The small house had potential.

The owners opted to sell to Gary thanks to his plan to renovate and rehabilitate their little home.

Built in 1959, the four- bedroom, two- bath house had belonged to just two owners, the most recent an elderly couple who had purchased the single- story ranch now known as Palm Paradiso in 1968. Located on an oversized lot in Chattanooga, Tennessee, the home had fallen into disrepair but had something that drew realtor Gary Crowe’s attention. He had to have it.

“I had restored three other homes in the neighborhood, and during the time I was restoring the first one back in 2014, I had my eyes on Palm Paradiso, as well as a few others,” Gary says. ” I watched it closely as I was restoring those two, leaving notes from time to time and knocking on the door to see if they would sell. I saw the potential it had, especially going vertical, adding a second story. It was screaming in my head ‘ Frank Sinatra Palm Springs Mid Century Modern’ with bright colors and mid century rooflines.”

When the owners finally decided to sell, Gary wasn’t the only interested party. Another buyer stepped forward with plans to tear down the home and build several new homes on the lot. The owners opted to sell to Gary thanks to his plan to renovate and rehabilitate their little home. Once the home was his, Gary did his best to save what he could. Unfortunately, that wasn’t much.

“The only ‘ cool features’ I was able to save were the front door and the brick on the front of the home,” he says. “I added the second story, so I was able to keep in place the first- floor structure, which was framing, foundation, floor system, location of windows, etc.”

BOTTOM TO TOP

Adding a second floor was a must for the new design, enabling Gary to nearly double the home’s total square footage to now boast five bedrooms and four- and- a- half baths. A careful demolition was the starting point for the eight- month- long project.

“I knew I needed to add the second story first, so the demo was crucial, and the process of demo was important,” Gary says. “We couldn’t just go in and get crazy with the demo. We needed to get down to the bare studs and had to do it carefully because the structure needed to be saved. After a lengthy demo, we lifted off the roof and started to rebuild, getting ready for the new addition.”

OUTSIDE- THE- BOX THINKING

The new second- story addition features three large bedrooms and two full BATHS. THE EXPANDED MASTER WAS KEPT DOWNSTAIRS. THE RECONfiGURED LOWER flOOR ALSO FEATURES A FULL GUEST SUITE, AS WELL AS A LAUNDRY ROOM, KITCHEN, LIVING ROOM AND A NEWLY BUILT DINING ROOM, WHICH WAS CONVERTED FROM A ONE- CAR GARAGE. THAT TRANSFORMATION ALSO PROVIDED SPACE FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF A new sunporch.

“THE ORIGINAL GARAGE WAS TINY AND REALLY COULDN’T fiT A CAR, SO I TURNED IT INTO A SUNKEN DINING ROOM WITH flOATING STAIRS, AND THE SUNPORCH IS AN EXTERIOR EXTENSION OF THE DINING ROOM,” GARY SAYS. “I DESIGNED THE SCREEN WALL OFF A FEW

Mid Century Modern photos I found, did a brief sketch on a whiteboard for my carpenter, and off he went, making sure to scale it properly.”

OFF- THE- WALLPAPER DESIGN

When it came time to decorate the enhanced space, Gary found inspiration in a special piece of wallpaper. “My entire design was based off a wallpaper I found on Instagram as well as the tile I found that blended perfectly with the pink- and- blue wallpaper,” Gary says. “I found the wallpaper A FEW YEARS AGO, ORDERED A SAMPLE OF IT AND HUNG IT IN MY OFfiCE WAITING FOR that perfect home to put it in.”

“The original garage was tiny and really couldn’t fit a car, so I turned it into a sunken dining room with floating stairs, and the sunporch is an exterior extension of the dining room.”

( LEFT) WHEN THE ORIGINAL HOME WAS EXPANDED, THE ONE- CAR GARAGE WAS TURNED INTO A DINING ROOM, THE GARAGE DOOR REPLACED WITH GLASS DOORS ( ACCENTED WITH THE SAME PINK USED FOR THE FRONT DOOR) AND THE SPACE IN FRONT TRANSFORMED INTO A SUNPORCH. THE DESIGN FOR THE CUSTOM WOODWORK THAT ENCLOSES THE SPACE WAS ALSO USED ON THE HOME’S SECOND FLOOR.

( BOTTOM) THE PINK PAINT USED FOR THE FRONT DOOR ALSO ACCENTS THE DOORS ON THE BACK PATIO. LOCATED ON AN OVERSIZED, WOODED LOT, THE HOME HAS ROOM ENOUGH FOR MULTIPLE PRIVATE OUTDOOR LIVING SPACES.

WITH ITS DEEP COCOA CABINETS, HOURGLASS HARDWARE AND EASY FLOW TO THE LIVING AND DINING AREAS, THIS NEW KITCHEN MATCHES THE SPIRIT OF THE 1959 HOME. THE HARDWARE WAS ALSO USED IN THE HOME’S BATHROOMS. ( OPPOSITE) TILE IS USED THROUGHOUT TO ADD COLOR, VIBRANCY AND A VINTAGE SENSIBILITY TO THE RENOVATED HOME, BEGINNING WITH THE ENTRYWAY.

( ABOVE,) A MAJOR AIM FOR THE RENOVATION WAS TO ADD MORE SPACE TO THE HOME. WITH THE ADDITION OF A SECOND STORY AND SLOPED ROOF, THE LIVING AND KITCHEN AREAS OPEN UP WITH VAULTED CEILINGS AND TWO LARGE ROWS OF WINDOWS.

( LEFT) BEFORE IT WAS A DINING ROOM, THIS SPACE WAS A ONE- CAR GARAGE. DURING THE RENOVATION, THE GARAGE SPACE WAS OPENED INTO THE HOME, AND FLOATING STEPS WERE INSTALLED TO CONNECT THE KITCHEN AND LIVING SPACES WITH THE SUNKEN DINING ROOM. THE WALLPAPER THAT INSPIRED THE LOOK OF THE HOME ADORNS THE FEATURE WALL.