The charm of owning an older home can be fleeting if you move in and find spaces too cramped or impractical for daily needs. It is possible, though, to retain the style of a home that captured your attention when it was on the market and create a personal space that’s functional and fits your style.
That’s evident in the homes on this year’s First Place Passion Tour, part of the Cathedral Antiques Show. The Feb. 1 tour features five first homes owned by young professionals in Atlanta.
Architects, designers and homeowners shared their best ideas for retaining beloved architectural elements and incorporating antiques and bold design choices.
Be OK with a floor plan that’s not open
An open floor plan may not be a hallmark of a 1920s bungalow, 1940s ranch or another older home. Atlanta architect D. Stanley Dixon said he’s seeing a return to more traditional floor plans with different rooms that offer informal and formal spaces for the homeowners and their guests.
“There was a time where people wanted to open up the houses as much as they can. I’m finding that my clients don’t necessarily want all the rooms open to each other,” he said.
Even if all the walls aren’t removed to create an open living/kitchen/dining room, decisions can create a flow between rooms and ways for homeowners and guests to circulate.
“You can achieve that without the house being too open. You can create door openings. You can create sight lines through the house so you can see from one end to the other,” he said. “You can open it up without taking out every wall.”
Keep an eye on proportions
Pay attention to scale and proportion when doing an addition to a home, so that the new story or room isn’t too large for the existing size. Dixon said his goal is to make the addition or renovation appear as if it always has been part of the home.
“You just want to be careful to respect the original home and do so by adding on and changing things to be respectful of that style and to be respectful of that scale,” he said.
For example, consider the size of the original windows and doors and bring in new ones with the same proportion, such as pane sizes. Dormers are another feature to consider, because some new dormers may be more bulky and less refined than the existing ones.
Sometimes design and furniture can impede the flow of a home. Make sure there are walkways to the door and no furniture obstructing the walkways or the view to another room, said Bowdre Longo of Bowdre Longo Interiors.
“Learning how you live in a house is also key. Don’t rush into purchasing furniture for a space until you’ve really figured out how you live in that space,” said Longo, who assisted the owners of a home that is on the First Place Passion Tour. “You need to know where the heart of your home is. If that’s in the kitchen, figure out the best way to set up the kitchen so there’s a good flow.”
Maximize existing square footage
Homeowners who can’t do a massive renovation can find ways to make the most of limited square footage.
“You would be very surprised where we can get some usable space that you would have never thought of,” said Rick Anthony Bonner, creative director and interior designer for Insidesign.
For one home, Insidesign replaced tiny closets with pantry and storage spaces outfitted with pullouts and new doors and hardware. By making dead space usable, the designers maximized the original footprint of the kitchen, Bonner said.
In another kitchen in Buckhead, some of the original heavy moldings are being removed to simplify the backdrop and enable them to bring in new cabinets, Bonner said. The moldings and walls made it challenging to add modern-size cabinets, so the changes adjusted the scale of the room to fit today’s look.
Embrace eclectic design
Since moving into her Collier Hills home four years ago, Liz Green has left spaces empty until she found pieces she loved and knew would work in the home. As a result, she has decorated with furniture and accessories from Scott Antique Markets along with newer pieces from IKEA. The three-bedroom, two-bath ranch is on the First Place Passion Tour.
“My style is more eclectic. I like modern and antiques, and abstract art,” she said.
Green’s style also is inspired by growing up in West Palm Beach. As a result, she’s included furniture with bamboo and rattan details and accessories with shells as coastal elements in the traditional Atlanta home dating to the 1940s. A dining room wall has a collection of turtle shells and turquoise oyster plates, from Peachtree Battle Antiques & Interiors. An antique English secretary from Scott Antique Markets holds items such as a lamp with a shell motif that belonged to her grandmother.
“My grandmother is a huge inspiration for me. I call her and send her pictures via text all the time. She helped me move things around,” Green said.
When selecting antique furniture, Longo suggests looking for less bulky pieces such as side chairs, chests and side tables. She also enjoys finding new uses for antique architectural pieces. Consider turning a stair baluster into the base of a lamp or using an architectural piece from an old home as artwork.
Dixon agrees that furnishings can be eclectic and don’t have to exactly match the home’s architecture.
“People are comfortable mixing styles,” he said. “It’s really about the scale of the pieces fitting.”
If You Go
Cathedral Antiques Show First Place Passion Tour
When: 1-4 p.m., Feb. 1. The show runs through Feb. 8, with dealers from around the U.S., talks featuring interior designers and architects, book signings, panel discussions and more.
Cost: $20 for the First Place Passion Tour
Info: 404-365-1107, www.cathedralantiques.org
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