Steven Colby doesn't remember going upstairs when he decided to buy a home in the Druid Hills neighborhood. The original stairs led to the second level, but his attention lingered on the front and backyard, which included 3 acres in the historic Atlanta neighborhood.
“It was so surprising and shocking to me that I ended up buying the house basically because of the yard,” he said. “It just felt right. I’m in a stressful business of advertising, and … I can have that respite of feeling in the country without being in the country because I don’t like to drive that far.”
Credit: Text by Lori Johnston/ Photos by Reynolds Rogers
Credit: Text by Lori Johnston/ Photos by Reynolds Rogers
The yard is now the site for badminton competitions and goats. Inside the home, a kitchen, master suite and a garden room — with a moss wall — were added last year. The home is on the 2019 Druid Hills Tour of Homes & Gardens (druidhillstour.org) on April 12-14.
Snapshot
Residents: Steven Colby, owner of Pogo Pictures, a production company, and his girlfriend, Christy Hutcherson, a producer for TV shows
Size: About 3,500 square feet, four bedrooms, three-and-a-half baths
Year built/bought: 1918/2004
Architectural style: Traditional with Italian and Mediterranean details
Favorite architectural elements: Arched windows, original stairs and banister, leaded glass windows
Renovations: After he purchased the home, he updated some of the systems, including the original wiring and plumbing. The original owners never moved into the house, and Colby said he is only the third owner. The major renovation was in 2018, when both side porches were enclosed, the kitchen and master bath were expanded, and a family room, or what he calls the garden room, was added. He has repaired buckling plaster, restored the original oak floors, windows and much of the hardware, and stripped all of the woodwork and doors. Colby said he wanted to honor the home's architecture. "Anything that was done, I wanted to have a slight modern twist on it, but I wanted it to feel classic and not faddish," he said.
Cost of renovations: About $400,000
Design consultants: Catherine Wilson Interiors, Britt Morris (contractor), Hammersmith Atlanta (kitchen cabinets and windows)
Interior design style: Eclectic
Favorite interior design elements: Unexpected features, such as a moss wall and a piano turned into a bar
Favorite outdoor elements: Badminton court, goat house and pool
Resources: Furniture from Arteriors, Gabby, Alder & Tweed Furniture Co., Palecek, Dovetail Furniture, John-Richard, CMI and TCS Designs, fabrics by Pindler and Kravet, rugs from Loloi and Anadol Rug Co., linens from Avasa and Traditions Linens, wallpaper by Kravet and Clarke & Clarke, light fixtures by Currey & Co., Arteriors, Solaria Lighting and Visual Comfort & Co. (through Icon Ltg.), soaking tub from Ferguson and Frame TV from Samsung.
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