Snapshot
Residents: Drs. Mark and Ann Roland, owners of Psychological Consultants of Marietta, and their sons, William, 7, and Andrew, 4
Location: Marietta
Size: four bedrooms, three baths, about 4,000 square feet
Year built: 1905
Year bought: 2001
Renovations: The home had three bedrooms and one bath when they purchased it. They turned one of the bedrooms into a keeping room, expanded existing doorways and repaired electrical and other problems. They removed the linoleum and plywood that were on top of heart-of-pine floors. They had to scoop buckets of mud out of the kitchen, where they added bead board on the walls and marble countertops from Tate, Ga. The original cupboards remained, but were refaced, and more cabinets were added. They moved in during 2002. When restoring the home, the Rolands discovered a secret stairwell that had been sealed off, leading to the basement, Ann said.
Two years later, they added a guest suite and office upstairs. In 2007, the Rolands added onto the back of the home, expanding the keeping room and creating a new family room, master bedroom and bathroom, and art studio.
Architectural style: Late Victorian
Favorite architectural features: Columns, 12-foot ceilings and thick, detailed moldings.
Interior design style: A mixture of old and new, with furniture and accessories from family members, the Southeast coast and France.
Favorite interior design features: Traditional antiques are set against graphic and animal prints. Most of the antiques are family heirlooms, including the boys' bedroom set. The antique sterling tea set was a wedding gift from Mark's parents. Accessories reflect the Rolands' travels to the south of France and upbringing on the South Carolina and Florida Gulf coasts. The 18th-century French sofa in the parlor was the Rolands' first antique purchase together (it still has the original horsehair stuffing). Two oil paintings by Ann in the master bedroom were inspired by Gulf sunsets.
Favorite outdoor feature: The wraparound porch, which is a spot for story time with the boys and for chatting with neighbors.
Favorite stores: High Cottage, The Magnolia Room and Ivy & Twine in Marietta. Other items, such as the huge mirror in the dining room, were purchased off Craigslist.
Favorite artwork: A number of the pieces in the home, including the living room, playroom and boys' room, are by Mark's mother, Grace Roland, a professional watercolor artist in South Carolina.
Despite having only one light fixture, no air conditioning, a mud-filled kitchen and outdoor carpet used indoors, a 100-year-old Marietta home captured Ann Roland’s attention.
“I always had my eye on this house because it just looked a little sad to me,” she said. “I just always wanted to get my hands on this house.”
Roland and her husband, Mark, both dreamed of restoring a home. When the house on Church Street, a scenic Marietta street with many historic homes, came on the market one July, they immediately put in an offer. After three separate renovation and addition projects, the home displays their vision and the result of their hard work, which included refurbishing floors and items such as a claw foot tub.
