Backyard OASIS

Family transforms house into a modern farmhouse with flea-market finds

Alyson Chupp recalls what drew her and her family to the Honor Heights area house where they have lived since September 2020.

She said they were attracted by the beautiful neighborhood, just under the southern slope of Agency Hill. They loved the abundance of built-in shelving. They especially liked the backyard swimming pool.

However, the house wasn’t in the best condition.

“It was outdated, pretty much everything was original from 1980,” she said. “But we saw a lot of potential.”

By Cathy Spaulding • Photos by Mandy Corbell

The family made it their own by putting a modern farmhouse twist to it. It helped that Alyson’s husband, Jason Chupp, is co-owner of the discount home improvement store, Okie Mart. Much of the first story flooring looks like wood, but is high luxury vinyl planks.

The Chupps filled their house with flea-market finds, many from what is called the world’s largest flea market in Canton, Texas.

“All of the unique things in this house come from Canton,” Alyson Chupp said. “We used to go once a month for a week for five years. We did craft shows and we sold things. It was definitely a big part of our lives.”

White shiplap surrounds the twostory entry, topped with a dark wood tongue-in-groove ceiling. Jason worked on the stairway with its steel and wire bannister.

“We redid all of this last Summer,” Alyson Chupp said.

A weathered wooden chandelier hangs over the stairs. Chupp said they got it from Twigs Home and Lighting in Texas.

“They do craft shows at Canton,” she said.

Throw pillows, including one with each family member’s name, line an old pew that’s painted white.

“I always wanted a curved pew, and we finally found one at Vintage Market days in Tulsa,” she said, adding the pillow was bought online.

In case anyone needs to know where a bathroom is, the half bath under the stairs has a sign above the door.

“People always ask, so that’s a good way to remember,” Alyson said.

One front room serves as the home school classroom for the three children

— Addy, 13, Garrett, 10, and Macy, 6.

Story books, nonfiction books, notebooks and curriculum materials fill builtin shelves along one wall. A bookshelf along another wall features drawers and cubby baskets.

Lessons in geography, science, meteorology and grammar hang on an old gray door over an aquarium.

“We do Classical Conversations as our main home school curriculum, so this is some of the memory work that we memorize during the week,” Chupp said. “I wanted it displayed on something cute, so we found the old door and use it.”

The dining room also has the tonguein-groove ceiling. Chupp ordered the hanging lamp from Amazon.

“I found one like it in a magazine somewhere for $2,000, and I was like, ‘nope, we’re not going to do that,’” she said.

A bay window facing the front yard brings in even more light.

Chupp said the board and batten paneling — thin strips of molding over panel boards — “is just kind of a newer style, so fresh and clean.”

The kitchen has original cabinetry.

“That’s what we loved about the house is that there were so many builtin shelves,” she said. “People don’t do built-in things like this anymore.”

Granite counters top the white cabinets. There also is a stainless steel kitchen sink with a restaurant sprayer on the faucet. All new stainless steel appliances are Frigidaire.

An informal breakfast area has a bay window facing the back yard.

“The kids, whenever they’re doing their home schools, can switch around to different tables,” Chupp said.

The living room has a brick fireplace between two large windows. Built-in shelves and cabinets line another wall.

The coffee table is topped with an old door that has its metal doorknob backing. Underneath, toys and stuffed animals are smushed inside wooden crates.

“That’s another buy from Canton,” Chupp said. “What I like about this is that we can put the kids’ toys underneath, And it has wheels on it, too, so you can move it all over the place. We’ve probably had it eight or nine years and it’s my favorite thing in the whole house.

ABOVE: Macy’s bed can also be a dollhouse. LEFT: Upstairs bedrooms reflect each child’s personality, including Macy’s.

The master suite has an electric fireplace between two sets of built-in shelves.

The suite also has his and her walk-in closets. A door opens to a backyard hot tub.

Upstairs bedrooms reflect each child’s personality.

Macy’s bed is tucked inside a white playhouse.

Garret’s room has a pinball machine by a window.

Addy has the biggest room in the house. Her full-size bed has a cushioned headboard. A daybed has a trundle.

The back yard has several places for meeting and eating. They include a couch and seats facing a TV in the shade, chairs around a fire pit and a raised seating area by the hot tub.

The built-in pool is in a raised spot in the back yard and features a slide.

Jason Chupp said they tore out an old wood deck and redid it with a composite plastic wood deck.

“So it’s basically a forever deck,” he said. A bricked-in flower and shrub garden surrounds the deck.

A grassy area to the side has room for

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: a playhouse and trampoline. The back driveway has a basketball goal.

The Chupp master bedroom features built-in shelves and an electric fireplace.

One of several backyard sitting areas has a natural setting.

A game table us one of several backyard sitting areas.

A back patio offers a cozy space for entertaining. A slide curves into a built-in pool.

Alyson Chupp said the back yard is her favorite part of the house, “We love to entertain people,” she said. “It’s so nice. Everyone loves to swim and everyone loves to sit around the fire pit.”