Died and Gone to Devon
- Naomi Stein
- Mar 25, 2020
- 8 min read
One thing you know when the Design Manifest team walks into your house- without a doubt- is that it's going to look a whole lot prettier by the time we leave. Our portfolio says it all as far as outcomes for our awesome clients, but there’s still quite a bit of mystery for most folks about what goes on in-between that exciting first date (er, consultation) and the final walk-through. A lot! is the short answer. That's why we are excited to share our new project that we call #DiedAndGoneToDevon. This one is a beauty and a testament to the versatility of our design team, but more than just sharing pretty pictures we hope to use the story of this project to help shed a little light on the sometimes-winding path of home renovation.
#DiedAndGoneToDevon started like all projects with a laundry list of needs and a whole lot of possibilities. Our clients had connected with Naomi while doing research for their company on local designers and builders at a time when they were not even ready to think about their own renovations. Impressed with Naomi's construction know-how and her emphasis on designing houses "from the inside out"with a focus on interior use and flow, she was their first choice when the time came to start planning their own project.
This family of five with three young children were in a great location with good schools in beautiful Devon, PA. It was an ideal place for a forever home, however the house "before" was dark, cramped and lacked function and flow. All the rooms were visually cut off from one another, and despite having a lovely, private backyard and wonderful light in the back of the house, the layout and window placement made the rooms dark. As with so many homes in the Philadelphia suburbs, this one was over 50 years old and did not reflect modern lifestyles.
Entry, Kitchen, Playroom "Before" felt narrow, dark and disconnected.
The wish-list to start with included a new kitchen, 2 new bathrooms, a new powder room, new siding, new great room, new floors, an open concept design, a new entryway, additional square footage to include a mudroom, new master suite, office, homework area, a front porch, back patio, and a functioning garage with new doors.
Our clients knew they needed more space than their house's existing footprint would allow, but where and how to create that space was the big question. The first few months of work went purely into schematic designs and construction estimates. We explored single and double story additions, additions that went out the back and additions that went off to the side.
After many discussions and revisions that balanced beauty, budget and value we arrived at a layout that checked a now-refined list of boxes. A single story addition built out on the left rear side of the house took over the former back porch area and expanded the footprint in the middle section of the house. With these new spaces we created a airy, graceful "great room" which connected to a new, larger kitchen. Since we built the kitchen from scratch, we were able to place windows in optimal locations to maximize both views and storage.
We re-worked the original kitchen location to include a mudroom, new powder and laundry room. The former dining room was put into service as an office space. We handed construction documents to our construction expert for his itemized "guesstimate" to verify that we were on track with budget.
Next we brought our trades through to get clear "apples to apples" bids from trusted and vetted contractors. Providing contractors with itemized lists detailing the quality level of materials we intend to use- what we call "allowances" as well as noting every single new doorknob and piece of baseboard that they should account for is one way we make sure GC bids are complete and accurate. Working with this system our clients do not, for the most part, have "surprise" expenses or delays pop up during the construction process. All it takes is a little (a lot) of planning, people!
Once we had a general contractor selected we moved into the permitting process. Our clients' township had stringent requirements for storm water management which meant another round of revisions as we schemed to revise our plan to fit within the permitted area while sacrificing none of the function or beauty. We always design rooms considering the furnishings and people that are going to be housed within, so its crucial to know that a new room will comfortably accommodate that nice big sectional before breaking ground.
Alongside the nitty-gritty of construction documents and building permits we were simultaneously finalizing finishes for the interior spaces. We opted for bright white uppers in the kitchen and base cabinets in a rich, dark stain that will hold up better to abuse from little ones than a painted finish would. A furniture-style island helps keep the room feel light and airy. We chose to stain the oak island in a lighter color to bring softness and dimension to the more graphic elements of the design. Clean classic subway tile lines the sink wall and the range hood backsplash gets a kiss of slightly rustic hand-made star and cross tiles for a bit more character.
An entire wall of tall cabinets on one side of the kitchen provides a wonderful hiding place for pantry items and extra dishes. Glass doors in the center give a little breathing space visually and an opportunity to show off pretty vases and serve ware. We had counter stools custom-upholstered with a durable vinyl on the seat and a lovely hand block-print linen on the back for the ultimate merger of function and beauty. The island is topped in a beautiful natural stone, while the perimeter counter tops are done in a durable quartz material. No kitchen is complete without a perfectly worn-in vintage Turkish runner, and we found one for our clients that played on the neutral colors and graphic pops in our design.
We designed the great room with a vaulted ceiling to add a sense of spaciousness without adding to the square footage. Our clients agreed that adding beadboard to the ceiling was a splurge that was totally worth it for the added character and drama. The great room accommodates both a living/tv area and a dining area with a table that expands to seat the extended family for special occasions.
