By Michele Lerner July 25 at 7:20 AM

When high school sweethearts Wendy and Alex Santantonio finished taking the SAT, they didnt head out for burgers or go to a movie to celebrate.

Nope, these two spent the afternoon refinishing an antique table that now sits in the couples Old Town Alexandria home. Their 15-foot-wide home, built between 1885 and 1890, has been the focus of their do-it-yourself restoration projects for the past decade.

When we bought the house in 2003, it had been a bachelor pad for years, and not a chic one, either, says Wendy. One of our friends asked us why we were buying such a crappy house, and my mother tried to be nice about it by saying, Im sure it will be cute after you work on it for a while. Thirty minutes after we owned it we had already ripped out the ugly carpet on the stairs so we could start refinishing the hardwood floors.

The Santantonios moved to the Washington area for Alexs job, and Wendy worked for 15 years in nonprofit marketing before transferring her love of restoration work into a career as a real estate agent with McEnearney Associates in Alexandria. Wendy has been blogging about the couples experience with their Old Town house at http://www.oldtownhome.com and has used her knowledge to help buyers and sellers with older homes in Alexandria.

Just because you hate something about a particular house doesnt mean you have to live with it forever, she says. Its great to be able to personalize your home and make changes to it, but not everyone can visualize how that might work, especially on a budget.

The Santantonios estimate theyve spent about $100,000 over the past decade on restoring and remodeling their home, about two-thirds less than it would have cost if they hadnt done the work themselves. Wendy has the design vision for the home, while her husband, who worked at an antique glass restoration business one summer and for a general contractor for two summers in Cleveland, where they grew up, has the skills to handle her projects.

Some of the work hes done on their home has included building handmade wainscoting for the staircase; creating a unique wine bar from an antique cabinet, an Ikea butcher block counter and a wine refrigerator; and crafting a charming, one-of-a-kind kitchen chandelier from an old light fixture and a set of teacups Wendy found at an Old Town consignment store.

Because of our first-hand experience, I can talk to buyers about how involved a project would be on a scale of 1 to 10 and tell them whether they need to hire someone or they can do it themselves, Wendy says. Some friends of ours were looking at a cute 1950s Cape Cod house in Alexandria, but they didnt like this awkward laundry room/pantry space. I showed them how they could turn it into an entertainment nook with a wine bar like ours, and that helped them decide to buy the house. Theyll tackle that project first.

The Santantonios home looks tiny from the front because its so narrow, but the property extends deeply from the street and ends in a peaceful brick patio with a fountain. Every room in the home features a restoration project or an unusual decorative item found or created by the Santantonios. The couple have successfully blended historic architectural details with modern amenities.

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A do-it-yourself long-term renovation works for an Alexandria couple

By OLIVER GOOD

Staff writer

Standing in the living room of Randy and Rachel Colletts remodeled downtown Marion apartment, it is hard to tell that the space in the C.B. Wheeler building ever housed a hospital, office building, or anything else.

The Colletts bought the space from Bruce and Belinda Skiles about two years ago and started remodeling in the spring.

Randy grew up north of Marion and wanted to return to the area for retirement.

The focal point of the living room is a gas fireplace that stretches from a hardwood floor to the ceiling on the east wall.

The interesting thing about this fireplace is that the veneer was crafted from stone taken out of the ground at Cottonwood Falls, Rachel said. It was taken to a place in Herington, where the stone was cut down to one-inch thickness.

Rachel hopes they can use walnut harvested from her hometown farm in Missouri in the mantel.

The original hardwood floor has been sanded and stained twice with one more sanding and staining left to go.

Damaged portions were repaired with wood taken from other areas of the house. The Colletts elected to keep some imperfections because of the woods history.

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Couple turn old hospital into loft apartment

Reddick Library patrons have been doing a certain amount of gawking this week after they first enter through the library's familiar brick exterior.

The inside is pretty different.

The north end of the building, which has been closed for remodeling, was reopened Monday, and the south end closed down as the library's $2 million renovation project moved into its second major phase.

The view through the main entryway's new sliding doors is of a new circulation desk right where the old one was located but looking much more sleek.

Director Kathy Clair noted the desk's three distinct transaction windows and that a lower customer counter means someone seated in a wheelchair can pull right up.

Elsewhere in the remodeled north end are new study rooms and a quiet reading room.

A new teen room is destined for the area behind the circulation desk, but the space is temporarily being used to house the local history collection and microfilm readers.

Other finishing touches remain to be completed, Clair said.

"We're waiting for some furnishings and finishes," she said.

