A New Home For An Infill Lot

We just wrapped up plans for a new house on a narrow infill lot on a street of charming old bungalows. It was important to the clients that the house feel as if it belonged there. The hope of everyone involved is that once the house is built, passersby will be hard pressed to know if it is new or just a recent renovation.

Simple detailing, appropriate to the neighborhood, highlights the front elevation.

The main living areas and kitchen are one large space that opens to an inviting screened porch.

Upstairs, three bedrooms and a loft (complete with a hidden nook under the eaves) round out the plan.

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New Life For a Century Old Farmhouse

The Perfect Southern Farmhouse

I recently wrapped up plans to ready a picturesque farmhouse, built in 1912, for it's next 100 years. Built by the owner's great grandparents and lived in by the family since, the large (over 3000 square foot) house originally had no indoor plumbing or electricity. While loaded with charm, the heirloom house was short on modern conveniences. A small basic bathroom was added in the 1960's, but it was located on the first floor, which meant none of the upstairs bedrooms had convenient access. The kitchen, though large, was not functional and very dated. The house, true to it's age, had almost no closet space, no insulation, and no central heat or air. While the current owners wanted to keep the house in the family, it was hardly a place to raise a young child and the baby on the way. They had contemplated tackling the project a bit at a time, but soon realized that it made more sense to just do the work all at once. The house needed a proper kitchen, a master suite, second floor bathrooms, and general updating of the mechanicals, as well as tackling some deferred maintenance.
So let's take a look at the "befores!"

The only bathroom was small, dated, and frankly, a bit scary.

 

Though twenty feet in length, the kitchen had only a few cabinets confined to one corner. The tattered vinyl floor, ancient appliances, and damaged walls hardly made it a place for family meals.

Horrible as the bath and kitchen were, the rest of the house was brimming with charm. The foyer and stair hall are to die for. The original plank walls throughout the house add such warmth and character.

One of the house's SIX original fireplaces. 

The original floor plan showing the single first floor bathroom and general lack of closets.

The existing rear of the house. By raising the original one-story areas at the rear up to two story height, we were able to capture the space necessary to ready the house for it's next 100 years.

The renovated main level plan.

The owners wanted to make certain that the house did not change at all from the front. Fortunately, the existing first floor was large enough that no expansion (aside from a small covered rear porch) on that level was necessary. We widened the openings to the kitchen, removed some of the original doors (saving them, of course, to be reused in our second floor addition), reworked the kitchen/mudroom/and bath area to include a gourmet kitchen with farm table style island, a six foot bank of refrigerator and freezer towers, and plenty of cabinet space. Built ins at the back door (where the family will enter most often) catch clutter before it makes its way into the house, a small closet is outfitted with a stack washer and dryer, and the existing bath is gutted, renovated, and it's access is moved to the mudroom to hide the view of it from the front door.

The biggest changes happen upstairs. By adding a second floor over the original kitchen, study, and mudroom, we were able to give the family two new bathrooms--a large compartmented bath for the secondary bedrooms to share, and an enormous spa-like master bath with freestanding tub, walk-in shower, and double vanities. The new master suite is rounded out with a room-sized walk-in closet that offers convenient access to the new second floor laundry room. While we were able to give one of the secondary bedrooms a new walk-in closet, we opted to leave the other two in their original state, and take care of clothes storage in those spaces "the old fashioned way" with armoires and dressers. 

Construction on the project just started this month! Follow us on Facebook to see the progress!

On The Boards: A Narrow Lot Craftsman

I recently finished a design for good friends of mine. They have a narrow lot with alley access in Greenville, South Carolina's hot West End neighborhood.

The exterior is a true Craftsman style...exposed rafter tails, numerous bracket details, and tapered porch columns give it great curb appeal.

Bahama shutters on the left disguise the asymmetrical windows behind them.

