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living room, including a sculpture by George Tobolowsky and landscape prints by Jim Doughty and James Surls, who has exhibited at the Meadows Museum.

The Bernbaums had their kitchen completely gutted, bought new appliances and installed a green marble countertop for a splash of color.

A few feet down the hallway is a high-traffic area that has gone from playroom to dance room to den. That’s where the girls spent most of their time while living at home, but Bruce and Cindy took back some of the space by cutting off seven feet of the den to expand their master bath on the other side of the wall.

Considering they would have fewer clothes to wash, they converted the laundry room to an office where Bruce showcases his miniature model trains, which line the walls inside glass cases. He has been collecting since 1985.

“I’m fascinated by the detail of the trains,” he says.

Only an architect could be so detailoriented.

Design driven

Born and raised in North Dallas, Bruce became interested in architecture at age 15. He spent half of the day attending W.T. White High School for regular subjects and the other half at Skyline High School, which had just begun offering career classes, including architecture.

Bruce has redesigned several extravagant Preston Hollow homes, but his more modest, 2,300-square-foot abode proves that bigger isn’t always better.

“It’s about how a space can be used differently,” he says.

But it also comes down to small, functional details, such as giving Cindy a vanity where she could plug in both her hairdryer and straightener at the same time.

“That was the one thing I had to have,” Cindy says.

The next phase

No more teenagers traipsing through the house. No more rushing to dance practice. And no more girl drama. Now that life has slowed down for Bruce and Cindy, the two spend most of their time cooking dinner and watching their favorite television shows.

“After the girls moved out, we got HBO and Showtime. We call ourselves ‘TV-stupid’,” Bruce says.

And their new kids are two dachshunds, Tamale and Lola, who have the run of the house. The Bernbaums still miss their daughters but enjoy the calm.

“I was prepared,” Cindy says about the girls’ departure. “It’s bittersweet when your kids go off to college. You want them to have those experiences. You’ve done your job, and you’re happy for them. You always miss them.

“It just feels so good, even when you’ve had a bad day, to come home and there’s not chaos. It’s refreshing. I can remember when the girls were here, and we used every inch of this house. We love our kids; we’re just at a different point in our lives.”

Bruce came to terms with his daughters’ independence a long time ago — as soon as they turned 16.

“You see them drive off, and you know that they can fend for themselves.” n

Baylor Family Medicine at Uptown proudly announces the addition of Shari Gamarnik, M.D.

Shari G amarnik, m.D. is board certified in family medicine. She received her medical degree from the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine in Oklahoma City after beginning her studies at the University of Sint Eustatius, in the Netherland-Antilles. While completing her residency at Methodist Charlton Hospital in Dallas, Dr. Gamarnik served as Chief Resident and sat on the Graduate Medical Education (GME) committee.

Dr. Gamarnik provides a range of primary services including:

• Preventive Care

• Acute Care

• Management of Chronic Disease

• On Site Lab

• Women's Health

• Men's Health

• Pediatric care

• Sports Physicals

• Diabetes

• Hypertension

• Back to School Physicals

Dr. Gamarnik is welcoming new patients and accepts most insurance plans. For an appointment, call (214) 219-6655 or for more information about Baylor Family Medicine at Uptown, visit BaylorUptownDocs.com.

4161 McKinney Avenue, Suite 300 Dallas, TX 75204 (214) 219-6655

(214) 219-6660 Fax

• Extended hours available prestonhollow.advocatemag.com

Story by Emily Toman

How one modern family is turning heads in Northaven Park

On the outside, the mid-century modern home looks like any other on the block. But the curvy black-and-white checkered walkway in front hints at the creativity inside.

Some neighbors even walk up and knock on the door just to sneak a peek.

“I always tell people, if you want to know what the inside of my head looks like, come see my house,” says Justin Crake, who owns the home with Kyle Schmid and Wolfe Kennedy.

The biggest element here is color. Shades of blue, green and yellow gush from the dining and living room floors but in a clean, square design.

Circular orange patterns trickle down the hallway, and Crake’s large, dynamic anime paintings line the walls of the entire house.

“It’s vibrant. It makes you feel happy,” he says.

The guys remodeled the house themselves, leaving no trace of its brutal backstory. Built in 1959, the home appeared in the Dallas Morning News as “the house of the future”. The original owner sold it to someone who then rented it out, and the last tenants completely trashed the place, Schmid says. Overgrown landscaping covered the exterior, and the swimming pool had turned black. They left behind carpet stains throughout the house along with an overwhelming stench. Schmid says it took four 40-yard dumpsters to transport all the trash inside. As for that foul smell — a dead possum turned up in the master bedroom closet.

“This was the worst house on the block,” he says. “We just saw what it could be.”

First, Schmid knocked down the walls surrounding the dining room, opening everything up so that the kitchen, dining and living rooms meet. After ripping up the house at night. You can clearly see some of Crake’s giant artwork from the road.

By day, Crake works in the corporate