Newbie old house enthusiast - American Foursquare owner

[Jen O]

Hi everyone!

I'm Jen. I live a few miles north of Boston and own an American Foursquare. We didn't intentionally buy an old house. Real estate around Massachusetts is fairly expensive and housing stock is old, so most folks end up buying older houses due to inflated house prices. We bought this house (my first!) about 7 years ago and slowly working on minor home improvements. Over these 7 years, I've grown to love it and am inspired to learn more about it.

I've been soaking up knowledge through a variety of resources - blogs, books, podcasts (that's how I learned about this forum), etc. I'm excited to learn from you all about old houses. I've made mistakes and have a lot to learn.

I write a small hobby blog about my journey to become a better homeowner and steward of an old house (but I'll rarely mention it - I promise! I know that's a quick way to get booted!) But it might probably give the experts and old house long-timers a good laugh - EverydayOldHouse.com.

Here's a pic of our house - it's a 1916 Foursquare. A modest house, but it's my little piece of heaven.

[mjt]

Welcome! Nice looking house!

[heartwood]

WECOME JEN!!
I promise I want laugh and you will not be booted from this site!
I grew up in Billerica so I will assume you are not to far away...what a lovely
house you have...looking forward to learning more from you....

......jade

[Jen O]

Jade - we are practically neighbors! I’m in Wakefield right by the Jordan’s Furniture off of I-95. (Which is near the intersection of 95 and 93 in Woburn). It’s only about 10 miles from Billerica. Thanks for reaching out and introducing yourself!

[Gothichome]

Once again Jen, hello. What a very nice home. I see you have a bit of a Craftsman look going on with those exposed rafter tails and your choice of colours. The versatility of a four square to adapt to styling changes over time is amazing. Close off those ears, add a bit of gingerbread and it could be a Victorian.
As jade mentions, short of promoting vinyl siding and tearing out wood windows for plastic your good.

[Manalto]

Welcome Jen, I like the house and especially the sunroom. It looks like it could be a welcome place to spend some time during those long New England winters.

[phil]

welcome Jen , It
s always nice to see new people join. Im way out in Vancouver but I have been to Billerica, its very nice there and Boston has some nice areas.

while I was there one of the instructors , Tony took us to little Italy and we went to his uncle's deli.. cheeses, I've never seen so many cheeses.the place was out of it's time. His uncle took us in the back and being so hospitable, gave us each a little sip of Ouzo.. the cops were walking the beat with billy clubs and gave our friend Tony a warm welcome. I felt like I stepped into a gangster movie. It was so much fun.

[GinaC]

Welcome! She is a beauty!

[heartwood]

hi jen....
I live in western mass now...yesterday I had cathryn Blackwell of Blackwell stained glass at my shop--she lives in wakefield...
.....jade

[Jen O]

Welcome! Nice looking house!

I like your blog! Lots of great detail. I tried to subscribe but it wouldn't work for me. I'll try to remember to check back from time to time.