While the house is relatively small, just over 2,300 square feet, it lives much bigger than that. The main floor houses the master suite, with dual walk-in closets, and a very open living/dining/kitchen area that overlooks the back yard and adjoins a vaulted screened porch.

The main level floor plan. The layout creates a private back yard, and the extra-deep garage provides storage for sporting equipment.

 

Upstairs, an office is located at the front of the house (could be called on to serve as a fourth bedroom if needed), and it shares a full bath with one of the secondary bedrooms. The rear bedroom has a private bath and walk-in closet...effectively giving the house two master suites.

The second master suite would be perfect for long-term guests.

We look forward to sharing construction photos with you as the house goes up, so check us out on Facebook!

On The Boards: The Altamont

Here's a new design we're working on: The Altamont. Designed for a lot with a view and a relatively shallow building footprint, it's a plan that is great for entertaining.

The exterior showcases fantastic details and a high mountain style. Stone, timber work, and a flared foundation tie the house to the natural surroundings. 

A wide open floor plan with tons of glass at the rear blurs the line between inside and out. Grandly scaled great room and kitchen are complimented by more intimately scaled nooks and spaces. A large screened porch increases the living area. 

The second floor includes three bedroom suites, all featuring walls of glass looking over the view. The two smaller rooms are on the left...each with a private bath and walk in closet. The left side of the house is home to an enormous master suite with sitting room, spa-like master bath, and double walk-in closets. The laundry room is conveniently located upstairs also.

If you're interested in learning more about the Altamont, please email us at southgateresidential@gmail.com.

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Custom Home Design--Why It Makes Sense

With so many great "stock plans" available (including our own portfolio), people looking to build a new home sometimes struggle with whether the added time and expense of designing a one-of-a-kind house makes sense. Sometimes it doesn't. The number of pre-designed homes available means that there is probably one out there that comes pretty darn close to matching just about anyone's needs. Modifying a stock plan may very well take it from "almost perfect" to ideal. But there are a lot of reasons why completely custom makes sense.
Top of the list of reasons is the property the house is going on. A special view, challenging topography, or unusual shape mean that an "off the shelf" plan is probably not going to work. A custom design can shape itself to frame views, turn a difficult terrain into a positive feature, or work around challenging setbacks.

Many of the clients I meet who decide to go the custom route have lived in or built "almost perfect" houses before. Calling these places home have given these clients a list of "wish we hads", "if onlys", and "wouldn't it be nices." Examples: "We love our house, but wish the laundry room were closer to the bedrooms." "Our kitchen would be perfect if it were just two feet longer." or "We wish the family room had a better view of the backyard."

Such was the case for the clients I designed this house for. They had enjoyed their previous home for many years, and loved many things about it, but came with a wish list that reflected the things that were wrong about the previous house:
"We need somewhere to put the dog's crate. At our old house, it just sat in the corner of the sunroom."
"This sounds silly, but we want a place for the trash bins. I can't tell you how many times we hit it at the old house because it just stuck out into the garage!"
"We used the formal living room for the piano at the old house, but it would be nice to have that closer to where we spend all our time."

These specialized details, along with their desire to  have the master suite on the second floor (an increasing rarity in "stock" plans.) led them to design a one-of-a-kind house.

Let's take a look at some of the custom features.

The least glamorous part of the house is actually one of the parts that makes this new plan work so well for the clients. The garage (just a few feet larger in each direction than their old one) allows them to get out of their cars without the old "turn sideways and squeeze" maneuver they used to do to walk between them. A niche in one corner holds the trash bins til its time to take them to the curb, and a wall of built ins with a sink allows for gardening and projects. Just inside the house is a small mudroom with shoe racks and a place to put coats. ("At the old house, we had this awful pile of shoes that we were always tripping over right when you came in from the garage.") Straight ahead is a custom "drop zone" with places for mail, car keys, and electronics charging stations. ("It's a godsend! All the mail, receipts, change, etc. always wound up on the kitchen counter at our old place.) The laundry room is small (they send most things out to the cleaners), but has an open area for laundry baskets or ironing that was lacking in their previous one. The dog room, for the four-legged family member, is a much-loved feature. A split dutch door means they can see their pooch from the hall, and a doggy door leads to a small fenced area so he can go outside even when he is home alone. ("That one little thing has made such a difference! We don't feel like we HAVE to rush home at lunch or right after work to let the dog out.") Two large closets finish out this area--one is dedicated to cleaning supplies, and the other is a pantry dedicated to serving pieces, lesser used small appliances, and seasonal china patterns.

