tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44553303670065361452009-07-10T07:18:48.095-04:00The home and residential architecture is our passion.James M. Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01882499683763658885noreply@blogger.comBlogger37125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4455330367006536145.post-85172673017524301932009-07-02T16:26:00.004-04:002009-07-08T21:35:12.548-04:00

In my house I am almost always the first one up. As I walk down the stairs to get my coffee it is comforting to know that in the mid 1800s the builders did their job well. There are no creeks when I step (except from me) and the rise and run of the stair are quite comfortable.Friends, family and clients I know aren’t always so lucky, especially if their stairs were built in the late 1700s and

James M. Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01882499683763658885noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4455330367006536145.post-27760735038148822202009-06-21T06:11:00.007-04:002009-07-10T07:18:48.105-04:00

A beautiful landscape can enhance any architectural project. A talented landscape architect, landscape designer or homeowner with a green thumb makes any project we design more beautiful. That partnership works even better when it begins early in the design process.Architects spend a lot of time on the placement of a new home or addition in the landscape. Views, sun angle and orientation,

James M. Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01882499683763658885noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4455330367006536145.post-89792174411986239052009-06-01T14:48:00.007-04:002009-06-01T16:23:15.004-04:00

Crisp Architects specializes in home design. We design new homes, renovate and add to existing homes, and we restore old homes. In the course of our practice we are frequently asked to design other types of buildings and we happily comply. Those include horse barns, indoor tennis courts, office space, small commercial projects, all kinds of accessory buildings and parish halls.One of our favorite

James M. Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01882499683763658885noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4455330367006536145.post-90593675848188094962009-05-22T13:19:00.016-04:002009-06-01T14:42:29.902-04:00

Before and After photos are always a lot of fun. We go out of our way to find the worst before photo and pair it with our favorite after shot. As architects, we are accustomed to imagining the potential of an existing home that needs work. The before and after photographs greatest value to our clients is to show how a room or a whole house can be transformed through thoughtful design and quality

James M. Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01882499683763658885noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4455330367006536145.post-78623865904692996832009-05-18T12:33:00.014-04:002009-06-01T21:11:32.890-04:00

Nothing says summer like kids splashing around in a pool--except perhaps an adult party centered around a pool on a balmy summer evening. In either case, a pool house makes everything easier. Whether the pool house is small and simple or includes a full kitchen and guest quarters, having a place to store cold drinks, towels and refreshments makes summer entertaining a lot more fun.A pool house

James M. Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01882499683763658885noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4455330367006536145.post-11197838099142353442009-05-04T15:32:00.025-04:002009-05-18T13:20:50.583-04:00

One of the most expensive rooms in a home is the kitchen. It is easy to see why a kitchen is so expensive considering it contains appliances, cabinets, plumbing fixtures, lighting, ventilation, countertops as well as decorative finishes. To try to quantify some of those big ticket items we have compiled the following list of some of the elements that go into kitchens including their installed

James M. Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01882499683763658885noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4455330367006536145.post-26186584199757092662009-04-20T11:09:00.006-04:002009-05-07T18:25:25.499-04:00

Owning a screened porch on a buggy summer evening is like owning a castle with a moat when the barbarians attack. The screened porch provides a place to relax outdoors without having to pay attention to the barbarian bug population.In general, the screened porches we design are larger than the average open porch. Most often they are designed as outdoor rooms and are furnished with sofas and

James M. Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01882499683763658885noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4455330367006536145.post-44937558151782499682009-04-16T14:17:00.003-04:002009-04-16T14:22:42.303-04:00

About half of the work in our office is new construction and half renovations and additions. When designing a home from scratch some of the most important elements to study(besides the clients wishes) are views, site features, sun and wind direction, and the approach to the site. The most important single element in an addition/renovation is the existing building. Sometimes the portion you save

James M. Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01882499683763658885noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4455330367006536145.post-25321743422035571002009-04-03T15:51:00.007-04:002009-04-07T16:53:49.737-04:00

