The Brentwood 3636

THE Brentwood is all about change.  Change from the ordinary, change from day to day, or change from your coffee and bagel.  Why you ask?  Originally this little gem started out as The Woodstock.  A public opinion poll showed that folks were reminded more of a 60's music fest than they were of a little cartoon bird or a classic novel by Sir Walter Raleigh Scott.  So we changed it to Claybourne, the name of a street one block south.  This sounded highly Scottish (not that there's anything wrong with the Scots) so we went another block south to Glenwood.  This stuck for a few days, but we liked the sound of the name 'Woodstock', so we went back.  Finally we left the neighborhood altogether and went east to Brentwood.

So the Brentwood it became and the Brentwood it is.  It will always be Woodstock in our hearts.  The astute observer will note that while the plan is labeled as the 3636, the dimensions are actually 36x40'.  "More change", you ask?  Well, yes.  After laying out the house (and naming and labeling it) we found that the kitchen and dining needed a bit more space.  So consider it the 3636 with an addition.

Upon approaching the house you will also notice the porch is larger than our usual design.  We usually keep it at 6' to comply with prescriptive bracing, but we pulled out the stops and went for 8' deep.  This is a porch you could live on.  The entry foyer has a coat closet and built in bench for pulling off your boots.  From here, you can either access the large parlor or multi-functional den.  The parlor contains what is becoming one of our signature items, an inglenook with built-ins.  With the exposed beams we imagine gently arched openings throughout the main floor.  Another bedroom and bath downstairs give full livability to the main floor alone.

As mentioned, we decided to bump out the kitchen and dining to give more room for whipping out a duck al'orange and a souffle or two.  A butler's pantry would also serve as a fine drink station.  Another one of our soon to be signature features is the built-in eating booth in the kitchen.  With an extra chair, three could enjoy scones and pinochle.

A rear staircase leads up to two more bedrooms, a bath, and laundry.  We would consider this our master suite, though some might find the idea of sharing the bath odd.  We just like to limit the number of toilets you have to clean.  If it really disturbs you to share, just wall in the door and use the upper chamber for your library, workout room, or counseling center.

The master chamber has a rather generous closet as well as built-in bookcases.  But is that bookcase swinging?  Yes!  Tip back your copy of Wuthering Heights to reveal an opening in the wall.  It merely goes to the attic, but enough headroom is available for a first class panic room.