A HOUSE BUILT TO LAST
From a style popular at the turn of the last century, this two-storey house built in 1927 and owned by couple since 1974, has most of the original brick
With its shallow, pyramid-style roof, the boxy two-storey house that is owned by Normand and Francine Desjardins and situated on a quiet residential street in L’épiphanie in the Lanaudière region, is a prime example of the architectural style called American Foursquare.
Foursquare refers to the fact that each floor is neatly divided into four rooms, each one neatly tucked into a corner. Designed by U.S. architect Frank E. Kidder, this type of residence was popular from the mid-1890s to the late 1930s or so, because it was inexpensive to produce with some models selling for under $2,000. Making use of what was an avant-garde selling technique for those times, mail-order retailers like Sears, Roebuck and Co. shipped them as ready-to-assemble kits across the U.S. and Canada.
The L’épiphanie home was constructed in 1927, and its original red brick cladding has stood the test of time, 93 years and counting. Only the bricks on the chimney have been replaced. The Desjardins, both natives of L’épiphanie, have owned the house since 1974.
The home’s grey wood plank porch — edged with black wrought iron balustrades — wraps across the whole facade and halfway down one side, where a yellow door leads to an entryway connecting to the kitchen. The porch’s overhang is supported by white wooden posts atop square brick columns, and like the roof, covered with green sheets of metal held in place with standing-seams. The popularity of this traditional roof-building technique can be traced back to the mid-19th-century and can be observed on many types of homes and buildings. A pair of Miscanthus sinensis ornamental grass plants in the front yard are still sporting their fluffy ostrich plume-like lances from autumn, softening the cold hard edges of the brick columns. These specimens are part of a varied collection of plantings around the house and in the backyard garden that gently slopes down to the bank of the l’achigan River.
At the top of the main stairs — which, like the stairs leading to the attic, are made of cherry wood — the main bathroom features glazed ceramic floor tiles arranged in an irregular pattern invoking the look of cobblestones. The outside of the claw-foot bathtub is a dark green that synchs beautifully with the background colour in the flowered wallpaper. In the hallway, Colombian red pine panelling covers the walls and ceiling, giving off a warm hue. A washstand next to the stairs is just for show and storage.
In the back right-hand corner of this upstairs floor, the master bedroom has a double bed covered with a finely quilted antique-looking white bedspread.
At the foot of the bed, a curved wooden bench features a woven seat that adds a unique touch. Wooden moulding that runs the perimeter of the room divides distinctive wallpaper patterns: wide green and narrow red stripes below, conveying a traditional look and, above, an artist’s palette of mauves and greys.
In the guest bedroom, the quilted bedspread that has been in Normand’s family for close to 100 years covers a beautifully crafted 3/4-sized spool bed.
This type of bed — where the posts, spindles of the headboards, footboards and railings are turned into spool or bobbin shapes — has its origins in the 17th-century and is sometimes referred to as the Jenny Lind bed. The Swedish soprano toured the U.S. in the early 1850s and is said to have favoured this style of bed.
That’s how
I do my daily exercise and I am so used to it after 46 years, it has become automatic.
Another room on this upstairs floor holds plants from the garden that are spending the winter months indoors until spring weather arrives. Francine’s colourful paintings — landscapes, still lifes of food, children ice-skating — are displayed here on the walls and easels.
Downstairs in the living room, a throw and assorted cushions, one with an inscribed message that speaks of the importance of friendships, provide cozy accents for the grey nuanced fabric sofas. A small black shelf holds a collection of pewter goblets conveying a sense of medieval hospitality.
In this room, as in the dining room, the Colombian red pine floor, walls and ceiling radiate warmth. Porcelain plates rest on a wooden ledge above the pinewood buffet, crafting a traditional dining-room decor. The pinewood reproduction antique table and chairs were purchased from Meubles Roxton.
Potted green houseplants flourish near the windows and provide a light counterpoint to the dark hues of the wood. The vintage-style chandelier that hangs above the table, fitted with four oversized light bulbs, casts just the right amount of light for the room’s size.
In the kitchen, there’s more than enough storage space in three tall, varnished Shaker-style ash wood cupboards installed above matching cabinets with ceramic countertops. A frosted glass door with carved details at one end of the kitchen hides a well-stocked pantry. Used mostly at breakfast and lunch time, the kitchen’s solid pine table has been in the family for generations. It is matched with four oak chairs. The blue cushions overtop the rawhide chair bottoms are of the same blue as used in the handmade runner draped across the table.
The adjacent water closet holds a practical and delightful secret, revealed by Francine. When it is time to do the laundry, she pulls on a rope to lift a trap door concealed in the linoleum floor and walks down the stairs to the basement laundry room. More plants from the garden are also stored there, to wait out the cold months. Asked if this most unusual procedure sometimes feels like an inconvenience, Francine simply replied,
“That’s how I do my daily exercise and I am so used to it after 46 years, it has become automatic.”
Ah well, I guess we all have our secret routines for staying in shape.