Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Feb 8, 2012, 1:17 pm
possible Sears kit house (with addition)We believed the original portion of this little cottage, where my friend and her family lived for years, to be a Sears, Roebuck and Company Modern Homes kit. Its walls and floors were all finished with wood or tile, not a smidge of plaster or Sheetrock -- ex...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Feb 1, 2012, 10:25 am
The Dutch door is one of architecture’s more versatile elements. It’s both door and window. We often associate Dutch doors with barns, as in the case of Mr. Ed. But a Dutch door is a great feature in a dwelling, too. It allows us to control access between spaces by closing the lower half, and to...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Jan 25, 2012, 11:36 am
photo courtesy of the Skallops Kickstarter pageWithin many a house enthusiast is an inner architect, designer, builder in search of an outlet. Search no more. Skallops, a fun buidling toy, awaits your discovery on Kickstarter. Skallops are the ingenious creation of the earnest folks at E&M Labs, ...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Jan 18, 2012, 2:24 pm
Somewhere I have a winter picture of this little house with its assorted outbuildings, but this summer shot is a warm reminder on a cold day. The tiny outbuilding to the right looks to be about five feet from the back corner of the petite main house, which appears to border a courtyard of sor...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Jan 10, 2012, 5:13 pm
At first, I was skeptical of the provocatively titled recent article “Why Walking through a Doorway Makes You Forget” in Scientific American Mind Matters. Then I remembered that only a few days before, I’d gotten up from my desk in my home office to retrieve a pen on my bedside table, and upon...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Jan 4, 2012, 1:49 pm
For Christmas I received this delightful, little, ceramic house ornament from a friend. You can’t tell from the photo above, but it’s only 1 1/8” wide x 1 ¼” deep x 1 ½” tall. It has a matte-black, textured roof; shiny-white, glazed walls, accented by grey crackles resulting from raku f...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Dec 28, 2011, 2:29 pm
This House Enthusiast wishes you fellow house enthusiasts a delightful holiday season and brilliant 2012. Cheers from Edgartown! Read a bit about the Edgartown Light in this archived "Design snapshot", and find less bleary photos of it (than this one I took in yesterday's drizzle) on KHS note c...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Dec 21, 2011, 9:24 am
Finishing with the Top In this final installment of the exterior edition of How to look at houses… (like an architect), we’re moving up from the base, beyond the middle, to the top of home. View the entire exterior-edition video series here. You can also find this video posted to ...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Dec 14, 2011, 9:54 am
"Small adobe house with basement" by Graham, age 9Find an introduction to this series here. The title of Graham's sketch suggests it's a building section, but without the title, you might assume it's a building plan. This is one of the delights of the loose, napkin sketch. It's open to interp...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Dec 8, 2011, 5:10 pm
Perhaps I’m over-reaching by placing The School of Life in the “web neighbor” category. I suppose House Enthusiast is more of a wannabe web neighbor of The School of Life, the brainchild of Alain de Botton and a few of his colleagues. For one, The School of Life broaches the broader topic of l...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Dec 1, 2011, 5:31 pm
The color combination of orange doors trimmed in white within pale, green, exterior walls drew me eye to this tableau. (See House Enthusiast logo/button colors.) Three granite risers and an elegantly bracketed door visor set off the striking doors, which feature square and rectangular panes of co...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Nov 23, 2011, 2:44 pm
The Phillips Library, where the collection currently on exhibit at the PEM usually residesOf the 30+ objects on display at the Peabody Essex Museum in this exhibit, one display, in particular, piqued my curiosity. It contains a Japanese teahouse pop-up c.1820 from a collection of 90 such pop-ups...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Nov 15, 2011, 3:21 pm
Looking at the Middle Here's the third video in the series exploring house exteriors. This installment looks at the middle of houses, relative to the base and top.   The next episode will focus on the top of houses. If you would like to recommend a project to be referenced in the next ...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Nov 2, 2011, 3:21 pm
Interior Phillips House dining room, courtesy of Historic New EnglandIn the ten years I’ve lived in Salem, I’ve rarely missed Historic Salem, Inc.’s Christmas in Salem house tour.  Each year it presents new opportunities to share the stories of Salem’s most intriguing historic homes and pro...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Oct 25, 2011, 10:06 am
House Enthusiasts interested in savoring the sight of New England vernacular buildings, landscapes, seascapes, and gardens all year might want to consider the new Katie Hutchison Studio (KHS) 2012 calendar. Drop by the KHS Lulu storefront to get a preview of the full-color photos on the 13.5" x 19" ...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Oct 19, 2011, 10:08 am
Base II Here's the second video in the series. This installment continues the discussion of the base of home -- focusing on foundation piers, openings, areaways, and bulkheads. Future episodes will further explore exteriors as they relate to the hierarchy of base, middle, and top. If�...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Oct 14, 2011, 11:25 am
Center for Contemporary Printmaking, Norwalk, Connecticut September 18 – November 13, 2011 This extensive exhibit includes more than 150 small works by Jack Boul, an under appreciated, retired, arts professor living in Bethesda, Maryland. It’s the monoprints that grabbed my attention. I�...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Oct 6, 2011, 5:33 pm
