view from the galley

before

In general, I like to make sure that there is enough space for you to be able to have three different types of things happening at the same time. Because when are you ever just making one thing when you have people coming over? Do you ever find yourself just making bread or just making cookies? Or are you making the pot roast while you’re making mashed potatoes, while you’re making brussel sprouts, while you’re prepping dessert?

The Heart of the Home text by laurie lamountain photos by maillett photography

At twenty-five, Hannah Guilford is a force to be reckoned with: forthright, energetic and incredibly focused. She and her husband, Cody, launched Heart & Hammer Homes in March of 2019 and have been busy ever since. As a team, they provide home remodeling, general contracting, and interior design.

The couple met when Hannah was fif- ous owner in order return the kitchen to its teen and Cody seventeen, and married five original structure and gain space. Walls and years later. Their first house was a fixer- floors were shored up and reframed for propupper that they quickly flipped. They then er structural integrity, and trim work was repbought a piece of land on which they built licated to fill in where it had been removed. their second home. While they were building Part of Hannah’s design process was it, they decided to build a business. researching and having a sense and under-

Hannah has always had a flair for design standing of the era in which the home was and an entrepreneurial spirit (she made built, and using that as a driving force in jewelry and headbands as a kid). creating her own design.

“I remember constantly trying to change Despite the fact that the kitchen was in the paint color in my room, trying to redeco- disrepair and didn’t flow well, most of the rate the house.” architectural interior was intact, allowing

She recently completed her first high-end her to preserve the 1800s authenticity of the kitchen redesign in an early 1800s New Eng- kitchen, while adding some of the decidedly land farmhouse for a client who has mod- modern elements the owner desired. And, ern, eclectic tastes and likes to entertain. of course, make it an attractive and fully-

After meeting with him several times, functional 21st century kitchen. both in person and virtually, to determine “His knowing what he wanted actually a layout that suited the way he, an experi- helped me to be able to push his boundaries enced home chef, and his family function and bring in new things that he might not in the kitchen, Hannah’s vision sufficiently have chosen otherwise. He had a specific impressed him to give her free reign and a floor tile and backsplash tile that he liked,” nice budget with which to work. says Hannah, “and from there it was my

The first order of business was removing a responsibility to find other elements that bathroom that had been added on by a previ- worked well with them.”

A German smear, made by mixing a wet mortar of Portland cement, lime, sand and water, had a three-fold effect on the chimney. Not only did it seal it, it blended it with the wood-look floor and backsplash tiles and turned it into a less conspicuous, though central, architectural element in the room.

She worked with a local cabinetmaker from North Conway, NH, to come up with a layout and design for the white Shakerinspired cabinets. Dark stainless hardware was added to give them a modern twist.

Locally-sourced Jet Mist granite from Granite & Cabinet Creations in Bridgton was not the first choice, however, it proved to be an excellent alternative to the quartz soapstone she had intended. Given that the second half of the renovation took place during Covid, there were issues getting certain materials and quartz soapstone was one of them, but the high quality, non-porous granite she found locally actually turned out to be a better choice for a working kitchen.

“Growing up on a farm, it was important for me to give him a big sink. I grow vegetables and can all my summer goodies, so I appreciate having space to do that.”

A window was added to bring more natural light in. An industrial-style pot rack replaced a lower, wooden pot rack. Appliance garages and a wet bar were added at one end of the kitchen.

While she was staging the kitchen she came across framed prints of famous figures the owner had received as a wedding gift and had yet to unwrap. She asked for permission to use them and promptly hung them on the chimney, adding the eclectic touch she’d been searching for.

She softened the overall look by adding decor made of natural materials; a concrete planter, wooden bowls, and succulents for greenery.

“The kitchen is the heart of the home. I love to can, I love to cook, it’s kind of my happy place in the house. I find that I tend to move myself toward the kitchen when it comes to design. I wish I could say that I plan everything out, but I feel like design is the better side of me that’s willing to kind of go with the flow. I have certain things that are controlled and planned, such as cabinet and appliance layout, but other things I’m willing to change as the project unfolds. Sometimes you have to get comfortable with being uncomfortable. It can push you a little bit into new things.”

With that in mind, she looks forward to her role as lead designer for a 4000 sq.ft. addition to an historic 1800s farmhouse that Heart & Hammer Homes will break ground on in the spring. R

“I find myself constantly inspired by nature.

When I say this, I don’t just mean the birds and the bees, flowers and trees, but rather what nature has created over the years and how we, mankind, have formed it for our use. The nature of stone, polished into a surface, clay molded into brick, wood cut and planed into trim and cabinetry. When

I design, I always aspire to blend these elements and combine them with local items that help emphasize them. To completely modernize an 1800s farmhouse just doesn’t do these original elements justice, rather my goal as a designer is to exploit the original and charming elements that draw one to that home in the first place. To design for a client is not much different than polishing stone to create a counter, for the roots of the design are already planted, I just need to urge them which direction to grow. The client’s ideas and vision are usually already there. It’s up to me to elevate them, polish them, bring them to light.”