The main floor is designed to function for large parties but to be comfortable when just the two of them are home. Throughout the design, we made sure to provide places for important furniture, art, and rugs. The kitchen is laid out to allow comfortable flow for guests and plenty of workspace for cooking. Another pantry within the kitchen is dedicated to food storage. In the great room, a wet bar provides another spot for serving guests, and various other built ins allow for display of dishware, art, and books.

The piano room opens to the great room through a deep paneled archway. The piano is set between built in shelves, inspired by this picture the clients found online:

The "tea room" is a space inspired by their favorite room at the old house. "We had a nice sunroom on the back of the house where we loved to have our breakfast and coffee on weekends and just look out at the yard and watch the birds. We knew we had to have another little spot like that here."

The home office rounds out the other side of the main floor. The placement of this room was carefully considered. One of the clients works often from home, and wanted the ability to close the space off, but also wanted to be within earshot of the great room so he wasn't completely isolated when pulling those long hours. With built ins for organization, the space also provides future flexibility. The adjoining full bath (which doubles as the powder room) and a walk-in closet will allow it to serve as a bedroom if one is needed on the main floor.

A large screened porch, with enough room for dining and lounging, shares a double fireplace with the great room, and adjoins a grilling deck. Two other porches shade the great room from the afternoon sun, and act as an extension of the living space.

Upstairs, two nicely sized guest rooms share a nicely appointed bathroom. The clients weighed the option of giving each bedroom a private bath, but ultimately decided that the number of times both guest rooms would be occupied made it an unnecessary expense. The master suite is on the other side of the second floor, across a balcony that looks into the great room and foyer (a feature they enjoyed at their previous house.)

"Our other master bedroom was HUGE. 22 x 22. We deliberately made this one smaller, it feel so much more comfortable and was much easier to decorate than the old one."  The king sized bed fits into an arched niche with lovely trimwork and narrow built in bookshelves, a feature inspired by this photo the owners came across:

Double closets, one large enough to include an area for ironing, buffer the master bedroom from the bath, and a small morning kitchen between them means that weekend coffee or a midnight snack are just steps away. Double vanities, a private water closet, and a free standing tub are all memorable features of the master bath, but the true star of that room is the huge walk-in shower. "No glass door to scrub! And it's big enough that, with the multiple shower heads, we can get ready at the same time now."

By going the custom route, these clients got the details they wanted, the layout they needed, and a home that functions perfectly for the way they live.

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Skyridge

Here's a very unusual addition to our Pre-Designed portfolio. And an interesting story behind how it was created. Forgive me as I wander a bit...

I often take a route home that sends me over a mountain...its a fun road for driving and, as the highest point in town, gives some great views in a few different directions. There is one spot along that road That offers an absolutely breathtaking vista of the skyline of the city, and long range views to the mountain range beyond. I've always thought "That would be an amazing place to put a house." Only problem, it appeared to be a cliff face. From the road at least, there didn't seem to be a way to access the property short of doing an elevated "bridge" (as had been done on a few residences along that road.) The other bridges scream maintenance headache to me, so I didn't see that as a real option. So when I noticed a "for sale" sign on the promontory, I looked into it.

Turns out, the property was slightly wider than I imagined, and behind the overgrowth along the road there was  a roughed-in semi-circular driveway that had TWO access points off the main road. The price was high, but not totally out of the question. I was smitten. And decided I would design a house for that lot to explore whether it might be our new home.

