Treasure hunting in Eastern Shore antique shops is an adventure and pastime for Troy and Tracy Heuer, who purchased a home in Harbeson, DE, and summered there for a few years before deciding to rebuild. Inspired by the old — church doors, leaded glass, unlacquered brass — and in pursuit of new, they decided to start from the ground up.

The vision: coastal but not kitschy; clean lined but not sterile. Frequenting their favorite old-timey spots like Harleysville’s Hartland Demolition & Restoration, they would unearth finds and entrust in their friend Tom O’Connor, a refinisher, to bring pieces back to life to use as raw materials for structures like the bar island or accents like transom windows in the home’s various doorways.

With plans from architect Gregory Hastings of Hastings Associates in Ocean View and in partnership with Jim Parker Builders Inc., in Millsboro, the Heuers dug into a project that would serve as a family hub where their three children, in their twenties, could visit, bring friends and entertain.

“It’s all centered on family, trying to keep us all together,” Tracy Heuer says.  “We can meet just for fun and get out on the water — our boat is docked out back, and that is one of the reasons we picked out this property, to have access to Rehoboth Bay.”

A Statement Entry. While staying at a hotel in upstate New York, Heuer spotted a lantern fixture in the foyer and wanted one of her own. The proprietor tipped her off to the source. “When Paris took its gas street lamps down to replace them, many landed in antique dealers,” she says. Like any resourceful archaeophile, Heuer tracked one down in London and had it shipped to Delaware. “The chain it hangs from my father-in-law took off a tractor.”