Fireplace Remodel on a Historic Colorado Home

Custom Fireplace Doors with a Story

Situated in the Upper Bear Creek Valley in Evergreen, Colorado, and built into the side of a cliff the sprawling historic home of Jay and Corinne has been seen a lot in it’s 87 years. An iconic home to the area, Ironhaus was recently asked to build a fireplace door worthy of the homes history, and Western charm.

Revisiting the Past

The home has a rich, and colorful history, as does the community in which it is situated. Forests of pine, spruce, fur, and aspen blanket the valley and give it that ethereal charm that has become synonymous with the region. It was the natural beauty of the area that made it the ideal resort community during the early 1900s to about 1940. During that time the area was the place for families from around the world to visit and spend their summer holidays and boasted regular visitors like Groucho Marx, Tommy Dorsey, and Woody Herman. The home was built next to one of the most famed of these resorts, Troutdale-in-the-Pines.

Owning the home has been a life long dream for Jay, who played next door in the abandoned hotel, which they finally tour down in the mid-90s to build a housing development. “Rumor has it,” says Jay that the owner of the resort lost it in a poker game to a man who didn’t have the kind of money that was needed to keep the hotel going. Even if it’s just a rumor it makes for a great story and one that Jay is happy to be a part of as are those who listen to him tell it.

The Design Evolution of an Historic Home

The home too has a storied past. Built in 1927 the lodge style home has become a familiar landmark to the residents of Evergreen and to visitors who can often stop to photograph the house. Located on the Upper Bear Creek it is built right into the side of a cliff, which according to Jay made for some interesting room design in that section of the home. In addition to that, the home has been featured in multiple television ads, including one for Chrysler Motors in the 1960s.

Each of it’s many homeowners has also impressed his personal mark on the home. Corrine is an interior designer and so she has embarked on putting the couples personal touch on the bathrooms, the living room and updating the carpet throughout the home.

The fireplace in the main living room was high on the couple’s list. The original fireplace was made from local stone. The previous homeowners had converted the original wood burning fireplace to gas with a brass door set that felt dated.

“We wanted to return the fireplace to its original use, a log burning fireplace with a set of doors that matched the lodge feel of the room,” says Jay. “We found Ironhaus online and liked the look and quality of the product. We’d looked at other companies and even ordered a cheaper “custom” door. We were disappointed with when it arrived. We returned it and went back to your website and decided to pay a little more for Ironhaus custom fireplace doors to get just what we wanted. It was so worth it.”

“Opening the box I felt like I was opening an architectural relic.”

-Jay

Now, the couple says, their living room is the most used room in the house. Interested in how Ironhaus can help transform your outdated fireplace giving you a room you’ll never want to leave? You can contact our sales specialist, Cliff Eggelston at sales@ironhaus.com. You can also shop our collection of fireplace doors for ideas and inspiration.

Have a before and after you’d like to share with us? Contact us in the comments section below and we’ll be in touch.