Despite the surprise driveway, just off the edge of the it the property was a cliff. Seriously, the lot drops over 200 feet from the front property line to the back. So I needed a small footprint and knew I'd have to go vertical with the house. And here is the result:

The garage, with sky lounge above, sits toward the front of the property, and keeps the house from looking too much like a firetower.

From the back, the house shows it's height. Four stories, clad in stone and composite siding, it's a decidedly contemporary house. On one level, off the kitchen and dining area, is a wrap around porch, supported from below by huge sweeping brackets.

From the side, the house reveals itself even more. The "tower" element is at the rear, with a sweeping roof that reached out to the view. The garage wing, set far forward of the main house, has additional living space above it, accessed by a light filled "bridge" that serves as a library.

At the top of the house, offering the most spectacular view, is the penthouse level. A large great room is wrapped in glass and features a stone fireplace and an arched vaulted ceiling. Bathed in light by day, and the twinkle of the city by night, this room is a showstopper. The fireplace also opens to an elevated bridge space...with built in bookcases below the windows, it would be the perfect place to display a collection of books. It leads to the sky lounge over the garage, another large gathering space that looks out over the courtyard and past the main "tower" to the view beyond. A cantilevered corner balcony gives a one of a kind vista, and a full bath not only takes care of that floor for entertaining, but allows the sky lounge to double as overflow guest sleeping.

This is the level the house is entered on. The garage is semi-attached and forms a courtyard with a spa that sits out over the edge of the view. The house is all about the view. Floor to ceiling glass wherever possible makes the most of the stunning views the property offers. The foyer is accented by stone wrapped columns, and the island kitchen has a vaulted ceiling and joins an open dining and sitting area. These spaces open to a covered porch and would certainly be the heart of the house.

One level down from the kitchen is the master suite. Again, the view is the focus. Even the shower looks out over the mountains and city, with glass walls to the view and also inward to the bedroom itself--making light move through this floor no matter the time of day.

The very lowest level is home to the guest quarters. Two nicely sized bedrooms share access to a patio and a hall bath. A large laundry room is also off the hallway.

Unfortunately, for me anyway, the cost to build Skyridge is out of my budget right now. So we are offering it as a pre-designed plan. Please contact us at southgateresidential@gmail.com if you'd like more information.

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New Plan: The Kirkwood

Here's the latest plan we are adding to our pre-designed portfolio: The Kirkwood. It's a 1690 square foot  cottage that has the features and feel of a much larger house.

The exterior is a mix of shake siding, metal roofing, and natural stone veneers. Accents of heavy timber and paneled shutters complete the look.

Inside, hallways have been kept to a minimum to make the most of the square footage. The core of the house is a wide open space with vaulted great room and dining space, and a kitchen with angled peninsula. A tall fireplace anchors the room, and a wall of glass overlooks a large screened in porch. The sleeping quarters are split...with two large family bedrooms sharing a large bathroom at the front, and a luxurious master suite at the rear. With a tray ceiling, corner tub, and a large walk-in closet, it's the sort of suite you might expect in a house twice this size.

As always, we would love to hear your feedback! And remember to join us on Facebook!

On The Boards, A Traditional Cottage

The second of two homes I'm currently designing for an infill lot, this house, like it's companion, has an elevation meant to blend seamlessly into a neighborhood of charming homes, most vintage to the 1920's-1940's. The steep streetside lot allows us to tuck a two car garage under the house, and a set of brick steps winds up to the swoop-roofed front porch. The mix of materials, including a half timbering effect in the steep front facing gables, gives the old-house look that the client and I were after.

The main floor is home to an open great room and kitchen area, with a wall of built ins and a corner fireplace. The lack of walls makes the relatively small square footage feel bigger than it is. The master suite fills the other side of the plan, with a large bedroom, luxurious bathroom, and a spacious walk in closet. A panel opens from the closet to the laundry, allowing the wash to be easily passed back and forth. The impressive staircase has stained glass windows at the landing, washing light down to the front door.

