Cultivating a Cumru Beauty

Good doctors, as we all know and appreciate, are devoted to improving the quality of our lives. In the most extreme of circumstances, good doctors literally breathe new life into us.

Diane T. Bonaccorsi and B. Charles Muvdi are among the scores of fine physicians in Berks whose life-enhancing and life-saving skills are blessings to their hundreds of patients.

In the past few years, this long-married couple has taken those skills to another field of practice. They have rehabilitated, more specifically, they have saved, a historic Berks farm and have done so in a manner and style that honors both its history and the nature surrounding it.

The farm, literally, is adjacent to and just downslope from the couple’s home where they raised their children and which still serves as their primary residence.  

Bonaccorsi and Muvdi had the right of first refusal when the farm became available. Acting on that, they acquired the 23-acre farm, complete with its circa-1854, 1,900-square-foot farmhouse, barn, slaughterhouse and assorted other out buildings in 2008.

Keeping it Natural

“We wanted to keep the immediate area rural and had some concerns about the property becoming a housing development,” Diane says. “We were very happy to be able to buy it.”

Acquiring the property was, more or less, the easy part. The next six years were dedicated to some razing and much more rehabilitation, as the couple assessed their concept for the property and the uses it would serve for themselves, their family and their guests. 

In addition to a total revamping of the farmhouse, the couple also set their sights on the barn and old slaughterhouse.

They had the red shingles on the sides of the barn removed to restore the original exterior boards.

One might correctly say that they slayed the slaughterhouse. Not only was the thought of its history unsettling to the family – the structure was just steps from the farmhouse.

Standing on its red sandstone foundation now is a lovely greenhouse, filled with everything from Gerbera daisies to herbs to peppers to long-lived poinsettia plants that boast red blooms year after year.  Diane says the greenhouse offers a sense of peace and serenity, and is an apt antidote to the previous structure’s purpose.

“Instead of killing things, we’re raising things,” she says.

The greenhouse sits just to the left of the entrance to the house – an entrance that’s been transformed by Diane’s designer eye and the craft of master carpenters.

Wood is Good

The wooden board steps and landing lead first to a new deck that runs the full width of the house.

The design of the stairs gives a bold hint to what awaits visitors inside. The stairway railing is secured by log posts capped by copper plating and horizontally placed logs and limbs that connect the posts.  Another accent to the stairway and the matching balustrade that marches along the deck are smaller branches incorporated into the area between the horizontal top and bottom logs. The branch work acts as innovative, even primitive, spindles.

Huge log columns support the original porch roof configuration of the farmhouse. Even bigger tree trunks serve as support columns for the deck floor. Bark shingles that surround the deck surface are imported from North Carolina.

“Lots of houses there have bark shingles, and we thought they’d fit well here,” Diane says.

When visitors step inside the door, they may feel they’ve entered a high-end rustic lodge.

Wooden surfaces abound – from the floor to the ceilings, to some walls and certainly to the furnishings. And a good part of the wood used was harvested from the farm itself, an important factor given the couple’s dedication to sustainability.

Immediately to the left of the entrance is a cozy wooden window seat that offers storage and also overlooks the greenhouse. Bounding the seat are two closets serviced by sliding barn doors.

A cherry tree serves as the support for the living room, which, like the deck, is an addition to the original farmhouse structure. The fireplace mantle base is crafted from a cherry tree as well.

The original red sandstone exterior of the house is masterfully integrated into the living room décor from a full wall that connects to the dining room – the original window and door areas serve as openings between the rooms. Just as the exterior stone work was repointed and cleaned, so was the interior stone work.

A Kitchen that Catches Attention

One might think the random-width pine floors – and ceilings – would make the space dark, but the introduction of a wall of windows and the light that floods in from them and the kitchen/dining room make the area cheerful and bright.

At first, on the southern side of the original farm house, there were no windows. The couple had them created, being sure to use the original frames from other repurposed windows to assure retention of the historic character.

“I tried to salvage everything I could that was salvageable,” says Diane.

