Greg Premru Photography. A handsome, modern kitchen in this LEED-certified home on the Newton House Tour.
Do you walk by houses with hopes of catching a glimpse inside? Have you sent your student up to certain neighbors’ front doors under the guise of selling cookies/popcorn/wrapping paper/mattresses just so you could check out their chandelier? Well peep no more! Historic Newton is making it okay to see inside with their 30th Annual Newton House Tour on Sunday, June 3rd!
Read on to learn more about the Newton House Tour, including a preview, which features homes that will make you feel like you’ve walked into those design magazines you wistfully flip through… Just remember to please keep your hands and feet inside the ride at all times.
From Historic Newton: Historic Newton’s 30th Annual Newton House Tour is set for Sunday June 3, 2012 from noon – 5pm. The Newton House Tour offers the public a rare opportunity to tour eight beautiful private residences located in several of Newton’s historic neighborhoods and villages. Proceeds from the tour benefit Historic Newton and support programs and events at the Jackson Homestead and Museum, and the community.
The tour showcases a wonderful selection of outstanding renovations, restorations, old and new architecture, interior design and landscaping. The much anticipated annual event and fundraiser for Historic Newton draws over 1,000 visitors annually. If you’re looking for renovation ideas or want to appreciate the beautiful work done in these homes, the Newton House Tour is for you.
To celebrate our 30th anniversary, we have selected a diverse array of fabulous homes for this year’s tour. Featuring homes both large and small with everything ranging from fabulous architecture to breathtaking interior design, this year’s tour will be one to remember. As always, Historic Newton will not release the addresses of homes until the day of the tour, which is Sunday, June 3rd, but we will give you a little sneak preview of some of the homes.
Greg Premru Photography. This spacious and comfortable living room is in one of two LEED-certified homes on this year's Newton House Tour.
A circa 1860 Gothic Revival gingerbread bungalow nestled atop a small hill is one of the most unique homes on the tour this year. The previous homeowner carefully preserved the house, and the current homeowners have continued to lovingly care for it while updating the kitchen and breakfast nook. Interior woodworking mimics the exterior design, making it a gingerbread house through and through. Beautifully landscaped and meticulously cared for, the yard is a perfect setting for this jewel of a house.
Large, grand, and glorious, this next home is a beautiful 1873 Mansard French Empire-style housethat has been modernized with great care. Used as a nursing home in the 1970s, this house has three floors with all of the original woodwork, fireplaces, and ceilings. The updated kitchen and bathrooms complement the historical features in the home nicely. And this home really makes a good first impression— the entryway boasts original oak paneled doors, and the double arch columns in the foyer are visible from the front entrance. The hall is paneled in tiger oak wainscoting, and the staircase is impressive with intricate newel posts and spindles.
One home on the tour comes with an interesting story. It was completed in 2009 contemporary and has been designed with such high standards of sustainability and environmental sensitivity that it has earned the LEED Silver certification. Originally, this house was a carriage house for the property next door. In 1939, it was converted into a single-family house, but over the years it had lost some of its character. When the house was redesigned, the homeowners needed it to be accessible for their daughter, who uses a wheelchair. With that in mind, the house has an elevator and a very open floor plan. Throughout the house is mid-century modern furniture, including a small cabinet made with reclaimed wood. The kitchen has cherry cabinets with simple brushed nickel hardware, a clean look in keeping with living room furniture. There is also a passive solar “trellis” above the kitchen window.
Rosemary Fortin, Photographer. This ample kitchen and dining space is part of an addition to a 1914 Colonial.
In addition, the homes on the Tour will include:
· mid-19th century farm house
· 1914 Colonial
· 1929 Tudor
· 1889 Victorian vernacular
· 1896 Victorian
Regular (and “Day of”) Tour Admissions are $25 for members and $35 for non-members and are available at the Jackson Homestead and Museum, 527 Washington Street (Jackson Street), Newton, MA. 02458 or by calling (617) 796-1450 or online at http://www.historicnewton.org. All admission reservations are held for pick up after 10 am on the day of the tour (June 3, 2012) at the Jackson Homestead and Museum, 527 Washington Street.(Locations of the homes for each year are revealed only on the day of the Tour).
SPECIAL OFFER: Receive a discount on the 2012 Newton House Tour admission and membership when you become a first-time member of Historic Newton! Reserve in Advance and SAVE! (Order by June 1) $20 for members/$30 nonmembers.
Historic Newton encourages inquiry and exploration of Newton’s history within the broad context of American history. Headquartered at the Jackson Homestead and Museum, Historic Newton’s collections and exhibitions foster a deeper understanding of the past. The Museum collects, preserves and exhibits historical artifacts and documents and presents educational programs that serve the diverse population of Newton and the Greater Boston region.
