Riehl's Construction | Amish Artistry - Page 2

Read article : Riehl's Construction | Amish Artistry - Page 2

February 06, 1994|By JoAnne C. Broadwater

The couple wanted the design to blend with their house so they chose a 1,500-square-foot rectangular addition with a peaked roof.

The two-story structure, built by Riehl's Construction, has a master bedroom, study, bath, laundry room and utility closet. A spacious living room is brightened by a 12-foot window opening.

"It was truly a pleasure having them here," Mrs. Iannacone says of the builders. "They came in singing and whistling, they had a wonderful sense of humor and they prayed when they sat down together for lunch. We never had to worry about foul language. And they really cared about their . . . craftsmanship."

"They appreciated the concerns that we had and they wanted us to be happy," adds Mr. Iannacone. "They had honesty and pride in their work."

Down the road from the Iannacones is a historic center hall Colonial home that dates to about 1790. It belongs to their neighbors, Joseph and Karen Barbacane.

In 1991, the Barbacanes hired Riehl's Construction to add a 700-square-foot family room to their L-shaped farmhouse. The addition has a cathedral ceiling, skylights, ceiling fans, slate flooring, carpet and bow windows. Beneath it is a recreation room for their children.

"We had exposed beams in the kitchen already and we wanted to have [the addition] in keeping with the rest of the structure as opposed to new and modern," says Mr. Barbacane. "We liked the idea and the look and the way their work turns out. It's nice to have it done the old-fashioned way, the way things used to be done."

The Barbacanes also had a new barn built on the foundation of one that had collapsed. The barn has a three-car garage and a horse stall at one end. Upstairs is an exercise room with hot tub and shower and an open storage room where they've held a crab feast.

"It's an exquisite structure," Mr. Barbacane says. "When we first talked to the Amish about doing it they said they had driven by and they figured that barn really needed them."

For more information about timber-frame construction, please call:

Chuck Dougherty Design in Leola, Pa.

(717) 656-2108

Craftwright, in Westminster

(410) 876-0999

Timber Framers Guild of North America, in Keene, N.H.

(603) 357-1706