September 16 was a big day. It was the first time I saw the house with my clients. (They had to find a time that worked for the current owner.)
The brick house is part of a row. The three-story brick facade spans the entire block, and is filled with a subtle rhythm of vertical openings and indents. The clients brought me to the other side of the street to get a better view.
They told me that everyone else has done some amount of renovation work here, and some owners have made structural additions. When I asked how they knew, they said, see, for example, the floor plate there extends to the front of the house. I was impressed by their observations. We also talked about the metalwork some owners have installed to increase curb appeal. Again, these are items that we can tackle in upcoming phases.
Nothings beats a real visit. Photos gave me an idea of the house, but being there was when I discovered the comfortable proportions of the rooms. That, I would say, was the unifying characteristic I experienced in all the rooms - from the entry, living room, stair, dining, kitchen, to the bedrooms, there was this balance of spaciousness (high ceilings in some rooms, view overlooking other rooms, wide and tall windows, etc.) yet intimacy (small nooks, subtle height changes, etc.)
My clients and I took rough dimensions of all the rooms, especially of the living room and kitchen. As we walked through, we also discussed the functions that they hoped to accommodate in each room in the house. The kitchen was, well, quite a wallpapered surprise. Here are some photos from that day:
