9 minute read
The Pink House
DAYS OF WINE & ROSEMARY
HOW ‘THE PINK HOUSE’ BECAME A FOREVER HOME FOR THE BON FAMILY
Story by SALLY WAMRE | Photography by JESSICA TURNER
Stacie Bon dreamed of a different place to live, some years back, but her husband, Ivor, was happily planted where they were.
They reached a compromise: If she found a new home they both liked that was in the budget, they would consider moving.
The hunt didn’t take long.
Strolls around our neighborhood proved recreational and fruitful with the discovery of a Larchcrest gem. At the time, the 1969 structure was owned by neighbor Rosemary Johnson. Stacie wrote Rosemary a letter in 2014 asking to please contact her if she ever considered selling.
To Stacie’s surprise, Rosemary responded. Her husband, Johnny, had died, and she was considering what to do next.
Correspondence continued for about three years, and as time passed, a friendship unfolded between the Bons and Rosemary.
Plans were discussed for a sale as soon as Rosemary settled on a new place. However, Rosemary’s offer on a Lakewood home fell through and then she was wait-listed at a retirement center.
Ultimately, Rosemary died before things were settled, and Stacie and Ivor purchased the property in 2017 from her son Drew. They began extensive remodeling in 2019, but not without tribute and homage to Rosemary.
“Knowing stories about Rosemary and Johnny make the home more personal,” Stacie says, pointing out artwork, pieces of driftwood, an umbrella stand and other treasures purchased in Rosemary’s estate sale that are nods to the friend who entrusted her home to them.
Stacie and Ivor, the home’s third owners, took their time considering what updates to make, and their attention to detail paid off in making the four-bedroom, three-bath home chic and current, while retaining its original mid-century modern vibe.
Among the changes: The split-level stairway was redirected to make the kitchen more visible and accessible — no one hits a head coming downstairs to the kitchen anymore.
Opposite: The split-level stairway was redirected from left to right, primarily for practical purposes, but the end result is a show-stopping eye catcher. Above: Windows illuminate carefully displayed artwork throughout the home, that the Bons filled with tributes both to their families and also to previous owner Rosemary Johnson.
Above: Bathrooms in the 1969 home were updated for today’s functionality, but carefully styled to maintain the original mid-century modern feel.
Right: A tiny back porch was pushed back to give more room for the light-filled dining area.
“The home was very ‘Santa Fe’ and known all around the neighborhood as ‘The Pink House,’” Stacie says. “The exterior eaves and trim were a Santa Fe pink shade and very distinctive. The kitchen was also pink with hammered tin panels inlaid on every cabinet’s front door. Thin pieces of the tin featured wheat, pineapple, chili peppers and a pair of doves with a heart design, all rimmed with nailheads.”
A grand “Rosemary-inspired” wall in the living room, just inside the entry, originally had a stucco front to continue the Santa Fe look. The stucco was removed and replaced with a mantel and nooks with wood inlay beside the fireplace.
A full bath downstairs originally showcased hot-pink animal print wallpaper, and its stand-up shower door hit the toilet when opened. No more. Upstairs, bedroom closets were repositioned to reduce the number of doors, maximizing functionality and storage space.
The original master bath was “a maze of hallways,” Stacie says. Now the space is open and logically finished out. Stacie says a favorite part of the master bedroom is its windows, which sport shades attached to the ceiling that can be lowered to keep out early morning sun and raised to see the lush trees outside.
The redesigned home is airy, warm
and welcoming, with windows and light filling every inch — the perfect spot for the couple, son Nicholas, 11, and daughter Katherine, 9, who all enjoy a bonus room downstairs. It’s used as a hang-out spot, an extra bedroom when needed and an overall catchall area.
Exterior updates, which included the demise of the Santa Fe pink accents, involved removal of a tiled deck, groundcover and a koi pond, and the addition of extensive landscape and new terracing along the front walkway. Out back, a tiny porch was pushed out to make more room for the exit area.
Ivor and Stacie both graduated from Stephen F. Austin University but didn’t meet until they had returned to Dallas. He works for a sporting goods company in supply chain management. Stacie handles marketing for White Rock Cyber Security and enjoys a “side hustle” with her own Hen & Chix landscape design company, which explains the noteworthy gardens.
