PEI PROJECT - COPPER BARN RESIDENCE

principal ensuite design CONCEPT

It was one year ago when we starting design work on the PEI Copper Barn Project. Its a new build barn on a family homestead and the upper level of it is being built-out to be used as a full-time residence with lots of space for family to visit for extended stays. Located near Summerside, its a short drive to beaches and other family members on the island.

The barn has a beautiful copper roof, and the basic floor plan for the second floor residence was completed and already framed in when I came on board last August - but beyond that the interior shell was a blank slate to work with. We even have the opportunity to tweek the layout a bit before detailing the kitchen and bathrooms and finalizing the millwork. The home is all one level with open concept living/dining/kitchen space plus 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a laundry room and a future games room and elevator.

Today I’m sharing a peek at the design concept for the Principal Ensuite, a bit of an unusual start to introduce the project but I’m excited about this room because we’re reusing some antique pieces in here from the original 19th century farmhouse (no longer standing on the land) and which the head of the family grew up in. In this room we were presented with the blank shell and tasked with selecting all the fixtures, finish materials and millwork.

The initial concept we created for the ensuite is shown above. While ordering the fixtures and finalizing the paint choices for the rest of the interior a couple of changes were made - the tub was changed to a pedestal style model (which was more readily available) and the panelling and trim colour was changed to a light blue/grey. Unfortunately the paint change was missed and so the first coat of the wainscotting was done in the preliminary colour choice but was quickly corrected before going further. Ultimately down the road we anticipate adding wallpaper above the wainscotting.

From the family’s inventory of antiques we chose a china cabinet for towel and toiletry storage and a 3 drawer dresser for a vanity as well as a mirror for above. We’ve paired all of this with traditional classic faucets. We opted for chrome because the one fixture that was already installed in the residence was in this room, a shower unit with chrome faucets. We’ve mixed the chrome with antique brass hardware and light fixtures.

All of the rough-ins were completed and closed up before we came on board, so we worked with all the existing plumbing rough-in locations. This 4pc ensuite has a single sink vanity, freestanding tub, walk-in shower and toilet.

Ensuite In-progress showing the tub change and the not yet updated paint colour..

I have to say I love the wainscotting in the initial colour too, as much as the final colour choice, shown below…..

Enusuite in progress showing the wainscoting in the updated colour and one of the mirror options.

There’s been lots of progress since these photos were taken as construction is now wrapping up. I’ll be in PEI this week to see it in person and …to go through the rest of the antiques and vintage furniture in storage to sort out what can be used where, then send things off for refurbishing or recovering. Aside from reusing a lot of the family antiques I’ve also incorporated some architectural salvage pieces from the old homestead throughout the interior.

I’ll be sharing some sneak peeks from PEI on Insta so follow along there and stay tuned here for more posts about the project.

You can see some glimpses of the projects’ process in our Instagram story highlights.

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The Guest Barn - A Peek Inside Part I

A late 19th century workshop

I’ve shared random images of our guest barn interior on Instagram and within other blog posts over the past few years but I haven’t featured them here in one blog post yet so here goes.

The barn is situated fairly close to the house, we’ve learned it was built in the late 1800’s or at the turn of the century, and approximately 25 years after the house was built. Located on the shores of what was and still is a fishing community it was built by the owner who was a carpenter by trade. Although we’ve always referred to it as a barn it was actually built for his workshop, it’s never been used to house animals. Wooden lobster traps were one of the things that were produced in the shop and there was also a mill located beside the creek at the front or our property. The style of house is referred to as a Carpenter Gothic or in Atlantic Canada its also known as a Fisherman’s Gothic.

When we purchased the property the barn was in solid condition although completely unfinished on the interior., it had been constructed entirely from sold timber posts and beams on a stone foundation with plank floors and walls and cedar shake cladding. It had electricity but otherwise was in its original condition showing the character of all its 100+ years age. We first began cosmetically transforming the main level to use as seasonal space back in 2017 and its evolved a bit every year since but still remains very much original and un-winterized and without plumbing.

Shortly after we built the potager garden we added new porch decks to the house and barn, designed to also connect the two buildings via a ‘boardwalk’. This has been transformative - its such a simple luxury to go back and forth between both buildings without walking through wet grass - grass which is wet here a lot! (in the image below the ‘boardwalk’ connecting the two porches is to the left, just out of camera view but we usually call it the cat walk because it was needed as much (more) for the cat than us.

Above, my Niece basking in the sun during a past very warm Thanksgiving week. We put a new pair of glass french doors on the side entrance of the barn (this is the side facing the house) behind the original storm doors. We added a secondary set of screen doors too but rarely use them and this year didn’t even put them on because the summer was so rainy.

The view looking out from the barn (above), this was when the new porch decks were still being worked on. The beach is in the distance although fog was coming in, when its clearer you can see it more clearly and beyond out to the ocean..

On the inside the first thing we did was partition off an area at the back of the main level of the barn so we could continue to use that space as a workshop, it has large double barn doors that open up into the potager garden. We built the wall as a simple horizontal plank wall with jib door. This separation created a good size lounge space to furnish, with access to the second level. Next we replaced the existing steep ladder-like steps that led up to the second floor with a more functional staircase, and finished it by enclosing the staircase. Then EVERYTHING except the ceiling got coated in paint.

The first pieces of furniture we put in were a pair of day beds that I designed, each are Twin XL in size which can be butted together to make a king bed. Currently we mainly use them like sofas for lounging since we now have a guest bedroom in the upstairs of the barn. Ultimately I hope to move these upstairs too into separate bunk nooks.

A few local antiques and lots of vintage nautical and marine pieces and a striped jute rug make up the rest of the decor. Macausland wool blankets from PEI covered the day beds initially.