Upstairs, three bedrooms each enjoy ample closet space and access to a bath with double sinks. If needed, any one of the rooms could be called on to be used as a study, an exercise room, or craft area.

The house lives larger than its 2350 square feet, and will give its new owners the feeling of a much larger home, but with the benefit of less space to clean and maintain.

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On The Boards, A Classic Cottage

I've recently begun the design for two new houses that will go on an infill lot in a neighborhood of classic traditional houses. The client is a small real estate developer, who seeks to build small, quality houses in "walkable" neighborhoods. Our hope for these new  houses is that once completed, a passerby will be hard pressed to say whether they are new or recently renovated homes vintage to the neighborhood.

We capped the square footage at 2500. While the neighborhood homes range from 1600-over 8000, we wanted to create "right sized" houses...put the money into nice details and finishes rather than a lot of superfluous square footage and soaring ceilings.

Here's house one:

An asymmetrical gable with a swooping roof marks the entrance to the house. A porch stretches across the front of the house...perfect place to greet neighbors and enjoy the breeze. Exposed rafter tails and clipped gables are common architectural features in the neigborhood that we repeated here.

The first floor is designed to include all the spaces for day to day living. A large great room with fireplace and built ins is open to the foyer and the bright kitchen and dining area. A tray coffered ceiling brings height and detail to the great room. The master suite is convenient to the laundry room, meaning fewer steps with the dirty clothes. A large walk in closet and 5-piece bath make for the kind of suite usually only seen in larger homes.

Upstairs, a bright staircase with a deep plant shelf leads to the secondary bedrooms. Two are large, with double windows and ample closet space. The third is smaller, perfect to use as a home office, exercise room, or hobby space. All share a large bath with double sinks.

 Not shown here is the basement level, which includes a two car garage and storage space. While the total square footage is only 2300, the house lives larger.

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A Craftsman Facelift

Shortly after my clients purchased this small cottage in the heart of one of the most desirable neighborhoods in town, I helped them to substantially enlarge it by adding a large master suite, screened porch, and lower level garage. A few years later, we did phase two--enlarging the kitchen and improving the layout. With the interior of the house almost where they wanted it, they decided to start phase three--a facelift to bring some curb appeal to the unassuming facade.

The existing cottage has a small wooden front porch that is quite literally falling apart...and even if not for the sagging roofline and bowed floor, it did nothing to bring style to the house.

The "before" picture with the poorly detailed front porch. 

Drawing inspiration from the Craftsman cottages typical of the neighborhood, I re-imagined the house with a larger front porch with tapered columns on stone bases. The front gables will be clad in shingle siding, and the vinyl shutters will be replaced with board and batten ones. While it wasn't practical to replace all of the vinyl siding, the prominent front face will be re-clad in board and battens painted to match the existing siding. and stone veneer will be carried to window sill  height.  Finally, a new front door with appropriate detailing will complete the makeover.

The Fairview

The Fairview is a new pre-designed plan in the Southgate collection. It actually began several years ago as a "napkin sketch" study for an infill lot on one of the finest streets of old homes in the upstate. The exterior is brick, with cast stone watertables at the base and to delineate between levels. Detailing is restrained, but handsome. The house is perfect for the sort of neighborhood it was originally conceived for, but would also be right at home in a newer subdivision.

 Cast stone details are used sparingly, giving the house a timeless quality that doesn't rely on faddish architectural gimmicks. Gables can be either cast stone panels or stucco scored to look like limestone. 

The main floor encompasses just over 2100 square feet and features both formal and informal living and dining spaces along with a comfortable study and a spacious kitchen. Large arches open the floor plan, allowing light to cross throughout and insuring perfect flow for entertaining.

