for lovethe of a FARMHOUSE

One afternoon, when Jay was driving down Highway 98 towards Summit, Mississippi, to look at a home for sale, he spotted an abandoned old farmhouse in need of attention. He turned his car around, entered the driveway to the farmhouse, and spoke with the neighbor next door who gave him the owner’s name and contact information.

Not wasting any time, Jay made arrangements; and the owner showed him the farmhouse that had been in her family for three generations since 1893. William Lee and Lula Roberts Turner, the original owners, had passed the home to their daughter, the owner’s grandmother, who had left the house and acreage to her. This grandchild acquired the homestead with four acres. Although she was reluctant to let the house pass outside the family, the Nautas asked what she would consider as the price for the house. After much thought and consideration, she gave her asking price; the Nautas accepted, and the start of a four-year restoration began.

Not knowing the depth of restoration needed, Jay and Jeannette jumped in feet first and began the tedious process of demolition themselves, salvaging everything original. Years of coal-burning fireplaces’ heating the house, along with its age, had turned the ceilings and walls almost black. The couple hired a contractor to do the work, but Jay and Jeannette designed the plans with the help of their cousin. The couple painstakingly worked to use materials period to the house.

The interior walls, ceilings, and floors were all heart pine; the ceiling and walls were originally tongue and groove. Each piece that was removed was numbered and then placed back in its original position, and then each piece was manually sanded and stripped from the many layers of age. Their priority was to make the house sound by repairing or replacing any damaged support beams, by weatherizing with insulation, by installing new plumbing, a new HAVAC system, new insulated windows, and new doors (that were period to the house) where needed. The couple delighted in designing with a Baton Rouge, Louisiana, artisan the stain-glass transom windows placed throughout the house.

TThe massive attic space allowed them to carve out three additional bedrooms, an office/craft room, and a bathroom for their upstairs. To these, they added a staircase and a pulley-system dumbwaiter. The upstairs replicated the wood walls and ceilings of downstairs with new hardwood pine floors and walls. Not a piece of sheetrock was installed in the house. Every inch of the attic space was transformed into living areas and storage areas including builtin drawers. The couple acquired period decorative molding and trims for use throughout the home, adding detail to the windows, doors, and ceilings; and they added all-new, periodtype hardware for the windows and doors. During the renovation of the main floor, several doors were moved and walls opened up to allow space for traffic flow connecting the entrance hallway to the kitchen, dining room, and living space.

The kitchen area was enlarged with generous counter space, double ovens, and all-new appliances. New custom cabinets were made for the kitchen with Jeannette applying the glaze. However, layers upon layers of flooring, including nailed-down cardboard, which covered the original heart-pine floor, posed a significant challenge. The daunting task of removing these layers left stains of dark rings and markings that, once the floor was refinished, bear witness to its history. The overall kitchen design was carefully calculated to accommodate the Nautas’ relaxed living space and allow ample area when their children and grandchildren come to visit.

AA separate laundry room extends off the kitchen, and a staircase from the carport-door entrance was built to house a sizable hidden drawer for shoes and gloves and the many extras that accompany their grandchildren’s visits. The first floor of the home also offers a spacious, cozy master bedroom, bathroom, and custom closet. For this area, the couple chose newly designed fixtures with a vintage look and custom window shades in variations of blue, one of the couple’s favorite colors used throughout the home.

Jeannette and Jay Nauta’s labor of love for this latenineteenth-century farmhouse has brought renewed life to this site, making it once more a bountiful and happy homestead. It now sits on four acres of landscaped grounds that enhance the welcoming atmosphere of this property; and their suburban family members treasure their visits there, enjoying as they come three generations of memorable times all at once.

Reflecting on their in-depth and long-term revitalization of this country home, the Nautas agreed in commenting, “All the trials and tribulations of taking on such a total restoration of this magnitude make it so worth it when we both see the expressions and hear comments from visitors, especially those who have history with the home.” This new era of generations, welcoming family and friends, once again brings life, love, and care to this charming farmhouse.