Cape Cod renovation done right

I've done a lot of complaining about bad Cape Cod renovations, so here's one that I think is about as good as you can get.  They've completely altered it into a nice modern house in which the underlying Cape Cod is almost unrecognizable. You can see a little bit of the original house on the lower right of the photo above.

What's right about this house? Almost everything. The roofline is interesting. The colors are great (three great colors: the sage green body, the off-white contrast and trim, and the dark windows).

If you look at the two photos below, you can see additional views of the original, underlying Cape Cod.

Well done!

Cape Cod renovations - a slightly better second story job

Here's a second-story addition on a Cape Cod that maintains the look of the original. Is it beautiful? Certainly not. But at least it doesn't ruin the (minimal) charm of the original architecture.

The problem of Cape Cod renovations (in my opinion, for whatever that's worth) is that it's a very plain style, and unless you're willing to completely change the character of the house, there isn't much you can do when enlarging the house to make it more charming.

I'm sure this house is more "livable" thanks to the addition (and I suspect there's a view from the upper story), but let's not fool ourselves into thinking this is gorgeous. But at least the second story is in keeping with the style of the original.

Pride of ownership

Nothing says "pride of ownership" like tattered, sagging, awnings.

Nicely done!

Baby E (OK, she's toddler E now) and I walked by this house about once a week or so for six months, waiting for the car that parked in front of it (and blocked the picture) to move. One day the car was gone, so I could share this lovely home with you.

Another second story job

It's two ... two ... two houses in one! And one of them is really ugly.

OK, this isn't a cape cod, but it is another dreadful second story addition. Put your hand over the second floor addition and marvel at what a charming stucco craftsman house this was. They even kept the original windows.

Now cover up that charming ground floor and look at just the addition. Aside from being the same color and the same roof pitch and material, can you find one similarity between this and the rest of the house? The windows aren't remotely similar, the siding is wrong, and the fascia on the new roof is just plain stupid.

This is a travesty.

Cape Code renovations - another second story job

When I first saw this, I thought I was looking at two different houses. But to my disappointment, it was only one.  Aside from being the same finish and color, the new half (one the left) has little or nothing to do with the old half (on the right). And those two arched windows are ridiculous.

Cape Cod renovations - a second story job

If you're going to add a second floor, why not make it match the original style? Would that be so terrible? The paint color is wonderful, but that second floor addition clashes with the first floor.

Cape Cod renovations - what not to do (even more)

A bad (really bad) late 1990's remodel. The thin vertical windows are so bad that they almost prevent you from noticing that hideous addition.

Cape Code renovations - what not to do (yet again)

WTF were they thinking? A super-hideous pseudo Dutch Colonial roof added .... for what? Was it just so they could add that skylight? There isn't enough room for a second story, so this makes no sense at all.

Pictures from vacation

Mrs. E and I spent part of our vacation in Palm Springs, so here are a few photos of houses in the neighborhood near our hotel. The neighborhood ("Deepwell") looks like it was mostly developed in the 1940's and 1950's, and most of the houses are mid-century ramblers. I bet many of them started out looking like the one below.

Now, onto the renovations.

Adding some privacy at the front of the house is a pretty common renovation in this neighborhood. The first one below is a pretty basic example. Most of the renovations emphasize the long, low lines of the original architecture. This one exemplifies that as well.

Raise your hand if you think the fake Babylonian sculpture makes the house look classier. I didn't think so, either. Otherwise, a nice exterior.

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Below are three well-done renovations, keeping with the character of the house and not going (too far) overboard. The angled rooflines are a nice touch.

Everything below is well-done. I bet keeping that grass green is pretty expensive. But they can probably afford it - most of the houses in this neighborhood are worth $500,000 to a million.

This one is also well done. The classic mid-century modern roofline is terrific.