A 19th century nova scotia pine jamb cupboard and an windsor chair from the same era.

An antique organ that came with the barn but are impossible to find anyone to haul away even if you pay them,,,, a nuisance to move around, it got a coat of paint. For now its just taking up space as a plant stand and display ledge until we’re ready to embark on more changes in the space. Eventually the organ will get moved out piece by piece with the assistance of a sledge-hammer.

An antique wicker chair and a vintage model of the Bluenose schooner were the first finds for the space, both from local antique shops. My late brother and another brother made the coffee table from salved planks we pulled from the house’s attic years ago and an old wharf beam we found washed up on the beach. Last year I had custom mattress covers and pillows made for the beds (above) but not all of the pillow covers were finished before the end of the season (fabric stock issue) so this summer was our first full season with them.

I used a true mattress ticking fabric for the bed covers and stone washed cotton for the pillows. (Sources and details were in our Summer Newsletter!).

Back in 2021 we built a mini bar under the staircase. We used salvaged antique boards for the shelves and countertop, clad the walls in shiplap and hung a linen curtain to conceal a a fridge and some open shelving for ice buckets, trays and recyclables. I painted the ship lap a deep dark brown. I’m on the hunt for a marine style vintage bulkhead light.

This compact mini bar has really worked big for for us, the fridge holds a huge supply of canned and bottled drinks plus more, and the shelves hold plenty of spirits and glasses. We’re always serving up snacks in here so small plates and bowls are on hand too. This fall I lined the shelves with brown transferware which swapped out my great great aunts plates with wild rose pattern which created a very english garden tea party vibe. The antique ladder chair was a recent roadside freebie, just resting here before it heads into the workshop.

The fall is always my favourite time to use this building, here in Nova Scotia its the most enjoyable weather of the year and October gifts us with spectacular autumn colours and summer-like temps. The barn provides a cozy sheltered space to extend the outdoor season and a casual place to socialize when friends or neighbours drop by. Its also the perfect hang out space when family visits (yahtzee and puzzles being the fave pastimes!). I’ll share a peek of the upstairs bedroom space in a Part 2 post.

Here’s a previous post with a look at the Barn BEFORE we began updates and added the potager garden.

UNTIL NEXT TIME you can….

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ROUND-UP: Kitchen Counter Accessories - Contemporary

Essential kitchen countertop accessories for a contemporary or modern kitchen

Outfitting a kitchen after a brand new kitchen install is a project in itself. Whether this level of detail is included in a designer’s scope of work or not, (it is never included as part of any kitchen supplier’s design or fees) I always aim to provide recommendations for the key countertop accessories because they’re critical to the success of the new aesthetic and function. It saddens me to see a newly renovated kitchen loaded up with random and often unattractive 'stuff' after enormous amounts of money and months or years of planning were invested in the new kitchen build-out and details.

Getting kitchen countertop items and accessories wrong can significantly spoil the impact of the brand new kitchen space you just invested in. Getting them right enhances everything in the space and elevates the kitchen design.

When it comes to deciding what items will live on your counter, as a rule of thumb if you use it daily, especially multiple times a day - its a countertop essential. Use it once a week or less, also, could be a countertop mainstay. Everything else - plan to store within a cabinet/pantry or purge it. If you have many small appliances you use daily (or ones that are too awkward to stow away), I highly recommend incorporating easy access appliance storage such as*; countertop cabinets with retracting doors, full extension roll-out shelves, magic corners, or hydraulic lift shelves. Otherwise you risk your kitchen looking like an appliance store display. (*most of these can be added to existing kitchens too)

Because I find myself recommending the same countertop items over and over again, I’ve began compiling round-ups, like this one, on our Amazon storefront. What I love about the storefront platform is it allows us to create a collection of items for any project or product category which saves the product image and specifications with their individual links ALL IN ONE PLACE. Once, and done! I can also see at a glance if the item is no longer available so we can update the link. Its a HUGE time saver on our end and a freely available page for clients and anyone who follows us. I know personally how Amazon is a primary shopping source for clients especially for those in rural areas - where many independent and brand retailers won’t deliver. Whether you order from there or not the key benefit this will provide you with the exact product info and pricing to go purchase elsewhere if you prefer.

1. Espresso Maker / 2. Pour-over Coffee and tea Kettle / 3. Carbonator / 4. Electric kettle / 5. Butter crock / 6. French butter crock / 7. Salt & Pepper mills / 8. Salt cellar / 9. Truffle Oil / 10. Wood utensils / 11. Utensil holder / 12. Premium Olive Oil / 13. Round Wood tray / 14. Cutting Board / 15. Toaster

All of the above items along with more options can be viewed on this list titled

Kitchen Countertop Essentials - Contemporary.

CONTEMPORARY AND MODERN STYLE:

For contemporary and modern kitchens I recommend countertop appliances and accessories in blacks, greys, white, stainless, brass, stone and natural wood., and don’t typically stray from this unless there is a particular colour in the kitchen’s palette that would work as an accent. Wood items add a warmth to painted kitchens and stone counters. Natural and neutral colours won’t become a visual distraction with your kitchen scheme.

This  round-up doesn’t represent the full scope of essential accessories but just some of the most key pieces that you can easily find on Amazon or any homewares store.  We’ll be sharing more product round-ups on our newly updated The Design Shop website going forward to compliment the virtual design packages. And including other sources and favourite products beyond Amazon.

It can feel overwhelming thinking all your kitchen things need replacing, prioritize the countertop items first, then move on to updating things within the cabinets and drawers beginning with most often used; ie; dishware, cookware etc. Once you begin, the choices narrow and selections become simpler.