The house, probably a converted
barn, had quirky windows and a
symmetrical double entrance.

New Blue, Part 2

There were round windows, elliptical windows, and an oddly symmetrical facade with two sets of sliding glass doors -- one set drywalled over on the inside only. The front half of the building was resting on dirt without a foundation. "It was such an oddball thing," says architect Brian Boyle, recalling his first impression of the Long Island house he had been hired to renovate. "We thought maybe it had been a barn," he says, "then it was turned into a house. We were captivated."

 

Opening the doors at one end of
the great room creates an
impromptu porch.

The former owners were local potato farmers. Boyle's client was a Wall Street executive who bought the property as a fresh-air retreat. To accommodate his needs, Boyle opened up the house to light and the landscape. He found space on the ground floor for a large great-room by moving mechanicals to a new basement dug by the foundation contractor. Next, he enlarged existing windows and added French doors on three sides of the house. But his client wanted more. Attracted to the cobbled-together structure for its folksy appeal, he encouraged Boyle to "think quirky."