Image excerpt from Fine Homebuilding Drawing Board column about inglenooksLook for my "Drawing Board" column about designing inglenooks in the February/March 2010 issue of Fine Homebuilding on newsstands now. In it, I illustrate three ways to bring small fireplaces into cozy, everyday living spaces. Each scenario reinterprets the inglenook of yore for today's lifestyles. If you enjoy sharing the warmth of the hearth with good company, consider an inglenook for your own new home, addition, or renovation. Click here for a PDF of the design column. Issue #209, February/March 2010. Reprinted with permission copyright 2010, The Taunton Press.

Visit the KHS publications page to see other magazine columns and articles I've written.

by Katie Hutchison for House Enthusiast

photography by Eric RothIf you find yourself on Boston’s South Shore or coastal communities, pick up a copy of the Autumn 2009 issue of Cape Cod & Islands HOME.  In it you’ll discover a story I wrote about a West Tisbury home on Martha’s Vineyard, which I teamed up to design with independent collaborators.  The house is Vineyard casual plus a dash of urbane décor.

Click here to see a PDF of the article. 

by Katie Hutchison for House Enthusiast

Click on this photo to see the Newton Kitchen Reno & Mud Room Addition.Check out the October/November 2009 issue of Fine Homebuilding to see my latest "Drawing Board" column. In it, I write about two primary circulation patterns which often yield houses that flow. Certain circulation patterns are better paired with certain house-plan types. To enhance flow in a new or existing home, team the circulation pattern and house-plan type which are most simpatico. Click here for a PDF of the design column. Issue #206, October/November 2009. Reprinted with permission copyright 2009, The Taunton Press.

Visit the KHS publications page to see other magazine columns and articles I've written.

by Katie Hutchison for House Enthusiast

These unique, oversize, sliding doors are double-duty assets. From the inside, they provide filtered privacy when closed. From the outside, they add textural interest whether open or closed. The alternating slat dimensions help reduce their scale, and the clear finish draws attention to them as accent features. The sliding track is cleverly concealed by a shallow rooflet, which, with the help of full-width stairs, suggests a porchlet. I’m a fan of oversize, barn-type sliders and featured them in the Manchester Garage/Garden Room and wrote about them for Fine Homebuilding. Consider such sliders for breezeways and three-season rooms too.

by Katie Hutchison for House Enthusiast

These two bracketed bay dormers are uniquely distinctive hybrids. Like more traditional dormers within a larger sloping roof, they introduce vertical relief which provides daylight and headroom. Yet by breaking the plane of the surrounding exterior wall they also provide additional lateral relief, the way a bay does. The brackets beneath highlight the depth of the bay dormers while transitioning back to the main wall. By interrupting the eave line and projecting forward like bug eyes, the bay dormers call attention to themselves, challenging the usual hierarchy of the primary roof’s dominance. They are two upstarts with personality worth noticing.

For additional dormer commentary click here to see a PDF of a Drawing Board column I wrote and illustrated for Fine Homebuilding about shed dormers.

by Katie Hutchison for the House Enthusiast