Polishing an Old Gem

A jewel of a builder’s bungalow is restored with integrity.

AFTER YEARS AS A RENTAL, Scott and Tracey McCulloch’s former Portland, Oregon, home was ready for a freshening before the couple returned to retire there. The 1400-square-foot “builder’s bungalow” had lost many of its early details, but among the few remaining elements was a stepped archway between the living and dining rooms.

This signature feature became the guiding element for a comprehensive renovation that not only touched every room in the house, but opened up a formerly boxy, closed-off floor plan. “Every bungalow of this era, if you look throughout the house, they’re split down the middle,” says designer Wade Freitag of Craftsman Design and Renovation, who managed the project.

“The bedrooms are on one side, the dining room and kitchen are on the other, with the living room across the front.”

As in many original bungalows, the kitchen was badly laid out, with multiple intrusions and poor access to the rest of the house. The McCullochs requested a more open floor plan that included a master bedroom with bathroom access on the ground floor, a downstairs sitting room, and a better connection between the kitchen and dining room.

Needless to say, the desired configuration didn’t exist, a challenge Freitag was willing to take on. “I saw it as an opportunity to do something on a small scale that works for how we live now without changing the character of the house.”

Before the renovation crew arrived, Freitag did a careful examination of every room, looking for keys to the original layout and hunting for old details to inspire the restoration. “All of the mouldings in the house had been either whacked or hacked. We actually found the (model for replicating) door and window trim inside a back closet.”

Once common in bungalows of the 1920s, the throughtenon detail at the head of the casing now crowns doors and windows throughout the house, as well as the colonnade in the living room. Although the colonnade looks like a period piece, it is new, as is the entry foyer. Previously, the front door opened directly into the living room, practically hitting the door to an enclosed staircase on one side.

The old house retained cues for

its restoration, including the simple but handsome dining-room buffet and a remnant of the bold trim around doors and windows.

Moving the living room wall just a few feet inward permitted enough space for a small foyer plus the colonnade, adding a sense of openness in less than 40 square feet. There was even enough room to carve out two new closets: one in the foyer, and one directly behind it that opens into what is now the downstairs master bedroom.

Freitag’s team also took cues from the last surviving built-in, the dining room’s buffet, to replace the long-gone mantel, which is attractively trimmed with period-look tile. New bookcases were built in on each side of the fireplace.

Surprisingly, the McCullochs got everything on their wish list without expanding the house’s original footprint. There’s even a tiny bathroom now between two existing upstairs bedrooms. Now enjoying their forever house, Scott and Tracey say they actually reveled in the renovation process. “We feel so much more connected to this house now,” says Scott. > Wade Freitag, Craftsman Design and Renovation, Portland, OR: ( 503) 239- 6200, craftsmandesign. com FOR MORE RESOURCES, SEE PAGE 103.

The buffet in the dining room is original to the house; a simple decorating scheme relies on wall colors in a Craftsman palette. OPPOSITE The bungalow was built in the mid-1920s.

ABOVE This is the bungalow’s original stepped arch, which separates the living room from the dining room. The colonnade is new and was based on period examples. BELOW The colonnade creates a proper foyer, providing a transition between the stairhall and the living room.

Wide archways between rooms create an early version of the open floor plan, making the small house feel spacious.

RIGHT A faithful recreation of the 1920s stepped arch opened up the kitchen. BELOW ( left) Moving the refrigerator made space for a broad entry passage to the new sitting room. (right) Custom and period touches include locally made, raised-panel cabinets mounted to the ceiling and a subwaytile backsplash with an accent strip echoing the wall color. Counters are Cambrian granite with a texturized surface, a finish process similar to honing, done with wire brushing.

RIGHT Now with a closet and direct access to the restored bathroom, the master bedroom sits conveniently on the first floor. BELOW Double marble-topped vanities and a built-in medicine chest over the pedestal sink make the new master bathroom appear original to the house. OPPOSITE Period details abound in the room.