A Radical Reconstruction Raises an Austin Home
October 6, 2019
It’s a simple fact of life: Growing families need growing spaces. Architect J.C. Schmeil knows this firsthand. A decade ago he added 700 square feet to his 1935 bungalow in Austin, Texas, when his second son was born. After his two boys lately begun edging toward the adolescent mark, he decided it was time to expand again.
The extra square footage came in a second-story inclusion for those boys, with two bedrooms and a trendy secret music space behind a bookcase. Schmeil added more perceived distance, too. He awakened the kitchen with gobbling up the dining room and added a stunning vaulted ceiling into the present front entrance, which had gone from being a compact living room into a cluttered home office and is presently a new dining room — the latter of that for a very practical reason. “Typically, dining rooms have been kept neater than other chambers,” Schmeil states. “Now it is a nice, calming area to walk into.”
at a Glance
Who lives here: J.C. Schmeil; spouse Ashley, an environmental adviser; along with sons Corbin and Becket
Location: Austin, Texas
Size: 2,150 square feet; 4 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms
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Schmeil had attempted various uses for this entryway. He hit the sweet spot with this clean, modern dining room. “Its better than walking into an area with stuff all around the place,” he states.
The highlight is a floor-to-ceiling bookshelf with multiple windows that bring in leafy perspectives.
Table, seats, carpet: Crate & Barrel
Before Photo
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The roof has been basically peeled off therefore the addition can be constructed. “It was not really a remodel but a radical reconstruction of the home,” Schmeil states.
After removing”cheap wood paneling,” he states, he discovered longleaf pine planks, which he used for the flooring in the second-floor addition.
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Due to something called the”mansion ordinance” in Austin, residents can create a home just as large as 40 percent of their lot’s square footage, or 2,300 square feet, whichever is larger. If Schmeil had assembled space over the dining room, he would have gone over the square footage allotment. He created play a vaulted ceiling and a exceptional wall remedy instead.
For the wall therapy, he collaborated with Roger and Paul Wintle of Texas Trim, who did all the custom cabinet work. They landed a trendy approach using 16- by 32-inch modules of walnut plywood”pickled” via a whitewashing process. A ⅛-inch reveal leaves faint black lines to highlight the layout, which imitates that of the travertine tiles on the front porch.
Paint: Evening Sky, Benjamin Moore
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A brand new guest room — dubbed the Gransuite in honor of this frequently visiting grandmother for whom the distance was constructed — is just off the dining area. Schmeil removed first gray shag carpeting throughout the home to expose white bamboo floors in near-pristine condition.
Paint: Covington Blue, Benjamin Moore
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The guest bathroom includes slate tile on the ground cut in a 6- by-12-inch running-bond design.
Bathtub: Kohler; tile: Ann Sacks; toilet: Aquia, Toto; faucet: Ikea
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Schmeil combined the old kitchen and dining room to double the size of this kitchen. Whitewashed walnut panels on the stair rail echo those from the dining room.
Cabinets: Texas Trim; countertops: HanStone; cupboard paint: Curing Aloe; wall paint: Beach Glass, both by Benjamin Moore
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The couple’s taste for blues and greens drove the color scheme, which produces a soothing vibe. Windows beneath the cabinets bring in northern light and perspectives of bamboo.
Backsplash: Lush Surf, ModWalls; butcher block counter tops: Ikea
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An office space off the kitchen affords views of heritage oak trees; Schmeil’s wife, Ashley, an environmental adviser, made sure they were left unharmed during the renovation.
Wall paint: Covington Blue, Benjamin Moore
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A separate laundry room connects to the home office.
Wall color: Fresh Grass, Benjamin Moore
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More whitewashed maple makes up a brand new media cabinet in the family room, which was part of a renovation in 2002 that added this space and a new main bedroom suite.
Wall paint: Beach Glass, Benjamin Moore; coffee table: Mockingbird Domestics; puppy artwork: Walter Salas-Humara, Yard Dog Art
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High-placed windows in the main bedroom provide privacy and views of a neighbor’s trees; Schmeil says they are”borrowed landscapes: You get to enjoy the views but do not have to keep it.”
His mother-in-law, an interior decorator, added the Heriz carpet, 1800s cupboard and Louis Vuitton steamer trunk.
The Schmeils remained in the home for most of the renovation. The children slept in the family room along with the few in their bedroom. They started calling their toilet that the”bitchen,” because they prepped food and washed dishes in the sink while their kitchen was being assembled.
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The second floor is a completely new addition. A cutout at the top of the stairs leading to the inclusion looks back on the dining room.
Wall paint: Woodlawn Blue, Benjamin Moore; seat: Tops Office Furniture
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The second-floor layout is basically two bedrooms divided by back-to-back closets. The children share one bedroom. The other is a playroom.
The bedroom floor is longleaf pine that transforms into white oak.
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Corbin sits in one of his favorite spots. The angled window follows the roofline of this lower gable. Dormers pop up to provide the bedrooms enough headroom.
Wall paint: Woodlawn Blue, Benjamin Moore
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Becket’s preferred place is this reading market.
Niche paint: Fresh Grass, Benjamin Moore
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A fold-out sofa in the playroom generates space for overnight guests.
Wall paint: Woodlawn Blue, Benjamin Moore
Merzbau Design Collective
Merzbau Design Collective
Before undertaking the remodel, Schmeil maintained his sons they might possess a hidden room behind a bookcase, which he calls for a”Scooby Doo bookcase.” He delivered with this trendy music space; Becket plays drums and guitar there, and Corbin plays saxophone.
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A glass-tile flooring in the boys’ shared toilet makes the space a lot easier to clean.
Wall paint: Bunny Grey, Benjamin Moore; tile: Slate Blue (floor) and Quail Gray (shower), both from Hakatai
Before Photo
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BEFORE: Schmeil believed that the little porch and gable lacked curb appeal.
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Merzbau Design Collective
AFTER: He gave the outside a fresh paint color and prolonged the porch to make more seating area. Travertine tile recycled from LBJ Library at the University of Texas at Austin covers the porch, that has been rebuilt and reframed with dual rafters along with Douglas fir columns.
Paint: Ocean Floor, Benjamin Moore
Before Photo
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BEFORE
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AFTER: The second-floor inclusion extended the home’s living area by more than 600 square feet.