My own little paradise

Posted by Gina
Thursday, March 19, 2009

2 Living Room 32 9 X Dining Room 30 X Exterior


It’s a beautiful morning.  The sun is shining, the birds are singing and as I sip my morning cup of coffee, I scan my backyard with the satisfaction of a queen surveying her peaceful domain.  A few short years ago, this scene was anything but peaceful.  It was a mess of a construction site.  Although our initial plan was a renovation, my husband and I decided to rip down the existing house and start over.  And so it began…

Admittedly, I am a reluctant suburbanite.  The opportunity to build a house from scratch was a way to create the urban paradise I have always dreamed of.  I was exhilarated and nervous at the same time.  Would my vision fit the neighborhood?  Would the citizens of northwest Houston embrace my modernist/classicist sensibility?  Did I have any idea what I was talking about or doing?

Lucky I was able to hire my dream team, my architect, Mark Oberholzer of Rhode Partners and my designer, Laura Michaelides of Four Square Design Studio.  Both had a modern aesthetic that I admired and neither was originally from Houston. 

It took almost 2 years from start to finish.  The process was long, tedious and painful.  I met resistance every step of the way.  Everyone involved in the building process made me question my every decision.  Even as the house began to progress, friends and family looked puzzled when they toured the building site.  Where is the big dramatic staircase?  Why are there so many recessed lights?  Why is the master bedroom upstairs?

After quite a bit of time, the house has finally felt completed.  Today, as I sit here with my coffee reading the March issue of Paper City, I feel a sense of validation.
There it is.  First Place in the residential category of the Paper City and Decorative Center Houston Design Excellence Award!

I lift my coffee mug and cheer.
Here’s to the sheet rockers who left the job for weeks in the middle of construction.
Here’s to the stoneworkers to whom I insisted hand chisel the stone for the exterior wall to look more rectilinear.
Here’s to the stucco guys who had to stop in the middle of the job because the stucco color was 2 shades to dark.

There is a lesson here.  No matter what you are doing, be it picking an outfit for the day, designing jewelry or building a house, always stay true to your own vision.  Don’t doubt yourself.  Follow your own instinct and never let other people’s opinion dissuade you.

Here’s the thing.  Even though it is nice to get the recognition, it doesn’t really matter what other people think of my house.  WE love it.  As Mark my architect would tell me, you must create your own bit of paradise.

See more photos of Gina’s house here


Comments

WOW! That’s amazing! I’m always awed by someone who can do it all from scratch. Your home is absolutely stunning to the last detail. You perfectionism shows and it’s the details that really make it. Congratulations, I have a feeling this is just the first of lots of magazines that will want to shoot it!

By the paris apartment on 2009 03 20

Thank you for your kind words!  It was definitely a labor of love.  Difficult but eventually gratifying.  I don’t recommend building from scratch for the faint of heart!  FYI.  Love your blog!!

By Gina Cartwright on 2009 03 25

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