On an Architect's Bucket List: To Live in a Barn
Barn renovations celebrate the comfort of simple, big shapes, tied to the land
Houzz Contributor. My name is Bud Dietrich and I am an architect located in the Tampa Bay area of Florida. I am licensed to practice architecture in Illinois, Florida, New Jersey & Wisconsin and I am a certificate holder from the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB). Since 1996 I have worked from my home office and provide full architectural services exclusively to the single family residential market. My passion is to transform my clients' houses into their homes. I strive to have the "new" home accommodate my clients' lives without fighting them at every junction. I look to add curb appeal to encourage a beautiful streetscape. And I design any addition to look and feel like it has always been there.
Our projects have won numerous design awards as well as having...
Houzz Contributor. My name is Bud Dietrich and I am an architect located... More »
I love old barns and have always wanted to renovate and live in one. Doing so is one of the items on this architect's bucket list.
So whenever I come across an old barn in the landscape, I start to dream of making it mine. A place in the middle of a rolling field with streams and woods nearby. A place to enjoy the simple country life.
The very idea of a barn evokes the image of a community coming together to build something. As some were raising timber walls and roof, some were preparing a wonderful home-cooked meal, and all the while children were playing nearby. A barn raising was as much about a need for community as it was the need for the barn.
So as I look at these renovated barns I can't help but be jealous of the people who get to live in these wonderful structures.
So whenever I come across an old barn in the landscape, I start to dream of making it mine. A place in the middle of a rolling field with streams and woods nearby. A place to enjoy the simple country life.
The very idea of a barn evokes the image of a community coming together to build something. As some were raising timber walls and roof, some were preparing a wonderful home-cooked meal, and all the while children were playing nearby. A barn raising was as much about a need for community as it was the need for the barn.
So as I look at these renovated barns I can't help but be jealous of the people who get to live in these wonderful structures.
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| Barns are all about simple, big shapes and are all the better when painted bright red. With big doors that slide left and right, a barn, like Noah's Ark, is a welcome place of refuge. |
Like a giant lantern, this barn glows at night, illuminating the fields and beckoning all to come on over.
Interior living spaces in a barn are big, too. The scale of the room suits the scale of the fields and streams outside.
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| A barn's stone base and foundation roots it to the land so it becomes an integral part of the landscape. |
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by Birdseye Design
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| A large, strong and simple form set on a stone base: all features of an old barn. But rather than being painted red to stand out in the open field, the exterior of this barn is left raw and weathered to blend with the surrounding trees. |
by Birdseye Design
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And this barn has an interior that gives us that sense of the handmade, the crafted. Rough-hewn posts and beams make up the structure while floors and cabinetry are all filled with character.
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by Specht Harpman
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| And what's a barn without its companion silo? The barn, all horizontal and relaxed while the silo, all vertical and on guard, are — like Venus and Mars, Yin and Yang, peanut butter and jelly – contrasting structures that complement each other. |
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by Specht Harpman
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| While a renovated barn's interior is typically vast and spacious, it doesn't have to be all rough wood and traditional styling. Polished surfaces and modern, machine-age materials can complement a barn's inherent rustic qualities. |
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by Specht Harpman
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| Of course, some salvaged wood flooring in an earth tone can soften up all those shiny, modern surfaces. |
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by RTA Studio
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| It's great that we still build barns and they still look they way they should. |
by Pawel Fiett
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Barns exert a strong design influence. Stone base, simple shape, simple roof and bright red are all hallmarks of the traditional barn.
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Browse more photos of barn design
Houzz Tour: Mini Mobile Modern Farmhouse
More:
Browse more photos of barn design
Houzz Tour: Mini Mobile Modern Farmhouse
Ideabook updated on May 6, 2013.
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ideabook! I felt like I got the education of a min-documentary, except t was not at all boring. thank you.
She loves barns too. You haven't SEEN a dressed up barn till you've seen hers. Take a peek when you get a chance.
Great collection here.