When designing a home or addition, part of the fun for the owner is imagining the project finished without any compromises. When bids come in from the contractors, many home owners are eager look at ways to reduce the price without loosing space or the character of the project. As the architects, our job is to help bring the price down as far as possible without loosing the qualities that the

James M. Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01882499683763658885noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4455330367006536145.post-28694337302447730472009-03-30T06:17:00.003-04:002009-04-01T17:07:11.248-04:00

There is no absolute prototype for a farmhouse, but most of us can recognize one when we see it. By definition the originals were located on farms and were integral to the life and work of those farm families who lived there.Depending on when and where those homes were built, they could be made of stone, brick, shingles or clapboard. Most farmhouses had porches since there was no air conditioning

James M. Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01882499683763658885noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4455330367006536145.post-74251764625265886602009-03-30T06:14:00.005-04:002009-03-31T16:58:42.134-04:00

When our third child was on the way, we decided to add a bedroom to our home. The room we were planning for our new born son was immediately claimed by his oldest sister. We realized that in fairness our first born deserved first choice of rooms, at that point we began to reevaluate the design of the new room.This was an epiphany since our mental image of the room changed immediately. In fact the

James M. Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01882499683763658885noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4455330367006536145.post-51291448228786651042009-03-19T13:50:00.011-04:002009-03-19T14:47:05.787-04:00

In today’s economic and work environment taking care of your physical and mental health is ever more important. Exercise and healthy lifestyle in general include different kinds of things. But the one single part often missing is relaxation. For me nothing else works as well as a Sauna does. Sauna owners overall say that a Traditional (Finnish type) Sauna offers absolutely the best way to wind

James M. Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01882499683763658885noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4455330367006536145.post-9250356842038109812009-03-07T14:44:00.004-05:002009-03-09T17:07:10.858-04:00

Nothing reminds us that spring is coming more than digging out the potting soil, the rusted tools, and clay pots. For me it involves cleaning the refuse out of my vegetable garden from the previous year, opening up the deer fencing, and bringing on the roto-tiller. Like many things in life, the process is often more important than the final product. In the end, after planting watering and tending

James M. Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01882499683763658885noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4455330367006536145.post-1778100621467228552009-02-26T05:51:00.046-05:002009-03-07T14:21:23.213-05:00

We are frequently asked the cost of building a project. Universally the answer is: It depends what you build. Following is a list of some of the elements that go into homes in our region and their installed costs. The prices will vary depending on the supplier, contractor and the market conditions at the time of the bid. These prices were provided by suppliers and contractors in early 2009.

James M. Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01882499683763658885noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4455330367006536145.post-69827376062726058912009-02-06T15:30:00.003-05:002009-02-06T15:33:05.935-05:00

One overcast and blustery day a few weeks ago, the kids and I were looking for something to do. We had exhausted all of the usual diversions and didn’t want to travel too far in the rain. Like the proverbial New Yorkers who have never visited the Statue of Liberty, we had never visited Wings Castle even though the idea had come up many times.As we drove up the driveway I made scary haunted house

James M. Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01882499683763658885noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4455330367006536145.post-46506772263425547942008-12-31T16:05:00.004-05:002009-03-03T13:31:22.576-05:00

Many of our clients own old farm houses and love the way they fit into the countryside of the Northeast. These same clients want the interior of their homes to be brighter and more modern than the original farm house.Recently we renovated a large kitchen and added a bright sun room to an 1800s farm house in Litchfield County, Connecticut. The kitchen cabinets were frameless and painted white with

James M. Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01882499683763658885noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4455330367006536145.post-13478081023639432052008-12-14T21:58:00.008-05:002008-12-15T10:57:22.626-05:00

Few of us pay attention to how we get around in our home until for one reason or another it gets harder to navigate that home. I personally had not given much thought to the fact that my master bedroom was on the second floor until I had knee surgery and found that it was difficult climbing those 13 steps. Luckily for me that inconvenience was temporary and I worked around it with the help of my

