Dull to Dynamite
The Rear of Your House Can Be As Exciting as the Front

In our last Project Story, you came along with us on our tour of The Craftsman house, where we transformed the front of the home from bland to beautiful. If you missed it, you can catch up here.

In Part 2 of this story, we’re showing you how we transformed the rear of the home from dull to dynamite, giving the home owners a great deal more enjoyment of the back of their lovely property.

See below – quite the change, isn’t it?

The house is located on a good-sized property, with a spacious, private back yard. The home owners liked to garden, but overall, had no place to simply sit and enjoy their back yard. There was no deck, no patio.

A blank canvas! That works for us, and we set about designing 3 distinct areas for their enjoyment. Each of these spaces has a unique function and a different feel.

First is their new screened-in porch. This new space enables them to enjoy the outdoors – yet fully protected from the elements. It boasts a roof and interchangeable screen-to-storm windows to allow them to unwind in their new favorite spot most of the year.

Oh, did we mention it has a hot tub, too? A great place to de-stress!

Next, is an open deck – no roof or walls to obstruct their view of nature, their garden, and the back yard. So peaceful! (And a great place to enjoy the sunshine.)

And their unique “bonus” area – the pergola. This small but special space on the deck gave them built-in seating. With some covering overhead, it provides both shade and privacy from neighbors. It’s a more intimate outdoor place to hang out.

And Inside…

While the most dramatic transformations happened to the exterior of the structure, we didn’t forget to match the inside.

Continuing the Craftsman style, we designed some simple renovations to the inside of the house. While we didn’t rearrange any of the interior space, we did add craftsman style detailing.

Love Your Neighborhood, Hate Your House?

Many of our clients have lived in their home for years. It enabled them to see what was working and what they had issues with. While loving their area or neighborhood, they identified something about the house that “just had to go”. If you don’t love the way your house is working for you and your family at this time, does that mean you have to pick up and move?

Our clients will tell you that by staying put and having us design the dream home they can love again, they are now appreciating coming home every day to their newly transformed house.

Considering moving because you can’t envision a “fix” for your house issue? Call us first! We have designed creative solutions to all kinds of challenges, so give us the opportunity to make you fall in love with your house all over again.

Your surroundings can totally affect your life,
your spirit, your emotional well being!

Do you have transformational dreams for your house and
simply can’t “see it happening?”
Click below to get started.

I would love to talk!

If a friend forwarded this to you, this does not mean that we have added you to our list.
However, if you would like to receive our updates, click below.

Transform Your House, Transform Your Life

What happens when you live in a “nice” house? No huge problems, but no wow factor, either. When you come home at the end of the day, you can’t rejoice, “I love my house!”

We transformed a “nice” house into a “wow” house without adding to the footprint of the building . Working with the family, we figured out what the issues and problems were.

The first floor contained 2 of the 3 bedrooms, but this area was laid out in a “choppy” maze. Also, the front entry foyer was not only non-descript, there wasn’t much room for visitors to gather when they entered. This cramped entry wouldn’t allow for you to admire the home’s lovely circular grand staircase until after you walked through a tiny hallway.

By adding dormers and finishing what had been an attic, we were able to move the 2 bedrooms from the first to the second floor, where the master was already located. Then we were able to open up the first floor area where the bedrooms used to be and use that space for a family/game room.
We reconfigured the small, non-descript front entry foyer.

Now the homeowners have that wow factor and their guests have a place to “be” when they walk in. In the area in front of the staircase, we changed the walls to create an octagonal space with a new octagonal pattern design in the wood flooring. Anyone who walks in now has enough space to step inside a comfortably sized area and appreciate the staircase.

With our design, we enhanced the curb appeal while keeping the charm of an older house. We maintained and copied the attractive details, trim and overhangs of the home and then reconfigured the roof by adding larger dormers for more pop (and more room).

While we didn’t change the design of the main roof it now has more of a wow factor.

We also reconfigured the windows, most notably changing the window configuration of the wall you see when you approach the house.

Is your home just “nice”? Sometimes, it’s about taking the things that were already special and finding creative ways to accentuate them.  It’s also advantageous to rework a poor layout so that you have a better use of the space.

We’re all about making our clients’ lives happy and giving them a transformation so they can have the experience of truly loving and enjoying their house. So we were thrilled later when the homeowner said:

“What an improvement this has made to our quality of life!”

If a friend forwarded this to you, this does not mean that we have added you to our list. However, if you would like to receive our updates, click below.

Your surroundings can totally affect your life,
your spirit, your emotional well being!

Do you have transformational dreams for your house and
simply can’t “see it happening?”
Click below to get started.

I would love to talk!