Houzz Tours
My Houzz: A 1908 Farmhouse That Loves to Entertain
Charmingly refurbished pieces fill a Washington couple’s idyllic home and sprawling landscape
With an expansive lawn, multiple outdoor entertaining areas and substantial trees, Melanie and Andrew Doubroff’s 1908 farmhouse in Wenatchee, Washington, is set up perfectly for hosting large groups of friends and family. Andrew, a painter, color consultant and furniture restoration professional, and Melanie, an executive assistant and event planner with a love for interior design, are both transplants from Santa Monica, California, and were drawn to the quieter, slower pace of life provided by this town on the eastern side of the state. They initially rented the house out after buying it, staying in Wenatchee only part time. But in 2009, they made the move permanent. “We want this to be our forever home,” Melanie says.
This graceful gable-roofed farmhouse is in near-original condition, and the redwood exterior siding of the 108-year-old home has changed little since its early days. When the home was accepted into the National Register of Historic Places in 2009, one of the requirements was that the original home be preserved. The Doubroffs also wanted to keep the house true to its design roots.
Exterior paint: Brilliant White, Benjamin Moore
Exterior paint: Brilliant White, Benjamin Moore
The front porch is one of several outdoor gathering areas. Andrew and Melanie reinforced what was once a sagging floor to take advantage of the porch’s size. Now it is home to a full-size dining table with additional seating ideal for outdoor entertaining.
The porch’s lattice is from a 1920s Spanish-style home in Los Angeles and was originally a sliding panel. Andrew turned the handmade wood panel sideways and found it to be a perfect way to provide shade. The hanging leaded glass window on the exterior is from an L.A. flea market.
The porch’s lattice is from a 1920s Spanish-style home in Los Angeles and was originally a sliding panel. Andrew turned the handmade wood panel sideways and found it to be a perfect way to provide shade. The hanging leaded glass window on the exterior is from an L.A. flea market.
“It’s important to us for people to walk into a room and have it feel comfortable and warm,” Andrew says. “We want to make people feel like they don’t want to leave.” To help with that design goal, Melanie and Andrew removed the forest-green paint that covered the fir floors and painted the walls lighter, more neutral colors.
Wall paint: Brunswick Beige, Benjamin Moore
Wall paint: Brunswick Beige, Benjamin Moore
Thrifting and refurbishing are true passions of the couple, and the Doubroffs are constantly looking for decor pieces at flea markets, vintage and antiques shops, garage sales, thrift stores and even the alleys of Santa Monica. This Art Nouveau entry armoire was found at a Salvation Army store and is one of Andrew’s favorite pieces, with its detailed inset metal panels and original hooks rounded on their tops for hats.
Off the entry is the den, once the home’s formal parlor. With 9-foot-high ceilings and spacious dimensions, it now comfortably houses a work desk and seating area.
Wall paint: Deer Trail, Benjamin Moore
Wall paint: Deer Trail, Benjamin Moore
The largest room spans the width of the house, and is home to both a casual living room and a dining area. Seaside paintings from local artists and thrift stores perk up neutral walls.
The couple cut down the legs of the vintage farmhouse-style table to use it as a coffee table. The rattan armchairs were cat-damaged and in poor condition when found. Andrew saturated them with gel stain to repair the broken fibers. “It’s like dipping them in glue,” he says.
Painting: Salvation Army; couch: Ikea; wall paint: Brunswick Beige, Benjamin Moore
The couple cut down the legs of the vintage farmhouse-style table to use it as a coffee table. The rattan armchairs were cat-damaged and in poor condition when found. Andrew saturated them with gel stain to repair the broken fibers. “It’s like dipping them in glue,” he says.
Painting: Salvation Army; couch: Ikea; wall paint: Brunswick Beige, Benjamin Moore
The furniture and accessories are from California and Washington flea markets. “If something doesn’t have a function, it doesn’t work,” Andrew says. While the room is long enough to hold a sizable table for holidays and gatherings, it usually is set up with the living room on one side and the dining room on the other, with the table and chairs helping to delineate the spaces. The warm, tan-painted walls are a far cry from the room’s former burgundy border decorated with grape swags.
A large piece that was formerly a retail or hardware counter is used to display books and collectibles arranged in vintage wine crates. Andrew covered the counter with an exterior finish so it can do double duty as an outdoor bar during parties.
Andrew bought the clock on the street from someone who was originally selling only the body of the clock. It was a pleasant surprise when the man appeared later the same day with the decorative clock top.
In the corner, a vintage ladder serves as a bookshelf.
Andrew bought the clock on the street from someone who was originally selling only the body of the clock. It was a pleasant surprise when the man appeared later the same day with the decorative clock top.
In the corner, a vintage ladder serves as a bookshelf.
The previous owners redid the kitchen in 1997. The couple painted the linoleum floor and added vintage accessories.
The large farm kitchen has ample space for eclectic vintage floral paintings, a library table with fold-down sides and a shallow, rustic cabinet repurposed as a pantry.
Next to the kitchen is the main-floor bedroom, now used as a home office. A mounted vintage tabletop hockey game doubles as artwork, and the refurbished chair was once used in a courtroom.
