Saturday, December 6, 2008

the rescripted house .....

Once upon a time, in the year 1890 to be exact, Gran & Callie Williams built the house of their dreams atop a beautiful grassy knoll amidst giant mossy oaks. Using wood cut from their 98 acre woods, the couple meticulously constructed a home unique for the tiny town of Newbern, Tennessee. Demo begins on the front porch just days after purchasing the house.

Today the 98 acre woods is a beautifully manicured golf course and the home, which overlooks the playing field has undergone a major transformation. We knew when we bought the house we would have tons of work to do, but we didn't mind. We had fallen in love with it even before it was for sale. We drove by the house everyday on our way into town and often commented on how it would be a dream come true to live there. David always laughed and said we could never afford it even if it was for sale. Then one day while driving into town, I noticed a bright orange sign sticking up in the yard as we approached the house - FOR SALE - I could hardly contain myself! I immediately called and arranged an appointment to see the house that afternoon.

Fast forward 3 years - NO, three long, hard years - that's how long it took to do the renovation. We had to "rescript" this house to fit a 20th century lifestyle and design. And, we had no "real" idea of the condition when we purchased the house - the very nature of old houses, they have many hidden secrets. The house has gone from, literally, falling apart to the return of its grandeur in 1890. David did most of the work alone - spending 14 + hours a day, his work lovingly and meticulously executed. If one were to uncover these walls and floors I'm sure you would find evidence of hard labor sweat stains on every inch. The transformation included opening up rooms to create a flow for maximum light and space. The color palette is neutral white walls with a sparse use of objectified color. The plank floors have been ebonized giving the look and feel of being in a metropolitan city.


A 1950's bad design project of the side/back porch yielded unsightly results. Glad this is gone!!

MUCH, MUCH, MUCH BETTER - DON'T YOU THINK!

The grand stone fireplace. We LOVE IT! We can't wait for the Carolina Jasmine to start climbing the post and cover the top!

View of the golf course lawn from the pavilion. And, we don't even play golf!!

Out back the view of the golf course was so lovely that we constructed a 30 x 30 tin covered pavilion with a grand stone fireplace. This outdoor living space has been one of our favorite places for entertaining or just relaxing on hot summer days and especially this past fall season with the warmth of the fire. After a year the blooming plants finally took off and we are "almost" finished (is anything ever really finished) with the exterior of the house - not counting furnishing the porches and pavilion, of course - that's another design project that we will tackle this spring.

For now, it's time to go inside to design and "rescript" each room. With the color palette in place, our blank canvas is ready to become a masterpiece. We hope that you will be a part of this transformation. We'll take it room by room and ask for your suggestions on style, objects, placement, etc - all things that make a room a home. We'll post a "blank" room when we are ready to begin. So, keep watching. In the meantime, we'll post design tips for "rescripting" old or vintage things into your own home - included mixing styles and periods, interviews with collectors and dealers, show and shopping reviews, posts on some of our favorite things to collect, along with cool vintage stuff to wear, and sometimes just how our own life is "rescripted" from day to day.

We will post 3 days a week, faithfully - Monday, Wednesday, & Friday evenings. We are also very excited about our new website that will go up tomorrow night (Sun., Dec. 7). Be sure to check it out - here is the link - http://www.rescripted.com/ we think you'll enjoy shopping there. It's still a new beginning so don't get discouraged because we don't have lots of things on there yet. We have lots to add and will update the website each Friday evening and will have it full soon. If you want to get reminders of the blog and website updates just let us know.

4 comments:

cre8ivememphis said...

You guys did such a great job with the house renovation. I think the original owners would have been so proud so see their home in the hands of great caretakers. It's a true gem of a Southern Home. I'd love to see how you decorated the inside.

time worn interiors said...

Hey Kim
Love your house, looks great. Glad you e-mailed I will put you on my blog as well.
Theresa

Margaret said...

Your house is amazing! You did an amazing job! :)

cconz said...

beautiful home! can't wait to see the inside when your done. Oh, i guess it's never done with an old house. we've been working on our house for 25 years.