Some houses express the spirit of tradition in a host of small details. Others, like this Massachusetts house, declare their affiliation with the past in bold terms. Beyond question, this is a New England house in character as well as in location. Its three distinct wings, with pitched roofs, tile-shingled, are tied together in the manner of an Early American "set of buildings." The narrow clapboards and the three tall, strong-scaled chimneys of old brick are hallmarks of the region's farmhouse style. None of these features could be called superficial, but do they necessarily stamp the house as traditional? Neither the architect nor the owners think so—and with good reason. Even a quick glance at the plan, opposite page, will tell you the house is designed for contemporary family living. Each of the three wings is a well conceived separate zone. In the left wing are the spacious kitchen, breakfast alcove and dining room. The center wing houses the living room, a study with a fine music wall, the entrance hall, powder room and stairs to playroom. In the third wing, at a right angle to others, are three bedrooms off an airy gallery floored with slate and walled with glass. Storage provisions throughout house are up-to-the-minute; so is the well planned kitchen.

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source: House and Garden Magazine | March 1960

 

Nearly everything about the Minnesota country house reflects the warm glow of tradition: the handhewn cedar shakes of the roof, the board-and-batten gables, the doweled joinery of wood trim, the whitewashed brick, the hand-carved interior cabinetry and wall paneling. Yet in an important sense, this isn't a traditional house at all. A better word would be original. The architect has copied no particular style; but his feeling for the varied forms, textures and crafted details of the past has guided him in creating a house with the kind of timeless charm that is still treasured in venerable examples of Early American and French farmhouse design. Also to its credit, this house provides spacious rooms that are closely related to gardens and command a vista of a nearby lake, a master bedroom suite with elaborately planned bath and dressing room and a shaded dining terrace and barbecue. Endearing old charms find fresh expression in the doorway, opposite, of the wing that includes kitchen, pantry and flower room. Old French lanterns hang beside the Dutch door which is painted blue. Above it, a plaque with hand-carved floral motif is pegged to weathered, silvery siding. The brick paths bisect a small begonia garden.

SPECIALLY DESIGNED WOODWORK of entrance door and dormers is meticulously joined with dowels. Blue-stone terrace, four steps above drive, has painted brick wall.

T-SHAPED PLAN is divided by hallway that runs from the entrance door to living room. In addition to master bedroom, bath, dressing room and study in left wing, there are four bedrooms upstairs.

 

A kitchen is as good as its plan, whether the space you have to work with is large or small. But when your space is large, careful planning is particularly important because it can spare you unnecessary legwork. If you have a large old-fashioned kitchen, space can sometimes be too much of a good thing; thoughtful remodeling is often the key to efficiency. The kitchen of the Harold Florsheims in Highland Park, Illinois, is an outstanding case in point. Its precise plan turns what was an outmoded kitchen and butler's pantry into three smooth-working parts. No walls were altered; all changes were brought about with new lighting and equipment, carefully chosen and organized. The strategic placement of cooking appliances, storage and clean-up facilities divides the kitchen into: a central work unit where one person can easily turn out a meal without having to take more than a step or two; a center for preparing and storing food; and a party preparation center. These divisions are perfectly geared to the entertaining pattern of the Florsheims—they like to give informal parties where they concoct and serve the food themselves, and large parties where caterers are called in. The kitchen was designed by Bertrand Goldberg. 

CENTRAL WORK UNIT

The central work unit is really a kitchen within a kitchen. It houses all the equipment needed to prepare a meal and is arranged in a U-shape so that Mrs. Florsheim can cook an entire meal alone without having to walk a mile back and forth. Often pressed into service for the informal suppers the Florsheims make themselves is the built-in charcoal grill—one of three cooking methods in this central work unit. The other cooking facilities are built-in surface burners—both gas and electric—and ovens, both electric and electronic. In addition, the central work unit boasts a refrigerator, a mixing center, and a stainless steel sink with a special tap which delivers boiling water for tea or coffee. In back of the gas burners specially designed steel cabinets for dry food storage are built into the wall with teak wall cabinets above them for additional cooking utensil storage.