Additional book cases are due by the end of the month.

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Reddick Library starts new remodeling phase

CHIEFTAIN PHOTO/CHRIS MCLEAN Jim Berta of Team 3 Construction walks through the ongoing remodeling project in the boys 4-H dorm shower room at the Colorado State Fairgrounds on Thursday.. Dorm renovation is one of the projects underway in preparation for the State Fair next month.

As they say, The show must go on.

Despite the National Little Britches Final Rodeo taking over the Colorado State Fairgrounds throughout the week with thousands of competitors, spectators and horses, crews are still working tirelessly to prepare the Fairground facilities for next months Colorado State Fair.

Little Britches kind of puts us on hold for a bit. Our facilities are pretty filled up during this week. At any given time, well have about 500 horses at the Fair and they have almost 1,400 for Little Britches, said Chris Wiseman, Colorado State Fair general manager. It puts us in sort of a time crunch, but in all of the 10 years theyve been coming, its never held us back much.

Wiseman said even during the rodeo, work is ongoing to renovate the newly renamed Growing Mind Dormitories, which will house 4-H and Future Farmers of America participants this year for the first time.

Were finishing up installing new carpets and restroom facilities in the boys dorms right now, and we should have an HVAC system set up in the girls dorms before the Fair starts, Wiseman said. Well also be putting about 80 new lockers and 40 new beds in there. I think it will help improve the environment and hopefully it will draw more kids.

The lockers and beds are coming from Dubworks SC, a local company based in Erie that expanded to Pueblo in January of this year, Wiseman said.

It will be the first time weve ever had lockers in the dorms, Wiseman said. Eventually, we will get an HVAC in the boys dorms, too. But at some point, we have to decide if were running out of time before the Fair starts.

Wiseman said some of the other noticeable and many of the not-so-noticeable renovations to the Fairgrounds this year will include new roofing on several of the buildings, installation of new 20-foot fans in the livestock pavilion and Palace of Agriculture, and renovations to the electrical systems for the vendors at the Fairgrounds.

Preparation each year probably costs us around $250,000 easily, and you can probably add about $150,000 to that this year, Wiseman said. In the 17 years that Ive been here, weve done about $16 million in improvements to the grounds, most of which comes from the states general fund, the historical fund and donations to the State Fair Foundation.

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Fair time approaches!

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HOMEOWNERS SMASH THEIR WAY TO SPECTACULAR RENOVATIONS ON DIY NETWORK'S "SLEDGEHAMMER"

NEW YORK [For Immediate Release - July 21, 2014] Popular DIY Network host and licensed contractor Jason Cameron helps homeowners smash their way to gorgeous new spaces by wrecking and remodeling their worst rooms in DIY Network's newest series, Sledgehammer. Premiering Wednesday, August 6, at 10 p.m. and 10:30 ET/PT, Sledgehammer features homeowners who think they're trying out for a home improvement show, but instead get a surprise visit from Jason who promises to fix any room they can completely demolish in 30 minutes.

"We see these homeowners on-camera talking about all the stuff they hate about their house, but they have no idea that we're going to give them a chance to pulverize a room or two and create their dream space," said Jason. "The catch is that each room must be completely gutted before they can move on to wreck the next room, otherwise we will not renovate it. Risky yes - but the payoff could be great."

During the premiere, homeowners Simon and Molly demolish their room of choice: an interesting basement. With a leprechaun mural that needs to come down, a drop ceiling and a bar on its last legs, they are ready to take out the walls and have a comfortable entertaining space for their family. Then, at 10:30 p.m. watch Chris and Lynsie tackle their kitchen with the hopes of also getting a new bathroom and only two minutes left on the clock. Both couples want two room remodels, but as the clock ticks down, they may face cleaning up the mess on their own if they can't demo the space in time.

"Sledgehammer not only offers a new twist on the home renovation process, but it showcases the ultimate homeowner fantasy-ripping out hated rooms and replacing them with a gorgeous new one," said Allison Page, general manager, HGTV and DIY Network. "You smash it, we fix it- doesn't get much better than that."

ABOUT DIY NETWORK

DIY Network, from the creators of HGTV and Food Network, is the go-to destination for rip-up, knock-out home improvement television. Currently in more than 56 million homes, DIY Network's programming covers a broad range of categories, including home improvement and landscaping. The network's award-winning website, DIYNetwork.com, consistently ranks among America's top home and garden Internet destinations for entertaining videos, home improvement advice, step-by-step instructions, message boards, blogs, an interactive program guide and more. Viewers can also become fans of DIY Network and interact with other home improvement enthusiasts and do-it-yourselfers through Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter. Headquartered in Knoxville, Tenn., DIY Network is wholly owned by Scripps Networks Interactive, Inc. (SNI).

