The Farmhouse: New Inspiration for the Classic American Home

Written by an architect for the layperson, Jean Rehkamp Larson makes you feel the elbow room of the farmhouse and surrounding countryside without being too technical. Showing several house styles from historical to contemporary, Larson teaches us what characteristics make the American farmhouse a house style that is as ingrained in our minds as baseball and apple pie.

This book is a valuable resource as my husband and I plan our "farmhouse" that we intend to build next year beginning in February. It gives examples of restorations, new construction built to look like the old classical farmhouses across the midwest, and amazing interiors. I love the shaded boxes of information, emphasizing the importance of features such as shape, the color white, porches, etc. It is a lesson book for those wanting a basic education on how to talk farmhouses. We bought three books, and this one is far superior to the others.

One of over $1,000 worth of books I ordered prior to starting our remodel, The Farmhouse is above and beyond the best book I bought for our tastes, and is the primary resource I have given to our architect. No country shabby chic here -- the style is spare, warm, and elegant. Great photos and text. This book will save us thousands by beautifully getting across our ideas for our new Boulder, Colorado home. Those who like this book would also like Jeremiah Eck's The Distinctive Home.

This book is a great quality hardcover full of spectacular color photos of the traditional farm style. I found it's content and pictures insipiring and it would make a great gift for any 'farm-style' enthusiast... or it's great for any coffee table! Really an excellent book, un-beatable in terms of conveying a classic style and delivering inspiring ideas!

Around the world the farm house has been a traditional design. In England, the thatch roofed masony building comes to mind. In France the house isbuilt around the kitchen and garden. In America there was a different climate, different building materials, different needs. This book looks at old houses that have been remodeled, and new designs that were based on the traditional look of American farm houses of New England and the mid-west. Most interesting is the architectural blending of additions to the old houses. Some of them are made to blend in as though they were part of the original design. Some of them are made so obviously different - steel and glass addition on a 1799 vintage wooden square box house. In this day of mass produced sub-divisions with cookie cutter houses, it is great to see that the design of interesting, beautiful and utilitarian houses has not completely gone away.