Passersby simply can’t help but glimpse down this alley. It’s human nature to scan our environment to note differentiation. It’s how we orient ourselves, and in an evolutionary sense, it’s probably one way we seek to protect ourselves. Walk along a streetscape of densely sited buildings, wh...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Sep 28, 2011, 5:10 pm
cover image courtesy of amazon.com.Here I go again, commenting on a book I’ve neither held nor read. I have, however, read its inspiration. Like New England Icons by Bruce Irving, which is based on articles written by the book’s author, Cabin: Two Brothers, a Dream, and Five Acres in Maine by...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Sep 21, 2011, 3:49 pm
photo courtesy of The Arnold Arboretum websiteRecommended New England course in tree identification When moseying New England byways, I often ask my strolling companion to confirm the identities of trees on our path. More often than not, my strolling companion is my husband. More often than ...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Sep 14, 2011, 2:36 pm
When fully operable, exterior window shutters can be pragmatic; close them to protect windows from inclement weather (or to protect privacy) and open them to invite daylight and view. But, many find shutters to be nostalgic, unnecessary, and/or difficult to maintain. Naturally, they can be. In fact,...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Sep 7, 2011, 4:34 pm
Not long ago, I learned of a short-film competition organized by the Center for Architecture + Design titled "Architecture Is...". The competition objective is to "create a film expressing what Architecture Is... to you." Find my video submission below. Follow the Architecture Is... YouTube ...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Aug 30, 2011, 2:02 pm
cover image courtesy of amazon.comThis is a bit unorthodox; I have neither read nor held a copy of New England Icons by Bruce Irving, so this is more of a reading/viewing wish-list post than a review or commentary. You may know of Bruce Irving from his 17 years producing This Old House fo...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Aug 24, 2011, 3:34 pm
So which is it? A fence, a wall, or a planter? Fences are generally light-weight, thin, somewhat ephemeral demarcations between property or grounds. Walls tend to be thicker, more solid, and often seemingly permanent dividers. Planters are typically low, decorative, planted containers. This ...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Aug 15, 2011, 5:30 pm
"Remembered house with good layout" by Roy, a builderFind an introduction to this series here. I would love to see a "napkin sketch of home" created by you, your family, and/or friends -- both young and old. Please submit sketches via a scan or photo to Katie@katiehutchison.com for pos...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Aug 8, 2011, 11:35 am
If you've seen the Drawing Board column I wrote for the September 2011 issue of Fine Homebuilding magazine ("Taking Oriels to a New Level", Issue #221), you might want to check out this video, too. I created it as a companion piece to my column about upper-level oriels. (An oriel is a window bay wi...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Aug 2, 2011, 9:35 am
A couple of weekends ago, this Idjit Gardener had a unique opportunity to try her hand at market gardening. For one weekend, The Idjit Gardener and her husband tended to chickens, a bunny, and a small farm stand Up-Island on Martha's Vineyard. No lives of the animal or plant variety were lost --...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Jul 27, 2011, 1:49 pm
Image excerpt from Fine Homebuilding Drawing Board column about upper-level oriels.Drop by your local newsstand, and pick up the September, 2011 issue of Fine Homebuilding to find my latest "Drawing Board" column about upper-level window bays, known as oriels. Explore three different types: an entry...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Jul 21, 2011, 12:24 pm
I’m drawn to authentic barn cupolas, like this one. Grand, domed cupolas, the type with a belfry or lantern, can be exquisite, but it’s the hard-scrabble, yet graceful, venting cupola on a work building that speaks to me. This octagonal one is outfitted with green slatted louvers and a gently cu...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Jul 13, 2011, 6:50 pm
This composition exemplifies the power of two – to reflect one on another, to contrast one to another, to connect one to another, to complement one and another, to assimilate one into another, and to attract one to another. No, this isn’t a trick image. These symmetrical doorways likely defined...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Jul 7, 2011, 12:32 pm
quarter-scale model of "Musical House", courtesy of Kickstarter.comNow's your chance to contribute to an "interactive public sculpture" in the form of a house, by street artist Swoon. In collaboration with New Orleans Airlift, Swoon and other sound artists aim to create a permanent, full-scale "M...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Jul 6, 2011, 8:55 am
"Katie's lair" by Katie (of KHS), a grown-upFind an introduction to this series here. I would love to see a "napkin sketch of home" created by you, your family, and/or friends -- both young and old. Please submit sketches via a scan or photo to Katie@katiehutchison.com for possible inc...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Jun 29, 2011, 9:22 am
It’s not every day that you stumble upon a National Historic Landmark. A couple of weekends ago, I did. I had just set out from a Camden B&B for my first stroll through the Maine village, when I came upon the town library. I headed to explore its grounds and shortly thereafter found myself descend...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Jun 23, 2011, 10:05 am