The property has long boasted many mature pecan, cedar elm and American elm trees accentuated by a cornucopia of blooms and greenery, including Japanese maples (Stacie’s favorite), day lilies, ferns, agaves, butterfly iris and plumerias.
Ivor is from The Netherlands and “loves all things Dutch,” including the family dog Skipper, a Nederlandse Kooikerhondje (Dutch spaniel) and self-appointed Bon greeter. The couple say there is no one favorite thing about this dream home: It’s the stories from Rosemary and Johnny combined with “the location, the beautiful street, neighbors, community, sitting outside and kids all playing together.”
Sounds like “never moving” is for real this time.
You’ve got the vision. We’ve got the plan.
Drop by our Design Center to inspire your next build.
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SOMETHING IN COMMONS
Diane Cheatham’s crew quietly constructed 82 architect-designed houses made for low-impact neighborhood living.
Story by CHRISTINA HUGHES BABB | Photography by JESSICA TURNER
PROGRESSIVE DESIGN.
Low-impact living. Harmony with nature. Streamlined front porches.
This new neighborhood of 82 architect-designed homes just north of LBJ and off Abrams isn’t for everybody — people who love security gates and tract mansions probably should move along.
To reach Urban Commons, pass a glut of aging apartment buildings, turn from the LBJ-635 service road onto Forest Star then Wilding Way.
That’s when you realize “something’s happening here,” says developer Diane Cheatham. “Once it’s a little greener, and we plant the 23 redwood trees in the common area — this place will be unlike anything in Dallas.”
As if on cue, a skein of geese that roost on the nearby Richland College campus fly over.
Urban Commons features 1,200- to 2,800-square-foot single-family dwellingsby architect/builder teams arranged in clusters around professionally maintained common areas. In a departure from typical home ownership, buyers can rent a nearby garage with storage. Those rental fees will help fund the overall property’s homeowner association expenses, Cheatham says.
Water harvested from natural sources on site will be used for landscape irrigation. Cheatham and crew rewilded 10 acres of overgrown brush rather than tearing something down or contributing to sprawl, they say.
That’s on brand for Cheatham, the founder of Urban Reserve, a similar infill subdivision built a few miles south. Until recently, Cheatham resided there, in ZIP code 75243’s priciest property.
Urban Commons’ prices are much lower than those of Urban Reserve, Cheatham says. But, with demand for and cost of housing at an all-time high, she says listings will be higher than the $300,000 to $800,000 initially noted on the Urban Commons website.
Local architectural firms designed all of the houses — Nimmo Architects (16 homes), Edward Baum
(three), M A R E K Architecture (four), DSGN Associates (four), A. Gruppo Architects (seven) and Far + Dang (46).
Architect Bang Dang says a consistent palette of building materials ensures cohesive design throughout the development.
“The front porches are elemental to that sense of community,” he says. Plus they foster an eyes-onthe-street approach to security. Cheatham dislikes gates around communities and says the public is welcome to use Urban Commons’ walking path and picnic area.
Dang and business partner Rizwan Faruqui say they rely on research and data to understand what they call the “multiplicities of contemporary life.” For example, their firmhas taken note of the growing number of teleworkers. In a three-level model Dang is staging, he created a ground-story office with a desk facing a flushed floor-to-ceiling window.
Dang and Cheatham think remote workers will appreciate a professional space that allows visitors to come and go without entering the rest of the house. “I was never crazy about that aspect of the home office,” Cheatham says.
On Urban Commons’ east end, architect Josh Nimmo is putting last touches on his contributions. Nimmo offers a trio of different three-story floor plans — a pad for bachelors or empty nesters, one for households with families or roommates and another work-from-home layout. All include glass galore overlooking a pond.
Movable storage components in Nimmo’s models can be used to divide space or enlarge rooms. Another interesting touch, Nimmo notes, water in the pond will “reflect the organic silhouette of the homes along its edge.”
Cheatham says while not everyone recognizes the value of using an architect when designing a home, it makes a difference.
Opposite: In Urban Commons, clusters of architect-designed houses on pedestrian-friendly streets face a rewilded wooded environment, paved trail and pond.
Top Right: Liberal natural light, white walls and muted accents underscore the second-floor great room’s impressive expanse.
Bottom right: Urban Commons developer Diane Cheatham has a strong working relationship with architects including Bang Dang, with Far + Dang.
