There are other books about renovating old houses, but this is the first to prioritize the identification and preservation of the historic, character—defining features of a house as a starting point in the process. That is the purpose of this book: to describe and illustrate a best—practices approach for updating historic homes for modern life in ways that do not attempt to turn an old house into a new one.
The book also suggests many ways to save money in the process, without settling for cheap or inappropriate solutions. This book does not repeat basic information that is readily available in many standard DIY books about carpentry, wiring, and plumbing. Rather, it shows how to adapt those DIY skills to the specialized needs of a historic house.
Scott Hanson is a professional historic—building conservator and has 40 years' experience renovating historic houses. He has illustrated this authoritative book with hundreds of step—by—step photos, illustrations, and decision—making charts. Interspersed throughout are photo—essays of 13 renovated historic houses representing a range of periods and architectural styles across the U.S. With interior and exterior photography by David Clough, these multi—page features show what is possible with Italianate, Victorian, Queen Anne, Federal, Colonial, Colonial Revival, Greek Revival, Ranch, Adobe, Bungalow, Shingle, and Rustic house styles. All the featured homes were renovated with a desire to preserve or restore as much historic character as possible.