Housetrends August/September 2013: "Dazzling details add dramatic touch to Hyde Park home"

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Dazzling details add a dramatic touch to this skillfully expanded Hyde Park home

By Amy Howell Hirt | Photos by Robin Victor Goetz/RVGP Inc. There’s only so long that a family with two rambunctious dogs, two pre-teen girls and two busy parents—including one work-from-home mom—can handle stumbling over each other in a house that’s short on shared square footage. For a family in Hyde Park, it was five years.

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With the help of Camery Hensley Construction, last January the family launched a 10-month renovation. While providing additional space where it mattered, the project also delivered smart, convenient features and thoughtfully selected details that make everyday life a little easier and a lot more beautiful.

For convenience’s sake The improvements included dozens of time- and sanity-saving features, particularly in the kitchen. The homeowner had long admired the work of Chicago-based kitchen designer Mick DeGiulio, and enlisted his firm to create a “transitional, almost contemporary” and multifunctional kitchen.

The centrally located hub includes a built-in desk to meet the needs of a job title that includes “mother,” and four file-cabinet-style drawers—one for each daughter, one for first-aid supplies and one for doggie supplies—in the quartzcovered island.

The first-floor laundry room was likewise customized to meet the family’s needs. There’s a gift-wrapping station, since the girls always seem to have a birthday party to attend, and a dog shower that replaced a closet, since the dogs always seem to need a bath.

In the expanded and often-used family room, the homeowners selected a “very strong” sisal rug that holds steady when the dogs run circles around the coffee table, as well as wipe-able leather seating in case of spills or muddy paws and grasscloth wallpaper to accommodate their frequent changes in art—no retouching required.

back of the house, doors with thick mullions were replaced to let in more light. In the kitchen, glass-front cabinetry opposite the wall of windows is backed with glass so that no matter what direction you’re facing, there’s a dazzling view looking back, the homeowner explains.

Other finishes have a more sentimental backstory. The custom-cut quatrefoil marble flooring in the foyer—which is repeated in the shape of a drum light overhead—is an homage to the four-person family. In the kitchen, a lightbox creation from local sculptor Matt Kotlarczyk is a fun-loving tribute to both family-favorite

cereals (“The only rule was that they couldn’t be healthy”) and the homeowner’s past career in advertising, which included designing illuminated menu boards for fast-food drive-throughs.

But much of the home’s appeal lies in what you don’t see, thanks to careful concealment. Above the Wolf cooktop and stove, sliding marble panels conceal a flatscreen TV and spice rack, while antiqued beveled and mirrored panels cover the refrigerator and freezer. In the bathrooms, outlets inside the drawers make it more convenient to plug in a curling iron or blow dryer during the morning rush.

OPENING SPREAD: Antiqued beveled mirrored panels covering the refrigerator/freezer are repeated around the corner, on the walk-in pantry. On the backsplash to the left and right of the range, sliding marble panels conceal a flatscreen TV and spice rack. OPPOSITE: In the kitchen, a lightbox creation from local sculptor Matt Kotlarczyk celebrates the bold graphics of some of the family’s favorite cereals. BELOW: Reflective surfaces play a large role in the way light and views bounce throughout the kitchen.

Thoughtful finishes Special thought went into the selection of nearly every finish, with the view serving as a prime consideration. Perched on a hillside, the home boasts one of those sweeping panoramas—of Downtown Cincinnati, the river and Northern Kentucky—that simply refuses to be overlooked, and the family maximized their view, from indoors and out. In the Parisian-style parlor and study along the continued >

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The study, which previously served as the home’s family room, was given a masculine makeover. OPPOSITE: All of the wine bottles adorning the dining area’s light fixture were collected from enjoyable evenings with friends.

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Although this parlor was previously painted all-cream, gold-leaf was applied to the molding on the walls and the paneling was outlined with a floral motif to make it feel more Parisian.

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TOP: The formal living room is used primarily as a setting for piano practice. LEFT: Oversized lanterns add drama over the kitchen island. ABOVE: The kitchen designer assured the homeowner that, even with canine and child traffic, the black-andwhite marble floors would only look better as they aged.

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The fireplace helps make this screened porch usable on all but the coldest of winter days. OPPOSITE TOP: Like so many of the home’s recent modifications, this covered porch looks as though it was part of the original home. OPPOSITE MIDDLE: The contractors placed 32 piers in the hillside to provide structural support for the addition. OPPOSITE BOTTOM: Just off the screened-in porch, this hot tub provides the perfect spot to relax and take in the panoramic view.

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