like in place on the porch.

                  Final

                  Soon they'll be painted and look like they've always been part of the house. We couldn't be happier with the result!

                  Posted by Malcolm Faulds | Categories: Arlington Italianate 2013-2014 | Permalink | Comments (8)

                  (8) Comments
                  Comment on this Blog

                  We have a 183 year old colonial on the Hudson River in upstate N.Y. We are wondering how one gets considered for a This Old House renovation. You must have many requests. We have been watching the since Bob Vila was host. We have inherited the house. LOVE the show!

                  Posted by: Claudia Kubisch|October 23, 2013 at 07:57 AM


                  I could not really see the flat stock profile in the drawing but the photo shows all the details and I love it.

                  Posted by: tenantProof|October 27, 2013 at 05:45 PM

                  We are doing up our place in London at the moment and next year will probably tackle the front of our house. Great idea to get an architect to have a look. There was once a programme over here which Uk property guru Sarah Beeny did where she made over the facade of a whole street...it was a game changer! Totally unbelievable.
                  Anyway...good luck. Looking forward to after pics...
                  Melanie
                  Pebbledashed.pad.wordpress.com

                  Posted by: Melanie|November 8, 2013 at 03:38 AM

                  I, too, liked the geometric pattern as it allows a more light to enter the landing... AND affords an architectural flair that is different but not obtrusive to the rest of the exterior motifs. It also breaks the ubiquitous vertical/horizontal lines of the exterior, bringing the eye toward the main entryway.
                  Too bad it wasn't allowed. Saving the architectural origins of a house is one thing, but allowing a little innovative design (by the owner) makes great architecture and point of interest for future conversations.
                  I haven't been able to learn why such a decision was made, as the program won't be televised until 2014, but I respect the decision of the architect, designer, local ordinance, etc. I just wish some of these owners were allowed to put a little (non-outlandish) personal detail onto THEIR homes which they are paying for.

                  Posted by: h.m.|December 8, 2013 at 05:41 PM

                  Yep, the flat stock profiles were the way to go! Nice

                  Posted by: Jason|January 15, 2014 at 08:50 PM

                  Claudia Kubisch, I'm not sure you want this crew anywhere near your historic home because once they finish you'll be left with nothing more than a historic shell as they love to gut historic structures.

                  Posted by: Steve Elkins|November 1, 2014 at 07:18 AM

                  to Marrero ,

                  You should SUGESST!!!!!!! ..AURLINTON PROJECT .. the front door plum ......it will ascent the front brick and accent the front land scape . and there is not a plum Door on the street. AM I CORRECT >>>let me know..... David Scott At Classic Effects restoration Classiceffectsrestoration.net PLEASE VEIW MY WEBSITE AND CAL ME AT 508 3147470 if YOU HAVE AND QUESTIONS DO YOUR BEST

                  DAVID SCOTT

                  CLASSIC EFFECTS

                  Posted by: David|November 3, 2014 at 10:47 PM

                  Why are there side light panels next to the door? I was taught for safety reasons you shoud not have these, All someone has to do is break glass and open door. I know there is a security systm, but......

                  Posted by: Mary buchner|November 22, 2014 at 07:59 PM

                  Post a comment

                  The comments to this entry are closed.

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