PARTY CENTER

The main purpose of the party preparation center is to keep the many non-cooking activities that go on in a kitchen out of the cooking area. Drink mixing, flower arranging and table setting preliminaries can be dispatched with ease in the party center, which is built into what was formerly the butler's pantry. One wall is a solid bank of teak cabinets for silver, china and crystal. The other wall consists of the bar equipment as well as a food warmer (compartments to keep some foods warm and moist, some warm and crisp) and dishwasher needed for meal service and clean-up. This means that drink mixing or table setting can proceed without recourse to the kitchen proper. If hot hors d'oeuvre are served with cocktails, they can be made well in advance and put in the warmer, so that the slightest disturbance to the cook is side-stepped.

FOOD PREPARATION CENTER

The center for preparing and storing food is near the delivery entrance where groceries are received. Every appliance is placed with admirable logic to save time and motion. Fresh fruits and vegetables can be scrubbed at the sink, chopped on the built-in cutting board if ready for use, or dispatched to storage bins and refrigerators. Paper towels for drying vegetables, foil to wrap them in are in a wall receptacle handy to the sink. Canned goods go into the storage cabinets, to be opened when needed with the built-in electric can opener next to the towel-foil holder. Foods can be temperature-controlled in two freezers, two refrigerators. Food taken out of freezers or refrigerators for a meal is put on the nearby peninsula of the central work unit. When several people are working in the kitchen the food preparation and storage center is more than a convenience—it's a real necessity.

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source: House and Garden Magazine | January 1960

 

A small but well proportioned house like the Edgewater should appeal to any young people starting out who realize that space is what you make it. In the $14,000 range, the Edgewater enjoys the same high quality materials and equipment as the higher priced houses in the group. The compact plan wastes no space. More important, a family can make every room seem larger by strategic use of furniture, color and texture. Nesting tables and seating pieces can turn tight quarters into roomy ones, and multi-purpose ideas can give one room the utility of two. A textured wall and a really beautiful area rug assume even more meaning in a small room than in a large one. The kitchen, well equipped with L-shaped work center, is just around the corner from the terrace and garden areas. Nearby but independent from the house is a storage room with enough space for a washer-dryer.

L-SHAPED WORK PLAN is the most logical arrangement of equipment in a kitchen with two entrances—the hub of a youthful household. Two cooking centers, built-in oven and the surface burners are well separated, thus giving more elbow room to the cook. Between are a stainless steel sink and countertop with ample work surface. Cupboards are faced with woodgrain plastic; flooring is vinyl tile.

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source: House and Garden Magazine | January 1960

 

If you are among the many millions whose wish for a vacation house has passed the talking stage, the Islander may be your perfect answer. You will seldom encounter such an attractive four-bedroom house that sells for about $21,000. You can live in the Islander half the year, close it up or rent it for the other half, and still feel free of upkeep worries. Later on, when the teenagers are grown, it can become a carefree retirement house. A simple rectangle, the house is divided into three sections: the children's bedrooms and bath, the living-dining area, the master bedroom-bath and kitchen. Combined, the living and dining space becomes a 16' x  24' room, flexible enough for almost any scale of entertaining. A rear terrace can be divided so that both living room and master bedroom open to private outdoor sitting areas. The kitchen is a separate room with a convenient entrance to the garden, especially advantageous for the comings and goings of children.

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source: House and Garden Magazine | January 1960

 

The true test of a small house is how well it stretches its limited space to accommodate a young family's interests. The "stretch" in Trade Winds is exceptional, especially for youngsters. Unlike most houses around $23,000, it has genuine multi-purpose space: The dining-family room is an area which can be used for TV and music, for doing homework, for games or, in a pinch, even for an overnight guest. The plan, basically L-shaped, consists of a master bedroom-living room wing and a children's wing, with a kitchen at the bend of the L. The kitchen is U-shaped and has a doorway directly to the carport. A breakfast and snack bar is built in a semi-circle at one end of the kitchen. Especially attractive for a growing family is the fact that all rooms except one bedroom are linked directly to the terrace and pool.

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source: House and Garden Magazine | January 1960