It's been awhile since I've written. I only realized that fact when a new client wrote me about his upcoming project in Grant Park and then expressed concern that we were no longer in business. We are most certainly in business; I've just too busy to write about it. However, we've done a lot of … [Read more...]
From Builder-Grade to Old World Oasis
We took on a huge bathroom in Marietta, GA, just North of Atlanta. It was a friend of a friend, who needed some help with her 1980s dated, builder-grade master bath. The bathroom really needed some design and upgrades--it had some big time structural issues and needed a more stylish … [Read more...]
An Ornate Mantel Can Be Literally Moving
When we started restoring our house, which is a Victorian/Craftsman bungalow hybrid, the sky was the limit as far as aesthetics go. The house had been mostly robbed of its architectural treasure and converted into a triplex. Several original mantels were long gone, the dining room stained glass … [Read more...]
Infuse Spaces with Warmth Using Salvaged House Parts
Several of my most enjoyable renovation projects were houses that were totally violated: everything worth anything ripped clean out of them. In fact, I live in one of those houses now so I’ll talk about this one. We bought this house after watching it sit vacant for 7 years--of course, that’s not … [Read more...]
Old House Interior Door Styles
Interior doors can provide a good bit of insight to the history and style of a home. Here in the Deep South, specifically Atlanta, we typically have six-panel heart of pine doors in our Craftsman bungalows and American Foursquares: homes built during the late teens and into the early 1930s. Six … [Read more...]
A Geyser In the Yard Presents Challenges
When we were at the lake house two weekends ago and the water pressure was less than stellar, I thought that something was afoot. Then, I ventured down into the basement to discover that at weekend’s end, my newly filled chemical tank (to get the Ph up to a neutral 7 in order to hit the iron … [Read more...]