From House To Home

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If form follows function, then architecture is a two-way street. And when homeowners think they’ve found the perfect home, maybe the reverse is also true. Maybe a home can find the perfect buyer.

Three years ago, this forgotten 1930s Tudor bungalow captured the hearts and minds of Ron and Mary Marstens. They immediately saw through years of haphazard updates to the brilliant potential of this diamond in the rough. Step by step, the Tudor, in turn, happily revealed its true character.

Mary owns Material Things in Wenatchee, which specializes in making curtains, pillows, and upholsteries from custom fabrics. Ron is an expert craftsman and rolled up his sleeves to do the heavy work. Together, they transformed this beautiful old home. Working intuitively, they took stock of all the architectural details and separated them from a myriad of “overlays” that the various owners throughout the years had somehow deemed appropriate. Room by room, they pulled up faded rainbow colors and were amazed to see old carpet give way to beautiful, original wide-planked wood flooring. Throughout the remodel, this serendipitous journey unfolded as though the home was waiting to be reborn.

The kitchen was the first big project.

While expert at fabric color, texture, and scale, Mary doesn’t claim to be a kitchen designer. For some assistance, the Marstens turned to Shannon Klein of John Henry Kitchen & Bath Design in Wenatchee. Under Klein’s direction, custom-made Woodmode Cabinets, mahogany butcher-block surfaces, ceramic tile finishes, and a farm sink transformed the space, which had been weighted down with worn indoor-outdoor carpeting, turquoise Formica countertops, and a funky, old pot-bellied stove. Dropped soffit ceilings were removed, and the space now benefits from high ceilings, beautiful finishes, and a seamless circulation. “There isn’t one thing I would change,” says Mary.

Another helper, Catherine Resch of Catherine Resch Interior Designs, was actually more friend than contractor. Resch acted as a second set of eyes on the project, making color suggestions that helped Mary take certain spaces to their logical conclusion.

A downstairs bathroom, for example, had the original jade green, hexagon floor tiles embedded into two inches of cement and framed in a border of shiny subway bricks. They weren’t exactly Mary’s favorite color combination, though she has since come to appreciate them. This is partly thanks to Resch, who helped her see their beauty when she suggested a palette of equally powerful hues.

During the remodel, the Marstens discovered that the original owners had the luxury of specifying each milled piece of lumber from a family-owned operation. Every bit of trim was decided beforehand. Pickled mahogany predominates, and the flooring varies from wide-planked woods to geometric inlays. When it’s not wood, the floor is custom-made terra-cotta tiles hand laid in deliberate patterns. Everything in the home has the mark of a day and age where craftsmanship was king.

Detailed scrolled iron is the final piece of the puzzle that features predominantly in the original design. A delicate banister on the staircase in the front entry and a pair of gated iron doors, which separate the sunken living room from the formal dining room, are examples of the way metal impacts the design.

Even three years later, there are still projects that need to be completed. A large wall of stone that surrounds a fireplace in the living room is next in line to be restored. The closet space behind the chimney reveals that the original wall was not stone, but brick. Mary and her “second set of eyes” intend to either repaint the stones and move them away from their grey tones or tear them out altogether. They envision a more integrated palette. With help from Ron and his trusted toolbox, they also want to add a wood-plank mantel to break up the line.

While it can’t be proven that homes find their owners, there is one thing that is certain: This old Tudor will continue to change as it settles back into a time period that it never should have left. And homeowners Ron and Mary Marstens will happily follow its lead.