Wall paint: Bed of Ferns, Benjamin Moore
Wall paint: Bed of Ferns, Benjamin Moore
The upstairs features high ceilings. While researching the history of their home, the Doubroffs learned that farmhands lived in the upstairs bedrooms, which were very well finished for that era. “Often, the upstairs wasn’t even finished off for a while,” Andrew says. The upstairs was clearly built for comfort, with a wide hallway, spacious landing and an unusually large number of closets.
A visit by a granddaughter of Lillian Roehl’s, an early homeowner, revealed that the grandkids used to throw apples down the upstairs drains, blocking up the works.
Wall paint: Brunswick Beige, Benjamin Moore; floor: painted linoleum
A visit by a granddaughter of Lillian Roehl’s, an early homeowner, revealed that the grandkids used to throw apples down the upstairs drains, blocking up the works.
Wall paint: Brunswick Beige, Benjamin Moore; floor: painted linoleum
The upstairs bath still retains its original wainscoting. The pedestal sink with corner faucet is from the home of one of Andrew’s former clients.
Wall paint: Annapolis Gray, Benjamin Moore
Wall paint: Annapolis Gray, Benjamin Moore
The couple painted the outside of their claw-foot tub with Benjamin Moore’s Chalk Black and added chrome feet. Melanie and Andrew removed the existing linoleum floors to reveal nearly pristine fir floors.
The home’s narrow staircases proved to be a challenge when it came to the master bedroom. The couple were unable to fit a king-size bed up the stairs and chose to go with two twin beds instead, usually keeping them joined with a bed connector that is then covered with a king-size mattress topper. The white paint and stenciling on the floor were removed, showing off the warm fir tones.
The yard off the kitchen and mudroom is designed for relaxing and entertaining. The existing Trex deck was replaced with a newer version and now holds two 8-foot-long farm tables plus a 4-foot insert, built by Andrew’s twin brother and finished by Andrew to add a patina.
Dinner parties, casual gatherings and weddings have taken place in this idyllic space. The expansive outdoor umbrellas, outfitted with retro-inspired outdoor lights, create an intimate, magical space at nighttime.
An approximately 100-year-old maple tree dictated the shape of the deck on one side, which was modified to accommodate its presence. Melanie and Andrew also included multiple trellises, arbors and railings throughout the space.
To the side of the dining area is a lounge space. An eclectic collection of flea market tables, a wicker settee and a metal glider are arranged for easy conversation.
Blue metal glider: Apple Annie Antique Gallery
Blue metal glider: Apple Annie Antique Gallery
Andrew and Melanie used the exterior wall to display and store tools. Here, a vintage farm tool rack gets new life as a rack for grilling accesories.
Reclaimed metal accessories and a bench cheer up an eastern exterior wall and underline their home philosophy: to gather.
A narrow side yard between the south exterior wall and driveway is used as another dining and seating area, as well as a place to display container gardens.
The wood-and-metal dining set was formerly used in the 1950s at the Brentwood Country Mart in Brentwood, California.
The detached garage was built in 1910. Generously sized at 1,100 square feet (102 square meters), it is a storage dream inside, and the exterior offers yet another chance to display favorite thrifted items.
This wrought iron chandelier top, purchased from a California flea market years ago, used to grace the couple’s Santa Monica yard as a kind of “umbrella.” For now, it creates a compelling piece of yard art that casts beautiful shadows.
On this side of the yard, casual seating and vintage school-themed accessories surround an outdoor fire pit. The shed is not original to the home but is big enough to sleep a few visiting nephews and act as the perfect spot for playing school.
Here are Andrew and Melanie on their deck with their two Australian shepherds.
My Houzz is a series in which we visit and photograph creative, personality-filled homes and the people who inhabit them. Share your home with us and see more projects.
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My Houzz is a series in which we visit and photograph creative, personality-filled homes and the people who inhabit them. Share your home with us and see more projects.
Browse more homes by style:
Apartments | Barn Homes | Colorful Homes | Contemporary Homes | Eclectic Homes | Farmhouses | Floating Homes | Guesthouses | Homes Around the World | Lofts | Midcentury Homes | Modern Homes | Ranch Homes | Small Homes | Townhouses | Traditional Homes | Transitional Homes | Vacation Homes
Who lives here: Melanie and Andrew Doubroff and their two Australian shepherds, Abby and Buckley
Location: Wenatchee, Washington
Size: 2,800 square feet (260 square meters); four bedrooms, two bathrooms
Year built: 1908
When Melanie and Andrew Doubroff registered their 1908 farmhouse with the Wenatchee Register of Historic Places, they learned that the house had been home to several couples and their children and grandchildren. It was originally built by Ora and Cora Haines, orchardists who developed their surrounding acres with Red Delicious apples. In 1917, the home was sold to dairy farmers Ed and Lillian Roehl, who raised their five children here, cultivating apples and cherries. Lillian remained in the home for more than 74 years, until her death in 1991. In 1992, one of Lillian’s sons sold the home to the Stahler family, which lived in the home for 15 years before selling it to the Doubroffs in 2007.
The three-quarter-acre property consists of two parcels that are the last pieces of the original farm.