In the cozy family room we brought in a lush wool rug to make the space feel inviting. Wool is a very durable material and naturally stain resistant. Our client opted for this rug and its comforts over a more "practical" option, making the executive mom decision that this would be a no-shoes room. The sofa is upholstered in a durable family-friendly fabric, and pillows in yummy green and blue, including hand-made indigo shibori fabrics from an LA vintage market, give a pop of color. In the left side of the photo below you can see a striped beanbag pouf we added under the tv console to pull out as needed for extra kid seating.
A carved wooden "hand" chair adds a touch of humor, and the little ones like to "high five" it when they come home Black and white family photos are on display on the cane-front credenza (the abstract art you see here was something we created for the photo shoot to protect our clients privacy!) and a shapely wood coffee table is both lovely and durable enough to put your feet up on.
In the dining room we chose a sharp, modern chandelier over the dining table that paired well with the pendants in the kitchen. In an open-concept space all the finishes and details have to speak to each other and maintain an overall balance. We worked with our clients to create this large scale framed photo that is a very personal snapshot of their time living in Ireland and the many walks they took with friends and family down to the nearby lighthouse. The formerly tired fireplace is totally renewed with a couple of coats of white paint and the addition of a rustic, reclaimed wood mantle sourced by our wonderful GC.
On one side of the dining table we chose to use a sculptural bench instead of more dining chairs. Its wonderful organic shape is a cool addition to the furniture plan, and it is more shallow than the dining chairs making it better for this narrow space. The dining table opens to fit a leaf in the center for larger gatherings.
The kitchen-great room addition certainly was certainly a huge gamer changer for this house, but we also worked some impressive alterations the the existing home footprint. On the first floor, re converted the old kitchen into a functional power house. We brought the laundry up from the basement, relocated the powder room to give us a clear flow into the new kitchen, and created something that every family needs... a mud room!
Our clients family usually comes in through the door from the garage, so when planning our new layout it made the most sense to have the flow of traffic land right in the new mudroom. In a "landlocked" space with no natural light of its own we opted for pretty green cabinetry that would add an organic, lively energy, and grounded the room in a charcoal hex tile that will stand up well to lots of little muddy feet. Custom tall cabinets hold coats, backpacks, winter gear, cleaning supplies and anything that needs to be close-by but out of sight.
Just off of the mudroom is the brand new powder room. We continued the lovely green color on the lower walls (Benjamin Moore's "Enchanted Forest") and added a pop of wallpaper which always helps to expand small spaces with no natural light. Sleek black fixtures are a theme throughout the new home, and a slightly rustic stained oak console-style vanity continues the clean, modern farmhouse feel.
Moving from the mudroom into the kitchen, we pass through a delightful laundry room wrapped in Imogen Heath's "Evergreen" pattern wallpaper. We love the layers and juxtapositions that happen looking from room to room!
With all the changes to the floor plan, the view upon entering the house through the front door is much improved as well. Rather than looking down the hall at a linen closet, there is now a view of the kitchen and backyard from the entry. We painted the hallway including the ceiling a rich blue. Rich, vibrant color both brings life to a dark space and makes the walls appear to recede. A glam light fixture lets you know you've arrived somewhere stylish, and our contractor re-stained the stair treads as well as changing out the banister and newel post to suit the new aesthetics of the first floor. Looking between the entry 'before' and 'after' you might notice a big, but less visible part of this renovation, which was removing all the baseboard heat and updating the heating system to forced air.
Upstairs we had two bathrooms to renovate. The master bath "before" featured a non-functional stall shower and the kids hall bath needed to be updated and brought in line with the finishes we were adding downstairs. By stealing space from an adjacent closet, Naomi was able to give our clients a full-sized shower and a master bath that while not expansive, is stylish and very functional. We added shiplap to the walls and painted it a charcoal grey. Tumbled marble herringbone floors mix with clean modern subway tiles in a vertical pattern.
We kept the kids bath simple and cheerful. On the floor we used deep green glossy hex tiles and hung a geometric print shower curtain with poppy chartreuse and grey colors. In the shower we used a black pencil tile detail to create a stripe pattern and designed a long wall-length niche for bath supplies, which we strongly prefer to seeing shower walls pocketed with little boxy niches.
That wraps up our tour of this project, we are pretty sure our happy clients just about think they have #DiedAndGoneToDevon every time they come home. We hope you enjoyed all the details, and look out for more to come on our Instagram feed.
Are you contemplating ways to make your current home a forever home? Struggling with less than ideal floorplans? Hop over to our intake form and tell us a little bit about your project and lets chat about making design magic happen for you!
Design: Design Manifest
Photography: Raquel Langworthy
Build: Buono Construction Group
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