Karp Associates - Custom Homes, Renovations, Construction Management


		Something Old in Something New by Jeannette Ross - The Home Monthly, November 2000 Most people when building a house expect their home to look new. Arnold Karp does just the opposite. He has taken a brand new home and done his best to make it look like an antique. Mr. Karp, his wife, Lisa and their three daughters moved into the roomy home in December. Although it is just about a year old, he takes great pride in making it look like the oldest one on Indian Waters Road in New Canaan. Arnold Karp is the head of Karp Associates, which does new constructions, renovations, remodeling and consulting. He is an inveterate devotee of flea markets, antique shops and renovation sites. He admits to happening upon a house being gutted and negotiating the retrieval of columns, doors and other assorted parts and pieces. This is more that his job; it is his passion. In his house, which is much like a large farmhouse, Mr. Karp has combined new and old building materials and design elements to get the look and feel he likes. For example, the floors throughout are of antique wood. Some of it is from old houses, some of it was milled a century ago but never put down. The doors to a home office are glass-paned pocket doors. The front door is from a house built in the 20's. A large pane of glass was added to let light into the foyer, but mostly to take advantage of the view of the pond across the street. A vanity in the powder room is really an old dresser, retrofitted with a sink. (He did the same in the master bath.) A large handmade cabinet from 1913 was made to fit the wall space in the kitchen. Although it has a new coat of paint and new hardware, it retains the original blemishes in the wood and wavy panes of glass. The spacious kitchen is dominated by a huge butcher-block island, supported by legs that in a former life were the porch columns of a home in Norwalk. Above the table is an enchanting chandelier, decorated with folk-art angels, originally made for candles. Mr. Karp had it electrified, but it still retains its old-fashioned charm. The couple's pride and joy is an old piece from a post office in Rhode Island. It's a wooden honeycomb of mail slots, with the original hand-lettering of various postal zones still readable. They use it to catch odds and ends. Mr. Karp admits some people are puzzled by his style and choices, including members of his own family. "They asked if I was going to paint the mailbox," Mr. Karp said with a laugh. The hand lettering, he said, was the best part. Mrs. Karp, a nutritionist, is indulgent and supportive of her husband's passion. She missed much of the construction process as she was expecting the couple's third daughter, but on a walk around the house, she talked of her husband's fanatical attention to detail. A case in point is the impressive fieldstone fireplace with a chimney that rises up along one wall of the house. It is built from stones dug up during the construction process. "Arnold picked out each stone," she said. " He wanted the round ones to be exposed." This path is not for those who require immediate gratification, she said, noting one bathroom had no mirror for six months. "I've learned it's worth being patient. Arnold is good at this,"she said. "And, if she wasn't happy," Mr. Karp added with a smile, "she could speak to the builder every night." Anyone who lives in an old home - a really old home - knows the headaches involved when something needs to be replaced. Hardly anything is a standard size. Mr. Karp acknowledged that when using old materials he had to work around those challenges. "The front door opening had to be enlarged to make the door fit," he said, of the 1920s door. A client, he continued had an even bigger challenge. "He bought an antique door with a circular top," Mr. Karp recalled. 'The cost of the door was a pittance compared to the cost of making the jamb." This is not the first house he has built like this, and Mr. Karp admitted the style doesn't suit everyone. "We build a lot of new houses, but we renovate a lot of old houses. It's not for everyone," he said of the new-is-old style. "Some people get it, some people don't." But those who love it, really love it. "It's an unusual part of the market," he continued. "People truly appreciate the effort put into it. It takes more time, more effort, more money. This is a balance between old and new," he added. "There's a certain comfort level." For those who do like this style, Mr. Karp has a barn full of stuff waiting to find a home. For those who prefer something different, Mr. Karp is happy to comply. Based in New Canaan, his company works throughout Westchester and Fairfield Countries and beyond. Mr. Karp doesn't know where his passion for old homes comes from. He grew up in a 1950s ranch in New Canaan. His professional background is accounting and finance, but he's now been in the construction business for 18 years. "This is the creativity I didn't find in those other fields," he said. Mr. Karp walked around the front of his house, which has a wide porch for sitting out on summer evenings. He talked about how he tried out six shades of paint before seeing just the right shade of greenish-gray in a friend's shirt. " I held it against the house, on the side lawn, maybe a naturalized pool in the back. Even the landscaping is old-fashioned, using mostly flowers rather that house-hugging shrubs. In a real break with modern rules, this house has no attached garage, although there is room for one. For now, the family is using a charming detached garage that was part of the original property. (The original house was a non-descript ranch the new house essentially absorbed.) "There's a certain inner strength in doing what I do," Mr. Karp said, "seeing a house go up from nothing." But the house he wanted to see go up for himself and his family was not a mansion or a museum. "I grew up in a house where kids were allowed in every room," he said. I want my kids to feel this is our house, not some showpiece. It's a soothing house. (For more information, Mr. Karp may be reached at 203-972-3366.)