What do you get when you mix an old house with 14 rooms, two porches, and 13 home interior designers?
‘A contemporary space within an 1840’s shell,? said Kevin Harrison, owner of KH Home and chairman of the first annual Clarkston Designer Showcase Home, which will benefit SCAMP.
For the last few months the designers have worked hard to transform their designated rooms at the 71 N. Main Street home, also known as “The Clark House,” into a contemporary look, while highlighting the historical aspects of the home.
Homeowners Kathy and Jeffery Lynn put the 5,000 square-foot, two-story colonial with five bedrooms, 3.5 baths, and two fireplaces on the market two years ago at listed selling price of $489,900.
‘I am sure it fits beautifully with the furniture that the Lynns had, but when you take your furniture out of a space and time continues to pass, and color trends change and such, the house felt a little bit dark,? Harrison said. ‘One of the first things each designer did was uncover the windows and that made a huge difference just having the windows opened up, seeing the moldings and lighting the rooms. The house feels so much lighter, so much airy, and so much more relevant today.?
He noted, they did design a color palette to play with, so when everything was moved out the house would still flow from one room to the next.
‘We have hard pined floors in this house, the wood is a very strong yellow. The colors we selected all work with the yellows of the floor,? he said. ‘The designers could work with anything beyond the paint palette, whatever they wanted to bring in as far as furnishings and such that was their choice.?
However, the Lynns did have a requirement anything original had to remain original. If the woodwork hadn’t been painted over already it couldn’t be painted and certain light fixtures couldn’t be touched.
‘They kept the integrity of the house, the moldings, the floors, all of the wonderful things about the age of the house,? said Kathy Lynn. ‘Even though they worked within a color palette, each room has something unique that I guess would just reveal the personalities of the designers who did it.?
Harrison, who designed the living room said the windows were heavily covered and couldn’t see the molding.
‘One of things that we realized when we took the curtain downs was here is this foot molding around these windows,? he said. ‘You don’t see that anymore today.?
He also said the moldings didn’t stand out because the walls were white.
‘Everything was kind of a very neutral envelope,? Harrison said. ‘I went with a darker color to bring out widow trim.?
Pam Bytner of Bytner Design was in charge of the kitchen. She took what was a darker kitchen and lightened it up.
‘Initially it was kind of a darker color palette and the layout of the room obstructed the traffic flow a little bit,? she said. ‘It didn’t make the best use of space as a working triangle goes.?
She addressed some of these issues by using an island, minimizing the amount of wall cabinetry and whitening the cabinets and updating the lighting. Using the light colored palette she says makes the room look ‘more spacious.?
‘I’m really excited about it, so far the people who have seen it have responded favorably to it and I am really anxious for the tour to open to other people can get in and see it. I think we worked really hard to make the most of the space,? Bytner said. ‘I love working in historic homes or older homes. I just love when the house has some bones to it. That house certainly does and it’s such an icon in Clarkston. It was a thrill to get in there and work with in.?
She also noted she really enjoyed working and building community with the other designers.
D’Ann Columbo of Heart of Home Interiors took what was used to be a dark floor to ceiling wallpaper pool table room, into a relaxing sitting room.
‘It had plaster walls, so we had to strip all the wallpaper off. It had a very tiny little light fixture,? she said. ‘The window coverings were old lace and it covered up all the windows, so you couldn’t see the beautiful detail on the leaded glass, it was just kind of outdated.?
Columbo said the house is remarkable though.
‘It’s a great transformation and I give the Lynns lots of credit for trusting in us and it was a lot of fun,? she said. ‘Everybody was really wonderful to work with and I hope it raises a lot of money for SCAMP.?
Kathy agreed.
‘I’m just thrilled to see the house brought back to such a beautiful state,? she said. ‘It’s very lovely. The public is going to love it.?
She was also proud to announce they sold the house and will introduce the new homeowners at the open house on Friday.
‘They are going to be a great asset to Clarkston,? said Kathy ‘Just the type of people that I would have wanted to buy the house.?
Opening night party is 7-11 p.m., Sept. 25 at the Mill Pond alongside the Designer Showcase House. A strolling dinner featuring themed fare will be served, accompanied by a selection of wines and beer. A silent auction focuses on comforts of home. Business casual attire is appropriate. Admission is $75.
The house is open 11 a.m.-3 p.m. weekdays, 11 a.m.-7 p.m. on weekends, Sept. 25 through Oct. 4. Admission is $10. Buy tickets at KH Home, Clarkston State Bank, Frank and Me, Essence on Main, Clarkston Area Chamber of Commerce, Union General, and SCAMP.
‘It was a nice event to chair. The group at SCAMP has been wonderful to work with, overall the event has gone pretty smoothly considering it’s our first year,? Harrison said. ‘We hope to announce at the event Friday night which house we’re going to redo next year. We intend to make this annual event for SCAMP.?