Jennifer May for The New York TimesTwo houses made into one.
WHAT Five-bedroom house on six acres.
WHERE Millbrook, N.Y., in Dutchess County, 82 miles from Midtown Manhattan.
WHO Though the house needed work, Kinue and her husband, Jordan Fowler, chief executive of Frontier Healthcare Holdings in Manhattan, wanted it from the first moment they saw it. Three years and some ambitious renovations later, Kinue, who goes by only one name for personal reasons, talks about embracing the home’s eccentricities to create a playful environment for their four children.
“With a growing family, we wanted more room than an apartment in the city could offer. But we didn’t want to move to the suburbs. So we decided to look for something outside the city and immediately found this house online. Two weeks later, we bought it.
“It’s actually two houses that were connected in 1910. What’s now the kitchen and boys’ bedroom are in the original farmhouse, which was built in 1750. The rest of the house is what was a Greek revival, built in 1890, that used to be across the street. So it’s definitely a meandering and quirky place. You have to twist and turn to get from one side to the other, and there are lots of secret places and mysterious closets — just the sort of thing that kids love.
“And for us, that’s what this place is all about. Spending time as a family. So we feel so happy that we found our architect, Jimmy Crisp. He really got it. When we renovated the boys’ bedroom, for example, he exposed the beams and hung swings and rings from the ceilings. The kids are quite happy now to show their appreciation for the space by showing everyone their trapezelike tricks! Then there was the kitchen, a room that gave me a heart attack at every turn. But Jimmy endured my last-minute decision to skip an island and fashion a work surface from a big dressing table instead. And he gave me something I had always dreamed of having: a raised fireplace. I love it in there and honestly, so do the kids. I’d say that we spend 80 percent of our time in the kitchen. Of course, as the weather warms up, we’ll spend more time outdoors. Part of the renovation included adding a loggia just off the kitchen, and this year we’re putting in a pool. Meanwhile, the kids are happy to run around the property or to explore the barn, which is pretty rickety, with Jordan, who joins in with them, pretending they are raccoons. Indoors, we have one of the parlors set up with electric guitars, a microphone and keyboard. There are a lot of kid concerts and dances in there! And there’s stuff everywhere. Believe me, it’s a real mission to make it look presentable. But for us, that’s O.K. That’s what we wanted: a kid-friendly house.”
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