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Homeowners Smash Their Way to Spectacular Renovations on DIY Network's "Sledgehammer"

After 14 months of work, the renovations in Iowa State Universitys MacKay Hall are complete.

The $3.1 million remodeling work ended yesterday, and a final walk-through is scheduled for Monday. The renovations included extensive work to the Catherine J. MacKay Auditorium, the student welcome center, a second-floor classroom and the vestibule on the south side of the building, located north of Central Campus on Osborn Drive.

Bob Bosselman, professor and chair in apparel, events and hospitality management, said one of the major transformations took place in room 213, which used to be an auditorium-style room with small wooden chairs. The room now acts as a 36-seat classroom that includes eight wall-mounted TV monitors and movable white boards, with a spectacular view of Central Campus.

The seats were so tiny when that room was built, Bosselman said. That room has been completely redone and its a very interactive room.

The renovation also added new furniture and more space for the halls welcome center. Room 118 now provides more space, and student recruitment specialists will be moving into the room from Lagomarcino Hall.

But Bosselman said the most significant renovation took place in Room 117, also known as the Catherine J. MacKay Auditorium. The 214-seat center was built in 1926, and this is the first major renovation in the space since it was first built.

The seating was very haphazard and in general, with the sight lines and things of that nature, it just wasnt an ideal room for learning, Bosselman said. So it needed some updating and weve really turned it into a modern, 21st-century auditorium.

The auditorium, which used to be a two-tiered space, now has one level of stadium seating and individual desks include swivel chairs, which Bosselman said allows more time for collaboration between students.

The final major development took place on the south end of the building, the vestibule that housed the 1942 Christian Petersen sculpture The Marriage Ring. The middle set of doors that used to lead into the main building have been removed and replaced by a large glass wall. Bosselman said the Petersen sculpture is scheduled to be reinstalled in early August and will now be positioned in front of the wall with seating placed around the sculpture.

We really think this is going to protect it a lot more, and the students wont be bumping into it or sitting on it, he said.

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MacKay Hall completes massive renovation

On July 20 at 9 p.m. HGTV viewers will get a chance to see what a local couple was able to accomplish while remodeling a condo. This is the first of eight episodes showing the couple through their trials.

Local Coronado resident Amanda Marks and her boyfriend Curtis Goldin of San Diego finished filming Flipping the Block in May. Four couples including Marks and Goldin were chosen to renovate a dilapidated condo in a complex in Glendale for a chance to win $50,000. During each episode, the teams are given a challenge to overcome. Marks and Goldin did most of the work themselves but were allowed to hire subcontractors like electricians and plumbers as needed through the general contractor on the show. Marks and Goldin had very long days while on the show. They worked from six or seven in the morning until midnight.

We tried to do all we could on our own, said Marks. Every team had a budget that could be used to hire subcontractors.

The budget was not large enough to hire everybody. The more you did yourself, the more you could splurge on other things, said Goldin.

Golden worked more than anybody else on the show, said Marks. We were the silver team; all the teams [were identified by] colors. Were the funniest and heaviest team on the block, said Goldin.

HGTV Nicole Curtis host of Rehab Addict and Scott McGillivray host of Income Property were the judges who decided who won the weekly prize which included extra cash for the couples budget. At the end of the show the condos were sold at a live auction and that is how the winning couple is chosen.

The duo remodeled the condo room by room. Until they finished the first room they slept on the floor on air mattresses inside the condo, used the old kitchen and bathroom. Every room we did had a tight timeline. Amanda worked in picking paint and furniture she didnt get as much time as she wouldve liked, said Goldin.

Marks and Goldin have been a couple for one-and-a-half years. They met while he was in the U.S. Navy and she worked as a barista at the Naval Amphibious Base.

Marks is the artistic type who loves to sing, decorate, and sculpt. She says she always dreamed of being a designer while Goldin worked in construction through high school and college. Goldin is currently attending San Diego State University studying engineering and Marks has been visiting family and helping decorate her aunts house.

Marks answered a Craigs list ad that was looking for a dynamic duo with an eye for design. The couple went to a casting call dressed in jeans and plaid shirts. At the casting call at a San Diego hotel there were 40 to 60 people dressed in suits with briefcases and iPads. We have nothing to lose, we said to ourselves and lo and behold we got picked, said Goldin. But not until they went to other interviews including one in New York where they met the executive producer of HGTV, a very exciting moment for Marks who has watched the channel since she was a child.

