The classics never go out of style.
Just ask Cathy Wolfson. She recently moved, along with her husband and two children, to a new house with the kind of classic touches that make the house, well, a home.
Her house in Vernon Hills has a butler’s pantry, odd-shaped rooms, interior pillars, a wood staircase with wrought iron spindles, and a big old-fashioned front porch–the kind where you can just imagine playing board games on a rainy summer afternoon.
Wolfson loves the charming elements, but among her most beloved period features is the niche at the end of the arched entry hall.
The curved alcove might be perfect for a small table, she thinks, just the right finishing touch to convey a warm and comfortable feeling.
“This house is different from most new ones. It has character,” Wolfson said.
Character counts and builders have taken note. They’re adding classic touches to new homes. Spindles, arches, floor mosaics, pillars, porches, window seats, carved mantels, linen closets, fireplaces, gazebos and even long-forgotten parlors are being dusted off and put back in new home plans.
Builders include even a few items that only the best architectural buffs could identify. For example, volutes (rounded bottom stairs) pediments (door overhangs), and corbels (scrolled wood brackets).
Builders say today’s home buyers want all the newest appliances and systems, along with the wiring needed to operate everything from high-definition televisions to computers with high-speed internet connections.
At the same time, home buyers long for at least a few traditional touches to evoke simpler times and cherished memories.
Wolfson remembers the 100-year-old house in Cincinnati where she lived as a child. She says her new four-bedroom house at the traditional-looking Gregg’s Landing development by KB Home recreates the feeling she finds so comforting.
She also likes the fact that her children can play safely in the front yard because the garage is at the back of the house on an old-fashioned alley.
Wolfson’s previous home in Buffalo Grove had no character whatsoever, she said: “It was just another modern house.”
She and her husband, Richard, had never considered building a house, but when they saw a design with classic flare, she said, “There was no question.”
The revival of classic touches comes from a desire to combine a contemporary lifestyle with fond traditions, said Chicago architect Elissa Morgante.
“Our lives have become so fast-paced and busy that we’ve had to simplify the way we live,” said Morgante, partner at Morgante Wilson Architects Ltd., a firm that specializes in residential design.
Jam-packed daily routines call for open spaces, such as great rooms, that allow us to rush through the space.
At the same time, Morgante added, we crave a special spot that makes us feel secure and at home, away from the constant nag of cell phones, e-mail and all the other gadgets meant to save us time.
That spot could be a window seat, a butler’s pantry, or a big porch.
“The spot creates a thought in your head that you could go and sit there if you had the time,” Morgante said. “But even just looking at the spot rejuvenates the spirit and makes you feel lucky to have it.”
Steve Herzon, the busy owner of Glenview’s Flight restaurant, has a new house in the suburb’s traditional-looking new development, the Glen.
The house has a wide-open floor plan. Few interior walls divide the house, designed by custom home builder Orren Pickell Designers & Builders, Lincolnshire.
Herzon loves the romantic stone veranda just off the back of the house. It has three classic arches that give it a somewhat Tuscan look.
“It’s very old school,” said Herzon, an antiques collector who has furnished his new house with period pieces.
Classic touches are most often included in expensive custom and semi-custom homes. These houses come with rich wood trims, gracefully curved staircases and hidden surprises, such as big walk-in pantries just like grandma had.
A new house recently finished by Orren Pickell has a kitchenette, designed just for caterers, situated behind the main kitchen.
“It’s a real throwback in time,” said John Anstadt, principal architect at Orren Pickell. “If you were not invited back there, you wouldn’t even know it’s there.”
Old-fashioned features also are seeing a revival at the neo-traditional communities, so popular nowadays. These neighborhoods look like turn-of-the-century movie sets where everything, from town centers to landscaping, is new, but is built to look old.
The houses have lots of charm, too.
Taking the idea a step further, Empeco Custom Builders of Grayslake recently finished a new house that was designed and built to look as if it had always been there.
The exterior is a mix of brick and stone. The floors are made of wide wood planks taken from big old trees. The kitchen cabinets are made of distressed pine, a look sometimes described as shabby chic.
Small classic touches are cropping up in lower-priced new homes, too. Even new condominiums may include double linen closets, or pocket doors.
Move-up buyers of semi-custom homes can expect to get a few classic touches. But they’re rarely standard and home buyers should be prepared to pay extra for them.
Prices will depend on the scope and difficulty of the project. A nicely turned staircase spindle costs far less than a big comfortable porch.
Home builder Al Darwan, of Buckingham Builders Corp., Naperville, says his best selling model has a butler’s pantry, front porch, and a bedroom window seat.
He also favors niches, where crystal pieces or ceramic figurines can be displayed. His personal favorite is a see-through niche he sometimes builds between the living and dining rooms.
The niche can be seen from either room, a perfect showcase for artwork.
Darwan also offers a volute, the rounded first step of a staircase. This crafted wood, which Darwan says easily outcharms a standard square stair, can be added for $275.
“It’s a very inexpensive element that adds richness to the stairway. Nine out of ten buyers get that option,” said Darwan.
Jill and Dan Woods went for the time-tested woodwork look. The couple bought a new 3,100-square-foot semi-custom house in Plainfield.
They had previously lived in a charming, old, but small, 1,200-square-foot house in Naperville.
The couple put bookshelves around the fireplace. Thick crown moldings frame the doorways. A wood chair rail slices the dining room walls in half.
“It makes such a difference. The rooms look so much nicer,” said Jill Woods.
Butler’s pantries have made a huge comeback, said Mike Templeton, vice president of marketing at Concord Homes Inc., Palatine, which has 30 Chicago-area projects under way.
Many of the Concord homes, even town homes, now include a butler’s pantry. Most often the butler’s pantry is a pass-through between the kitchen and dining room.
The pantry is typically lined with cabinets and shelves. Glass fronted cabinets might be selected to display heirloom china. The mini-room functions as a bar, food preparation, or serving area. It sometimes also includes a sink.
“The butler’s pantry offers a great transition area,” said Templeton.
Of course, today’s classic touches have a modern twist. The tidy food pantry grandma had off her kitchen has been replaced with a room big enough to serve as a small child’s bedroom.
New pantries are designed to hold all the items we get from the stock-up stores: giant bottles of ketchup and multiple jars of peanut butter found on sale.
Pam and John Paldino have a 5-by-13-foot walk-in pantry in their new Plainfield house.
“We came from an older home in the city that had a walk-in pantry and we wanted the storage space in our new house,” said Pam Paldino.
Unlike her unremarkable pantry in the old house, her big pantry in the new house is, she said, “the talk of the neighborhood.”
Another space being rethought is the classic formal living room. Many homes have replaced this seldom-used space with a functional great room. But now the parlor is emerging as the living room alternative.
Architect Morgante says her new house plans now include a small parlor in the front of the house. It’s designed as a private space, or sitting room, meant to include perhaps a small television or fireplace.
“It’s a place where you can go and have an old-fashioned conversation,” she said.
