A welcoming makeover

By adding some classic elements and landscaping, a contemporary home receives a warm and inviting update.

While this house had a couple of major assets before its renovationbig rooms and a backyard overlooking marshland-the facade was not one of them. In fact, its austere and uninviting appearance seemed out of place on sunny St. Simons Island, Georgia. Homeowners Anne and Hamp Whittle were able to look past the front, despite Hamp calling it "the ugliest house on St. Simons."

"We bought the house because it was on the marsh. It is oriented completely toward the back views. In fact, there isn't really a front door. The back is the front, but we wanted the house to have some curb appeal as well," says Anne. The goal was to make a contemporary house look more classic and cottage-like. The Whittles found a builder who understood what they wanted to accomplish. "The biggest challenge was to integrate the two styles," says builder Howard Walker. "With the winBowed garage addition, the courtyard, more front windows, and the arbor, it all came together."

The original house was cypress. "It would have been cost prohibitive to custom mill cypress to match, so we used fiber-cement board for the addition," says Howard. "It really worked out well." Anne chose a subtle color palette of beige and gray for the exterior with white window trim. "I wanted the house to blend in with the wonderful surroundings," she says.

Although the house is much more inviting, there's still not a front door. "We looked at trying to incorporate one, but it didn't make sense design wise," says Anne. The courtyard and oyster walkway give the feel of an entrance as you walk to the side of the house through an arbor, which replaced the original lattice door, to enter the home. Anne did all the landscaping, which gives the house some island flair. So if you catch yourself looking at the right piece of property with the wrong house, take heart--capture the Whittles' spirit, and find yourself a good builder.

ALICE WELSH DOYLE

Copyright Southern Progress Corporation Apr 2003
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