Updating Classic America: Capes

Cape Cod homes have been a part of the American landscape since the days of early settlers. Now, Capes and their neighborhoods are enjoying a renaissance, as a new generation of homeowners discovers the joys of this straightforward style that combines a characteristic Yankee practicality with a timeless aesthetic.

Capes is filled with design ideas and inspirations for renovating, remodeling, and building this classic American house type. From modest remodels to major overhauls to building new, Capes offers innovative and tasteful design solutions for a variety of budgets. Featuring over 20 homes selected by architect Jane Gitlin, Capes is a unique combination of outstanding designs and proven ideas for updating the classic Cape style.

Capes is the third book in Taunton's Updating Classic America series.

"Cape Cod houses, regardless of their age, are wonderfully adaptable to change without losing their charm and livability. If youre looking for the many things you can do with a cape, Jane Gitlin offers invaluable ideas.

-- Stanley Schuler, author of The Cape Cod House and Cape Cod and Saltbox Houses

Introduction

1. An American Archetype
The Cape Makes a Comeback
Updating a Classic Cape
A Contemporary Twist on Tradition
Moving toward the Light
The Hallmarks of Cape Style
Cape Renaissance
Choosing a Strategy

2. Modest Remodels
Big Plans for a Small Area
Modernizing at the Core
Working with What You've Got
Modest Isn't Mundane
Underfoot and Overhead
When Dowdy Won't Do
Room at the Top
Instant Tradition
Southern Comfort
Perfectly Architectural

3. Ambitious Additions
A Marriage of New and Old
Stretching Out and Up
The Morphed Cape
Opening a Cape to the Outdoors
From Cape to Colonial
From Cape to Bungalow
A Spirited Transformation
Trial Size to Family Size
A Cape Compound
A Cape for the Generations
Stone Sprawler

4. New Homes from an Old Pattern
An Architecture of Substance
Cape Shape
The Benefit of a Budget
Little "a" Architecture
A Cape with a New Twist
A Cape Reborn
To the Edge and Back

5. New Directions
In the Image of a Cape
Upside-Down Cape
The Essence of Home

Sources

Index

When our family renovated a post-war Cape a couple of years ago, we removed the drywall in one room to discover a yellowed 1947 newspaper that had been tucked between the studs. No doubt some carpenter had thought of the paper as a time capsule of sorts. I don't know that he expected it to be uncovered just 50-odd years later. It seems most of us think that our homes are eternal, that their style won't ever seem dowdy, that their roofs will stay straight and true.

We Cape owners, especially, can be excused for thinking of our houses as permanent parts of the landscape. After all, Cape Cod-style homes have been around nearly forever. Their simple one-and-a-half-story form remains a part of our architectural vocabulary -- even though most Capes were built within the last century and their construction and room functions have changed dramatically. If Mayflower Puritans were to visit a new Cape Cod-style house, whether in Massachusetts or in California, chances are they would find it comfortingly familiar.

As the renovations proceeded on our own Cape and it was time to resheathe the rooms with new drywall, we returned the 1947 newspaper to its niche and added a current issue. Reluctantly, we had to acknowledge that no matter how splendid our modifications seem right now, only 50 years or so will pass before another family feels the need to breathe new life into this home. The Cape style lends itself to being reinvented, which is one of the main reasons for its remarkable longevity.

Like a dish of vanilla ice cream, a Cape gracefully accepts just about any flavor you might want to add. The homes in this book illustrate many ways in which the basic form has been embellished, stretched, and altered. I hope these examples will inspire you to craft a Cape that goes beyond the ordinary, in both its beauty and in its function.