Preservation Forward

09/17/2026

A pause for preservation 🔨

I share wisdom about turning around old buildings that no one asks for and I think is useful.

Your Thursday tip 🔨 I always touch the building first before I pull out a clipboard or start mentally cataloging anything.

💡 Historic buildings communicate through their materials. The texture of aged wood, the coolness of limestone, the composition of original mortar — these aren't just aesthetic details. They're evidence. They're stories.

💡 I read buildings the way a doctor reads a patient. Every stain, crack, bulge, and material change is a symptom.

💡 My job is to assess what I'm seeing, diagnose what's actually happening beneath the surface, and prescribe the right solution — one that respects the building's history while giving it a future.

💡 My friends at the Sam Beauford Woodworking Institute have launched a new preservation trades program — and I had the honor of helping develop the curriculum for it. Getting to shape how the next generation of tradespeople learns the skills that keep our historic buildings standing is exactly the kind of work that keeps me energized.

To celebrate the launch, the school put together this video honoring preservation professionals in the building trades — and I'm deeply proud to have been included, and even more proud to have played a small part in building a program that will open doors for more women (and everyone) to find their way into this work.

🎥 New video — watch here: https://lnkd.in/gAuSFUqu

I’m humbled by their support of my work. I’m a lover of old buildings. I can teach you how to read a building the same as I do 🧰

What does a “building doctor” do—and how do you become one?Jessic...

08/11/2026

Sam Beauford Woodworking Institute- Thrilled to see this launch — the preservation field needs more skilled hands in the trades, not fewer. Proud to have contributed to the program's development, and excited to watch these graduates carry the work forward. Thank you for your leadership with the next gen of preservationists, Luke Barnett.

08/09/2026

Follow your intuition.
Be chic.
🎀

08/04/2026

❤️‍🩹
A cornerstone of our HP field is gone.
Blessings to you, Norm.
Rest easy, professor.

Celebrate the life of Norman Tyler, leave a kind word or memory and get funeral service information care of Muehlig Funeral Chapel.

07/28/2026

The National Park Service and the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP) — two federal agencies charged with protecting historic and cultural resources — are both taking actions that raise concern.

Sadly, NPS plans to demolish several historic structures in Thurmond, WV, this November. Although a few buildings have been spared under the auspices of public leasing, no leasing process has been disclosed.

At the same time, the ACHP just voted to advance changes that would weaken Section 106 — the very process meant to give the public a voice in decisions like this one.

Two separate actions. One troubling pattern.

More to come as both unfold.

In solidarity with our friends at Preservation Thurmond.

06/30/2026

23 years poking around buildings as a professional preservationist and I still get excited when little glimmers of the past reveal themselves …finding little joys throughout my day doing work that I love 📰
Rehabbing the oldest building in Downtown Midland💡

06/30/2026

Architectural Eye Candy coming to you from the Dimnent Memorial Chapel at Hope College in historic Holland, Michigan🌷

Dimnent Memorial Chapel is the most prominent landmark on Hope College’s campus. The beautiful Gothic structure was completed in 1929 and dedicated as Hope Memorial Chapel. It was renamed Dimnent Memorial Chapel in 1959 to honor Dr. Edward D. Dimnent, the fifth president of Hope College, who spearheaded construction effort. The construction cost was $404,000.

Dimnent Memorial Chapel has some of the most impressive stained glass windows in Michigan. The glass was imported from France and Italy. The beautiful rose window, a gift from the Hope College Class of 1916.

I was asked to join the team from Amdg Architects to assess the chapel for financial incentives that are favorable to historic rehabilitation.

This site visit was stunning! We walked atop the nave and could peek down within the sanctuary from above. Upclose access to the Ludowici tiled roof and parapet. A rose window that illuminated the sanctuary. Scagliola in situ that was in excellent shape! Also, a sample masonry cleaning on the exterior: hot water, gentle cleanser, and extant stone.

It was quite an architectural eye candy treat for me!

Hope College

06/18/2026

A pause for preservation 🕵

Reading old buildings is my specialty — and I love teaching others to do it too.
Historic building pathology is detective work: figuring out why a building looks or performs the way it does, then diagnosing what it needs.

Nancy Drew energy, preservation stakes 🫆

If you're curious about diagnosing old building problems — or just want to understand why you feel so drawn to a crumbling facade — reach out. The more people carrying this knowledge into their communities, the more historic places we'll actually keep. If you want to learn how to listen to old buildings, reach out to Preservation Forward

The more voices advocating for historic places, the better. 🔍

hashtag hashtag hashtag hashtag hashtag hashtag hashtag

Note: I just realized my client is wearing a trench coat which solidifies the Nancy Drew aesthetic 🧥

06/09/2026

A pause for preservation:

Tomorrow's goal: think even more beautiful thoughts about breathing new life into old buildings than I managed today.

Lucky for me, the buildings keep the inspiration coming 💡

Do you have a building in your community that needs turning around? Let's talk — I'd love to help.




📸: Preservation Forward, Alma, Michigan

05/12/2026

Preservation Forward is back🎉

After a couple of years away from this space, Preservation Forward is returning to Facebook — and we're glad to be here.

We're eager to celebrate a decade of helping folks save the historic places they love: 2016-2026.

A lot has happened since we went quiet: new projects, new clients, new communities across Michigan (and beyond) discovering what their historic buildings can do for them.
We've been heads-down doing the work, and now we're ready to share more of it with you.

Expect updates on active projects, resources for property owners and preservation advocates, a look behind the scenes at what it really means to "read a building," and always the celebration of saving our built heritage.

If you were with us before, welcome back.
If you're new here, we're glad you found us.
Follow along — there's a lot to talk about giving new life to historic places.

Purposeful work that feels good: Preservation Forward