built their first home, a Georgian brick colonial, in the Midwest more than 40 years ago. Since then, they’ ve made a series of what they called“ decorative tweaks,” but these were largely discrete, small-scale projects undertaken over decades. The couple had never reimagined an entire kitchen at once, much less an entire house.
The relocated barn no longer housed livestock and feed, but it had made only the first few steps toward domestication. The stairway to the loft had no railing. A single propane fireplace heated the entire 2,700 square feet, so they had to add a couple of minisplits before they could even secure a mortgage.
For a Vermont barn, the homeowners knew they needed to make plenty of changes to make it livable. This would require an entirely different skill set than those they had honed in a brick colonial. For one thing, they’ d never had a septic tank or well. They began to identify the local talent they’ d need to preserve and enhance the building’ s heritage.
manchester manchester life magazine life magazine summer / 2023 fall 2026 67 67