This home is owned by neighbors right on our own block a few doors down. The front porch had been closed up with windows, siding and doors for decades. The goal was to open it up and design columns, newel posts and rails that would have the aesthetic of an upscale New England or Southern farmhouse, there were some existing decorative elements on the house that led the way on this to some degree. Tim O’Neil of Kaufman O’Neil Architects who is also a neighbor and friend developed the first round of design sketches exploring different column, post and rail configurations. After he and the homeowners dialed in on two tiered columns I created drawings that focused in on the specifics of the moldings, inset panels and newel post cap designs. We worked through some options on those collectively and then started building. Actually the first stage was demolition of the existing structure and setting new 6″ x 6″ columns with some added structural work underneath. The column parts, newel posts and rail pieces were all constructed in the shop and then assembled on site. All were primed inside and out with oil base primer to give added protection against the elements. The painter added three more coats of primer and two coats of top coat which were sprayed for a super smooth finish. It was a fantastic process being able to collaborate with neighbors and friends so close to my own home and shop with posts and columns that had some of the finer details usually seen on interior pieces.(CLICK ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF PHOTOS TO SCROLL THROUGH DIFFERENT DETAILS).