Irvington is a neighborhood in the Northeast section of Portland, Oregon. It is distinguished by a number of large stately homes, often positioned on a number of oversized lots. The Irvington Community Association funds it’s activities by holding a well-attended tour of these homes each spring. More about the history of this neighborhood can be found here.

A large majority of the Irvington neighborhood is a historic district. That will mean that exterior changes will need an additional review before the work is approved. We have done several of these and can help with the process of designing to the historic review standards.

In the picture on the top left, there is an interior stair way that we rebuilt to modern code and designed a triangular bookshelf to fit in below. We were able to find a salvaged small door that was used to build a storage area under the stairs.

As shown in the middle picture, in some houses the interior chimney is not being used for venting or as a fireplace. The chimney was removed and in that space a built-in book shelf was added to match the style of the room.

We have worked on some houses that have been damaged to restore the original details. In the interior shot to the right, there was water damage to the living room and dining room. The homeowners were having a hard time finding a builder who was familiar with building the trim work in the same detail. Fortunately, we have a special interest in the craftsman style so we were able to find the wide boards and match the trim profile details.