By Matt Furber
Photos by Dev Khalsa

Few houses support colorful touches like a classic Victorian. These so-called "Old Ladies" take kindly to ornamentation. In Hailey, Eric Boyer and Laura Higdon painted theirs eggplant-purple. It was an organic fit.

The home has anchored the corner of Second Avenue and Galena Street since the 1880s, and its artist owners have just finished a three-dimensional, four-year-long makeover. The Victorian era united homebuilders across the nation, but this refurbishment caused more than the floorboards to spring loose. Boyer’s exploration often created new problems rather than finding solutions. But he and Higdon persevered with their vision: to create a comfortable, efficient, modern space for a family of four and their pets.

Without altering the original 19th- century footprint, Boyer and Higdon made a comprehensive critique of their antique home. Considering the age and dubious renovations over the years, it was a daunting task.

The open-plan living room is where Eric, Laura, Kyra and Everett spend most of their time. A re-upholstered window seat is the perfect spot for morning coffee, if they don’t mind sharing the perch with Labradors Crosby and Barrett.

Heating methods had evolved from firewood and two chimneys to forced air blasted from a basement furnace. Boyer eventually modernized these by installing quiet and soothing under-floor radiant heat. With hours of military-style crawling beneath the floorboards, the task was not for the faint-hearted. Some might have chosen to simply scrap the building, but these romantics brought an ambitious idealism. "I don’t know if I would have tackled it if I hadn’t been artistically inclined," Boyer said.

Replacing a pantry with a rounded island opened up the kitchen area to the living and dining rooms, bringing copious amounts of natural light into the once awkward space.


During the latest alterations, nearly every surface in the house was overhauled and much of the interior reconfigured. Bumping and shifting walls and doors created new spaces, both indoors and out, such as the snug fire ring where the couple now sits with friends and family on cool summer nights.
 

Graying cabinets were removed and replaced with bright, open shelving, and the beige Formica counter top was ditched in favor of cool, crisp ceramic.

Before fully committing to the house, Boyer and Higdon rented for four months. The owner gave consent even as the work descended from the fun of paint and carpet colors to the murk of wall removal. Their laissez-faire landlord told them, "I trust you guys. Do what you want."

Boyer continued with a new floor slab for the garage. He replaced crumbling doors and windows with reclaimed wood. The old concrete driveway was hammered out and replaced with a perennial flowerbed. The open yard where horses once swooshed their tails, is now often littered with bicycles.

Higdon’s antique silk-and-cotton bedspread from Greece is a favorite resting place for feline twins Bonzai and Edward.

Higdon focused on interior spaces and did the majority of the painting. She found a bamboo countertop from a local contractor, scavenged recycled glass tile for a backsplash mosaic, and hung vintage lighting found while antique shopping in Portland, Oregon.

With each project, the couple uncovered demanding layers of work. Aged wallpaper revealed here, charred wood from a one-time fire there. All of the projects seemed connected; each piece played part to the whole puzzle.

A vibrant red wall complements a variety of artwork, including a sculpture by Boyer, all illuminated by an antique chandelier from New Orleans.

Blaine County native and resident historian Ralph Harris remembers when only horses were parked at the Hailey house built in 1887 by his great-grandfather, Charles Edward Harris. Today, the former stable has been whipped into shape as a joint studio where Higdon, a furniture designer, and Boyer, a sculptor, practice their crafts.

As the couple was working on finishing touches, Harris brought his father by to visit the house. For father and son, it was a chance to reminisce, but for Higdon and Boyer such meetings deepen their connection to the home, its historical value adding value to their lives. "It is a good feeling to know that you have helped to preserve a part of history," Higdon said over tea as a low winter sun streamed through the glass kitchen door.

Antique and salvaged accents contribute to Higdon’s "natural contemporary" design aesthetic. Kitchen hardware from a Challis blacksmith and reclaimed cast iron radiators (restored and installed by Boyer) give the old lady a vintage touch. Removing the narrow, boxed-in staircase and replacing it with spacious, reclaimed fir steps provide simple lines and a modern, yet earthy touch.

When the upheaval of renovation remained far from over, living in the rough-edged job site wasn’t the project’s biggest challenge. "People have resale value on the brain," Boyer said of what others expected him to do with the makeover. "We didn’t really approach it that way." His challenge was also his belief: to respect the historical character of the home while still making it livable for a contemporary family. "We’re not trying to live like silver mining pioneers, but we do respect the integrity of the house."

The home continues as a hub in the wheel of this community. Visitors, including a passel of dogs and cats, arrive on foot. It is an unusual day if no one springs on the trampoline. One of Hailey’s oldest, the house is contemporary with grand neighborhoods like the Old West End in Toledo, Ohio, and Boise’s North End. Threatened through the years—whether by interstates or development booms—Victorian enclaves have survived. And as ambitious aesthetes like Boyer and Higdon take the homes under protective wings, they help keep these Old Ladies spry in their old age.