oh, to live in a barn

if you've been a studio wellspring reader for a while you'll know i have this thing for barns turned in to homes. whenever i see one i get weak in the knees. it's a long time dream of mine {we're talking i've been drawing up floor plans on graph paper since 6th grade} to use modern interior design in a vintage barn. so it's always incredibly inspiring to see what others have done with similar dreams ~ to see how ingenius their concept is, or to imagine how i'd do things differently. lately i've stumbled across several great resources for aquiring & moving barns, renovating barns & decorating in barn-house style.

first off, the barn pages ~ it lists more than 200 barns for sale, which are priced according to condition. most of the barns need to be moved from the land they're on ~ which is just fine, since often barns are located in an out-of-the-way place without easy access to utilities & such. so you can buy a barn and have it disassembled and shipped to a more desired location, where it can be put back together again. or you can just use the barn timber to build something new. it's a fantastic recycling concept, isn't it?

for help with the restoration and reassembly of barns, check out the barn people in vermont, berkshire barns in massachusetts, and the new jersey barn company. they've all been dismantling, restoring and reassembling vintage barns for over twenty-five years. even if your favorite barn isn't in the north east, they would still be great resources for any project location.

for lots of lovely barn related decor items & furnishings, the barn house blog is a lovely place to visit.

and to take part in a blogger's project of turning a barn into a modern home, check out bare hill barn ~ it's fascinating.
lastly, some eye candy from the barn pages:

going home

one of my most favorite things to say is "i'm going home" ~ because it's one of my most favorite things to do. this afternoon i'll be flying out for a family-filled fun 4 days . . . . . and i'll be bringing exciting news along with me to share. in a few short hours, thanks to the modern marvel of 3-d ultrasound technology, i'll be able to see my lil' baby-peach again and hopefully, if it isn't too shy, we'll be able to see if it's a boy or a girl. to say that i'm excited is an understatement. ants in the pants doesn't begin to describe it. so much to look forward to wrapped up all in one day!
i wish you all a delightfully delicious memorial day weekend!

my barn dream, their reality

ever since i was a young girl i've thought it would be so wonderful to buy an old barn and renovate it into a home. {yes, i've blogged about this idea before} i have oodles of sketches & clippings & ideas for such a project if i'm ever lucky enough to make it happen.

so of course i was completely taken with the ny times' great article on a lucky couple who purchased an upstate barn and surrounding property for a mere $150,000 and then turned it into this gorgeous place:

he's a talented architect and she's a successful designer in nyc, and this is just their vacation home. but i don't see why such a place couldn't be a year-round residence with the right fore-thought. at any rate, i absolutely love what they did with the place ~ i'm just a wee bit jealous and so very inspired.

barn living made lovely

when i was a child we had good family friends who converted an old barn into their family home and i've been fascinated by the idea ever since. i love barns as they are anyway, having played in many when i was young ~ they are full of history, mystery & charm ~ but getting to live in one, infused with modern conveniences would be the ultimate grown-up child fantasy for me. hopefully someday i'll be able to do this type of renovation for my own home but until then, here are some inspiring shots of what others have done.

(a massachusets barn built in 1849 that's been chosen to be converted into a home for an episode of "this old house")

(a project progress shot of the same barn pictured above being converted into a home)

(george baker architects of victor, ny specializes in converting old, out-of-use buildings into functional homes)

(the rustic exterior of this guest house was left intact in its conversion from horse barn to house. designed by robert dean architects)

(this interior shot of a barn remodel shows off much of the original structure's framework, including old loft beams in the kitchen. the fireplace in the adjacent great room was added in the conversion, so cozy!)

(yankee barn homes focuses on just what their name implies ~ renovating barns into homes. they have several gorgeous projects on their website)

(two interior views of remodels by yankee barn homes)

(gary fudem turned a 200-year-old hay barn into this ocean-view home with the help of architect bruce macnelly)

(the offices of gehman remodeling in pennsylvania are lcoated in a barn they renovated for the purpose)

(a barn turned in to a recreation house ~ it has a pool on the ground level & an office & game rooms upstairs. architect & owner brian shea)