A successful project takes a well-organized and collaborative team of professionals. Dianne explained, “Achieving a functional and beautiful renovation comes down to knowing the home’s architectural history, understanding the client’s needs and assembling the right team of design professionals. For this project, I partnered with Interior Designer Amity Worrel, owner of Amity Worrel & Co. We’ve worked together on historical homes in San Antonio before, and we actually host the Design Oracles podcast together. When we get together, we really nerd out on design! For the build, we entrusted Troy Jessee Construction, who just does real quality work. Some of my best advice to clients is that your team will make or break the process and have a big impact on the final result.”
This team was able to rise to the challenge and deliver the pinnacle of classic Spanish Colonial style designed for modern living. “While historical houses like this are beautiful, they come with insufficient spaces that don’t function for how we live today. Part of the design challenge is repurposing these spaces while staying true to the home’s integrity,” said Dianne.
Dianne reworked the home’s layout, removing an antiquated secondary staircase to make room for a glamorous downstairs powder room. She reconfigured the upstairs floor plan, expanding the guest bathroom, doubling the size of the primary closet, adding two private office spaces, creating a bright laundry room and reclaiming a sleeping porch to accommodate a gorgeous primary bath.
“I love the flow of the upstairs suite now,” she said. “For the bathroom, Amity chose these gorgeous emerald tiles for the wainscotting and this bright yellow for the ceiling. The client loved the color palette, and it’s actually very accurate for the era of the home!”
The team was met with challenges along the journey. “Old houses always come with surprises and unique limitations. For example, we had to configure interior spaces around the original window placement so we didn’t disrupt the home’s historic facade. While elements like this can be challenging, they push our creativity,” shared Dianne. Creative solutions include the laundry room folding table, pleasantly positioned in front of an original window with a view.
While every journey may have its challenges, with the right team and guidance, you can victoriously reach the summit.
DK Studio
512-473-8909 | StudioDK.com
Amity Worrel & Co.
512-387-3146 | AmityWorrel.com
Design Oracles Podcas
DesignOracles.com
Troy Jessee Construction
210-737-3434 | TroyJesseeConstruction.com