Over the Rainbow

“Where troubles melt like lemon drops – Away above the chimney tops, that’s where you’ll find me.” – Somewhere Over the Rainbow, Music by Harold Arlen; Lyrics by E.Y. Harburg

Nestled in a beautiful valley on the Mississippi River and hugged by two magnificent bluffs in Illinois lies a community untouched; a place where strangers don't exist, doors are always open and the porch is the most important “room” in the house. This found paradise is where St. Louisans Jenny and Todd Rausch have breathed new life into their renewed one-and-a-half-story weekend cottage. When Jenny met Todd, she was anxious to share with him her own unforgettable times there with her family in this quaint getaway destination.

After nearly a year of renovation, the couple eagerly anticipates weekend and holiday getaways there with baby daughter Ellie Grace. Only 45 minutes from St. Louis, the Rausches' charming cedar cottage – their own little piece of heaven – provides an idyllic home-away-from-home for the busy new parents and owners of Karr Bick Kitchen and Bath.

Built in 1906, the cottage was in dire need of a new beginning when they bought it. It was Todd, along with Jenny's dad and several dedicated Karr Bick employees, who made the renovation magic happen in this once-unlivable getaway home. Although Todd admits the project was daunting at first, as each day passed and work progressed, he fell more and more in love with the cottage. “Like Jenny, I knew that this would be our place forever. I felt it. This was the one.” Countless hours were spent researching items with just the right touch and a true reflection of what the couple loves. As Todd says, “You don't do anything justice if you don't consider the details.”

And as soon as you walk through the welcoming front door, you see he's a man of his word. The relatively small space lives large with details so special and unique, you're likely to miss something wonderful if you blink twice. Take for example the fantastic hardware adorning the kitchen cabinets. The “creatures” from Shaub and Company make the drawers and doors come alive with the nature that beckons from the nearby windows.

“Almost everyone that sets foot inside says ‘Wow! Look at the hardware,'' says Jenny.
As avid antique enthusiasts, the Rausches appreciate the history ever present in the old, and they strived to make their cottage a nostalgic throwback to simpler times. Rim-lock doorknobs with skeleton keys, ceilings made from old oak pallets and barn wood, and an heirloom cane back chair that once traveled on a wagon train all echo the past and make it live once again. Todd even saved the wavy glass from the home's original windows and gave it new life as the fronts of some of their kitchen cabinets.

For Todd, the evolution of the home's space planning was very rewarding. Within a small footprint, he masterfully designed the ideal layout with a flow that works beautifully. The cottage's essential screened-in porch was salvaged from an old building in Soulard. “The porch sold me,” says Jenny, who describes the porch as “where it's at” in this tight-knit community. “Here, you don't sit inside.'' Neighbors regularly gather on their porches to visit, and a party is likely to pop up at any time. And with three sets of doors leading out to the porch, friends and relatives can literally spill out of the house onto the front and side porches.

Indeed, this community is ideal for creating memories. From catching fish in the creek, to riding bikes to the playground, to hiking in the fall and eagle watching in the winter, the youngest residents are called to the outdoors. A bell chimes at noon and five to remind busy feet to scurry home for a meal. One of the most popular summertime events is the Children's Day Pageant in front of doting parents, grandparents and friends.

Todd and Jenny agree, “It couldn't be any better. We'll never sell our cottage. It's priceless to us.”