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Local Couple Competes On HGTV Remodeling Show

(PRWEB) July 16, 2014

Bay Area general building contractor, Jeff King & Company, announces its newest residential remodel project in the Russian Hill neighborhood of San Francisco. The historic 1906 residence was renovated in collaboration with Stephen Verner of Aleck Wilson Architects (AWA) and Caitlin Jones Ghajar of Wright Stewart Jones Design Studio.

Our biggest challenge was to restore some of the grandeur that had long been lost from the original floor plan, explains architect Stephen Verner of AWA. At the same time we needed to meet the aesthetic and lifestyle needs of a modern family.

The original structure had many limitations, including a very dark kitchen, family room and dining room with no connection to the backyard. A cramped downstairs layout was not conducive for family time or for hosting parties, which were two main priorities for the homeowners.

Jeff King & Company implemented a simple reconfiguration of rooms to bring more light and openness to the downstairs level. The kitchen moved from the back facade to the center of the home, now illuminated by a large skylight and glass doors facing the garden. The family room took the place of the kitchen, with the entire lower level of the house now connected by a dining room that also serves as a spacious hallway.

In the kitchen, Jeff King & Company installed Calacatta Oro marble countertops to match the backsplash and kitchen island (complete with carved Black Walnut legs). A custom fabricated pewter hood reflects the kitchens French country influence, while detailed wainscoting reinforces the homes Edwardian roots.

For a family with three kids, the home is now much more functional and comfortable. Verner reflects: The new family room and backyard are really a draw for the kids and all their friends. The adjacency and openness between the family room, kitchen and backyard is dramatically improved - the family loves it.

About Jeff King & Company Jeff King & Company provides award winning green building and remodeling services. We combine painstaking craftsmanship, aesthetic understanding and sustainable building practices to create healthy, efficient and beautiful homes. Learn more about how Jeff King & Company is remodeling San Francisco at http://www.jeffkingandco.com.

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Remodeling in San Francisco: Jeff King & Company Brings Sophistication & Style to Renovation of Historic Edwardian Home

Having kids home for the summer or as frequent guests may cause homeowners to look at that empty or poorly designed bonus room a little differently right now.

Scattered toys, unorganized books, movies and games, and a mishmash of seating and shelving could drive you to a new plan for the extra space that may have sold you on the home. The spot might be overwhelming because of its sheer size, odd angles due to the roof pitch and placement of windows.

However, bonus rooms can be the ultimate playroom, craft room, theater or game room for kids, grandkids or young family members who visit often. Here are five dos and donts for turning a blank bonus room into a space for playing, crafting, gaming and movie watching.

1. Do plan out the space.

A flat-screen TV, pool table or old furniture may be destined for the bonus room, but its important to plan out the design before placing those items into the room. Having a plan can maximize the abundant space a bonus room can offer.

First, consider how you want the room to function. A lot of times home buyers desire a bonus room to have an additional living area for their kids, said Ginny Bryant, director of sales for Lennar Atlanta. But you have to decide: Will it be an all-out playroom, or a media room, or a craft room, or an office, or a blending of them? Since bonus rooms are often above a family or living room, or in the basement, they can be spacious enough to handle multiple functions if the laid out appropriately.

Even with a wall-mounted TV, homeowners should determine what media items need to be hidden and what other items such as games, puzzles and toys need to be stored and accessible to kids. Also consider whether you need tables or desks for crafts, computer use and homework projects when the kids go back to school. Those answers could determine the size of a bookcase or shelving system.

Sometimes a bookcase can take up the main wall of the room, serving as the focal point, said Angi Sago, design center director for Traton Homes. For example, when MOSAIC Group [Architects and Remodelers] turned a second-floor bonus room above the kitchen into entertainment space for the north Atlanta homeowners children, a built-in bookcase fit into one part of the room as the ceiling sloped on each side.

Also plan additional amenities. Installing a small bar sink can be helpful after kids have painted and done other crafts or eaten a snack, said Judy Mozen, president of Roswell-based Handcrafted Homes and president-elect of the National Association of the Remodeling Industry.

