The Portland Salvage Home Tour happens October 6th. For those of you who can’t make the event in person, we’re featuring a few of the the five homes here.

This post is by guest contributor Nancy Ranchel, home décor enthusiast, salvage supporter, and blogger. Her home was featured in Salvage Secrets by Joanne Palmisano. Here, she shares her impressions of Anne and Richard DeWolf’s home. The DeWolfs are the principals and owners of Arciform, a design-build company specializing in the restoration and remodel of historic and vintage structures.

Anne and Richard bought this c.1908 house as a duplex. For a time, a tenant lived downstairs and Anne and Richard lived upstairs. When the tenant moved out, Anne and Richard threw a huge country-western poker party to celebrate that, once again, the house was a single-family dwelling.  (To this day, Anne will tell you to that bringing bales of straw into your house is NOT a good idea.)

And then they started to renovate.

That was 10 years ago – and they’re still not finished. In almost every part of the home, you’ll find salvage incorporated into the design and décor.

So many rooms are worth delving into, but let’s begin by looking at their kitchen (which happens to be my dream kitchen).

The DeWolfs’ kitchen

The stove is from the ’40s, and is in original condition. The sink is salvage from Rejuvenation. The floors are sheathing from a neighbor’s project. And the rolling islands? The wood came from Anne and Richard’s coastal property. In order to build their beach house (also a work in progress), they logged and milled hemlock and alder on their land. The wood has been put to good use on other projects as well.

Now, we’ll take a peek at their downstairs bath. Both the sink and toilet are salvage from Rejuvenation.

Downstairs sink and bath

On to the upstairs bathroom. The antique washstand came with original tile and countertop.

Upstairs bath

The tub and hardware were also salvage from Rejuvenation.

Salvaged hardware from Rejuvenation. 

The striking sunflower showerhead is more than 100 years old. According to Anne and Richard, the water flow was very intense, so a handheld unit was added later for practical purposes.

 100-year-old salvaged “sunflower” shower head

The DeWolfs are always on the lookout for salvage and antiques, and never pass up a good deal. During a trip back east, they happened upon antique bookcases, paneling, and a grandfather clock – a collection representing an entire library from a French country house. Anne and Richard bought the set, and had it trucked back home. At the time, they didn’t have room for all the pieces in one room. However, they are currently working on adding a library, so the collection will soon be reunited again.

Anne and Richard’s antique bookshelves awaiting assembly

The antique grandfather clock stands by

The DeWolfs’ love of salvage extends beyond the architectural. While looking for a present for Richard at a swap meet, Anne instead found something for herself: a vintage motorcycle kiddie ride. This one still takes a quarter and is actively used.

Motorcycle kiddie ride

And finally, beyond the toilets, sinks, bookshelves, grandfather clocks, and sunflower showerheads, Anne and Richard’s ability to integrate vintage items into their life even extends to fashion. Here, Anne is wearing a vintage Karl Lagerfeld dress and Richard is wearing a vintage tux. They look smashing – and so does their home.

Anne and Richard DeWolf, with their dog, Phinneas