IMPROVING UPON THE PAST
Resourceful Tennessee homeowners devise a fresh floor plan that brings their 1970s Colonial up to date, transforming it into a beautiful showcase for their many beloved heirlooms.
Discover how a fresh floor plan can bring a beloved old home up to date, as these industrious Tennessee homeowners proved when they revamped their 1970s brick Colonial to showcase their treasured heirlooms.
Back in 1976, when Joyce and Allen Foster built their brick Colonial-style home, they situated it on a rural property at the base of Bluebird Ridge in Heiskell, Tennessee. After three decades of living and raising a family in the one-story home, the couple still adored the natural beauty of the outdoor surroundings, but they found their interior views less appealing. The closed-off rooms, clad in dark wood paneling and 1970s shag carpeting and Harvest Gold appliances, had begun to seem stifling.
In 2006, Joyce and Allen completed an overhaul that resulted in an open floor plan that allowed the kitchen, dining room and living room to flow together. Freshly painted walls and white trim, as well as new cabinetry and countertops, helped produce a brighter feel. “We lived in a ‘dungeon’ for so long—I wanted a lighter look,” Joyce reflects.
One of the few things that has remained the same is Joyce’s eclectic mix of Colonial and primitive goods accented by treasured heirlooms. “When you go through my house, there are tons of memories,” she says. “There are things no one else would think are special, but to me, they are priceless because of the stories behind them.”
A case in point is an unassuming jade green crock that presides over the kitchen from its place atop a Jackson press cupboard. Passed down from Joyce’s grandmother, the crock inspired the kitchen’s decor, which includes an assortment of vintage goods sporting a similar hue. “I fell in love with that color and just started adding more pieces as I found them,” Joyce explains.
The crock is but one of the couple’s myriad furnishings with a personal connection. Another favorite heirloom is Allen’s aunt’s cross-stitch creations, one of which graces the dining room wall. When shopping for antiques, Joyce makes a point of asking sellers whether a potential purchase has a backstory. Her queries led her to discover that her kitchen butcher block formerly stood in a meat market and one of her pie safes was rescued from a barn. Both she and Allen are avid do-it-yourselfers. Joyce’s specialties include traditional and punch-needle embroidery, but she isn’t afraid to expand her creative skills via online tutorials. Such offerings have taught her how to sew prairie curtains, twist loose tobacco leaves into a rope, and most recently, paint reproduction floorcloths.
Allen is adept at retrofitting found objects for new uses and figuring out innovative solutions to decorating challenges. Once, when Joyce wanted to attach a candle dryer to the ornate fireplace mantel without drilling holes in the wood, he forged hooks from which to hang it. Joyce credits him with helping to make her decorating dreams come true. “If it’s in his power, he will do it,” she says.
Combining their creative talents with an appreciation for the past, Joyce and Allen are sure to find new ways to showcase the stories of their cherished treasures against the updated backdrop of their longtime home.