The second floor offers 1800 square feet of private space. Three family bedrooms are located at the front of the house, two have private baths and walk-in closets, while the third accesses a hall bath. The master suite, at the rear of the house, overlooks the courtyard below, and features a stunning bathroom with groin vaulted ceiling and to-die-for walk in closet.

As always, we would love to hear your feedback!

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In The Works

I'm working with a repeat client on the interiors of a newly purchased condo at the beach. First up are the two guest rooms, which we have outfitted with pieces from Lexington's Tommy Bahama collections.

In one guest room, we picked this bed and nightstands, from the Ocean Club collection:

The tall headboard makes quite a statement, so my thought is that there won't be a need for much pattern or color. The sheeting and top of bed coverlet will likely be white. When the owner's parents visit, this will be their room, and they like yellows. So here are a few choices for fabrics:

The top image shows one fabric in it's full width. Beautiful colors and depth of pattern, but may be too much for this space, even if we used it just for a couple of shams. The lower image is a cabana stripe with cording that repeats the reds and blues in the print. I imagine using it for the drapery.

An alternate for the same room would be to go even less bold. Crisp white bedding, a solid but textural fabric for the drapes (such as the nubby deliciousness on the left) and a small geometric for pillows and banding (either of the choices on the right). I'm leaning in this directon versus the top choices.

The second guest room has the opportunity for more pattern and color. We'll do an upholstered headboard in there, paired with these nightstands and a similar dresser from Tommy Bahama's Beach House collection for Lexington:

For that room, I pulled together these three fabrics that I am absolutely in love with:

Forgive that my camera "muddied" the colors a bit. The large, crisp, print has an apple green background with pops of teal. My thought is to do the drapes for the wall of glass with this, adding some luxurious trim at the leading edge. The upholstered headboard would then be covered in the silk textured apple green, and piped with teal. The nubby plaid would be perfect for the bedskirt and pillows. I plan to band a white duvet with apple green ribbon detail and pair that with white sheets and coverlet.

Both of these rooms have light carpeting, and we plan on keeping the walls white as well--crisp and clean is the idea here! What do you think?

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On The Boards--An In-Town Complex

Historically, this time of year has been my busiest, as people hustle to get plans ready for spring ground breakings. This year has been no exception--I've recently finalized two sets of custom plans, worked on two collaborations with a colleague for more custom designs, and have two more custom homes in their final stages.

Some time back, I shared a courtyard style house that I designed on the site of a tear-down in the heart of downtown Greenville, SC (take a look HERE) That house is moving right along:

An inset balcony overlooks the courtyard.

The front of the house doesn't hint at it's true size. I'm disappointed to see that the deep cornice fell under the budget hatchet, but overall the house is looking just as I imagined.

Just behind this house is another lot, owner by friends of these clients. I actually started working with them several years ago. They planned to tear down another small, characterless house, and build a small compound comprised of main house, oversized garage with apartment above, and a pool. The project was put on hold while they sold their previous residence, but came back to life a month or so ago, and it has been full steam ahead.

The main house is a simply detailed European country style. The painted brick corbels at the gable ends, and cast stone lintels highlight the entrance and porte-cochere. Clipped gables soften the roofline.

The client's had a great attitude about this house--all of the rooms and spaces are "just right" sized. The master suite, on the ground floor, is small by today's standards, but more than adequate for the owner's needs. They tossed out the formal dining room, resisted the temptation to do a big showy foyer, and instead created spaces that they will use daily. The biggest space splurge is a large family room, big enough for a pool table and wet bar, that their extended family will gather in. When the couple is home alone, they'll cozy up in the front living room--warmed by a fireplace flanked by walls of books. While the house is just over 3,000 square feet--every one of them was carefully considered.

Out back, a series of porches hug around a small splash pool. We used every bit of the property...an appropriate thing to do here, as most neighboring houses sit on the setbacks of their narrow lots. The owners will be able to enjoy the downtown lifestyle on weekends rather than spend their time tending the lawn.

We have many special touches planned for this house--I look forward to sharing them with you as construction begins!

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