Also salvaged from the prior owners was a Fisher wood stove.  It was inserted into the fireplace opening, making the living room warm and toasty on the coldest of days.

When visitors step into the large kitchen area, the first thing to catch their eyes is a cedar tree replete with branches. It’s not just a part of a trunk – it’s the full body of the tree down to the base.

The kitchen, once several small rooms, was consolidated into one by the couple. The design pays homage to traditional Pennsylvania German farmhouses while incorporating an artsy, airy flair.

Again, wood dominates everything. The closed staircase was opened, and Diane had steps replaced by half logs, ruff-hewn and knots included with a naturally stained tread.

Trees of Life

Dramatic ironwork, nods to the tree of life motif, serve as the stair rail. A complementary tree of life is inlaid into a cherry wood slab at the end of the kitchen island facing the living room. Blacksmith David Fisher of Fisher Forge Blacksmithing, Hamburg, created all the interior and exterior iron work to Diane’s specifications. 

Diane purposefully strayed from the concept of long, granite-topped counters so prevalent in homes of many vintages today. Rather, she had individual cabinet pieces created for storage of the kitchen essentials. Two cabinets, both bearing a distressed sage green finish, are placed against a pair of deep-silled windows framed by the exposed red sandstone. The cabinets and island are topped by soapstone, easy to care for, durable and true to the home’s period, while the windowsills are slate. Between them sits a Heartland gas stove – vintage in style but pepped up by a bright blue porcelain finish. The other appliances, including a candy-red microwave nestled on a shelf in the island, are also Heartland.

The big farmer’s sink, mid-island, is a particular favorite of Diane’s as are the two corner cupboards, mitered into the stone walls and boasting seeded glass windows, a style that might well have been a part of original period décor. One thing is clear when looking around the kitchen: the colors of the cabinets, island and corner cupboards are different but inherently complementary all the same. Credit for this, she says, goes to the talent and eye of artist Alan Britzenhoff.

What Diane did want to see blended in to the décor was some of the modern technology essentials. The cable wire on which the individual kitchen lights are threaded mimics the color of the wood ceiling, almost disappearing. The same is true of the smoke alarm and thermostat and security system fixtures. A PVC pipe is nearly camouflaged into the pine wall.   

Next to stairs is a round kitchen table with a chicken motif – a well-enjoyed hand-me-down from Diane’s mom that provides ample space for a meal or a board game for four.

A small powder room with a reproduction pull-chain toilet is located to the rear of the kitchen near the basement stairs. The sink base is an old apple tree trunk. A little artificial bird and nest coyly occupy a knot in the trunk.

The four-section raised-panel powder room door, along with a variety of other items in the house, was sourced from the Centre Park Artifacts Bank in Reading.  

Changing Spaces 

Diane explains that the house was originally three bedrooms and one bath. The couple’s renovation has changed it to a two-bedroom home, each with an ensuite bath.

The second-floor bedroom is more or less considered the master. Three deep-silled windows let in abundant light in this corner room with a seating area featuring a funky wagon-wheel light fixture (a holdover from the prior occupants) and abundant room for the large bed placed between two of the windows.

An old radiator cover with an Arabic motif serves as art and reflects Charles’ heritage.

The real drama of the room lies in the original beam ceiling exposed in the renovation.

The ensuite bathroom actually runs along the hallway leading to the bedroom. The corrugated tin shower surround was salvaged from an equipment barn and repurposed. The metal was also used to cover duct work installed as part of the new HVAC system. The burlap shower curtain is tied back with material from a pair of Charles’ jeans – a special delight of Diane’s.

Across from the shower, a metal sink sits perched on a slab of rough granite that tops a specially made wooden base. The high-polish plumbing fixtures are comfortingly old-fashioned down to the porcelain buttons that indicate hot and cold water. A narrow wooden shelf provides space for cosmetics and other washroom necessities. Diane enjoys pointing out the old faucets and related hardware that have taken on new uses as towel holders.

