feature home - Our Homes Magazine

feature
Old
New
EVERYTHING
IS
AGAIN
BY MARC CAPANCIONI // PHOTOGRAPHY BY COLIN CROWELL
M
Modern yet classic. Innovative yet historic. Rustic yet cosy.
It’s these polarizing features that make this house the exceptional place it is. And it’s John Dedes and
T.J. McCauley who lay claim to this countryside jewel in Sault Ste. Marie’s west end.
Despite being built just five years ago, the 2,400 sq. ft. estate has many attributes of an old-time home.
Everything from the doors and windows, to the light fixtures and telephones, are what dates back many,
many years.
“We wanted to mix the old with the new so it looked and felt like a heritage home,” says McCauley.
Reaching this goal by populating the house with relics from the past was no easy feat. In fact, it took
the homeowners months of gathering, planning and designing before they were finally satisfied and ready
to build their dream home.
Each item was found in true treasure-hunt fashion. Take, for instance, the more than century-old
closet doors, marble bathroom sink on the main floor and upstairs wainscoting. They were originally
made for the Rydal Bank mansion of business tycoon William Ross Smyth, who represented the Algoma
East riding at Queen’s Park during the early 1900s. Continued on page 30
This greenhouse, just
off the kitchen, is where
homeowner John Dedes
grows his orchids. It’s
a favourite room for
both homeowners and
is used daily.
LEFT: This attractive
Second Line home was
built just five years ago.
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Pictured, left to right, are: Managing Editor
Pauline Clark, John Dedes, Publisher
Katherine G. MacRae and T.J. McCauley.
LEFT: Dainty Miss Collectibles by Lefton and
brightly coloured Fire King dishes are among
their many collections.
BELOW: A pressed tin ceiling, black pearl
granite countertops, wood and stainless
steel all mix well in this attractive kitchen.
LEFT: Leather and wood
combine to create a cosy
seating area around a cultured
stone fireplace. McCauley built
the maple mantel.
TOP: A collection of antique
alarm clocks atop a roll-top
desk in this upstairs office mix
well with modern accent pieces.
ABOVE: A chrome trumpet
looks stylish sitting next to an
antique radio and a white orchid
in full bloom.
In the dining room and greenhouse you’ll find the original oak entrance
and office doors that were once located in the now-demolished St. Ignatius
elementary school in Sault Ste. Marie, which dates back to 1902.
Another interior door was once swinging as the main entry to Sir
James Dunn’s original dwelling. Several others were entrance doors to old
homes on various streets across the city, including Pim, Dennis, Cathcart,
and Wellington.
“We placed ads in local papers and magazines for salvaged wooden
doors, and many people responded,” says Dedes, a Hamilton native who,
upon graduating from Sault College in 1986, found a job at the Great Lakes
Forestry Centre, where he now works as its insect production supervisor.
After plenty of stripping and sanding, the doors were revived and
ready to be used again.
In the greenhouse, found just off the living room, you’ll find dozens of
orchids – Lady Slippers, Oncidiums, Phalaenopsis and others – peppered with
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natural light during the day from four ceiling skylights. At night, it’s artificial
beams that illuminate, each ray coming from one of three original light
fixtures that were once hanging in the old Sault Ste. Marie courthouse.
When gathering such pieces for their home, the owners learned plenty
about the history of the city and region. And it’s this history that they
wished to sustain.
“We wanted to preserve these artifacts and their stories,” says
McCauley, a supervisor at OLG Casino Sault Ste. Marie.
Many of the other items in the house were found over the years at
antique stores, both local and throughout the province.
Oddly enough, the entire concept of the home happened almost by
accident. The original plan was to simply do something creative with a few
old, reclaimed school transom windows – the idea being that they would
give the building more of a long-standing appeal. However, the concept
of incorporating antiquities quickly blossomed. Continued on page 32
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Dedes found the pieces from his
grandmother’s dining room set at the
homes of various family members and
brought them back together here.
RIGHT: A sitting room at the front of the
house doubles as a TV room.
BOTTOM LEFT: One of the 10 working
antique phones found throughout the home.
BOTTOM RIGHT: The master bedroom
furnishings are a mixture of old and new
pieces, matched almost perfectly.
