HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 1999-10-20, Page 20PAGE 20. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 1999.
Jiome Improvement
Couple’s home melds natural, man-made beauty
Natural and man-made perfection
When Diane Radford and Doug Scrimgeour began to consider what to do ber of things were considered. With such a picture-perfect setting the idea of con-
with the aging cottage on the family property located south of Blyth, a num- structing a year-round residence took shape and plans began.
Cozy, but elegant
The living room is an example of simplistic elegance, a comfortable setting, tastefully deco
rated, perfect for quiet times or entertaining. While Diane spent a good deal of energy on the
kitchen, this room was Doug’s.
By Bonnie Gropp
Citizen staff
Doug Scrimgeour and Diane
Radford's house is not just a dream
home but an eclectic oasis. A mecca
melding natural and man-made
beauty. A combination of simplistic
elegance, tasteful decor, manufac
tured scenery and Mother Nature’s
handiwork.
For almost three decades the prop
erty, located just south of Blyth
along Hwy 4, had been a source of
enjoyment to the family. Diane’s
father had dug out a pond in the early
1960s, then built a cottage on the
island in 1970.
"It had been here for a good num
ber of years and like most cottages it
was strictly a summer place,” says
Diane. "In recent years it had gotten
to the point where it needed a
tremendous amount of repair. But
just to use it in the winter didn’t
seem feasible.’
A number of ideas were consid
ered including winterizing the build
ing or adding on. Ultimately, Diane
says, they came to the final conclu
sion it wasn’t worth the effort and
decided to start fresh building a per
manent residence on the idyllic site.
Knowing the investment was
going to build their dream home,
they proceeded with caution. A num
ber of plans were looked at and the
couple drove around studying other
homes until they got a basic concept
of what was wanted. "We decided on
a few features. I wanted to maintain
a cottage kind of look with lots of
porches,” says Diane.
"And I wanted dormers," adds
Doug.
Once they had gotten as far as they
could on their own. they took their
plans to architect John Rutledge,
who then came and had a look at the
property. He made several sugges
tions, one of which was to’keep the
building low. “The old cottage had
been like that. You just stepped out
the door and were on the lawn, so we
kept that idea,’ says Diane.
Since the house is not a complicat
ed design there were few challenges
facing the builders, says Diane,
though Doug notes that water did
create some engineering problems.
“The fact that the house is on an
island meant we had to give a lot of
consideration to the size and there
were questions with regards to the
septic system.”
Also, though Doug says he would
have liked a basement, it was not
feasible. “You go down about three
or four feet and you’re in water.
There is a tremendous amount of
concrete beneath this house.”
“When you work within restric
tions, some decisions are made for
you,” says Diane.
The fact that even these problems
Fine for dining
The dining room is a bright, cheery area that affords a love
ly view of the pond.
were not extreme, the couple
believes is a result of diligent home
work. “We did a lot of driving, a lot
of research before starting,” says
Doug. “The hardest thing was get
ting the roof on before the snow
fell.”
What type of roof and what would
be used on the exterior of the house,
which was built by Blyth
Construction, raised some issues.
“The shingles we wanted weren’t
available so we thought about
cedar,” says Diane. “This caused
some debate because things were
adding up fairly well already. We
had budgeted obviously, but changes
cost.”
To keep the cottage look to the
house, the couple opted for cedar
siding as well. “It wasn’t easy to find
someone who still installed cedar
with an air space underneath, but the
fellow who did the job was meticu
lous,” says Doug.
Diane notes that you don’t have to
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