subject: Remodel Your Home in Minneapolis the Colonial Revival Way [print this page] Remodel Your Home in Minneapolis the Colonial Revival Way
New England's influence in Minnesota architecture can be seen in the Colonial Revival style homes in Minneapolis. Practicality is said to be the distinctive feature of a classic Colonial style home. The steep pitch roofs protect the house from severe weather conditions. Draft was kept out by the thick wooden shutters. Timber, which was abundant in New England at the height of the popularity of this style, was the main material used.
In the Southern US, a Colonial style home would have huge windows (to make the most of the breeze) and the main material used was brick, because brick was accessible in the South. In Minneapolis, there were hardly any houses built before 1850. Hence, there were few, if any, Colonial style homes in the classic tradition.
What Minneapolis had were Colonial Revival style houses categorized into "Postwar Colonials", "Dutch Colonials", and "Federal & Adams Colonials". A center front door, fringed by sidelights and a "pediment" or a "fan" above it is the common feature of these three Colonials.
If you want to have your house renovated along Colonial Revival lines, check out the city's remodelers. Minneapolis, like any big city,would have a list of remodelers on the phone book. Part of their job is to walk you through the entire process of completing your home remodeling project, from estimating the cost of materials and fixtures, to giving you an estimate regarding the time frame, so you'll know how long you will get "displaced" while your home is being renovated.
If you decide to go with one of the remodelers (Minneapolis) you've checked out, the remodelers will manage the entire project for you. The advantage of this arrangement is that you won't have to mind all the inconveniences of doing a project of this sort as they'll do everything for you. However, that would set you back around four times as much as it would cost you to manage the project on your own. If you don't mind getting a bit dirty, or better yet, if you're into DIY projects, then this would be your chance to roll your sleeves, literally, and do what you like doing best.
Look for remodelers (Minneapolis) who have the Colonial Revival style down pat by doing your own research. Most Minneapolis remodelers would know Colonial Revival, but not all them would know how to do it well.
