When a family of five lives in a one-level ranch house, toys and other items threaten to take over the decor at any time. For Bryson and Emily Vogeltanz, a few design choices — and help from the DIY Network — contain clutter and create rest and play spaces for their three young children.
The Priority
The family was willing to sacrifice space to buy a home within 5 miles of Bryson’s job as pastor of global engagement at Passion City Church in Atlanta’s Lindbergh City Center area, in south Buckhead. “We were looking for an affordable house in the city. That was our main criteria. But we wanted a yard. That’s really hard to find in the city,” Emily said.
The Search
The family rented a townhouse for about four months while they hunted for a home in their $250,000s-$350,000s price range. “Here’s what surprised me: I thought the market was really bad, so I thought we would have our pick of houses, but it wasn’t the case. There were in our price range very few houses to pick from,” Emily said.
The Home
A three-bedroom, two-bath ranch built in the 1960s in Atlanta’s Underwood Hills neighborhood. “It gives us just enough space,” Emily said. “You have to use every little corner to make it work.”
The bonus was a patio large enough for the kids: Nash, 5; Evyn, 3, adopted from Ethiopia; and Meyer, 1, to play and ride their bikes. They transformed an area with raised flowerbeds into a play spot for the kids, filled with pea gravel. “We don’t really need flowers at this stage of our life, but we need the sandbox,” she said.
Instead of having a room for every child, the couple viewed sharing rooms as a positive feature (two of the children share a room). “I always grew up sharing a room with a sibling. Looking back, I think it was one of the best things my parents did because it fosters friendship,” Emily said.
The Design
Baskets are placed around the house to pick up and store playthings. They switched out the wine cooler that came with the kitchen for shelves and baskets and chose a coffee table with baskets to hide toys.
A crew from DIY Network’s “Mega Dens” transformed the unfinished basement, with concrete walls and floor, to a comfortable area they use daily.
“One of our criteria was we wanted there to be bunk beds in the space. They did the built-in bunk beds,” Emily said.
The contractors, Michael and Joey Scialabba, added shelves and a pull-out desk under the stairs. Furniture, accessories and materials came from stores such as West Elm and The Home Depot, and their neighbor, interior designer Kayte Weldon, designed a custom piece of art.
Items they have collected from trips around the world are a major component of the decor.
“It’s our way of bringing the world into our home and teaching our kids about different people and places and giving them a love for the world,” Emily said.
