Greatest of Design: Renovated Property (Inside)

Photographs BY ANTHONY MUSMANNO

The assets in Fox Chapel experienced a good deal going for it: an open up-idea residing area, ample home windows to brighten a gray Pittsburgh day, a assortment of mature trees and a relaxed, cozy ambiance — but there was one problem.

The house experienced a solitary practical bedroom and the customer necessary three.

So the team at mossArchitects—principal Andrew Moss, affiliate principal Darren Lloyd, undertaking manager Anna Foster and associate and senior inside designer Gina Konopack—embarked on what was generally two careers in just one, fully renovating the current framework and making two new bedroom wings.

“There was a large amount of opportunity in the residence, and we attempted to extract as a lot of that likely as we could from it,” Lloyd says.

In accordance to this year’s Greatest of Structure judges, they completed just that. The workforce won the title of Finest Renovated Home Inside for their attempts.

“I really like the crispness and balance of the inside,” says Judge Carissa Smith of Cleveland’s AoDK Architecture.

Stability was a principle the staff strived for because the inception of the undertaking.

The Edge Wooden Dwelling, as mossArchitects came to contact it, was developed in 1952 and experienced been renovated quite a few occasions more than the years, ensuing in an uneven, disjointed format. The team’s initial project was to repair the circulation, specially the uncomfortable, diagonal sequence from the lobby into the coronary heart of the household. They simplified entry details and created reasonable pathways and sight strains to inside and exterior areas.

Edgewood Dr Apr21

Then there was the make any difference of the dwelling area. The kitchen, living place, eating place and sunroom previously experienced an open up-thought structure, but it was not a significantly welcoming area because of the uncovered roof trusses. The group reinforced and modified the existing roof trusses, vaulted the ceilings and painted them brilliant white. The end result was an ethereal gathering house for the relatives.

The premier endeavor, though, was the addition of the twin bedroom wings.

“We wanted to greatly enhance the household, not overwhelm it with the addition of suites,” Foster states. “So, we definitely tried to mimic the model of the first dwelling.”

Edgewood Ext Apr21

On the exterior, that was attained by covering the complete residence with a standing-seam steel roof and developing two serene courtyards that are obvious from the inside. On the inside of, new hallways not only link the first house to the additions but also present functionality and storage by housing an business, laundry room and linen closet.

In a further effort to marry the previous and new areas, the workforce used the client’s desired black-and-white colour palette all over the home, in some places actively playing up the stark contrast — as they did with black window frames in opposition to the white partitions — and in other destinations softening the dichotomy with warm wooden tones.

They also refinished, fairly than replaced, lots of of the home’s current components. The authentic hardwood floors got a mild, pretty much whitewashed, therapy, and the kitchen area cupboards and island ended up reborn with a sleek, black finish that pops versus white partitions. They even repurposed some of the home’s outdated millwork to make a customized console.

Edgewood Ba Apr21

But the group agrees that the black-and-white lavatory, with its floating countertops, oversized stroll-in shower and slate flooring, is a legitimate standout.

“It appears funny to say it, but I do love my lavatory it is the nicest toilet I’ve at any time been in,” says the home owner, who has asked to continue being anonymous. “Really, I appreciate it all. I by no means assumed I could like a household so much.”

She frequented, and dismissed, 20 houses prior to she bought the house in Fox Chapel. Even though she was nervous about the renovation procedure, she was identified to get the home she envisioned. As the mom of two youngsters, she required a style that was just significant sufficient to give just about every relatives member the privateness they necessary, but also provide inviting frequent locations for them to invest time with each other. The team at mossArchitects comprehended and embraced that vision from the very starting, she states. In the close, they sent just what she wanted—a vivid, ethereal house with personal areas.

The learn tub and concluded basement are key examples. The bed room is positioned at one close of the home, and its sliding glass doors that open up to a non-public courtyard make it experience like an oasis, but it’s only steps from the kitchen area. The basement functions as a teenage hideaway, but also walks ideal out into the family’s backyard with its kidney-formed, inground pool.

Edgewood Kitchen Apr21

“It was just a good venture,” Foster states. “She was a fabulous consumer with a lovely design and style aesthetic.”

The home-owner had equally laudable text for what she dubbed her “dream group.”

“I had hardly ever been by the renovation course of action just before, but they ended up so affected person with me and seriously comprehended my vision,” she states. “I don’t know no matter whether it was mainly because we’re all about the very same age or I just happened to in shape in with them, but I was so unhappy when the project was around due to the fact I pass up them.”