James M. Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01882499683763658885noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4455330367006536145.post-46353963038931289292008-12-10T10:05:00.005-05:002008-12-10T10:21:48.745-05:00

Designed for friends who bought a beautiful piece of land on the side of a hill in Columbia County, this home embodies the phrase ‘Simple can be better’. We were given the mandate to design a small home on a budget, but to also give it style and grace. Another strict requirement was to include a dramatic steel staircase and keep it simple. We always welcome a design challenge and set about our

James M. Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01882499683763658885noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4455330367006536145.post-84987155339921166582008-11-18T07:05:00.008-05:002008-12-10T10:24:31.553-05:00

Small structures on roof tops have a special place in my heart. It was to the belfry (a cupola with a bell) of a renovated 1865 school house that I took my wife Alicia on our first date. We talked about life, watched the sun set, drank a glass of wine and felt like we were on top of the world. Almost three children and 10 years later, I think that belfry must have played a part in my good fortune

James M. Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01882499683763658885noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4455330367006536145.post-215907208077177072008-11-06T12:08:00.010-05:002008-12-10T10:20:51.705-05:00

Our clients asked us to design a small, energy efficient, comfortable home to replace their existing log home which felt confining and dark. Both we and our clients are overjoyed at the way this 'not so big' house turned out.For a home with about 2000 square feet of heated living space, there are many surprises including plenty of room. One important design element probably adds the most to the

James M. Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01882499683763658885noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4455330367006536145.post-75302367508287717082008-11-04T16:49:00.014-05:002008-11-20T10:24:02.554-05:00

Have you ever looked at a house and sensed that something about it wasn't quite right? Perhaps it didn't look finished or feel balanced. Was it the placement of the windows? The pitch of the roof? The size of the porch? It's not always easy to put your finger on what's wrong, but it helps if you understand a few principles of good design. These drawings illustrate the difference between porches

James M. Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01882499683763658885noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4455330367006536145.post-47655390363288174932008-11-03T17:47:00.009-05:002008-12-02T12:08:51.029-05:00

After going through a period with oil prices at record levels and winter just around the corner, the topic of conversation at home and in the office is how we are going to keep our heating bills down. If you are building new or completely remodeling, there are many great options from state of the art heating systems to the best insulation and energy conserving design, but most of us need to make

James M. Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01882499683763658885noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4455330367006536145.post-57025236545701404642008-10-17T21:55:00.009-04:002008-11-06T16:48:10.505-05:00

Since we are involved more and more with our clients' choices of efficient mechanical systems, energy conserving designs, and green architectural solutions, we decided to be a little more energy conscious while visiting all of their job sites. Even though we have kept our four wheel drive vehicles for those deep mud and deep snow days, now we all drive the low emissions, high gas mileage, Honda

James M. Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01882499683763658885noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4455330367006536145.post-39645852966821853592008-07-22T15:02:00.019-04:002008-11-07T09:40:09.364-05:00

One of my favorite jobs is visiting construction sites. On those visits I enjoy studying our homes from the most minor details we have designed to the overall execution of the project. Earth moving is always interesting but is especially dramatic when it involves the installation of a geothermal heating and cooling system. Almost all of our designs include energy saving elements but few have the

James M. Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01882499683763658885noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4455330367006536145.post-15433006848997102782008-06-28T07:25:00.000-04:002008-11-20T06:04:40.882-05:00

We would like to thank all the visitors and all the vendors for what can only be described as a huge success. The weather was perfect and the show was filled with enthusiastic patrons and vendors all day long. The demonstrations were fascinating, with Fletcher Coddington of Arrowsmith Forge drawing the biggest crowds while he forged steel into useful tools. Kids had the best time painting the

James M. Crisphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01882499683763658885noreply@blogger.com0