Every attempt, she says, was made to have the separate water closet resemble a latrine. Despite modern amenities, its authenticity might seem to call for a Sears catalog. Again, an artifacts door maintains privacy.

Taylor Made?

The third-floor bedroom, with a sort of loft feel as the result of the couple raising the roof to create more head room and more useable space, is actually the “almost famous” room of the house, or, as Diane calls it, “the almost Taylor room.”

Back in February 2016, when Berks native and music superstar Taylor Swift was set to serve as a bridesmaid for her childhood friend Britany Maack’s wedding to Benjamin LaManna here, Swift and her family were looking for a very private place to stay the weekend.

Diane got a call from a member of Ben’s family to see if her guest house was available. Both of the couple’s sons are friends of the groom so the connection was a close one.

Diane and Charles, working with Swift’s team, made all the necessary preparations, including as Diane recalls, buying some really great sheets and bedding at Nordstrom’s. But disappointment was looming: the day that Swift was due to arrive, she was a no-show. Apparently, a change in the family’s dynamics required three bedrooms, not just the two the couple had to offer.

“So, we call it the almost Taylor room,” Diane says.  

Curved stairs, topped with the same rough-hewn tree-slab treads as in other parts of the house, lead to the bedroom. A birch-branch accented open railing anchored by logs prevents any unplanned tumble down the stairs. White-washed wood and plaster lighten the room while a small triangular wall near the stairs and curtains of denim blue add a nice bit of color. A large painting of a farm reminiscent of the couple’s is positioned over the bed.

A comfy chair with a throw and a braided rug purchased in Adamstown add homey touches.

The bank of windows offers not just lots of light, but affords a fine vista of rolling hills and Cumru-area woodlands.

When the roof was raised, the couple had small windows installed at the peaks, letting in even more light. The windows sit directly above date stones – on one side a stone with the initials and dates of the original occupants and the other with Diane and Charles’ initials and the year they acquired the property.

The ensuite bathroom runs the length of the bedroom and is on the other side of the wall. To get there, one passes a small desk area. The floor also boasts a washer and dryer.

“My son lived here before he got married, and he really appreciated that,” says Diane.

“Spilling” into the bathroom hallway from a glass-enclosed rain shower is a small rivulet of river stone. Diane worked with sometimes doubting contractors to make her vision a reality and it’s a stunning one.  The stonework runs seamlessly from the shower wall to the wooden floor.

The bath boasts his and hers sinks with bark surrounds and is illuminated by basic outdoor-style lights purchased from Home Depot and painted on the inside to suggest age. There is also a walk-in closet, linen and a water closet.

Lots of People, Lots of Fun

The guest house gets heavy use, especially during holidays, when the couple hosts up to 20 or more family members.

“We all like to come down here for cocktails before the big meal,” she says.

The house is also almost a daily respite for the couple. They walk the path with their dogs after work, often having cocktails and watching the news in the living room’s comfy leather chairs Diane snapped up for a bargain in a Main Line consignment shop.

“It’s like a step back in time,” she says.

Simultaneously modernizing and renovating the house meant pretty much stripping it down to its guts – new plumbing, electricity, HVAC, a well purification system, and a tankless water heater – were all added. Walls were broken through for new windows, but the openings had to fit the feel of the original home. And then there were the matters of interior décor and furnishing, not to mention the out buildings, the fenced-in garden (to deter the deer that also call the property home), and uncovering and preserving old discoveries – like the original stone path to where the outhouse once stood.

“There was a lot of decision making that went into this house,” Diane says. “When my husband saw and really assessed the finished product, I think he was really pleased.”

With three adult children starting their own families, including two grandchildren on the way, the couple knows their guest house will be even more heavily used in the years ahead. They look forward to sharing its joys and the natural surroundings with the little ones along the way.

As this Berks County Living interview ended, an American bald eagle flew no more than 100 feet above Diane and the writer, effortlessly riding the wind currents between the guest and main houses under an azure sky. It was the first bald eagle Diane ever saw near her homes.

“Can life get any better than this?” she asks. “I think it’s a sign. I think he must love being here, too.”