Doing a major renovation doesn’t always mean wiping the slate clean. When John Powers, a sculptor, and Jennifer Bostic, creative director of the graphic design firm Paper Plane Studio, bought a Depression-era cottage on a lake in Putnam Valley, New York, they were intent on keeping its rustic charm alive—even as they contemplated a major overhaul. “Our first instinct was to preserve what we loved rather than make something new,” says John. “The previous owners were artists, and the strange mishmash of things that had been done over the years added up to something fantastic and Wes Anderson-esque.”

That isn’t to say that the two-bedroom structure, which had a cramped sleeping loft above 400 square feet of living space, didn’t need work. The couple, who were living in New York’s West Village at the time, wanted a four-season retreat, but the uninsulated cottage was so porous that they could see sunlight between the boards. The exterior siding was also rotting, and the layout didn’t work for their lifestyle. “Only one person could be in the kitchen at a time without feeling claustrophobic,” recalls Jennifer.

To reorganize the space and create a more efficient building envelope, they called upon architect Otto Ruano of Brooklyn-based Lead Studios. Ruano hatched a plan to gingerly dismantle the structure from the outside in, while preserving every board he could. First, he exposed the framing and electrical and plumbing systems inside by hiding insulation behind fresh exterior cedar siding. Next, he created an entirely new layout that reoriented the loft, moved the second bedroom to the basement, expanded the kitchen, and added a screened-in porch beneath an extended roof. Accessible through a set of bifold doors, the new outdoor perch tacks on 50 percent more space to the main floor.

“The original stud and shiplap vernacular—the funky fish camp charm—was something we were trying to keep,” says Ruano, who collaborated on finishing details with the couple’s interior designer friend Bridget Rynne. John and Jennifer wouldn’t have had it any other way. “I remember an initial discussion with someone who suggested we drywall the interior,” says Jennifer. “That was ludicrous!”

The couple gained newfound appreciation for the lake house’s renovations last summer, when their Manhattan landlord suddenly decided to sell the apartment they had been renting. “What was originally imagined as a weekend getaway,” Jennifer says, “has become our year-round base.”

Project Credits:

Architect of Record: Otto Ruano, Lead Studios / @leadstudios

General contracting: John Powers

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