Eclectic Design

Some design styles defy easy classification. They ignore the calendar, what's going on around them and all the conventional ways to put things into well defined boxes. Let's begin our journey with houses that could literally be bought out of a catalog. Houses with turrets, bungalowish creations, and colonials without a pedigree. They are identified by a simple moniker that says so much. It's a Sears house.

A cupola, functional dormers and high pitched rooflines define this little place on the water. Quirky is is king in a story of some folks who loved the house next door so much they bought it, then turned the keys over to a trusted designer for a non-traditionial makeover. No big surprise, the interior is just as curious as the outside. I call the whole thing Waterfront Times Two.

Not so much a house type as a shape, John Quincy Adams was born in one. The form dates back to the 1600's which in house history makes it practically medieval. According to some, the name was borrowed from functional items that used to hang on every kitchen wall. Let's take a look at the salt box house.

Sometimes houses begin their lives as one thing and then become something slightly different. This story speaks to many things, the dedication of the homeowners to transform their living space, the shrug of the shoulders appeal of the colonial house type and the love of the arts and crafts movement. Here is the story of the Cape Cod that wanted to be a bungalow.

For more stories that are not so eclectic.