“It started out with the stained glass windows, and it grew from there,”
says McCauley.
Before long, he and Dedes were hunting down more artifacts to be
used in the construction of their new home. The search led them to places
far and wide.
At Pollikers, a shop near Pickering, Ont., the homeowners found an
antique, general-store countertop from Nova Scotia made in 1890. It now
serves as their kitchen island.
At another antique store in southern Ontario, they came across three
Gothic, stained glass windows, which are believed to have come from an old
mansion and depict a family crest. Though they have yet to identify the clan
in question, the pieces glow with brightness when light flows through.
All vintage phones in the house – 10 of them, to be precise – are relics
produced many decades ago, some with candlestick designs and some even
old enough to have crank generators. The most ancient in the collection
was made by Northern Electric, a Canadian company that entered the
telephone market during late-1800s.
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Before he passed away a few years back, a local repairman, 92-year-old
Art Hyde, rewired the phones to working condition.
Finding such people – whether handymen, specialty tradespeople
or antique dealers – was another interesting part of the house-building
process, says Dedes. “Once you start talking to one person, they lead you
to another.”
Meanwhile, even the kitchen ceiling is a tad out of the ordinary, a
theme constant throughout the entire house. Its punched-tin design
catches the eye with ease.
So, too, do the checkered-plate aluminum basement stairs made
by Ro-Von Steel Inc. Not surprisingly, the upstairs has its fair share
of uniqueness as well. It houses an old-time parlour juke box from the
Seeburg Corp. and a number of old school clocks, some Big Ben designs
made by Westclox.
These, along with most of the vintage kitchen appliances – toaster,
blenders and such – were rewired and put back into service by Gary’s
Appliance Repair. Continued on page 34
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Mann Florist
Serving the floral needs of
Sault Ste. Marie for over 100 years
LEFT: Blue glass tiles encase a modern
walk-in shower while an old-fashioned
tub has a prominent place, angled on a
platform in front of the window.
324 Queen Street East
Sault Ste. Marie, ON
705.256.5615
1.800.558.5739
www.mannflorist.com
support@mannflorist.com
BELOW: This vintage airplane ashtray
lights up and is a perfect addition to a
sky-themed guest bedroom.
BOTTOM: Historical transom windows
in the upstairs hallway allow heat to
circulate in the bedrooms.
Having a Party, Wedding or
a Just Because Celebration…
Call the professional Jason Zachary at 945-9322
for all of your Event Planning and Catering Needs
Located at the 180 Bay Front Quality Inn Sault Ste. Marie, ON
www.granfesta.ca
Your Journey to Beautiful
Floors Begins Here…
‘BOB’ DIONISI & SONS
71 Black Rd, Sault Ste Marie
705-942-1219 • 1-800-860-6572
Window Coverings, Vinyl Flooring, Laminates,
Hardwood, Ceramics, Carpet, Area Rugs
The second floor bedroom also contains an empire-style dresser, dating
back to 1830, which was found at Legacy House Antiques.
The Persian rugs throughout the house, including the colour-filled one
in the upstairs master bedroom, were obtained at various auctions.
Just off the bedroom is a patio balcony that overlooks seven acres of
backyard wilderness. On any given day, it’s not unusual to see a variety of
animals – deer, bears and coyotes to name just a few.
“Living here, we’ve seen all sorts of amazing wildlife,” says McCauley,
who grew up in Haviland Bay, just west of Sault Ste. Marie.
This is one of the many perks that come with living in such a gem of a
house. When designing and building the estate, these were the types of
bonuses the homeowners wanted to incorporate.
When all was said and done, they were also successful at capturing the
precise style they wanted: old meets new, originality meets precedent.
Helping them realize this dream were a variety of local businesses
and tradespeople, including tile work from Bob Dionisi & Sons, antique
furniture re-finishing by Don Mousseau, flooring from Mattioli Co. Ltd.,
specialty floor sanding by Theresa Neveau and stained glass work from
Charlie Thomlinson at Glassworks.
The end result speaks for itself.
“People who come and visit think it’s an old home that we renovated,
which is the greatest compliment we could get,” says Dedes. OH
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66 Spring St,
Sault Ste. Marie, ON
705.253.2223
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