On the Shores of Lake Winnebago

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On the serene winter shores of Lake Winnebago in Oshkosh WI, a newly poured concrete dock pad, embossed with the compass rose awaits the spring thaw, the bustle of summer lake life, and proudly orients the direction of home.

From north to south and east to west, this new home encompasses the owners’ pride and dedication to all things Oshkosh.

From the start, they dared to be different. With a kind, humble command, they challenged their architect and builder to use salvaged material and capture their vision for a smart, efficient, understated, utilitarian, yet refined home that is the epicenter of all things family and friends.

With M and C’s commitment to incorporating our salvaged material, we worked closely with them on every detail of design and function, over the span of a year and some. Their new home embraces living life to it’s fullest, now and in the future, surrounded by an abundance of family and friends. They committed full-on to adapting their home to aging, yet played on their own youthfulness. While keeping with traditional rooms, they broke from tradition with the floor plan lay-out.

Formal greetings are met at the front door. The wide entry hall with salvaged Buckstaff factory maple floor welcomes you to stay awhile. A subtle shift in floor plan tradition offers guest bedroom suites at the perceived front of the house. While salvaged Buckstaff factory maple floor spills from the entry hall into the bedrooms, salvaged café doors from Rec Lanes, former South Main Street bowling alley, offers privacy in Berth 1 and Berth 2. Notably the on-suite guest bathroom door is originally the front door from M and C’s former home, salvaged before demolition. The original knob and faceplate are a subtle nod to the compass rose. The open kitchen and living room with full glass views of the park-like setting and lake beckon you to kick off your shoes, and admire the details of our salvaged timber-frame, mixed hardwood floor. Centuries old mixed hardwood timbers with mortise pockets, tenon joints and peg holes that once created the structural elements to a Midwest timber frame barn are now dutch-patched to create a casual work of art floor that spans the kitchen and living room, with salvaged timber mantel above the fireplace. More salvaged doors and flooring round out the private master suite, bathroom and closet. If you’ve made yourself at home for long enough, you may have the privilege of using the laundry room with salvaged pocket door, flooring, locker, and ladder or of helping with a meal gathered from the panty hidden behind a salvaged farmhouse entry door. Likewise, on subsequent visits, be sure to check the progress of C’s eclectic work of wall art in his bathroom. The house is chuck-full (pun intended) of thoughtfully collected antiques, collectibles and family treasures, adding the personality and character of it’s owners.

J and I are so proud to be called friends when greeted at their front door for our informal photo shoot. The bond of trust, when working together on such a project, goes far beyond the finished product. CHEERS!