Andrew Wyeth, Wood Stove Study, 1962 watercolor © Andrew Wyeth. Collection of the Marunuma Art Park. Courtesy of the Farnsworth Art Museum. Farnsworth Art Museum, Rockland, Maine June 11, 2011 – October 30, 2011 Growing up, a print of Andrew Wyeth’s c. 1948 Christina’s World hun...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Jun 16, 2011, 5:06 pm
With this post I'm launching a new category. The video episode below explores how to train our eyes on house exteriors-- specifically the base:foundation. Future episodes will further explore exteriors as they relate to the hierarchy of base, middle, and top. by Katie Hutchison for H...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Jun 10, 2011, 12:20 pm
If we could create a virtual audience-wave of support for this surfboard visor and white-capped surf window-box, we should. There’s nothing like a little creativity to animate an elevation (and distract from various utilities). This improvised composition cleverly suggests a window bay – an anth...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Jun 8, 2011, 9:54 am
"Alexander, the cat" by Summer, age 10Find an introduction to this series here.  I would love to see a "napkin sketch of home" created by you, your family, and/or friends -- both young and old. Please submit sketches via a scan or photo to Katie@katiehutchison.com for possible inclusi...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Jun 1, 2011, 12:36 pm
photo courtesy of RISD Continuing Education websiteRecommended New England course in the creative arts After visiting the Dale Chihuly exhibit (Chihuly: Through the Looking Glass) at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, it dawned on me that glass blowing is one of the few fine arts I never exp...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - May 25, 2011, 11:47 am
Edward Hopper c. 1951 Rooms by the Sea; image courtesy of Artinvest2000We know what we like when we see it, but don’t always know why we like what we like.  In The Architecture of Happiness Alain de Botton ventures a theory to explain this attachment to an object, an artwork, or a building.  H...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - May 18, 2011, 4:58 pm
If I had backed farther away when capturing this photo, you might more easily recognize this oft-photographed home. But, then the image wouldn’t appear as Hopper-esque. More importantly, cropping closely helps illuminate all that is going right with the fundamentals of this dreamy dwelling. ...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - May 11, 2011, 8:47 am
a favorite garden from the Newport Secret Garden Tour years agoRecommended upcoming New England tours Hidden Gardens of Beacon Hill (Boston, MA) Thursday, May 19, 2011 9:00 am – 5:00 pm Concord Museum 21st Annual Garden Tour (Concord, MA) Friday-Saturday June 3-4, 2011 9:00 am - 4:...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - May 4, 2011, 5:26 pm
What is the pull of this entry on me? I’ve been photographing it through the seasons. Is it the subtly muted, worn, putty-colored palette with hints of faded reddish brown, grey and ochre? Is it the way the dappled light dances across it, skipping a beat here and there, lingering long enough to ca...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Apr 27, 2011, 11:30 am
I don’t mean “decider” in the W sense. I mean it in the sense that this barn slider is a game-changing winner among barn sliders. Love the double-height design, featuring a door within a door. And, yes, despite the lack of clues regarding the scale of the photo, that’s a small-adult-...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Apr 20, 2011, 1:11 pm
"Front of our house" by Tim, a grown-upFind an introduction to this series here. I would love to see a "napkin sketch of home" created by you, your family, and/or friends -- both young and old. Please submit sketches via a scan or photo to Katie@katiehutchison.com for possible inclusio...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Apr 13, 2011, 9:55 am
Newton Kitchen Renovation/Mud Room Addition: Wood floors work well in almost any space.See the full series here. 91.  Use metaphors to communicate design intent to homeowners. 92.  Avoid granite countertops; they’ve been done. 93.  Lighting with the proper color temperature...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Apr 5, 2011, 4:59 pm
Vegetable Garden Wheel, courtesy of the Womanswork websiteMy garden planning is behind where it was last year at this time. So much for improvement at Katie's idjit garden. I'm still in the graph-paper scheming stage. I haven't ordered any seeds or started any seedlings with last year's crop. ...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Apr 3, 2011, 2:08 pm
book cover, courtesy of Amazon.com Photographs by Steve Rosenthal at de Menil Gallery, Groton, MA April 4- June 5, 2011 (on loan from Historic New England) Steve Rosenthal's gorgeous black-and-white photography of white churches in  the New England vernacular can be sav...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Mar 30, 2011, 7:12 pm
Brewster Long House: Include clerestory windows and/or a roof monitor, where possible.See Part eight of the series here. 81.  Recommend that homeowners move out during renovations, if possible. 82.  Consider incorporating renewable energy systems. 83.  Provide a generous mud ...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Mar 23, 2011, 5:43 pm
I remember an architectural coworker teasing me about my needing time to “take calligraphy classes or whatever”. I wasn’t taking a calligraphy class, and he knew it, but what struck me as so spot-on and funny about his dismissal of my extra-curricular pursuits is that I would have loved to ha...
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Katie H. posted an article on House Enthusiast - Mar 18, 2011, 8:28 am
The Nathaniel Bowditch House, HSI headquartersTo Salemites, 17th, 18th and 19th century dwellings and buildings are part of the everyday backdrop we see on our way to the post office, coffee shop, and park. Historic architecture is part of our daily lives. So much so that we often forget how uniqu...
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