From Bungalow to Primitive Colonial Style | Photographed for Country Sampler

What do you do with a 660 square foot one-story bungalow built in 1952? If you are Phil and Tanya Rossignol, you add a second floor, rebuild the porch, add hand-hewn beams, install wide board floors, add faux fireplaces to every main room, build most of the furniture yourself, and fill every corner with primitive American antiques and collectibles until people stop and ask how old the house is. Phil and Tanya's honeymoon to historic Sleepy Hollow, New York was the beginning of a lifelong love affair with primitive colonial style. When they purchased this modest bungalow in Beacon, New York in 2008, they started working on it the day they closed. Phil, a carpenter who specializes in historic homes, became the builder. Tanya became the decorator and stylist. Together they transformed an unremarkable house into something that looks like it has been standing for two centuries. Phil posted photos of his home in a primitive decorating Facebook group. The response was overwhelming — thousands of comments, with followers insisting the home belonged in the magazine. Phil and Tanya were faithful readers of Country Sampler and got many ideas for their home from the pages of the magazine. So Phil wrote an email to the editor, attached some photos of his home, and waited. The editor agreed with the faithful on Facebook and sent us to photograph their home. From the tin-paneled cupboard in the front hall to the faux corner fireplace in the living room, from the farm table Phil built and aged to look like an antique to the make-do chair he and Tanya crafted together — every room tells the story of two people who knew exactly what they wanted and had the skills to make it happen. This home was photographed for Country Sampler magazine. 📷 Gridley Graves | Interior & Architectural Photographers 🌐 www.gridleygraves.com If you love primitive antiques, country style and homes with heart — subscribe and join us on more home tours!