Private Quarters: Retaining Craftsman-style character in Candler Park tour home

Milissa Cole knew the kitchen was in bad shape when she bought her 1915 bungalow in 2004. She gutted the space, and updated it with stainless steel appliances from Bob Bailey’s in Stone Mountain, black granite countertops and cupboards in keeping with her home’s Craftsman architecture. Text by Lori Johnston and Keith Still/Fast Copy News Service. (Christopher Oquendo Photography/www.ophotography.com)

Credit: Christopher Oquendo Photography

Credit: Christopher Oquendo Photography

Milissa Cole knew the kitchen was in bad shape when she bought her 1915 bungalow in 2004. She gutted the space, and updated it with stainless steel appliances from Bob Bailey’s in Stone Mountain, black granite countertops and cupboards in keeping with her home’s Craftsman architecture. Text by Lori Johnston and Keith Still/Fast Copy News Service. (Christopher Oquendo Photography/www.ophotography.com)

When Milissa Cole bought her century-old bungalow in Candler Park, some changes were immediately obvious, while others required a few years of contemplation.

The aged hearth in the living room was so rotted that she believes it would have fallen in if someone jumped on it. That was an early fix. The 100-year-old kitchen was another.

>> Click here to see a gallery of her home <<

But she felt that the house could be more complete, especially every time she went into the unfinished attic. Finishing out the empty space took longer and encompassed the biggest renovation to her DeKalb County home, which is on the Oct. 2 Candler Park Fall Fest Tour of Homes. More recently, new paint transformed the exterior from yellow to white with dark blue trim.

“It really has been a joy to update this house,” she said.

Read more about her home.