About James Crisp

James M. Crisp has been an architect for well over 30 years. His architectural firm, Crisp Architects, designs projects throughout New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Massachusetts. In April of 2007, Taunton Press published 'On the Porch' by James M. Crisp and Sandra Mahoney.

15 Summer Loving Wonderful Outdoor spaces

Dining Table Under Pergola Summertime in the Northeast is wonderful in outdoor spaces.  After a long winter, the contrast between the seasons cannot be greater.  My family spends a lot of time on our porch and patio and gathering around the pool during the summer.  We alternate eating dinner inside and outside, with alfresco dining winning out every summer.  When we design a home, we do everything we can to make that indoor-to-outdoor connection.  If possible, there should [...]

By |2024-01-26T20:01:22-05:00June 13th, 2023|Categories: Design, Fireplaces, Gardens, Miscellaneous, New Homes, Patios, Pools, Porches|2 Comments

Under Construction 5-23

New Home Entry View It is great to see our projects start to take shape and imagine what they will look like finished.  Of course, we are still having some supply chain issues, but they are getting better all the time.  The cost of some materials has come down, and we are always hoping for more to follow suit. Contractors and subcontractors are very busy, but we have not had a problem finding qualified bidders.  This should be [...]

By |2023-05-24T22:03:06-04:00May 22nd, 2023|Categories: Miscellaneous|0 Comments

Building Your Forever Home (or addition) 8 Examples

New Home with Porches We design many forever homes.  Whenever we are asked to design any project, we approach it the same way the builders of my home did: design it as though a family will live there forever. The forever home starts with good design. Our preference is to avoid whatever the current fad is going around and to design each home or addition in a timeless manner that will look as good 25 years from now [...]

By |2024-01-26T20:22:54-05:00May 9th, 2023|Categories: Additions, Design, Lake Home, Miscellaneous, New Homes, Porches, Renovations|2 Comments

12 Delightful Additions

Large Addition About half of the work in our office is new construction and half renovations and additions. When designing a home from scratch some of the most important elements to study(besides the clients wishes) are views, site features, sun and wind direction, and the approach to the site. The most important single element in an addition/renovation is the existing building. Sometimes the portion you save and restore is key to the rest of the project. Although it [...]

By |2024-01-26T20:31:15-05:00April 30th, 2023|Categories: Miscellaneous|2 Comments

The Philip Hart House-Sleeping Porch

Porch-Exterior Every old home needs an advocate. A special someone who understands and cares about the details, the history, and the sense of place inherent in a period home. Those advocates may save that home from the wrecking ball or the vinyl siding salesman, or the addition that would look better on a gas station. Two of those advocates are David and Nan Greenwood. Their home is in Hart’s Village, just outside of the Village of Millbrook. Philip [...]

By |2023-04-13T07:56:18-04:00April 13th, 2023|Categories: Miscellaneous|0 Comments

6 Amazing Gardens and the Home

Garden View-Judy Murphy, Old Farm Nursery A beautiful landscape or garden can enhance any architectural project. A talented landscape architect, landscape designer, or homeowner with a green thumb makes any project we design more beautiful. That partnership works even better when it begins early in the design process. Just as the architect creates spaces inside the home, outdoor ‘rooms’ can be created on the property surrounding a home. These spaces can be private getaways, cutting gardens, meditative retreats, [...]

By |2024-01-28T13:51:26-05:00April 7th, 2023|Categories: Miscellaneous|0 Comments

16 Big Gable Windows

Pool House with Gable Window We love gable windows.  Sometimes for the light they bring in and other times just for the details and proportions they lend to the gable of a structure.  We spend a lot of time adjusting the proportions of every aspect of a design.  Gable windows are no exception. It is not uncommon for us to review dozens of options before choosing a window type and then we continue to refine the details and [...]

By |2024-01-26T20:43:02-05:00March 30th, 2023|Categories: Miscellaneous|1 Comment

Simple Kitchen Renovation

There comes a time when you are ready for a simple kitchen refresh.  Our client asked for a functional, practical, and timeless makeover.  With this renovation, we kept it simple, which was just what the owners were looking for.  In addition to ample shelves and lower cabinets for storage, we included a big pantry for everything else.  A simple kitchen renovation is sometimes the perfect prescription for a happy home. Kitchen Before Stove and Shelves [...]

By |2024-01-27T07:58:01-05:00March 4th, 2023|Categories: Kitchen, Miscellaneous, Renovations|0 Comments

15 Marvelous Mud Rooms (It’s that time of year)

Farm House Mud Room I love mud rooms! In the Northeast, yards, roads, farms, and job sites are a muddy mess this time of year.  That means there is a good possibility that dogs, cats, kids, and adults will be tracking mud into the house.  The best defenses for terrible mud and slush are great mud rooms. In the design of these mud rooms, we try to make them bright, comfortable, and, above all, functional.  In one home, [...]

By |2024-01-27T08:12:22-05:00March 2nd, 2023|Categories: Miscellaneous, Mud Rooms|Tags: , , , , , |0 Comments

Animal Update 2-23

New Ram Lamb The biggest excitement on our mini farm is the arrival of lambs.  We were lucky that my wife saw the ewe acting like she was in labor on our lamb cam.  We hurried up the hill to the barn and saw the lambs being born.  No matter how often we have seen this happen, it always feels like a miracle.  The sheep, dogs, chickens, and the cat are doing fine.  The barn has periodically had [...]

By |2023-02-13T17:07:05-05:00February 13th, 2023|Categories: Miscellaneous|1 Comment
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