PROJECT NOTEBOOK

Year Built: 1959

Location: Chattanooga, Tennessee Original Architect/ Builder: Unknown Bedrooms: Originally 4, now 5 Bathrooms: Originally 2, now 4.5 Year of Renovation: 2020 Length of Renovation: Eight months

SPLURGE

The gorgeous tile found throughout the home helped create a cohesive design theme and was well worth the cost for realtor Gary Crowe, who led the renovation project. “Hands- down the tile was the biggest splurge, not only from a cost standpoint but from a delivery point of view as well,” he says. “Covid had just hit, and everything was shutting down. The tile is manufactured in Spain by Hisbalit Mosaico, so the shipping was a major cost, as well as the timeframe for it to get to me, which was about fi ve months. I had no backup plan as the entire ‘ vibe’ of the design was around this tile. If the order didn’t come in time or [ was] incorrect for some reason, the entire renovation would have shifted to a different direction.”

SAVE

Gary cut costs by using carpeting instead of hardwood in some of the bedrooms and by scaling down a few custom woodwork projects, like deciding against installing fl oating stairs to connect the fi rst and second fl oors in the home. These choices opened up new possibilities in the design and left the future homeowners with options to customize. “Carpet and built- in cabinetry can always be added in at some point, so that helped in the decision,” Gary says. “The fl oating stairs would be diffi cult to add later, but what I decided to do was make a large opening in the wall leading upstairs and added a screen wall to match the screen wall at the front patio ... This was an added expense but not as expensive as fl oating stairs. It still added a midcentury look.”

SOUTHERN OASIS

Thanks to changes as drastic as adding a second story and ones as simple as painting the front door pink, the home has transformed from unassuming to showstopping and more than fulfi lled Gary’s vision. “The end result that I wanted to achieve was ‘ Frank Sinatra Palm Springs Mid Century Modern’ with bright colors and mid century roofl ines,” he says. “I wanted to stay true to the mid century style and be much more functional with the master suite on the main fl oor and a wide- open living/ dining/ kitchen area perfect for entertaining. Chattanooga has absolutely nothing like this, and I knew it needed to be different.”

THE HOME HAD ONLY EVER HAD TWO OWNERS BEFORE GARY FOUND IT, AND THE INTERIOR HAD SEEN BETTER DAYS. WHILE THERE WASN’T MUCH LEFT TO SALVAGE, HE WAS ABLE TO SAVE AND REUSE THE ORIGINAL FRONT DOOR AND THE ORIGINAL BRICK.

( BELOW) THE BIGGEST CHANGE TO THE HOME’S FLOOR PLAN IN THIS RENOVATION WAS THE ADDITION OF A SECOND FLOOR, WHICH MADE ROOM FOR ONE MORE BEDROOM AND TWO- AND- A- HALF MORE BATHS, PLUS FREED UP SPACE ON THE LOWER LEVEL FOR AN ENHANCED MASTER AND LARGE MOTHER- IN- LAW SUITE. THE LIVING AND DINING SPACES WERE RECONFIGURED INTO ONE OPEN SPACE, NOW COMPLETE WITH A SUNKEN DINING ROOM BUILT IN THE FORMER GARAGE SPACE.

( ABOVE) REALTOR GARY CROWE KNEW THE SMALL RANCH NEEDED MORE SQUARE FOOTAGE TO MEET THE NEEDS OF HIS TARGET AUDIENCE, A LARGE FAMILY. TO ACCOMPLISH THIS, HE ADDED A SECOND FLOOR AND TRANSFORMED A ONE- CAR GARAGE SPACE INTO A SUNKEN DINING ROOM. THESE CHANGES NEARLY DOUBLED THE HOME’S SQUARE FOOTAGE AND MADE SPACE FOR ONE MORE BEDROOM AND TWO- AND- A- HALF MORE BATHROOMS. ADDING THE SECOND STORY ALSO PROVIDED THE OPPORTUNITY TO UPGRADE THE HOME’S ROOFLINE, GIVING IT A VERY MOD SLANT.