2. Dont design solely for today.

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Turn a blank bonus room into a hot spot for kids

Home Catch The Exclusive Premiere of TLCs Newest Renovation Show 'Spouse vs. House' posted on Tue, 8 Jul 2014 12:00 AM

A urinal in the house? Graffiti in the family room? Could this be the result when hesitating wives leave the all-important renovation work and design decisions completely to their husbands? Six couples will take the brave step to find out just how synchronised (or not) their visions of a dream home really are in Spouse vs. House. For three weeks, man and wife are separated wives are exiled from their homes and husbands are entrusted to manage the budget of US$25,000 for the renovation of three rooms. Part design drama, part couples therapy, trust, compromise, and other relationship-related issues will surface throughout each of the six hour-long episodes in the series. Spouse vs. House premieres on July 10 at 8:00 p.m. with new episodes airing every Thursday. Encores every Friday at 2:00 p.m. and Sunday at 7:00 p.m.

Spouse vs. House is a renovation show with a twist: each couple is given US$25,000 dollars and three weeks to remodel three rooms of their home. They think they will be doing this renovation together, but they find out on Day 1, that's not going to happen. The rules are the wife must move out by herself and the husband is left behind to be in charge of the entire renovation without her. To make the stakes even higher, they can have no contact at all over the three-week period.

The husbands are put in charge of the US$25,000 budget and must make all the design decisions themselves. They are allowed to have friends to come help, but any "professional" help must be paid for out of their budgets. While they struggle to choose the correct cabinets, cupboards, tiles, and wall color, one thing is for sure: all of them are overwhelmed by the work, especially since many still must manage the renovation around their full-time jobs.

Meanwhile the wives feel as though they've been left out in the design cold... or have they? They will soon realise they have their own renovating work to do in their very own "doll house" an all-white, life-size replica of one of the rooms in their house that they can redesign in any way they wish. With the help of professional interior designer, Ryan Brown, they are given the task to transform their dollhouse room into their ultimate fantasy version of the room. And money is no object! 48 hours before the husband completes his renovation he will get a chance to see his wife's finished dollhouse and it will be the one chance for the wife to express to her husband what she wanted done in that room. Our husbands can buy anything they like off the dollhouse floor to bring home, if they have the money and the desire to do so. Will they like what their wives have done? Or will they be too far down the road in their own renovation to incorporate anything their wife has chosen to do? And in the end of the entire process, will the wives be happy with their spouse or disappointed with their house?

Tune in to the following episodes of Spouse vs. House to find out if this design story ends with happy house, happy spouse or both!

The Rhodes Chris and Susan Rhodes think they are remodeling three rooms in their home together, but when this responsible wife learns her less focused husband is in charge of the US$25,000 budget and she has to move out, she's nervous and for good reason. She describes her husband as "her third child" and when he contemplates spending US$4,000 on speakers for his DJ tables rather than putting it into their remodel, she might be right to question his ability to handle so much money on his own. When, she sees what local graffiti "artists" have painted in her playroom, tensions explode in this highly emotional episode. Was this remodel about what was best for them or just for him?

The Andersons Justin, an in-between-jobs chef and his ever-efficient wife Erin, are given three weeks and US$25,000 to remodel their kitchen, bar room, and three-year-old son's bedroom. But when the couple learns that she has to move out for the entire renovation leaving every design and decorating decision to her husband, it's a recipe for disaster. Will this laid-back husband spend too much time hanging out with his buddies rather than working on turning his former bachelor pad into a sophisticated family home? What will the wife do when she learns her husband has spent US$3,000 on a bunk bed he knew she didnt want for their young son?

The Swentys This domestic partnership is not all bliss when Maija Merchant finds out her live-in boyfriend Jeff Swenty is in charge of their entire remodel and she'll have no say in his design plans. Worse, she would like her bedroom remodeled while he wants a new man cave in the garage. With US$25,000, Maija hopes that at the very least he'll incorporate some of her ideas she's created in her "dollhouse," a life-size version of her living room she's remodeled with designer, Ryan Brown. But when Jeff sees the dollhouse and hates it, will Maija like anything about the remodel when she gets home?

The Hinds Colin and Ali Hinds can't wait to remodel their kitchen, living room and son Preston's room with their US$25,000 budget. But when this in-control wife finds out her CEO-type husband is in charge of everything and she gets no say in the remodel, she's none too pleased: especially about her son's room, which she had special plans for. Worse, this CEO finds himself quickly over his head: it's hard to manage a renovation when you don't understand what's involved, and Colin has never renovated a single thing. Will Ali be able to let go of her controlling ways and like anything Colin's done? Will Colin deliver on a remodel that will make his wife and son happy, or will he run out of time, money, and people to delegate the work to?

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Catch The Exclusive Premiere of TLCs Newest Renovation Show 'Spouse vs. House'