February 27, 2007
Roddy House, Part 1
My friend Meredith invited me to visit her new house a few weeks ago. A rambling ranch home on the east side, it was perfectly preserved in 1969, the year it was built. Meredith and her husband Ted bought it from a pair of sisters who had kept the house in pristine condition, right down to the fake crystal chandelier in the dining room.
There are parts of the house that seem oh-so-dated, like the funky floral wallpaper over the master vanity (it is also lining the drawers of the vanity like custom contact paper) or the faux marbelized countertop in the guest bath. The kitsch-addict in me wanted Meredith to go with the flow and keep enough of the gaudy to date the house and give it some of that Gong Show flavor.
In general, the home is a beautiful specimen of thoughtful design and architecture. Formal living and dining areas open off of the entry foyer. The kitchen features a priceless pass-thru (that I would personally decorate with modernist etched glass but David thinks should be left open). The exposed beams in the den meet with wood paneling that needs a new stain but is a wonderful complement to the stone fireplace. The lot is enormous with a covered patio and landscaped backyard as well as a private side yard with storage and a climbing tree.
During the grand tour, we started opening the drawers in the master bedroom vanity, and lo and behold we found the original house plans.
I do mean original: rolled up and somewhat yellowed, the graphite and pen had smeared in a couple of places. The plans appeared to indicate that the home was a blueprint for others in the neighborhood, possibly a model home.
Meredith was under a major time crunch, caught between two living spaces, and struggling with needing to make some very speedy decisions. I put in my two cents, but after she showed me her collection of paint chips and her magazine cut-outs, I was sure that she didn't need any input from me. I can't wait to see how it looks with her personal touch!
If you live in Austin and you are in the midst of a MCM home redo, ranch or otherwise, please drop me a line. I know not everyone has time to blog the process, but I love seeing before/after shots and I am happy to post pics here. Plus, it gives me a good excuse to get out of the House of Sick for a few hours ;-)
Posted by Christiane at 08:20 AM | Comments (4)