We asked Mountain Brook resident, and California native, Amy Johnson, to tell us how she worked with Cross Building Company to make her home a reflection of her life and style.
We wanted our master bath to feel like it was part of the outdoors. We carried the firerock that we used on the pool deck and patio onto the bathroom floor to make it feel like it is one unified space. The nano wall is our favorite feature of the bathroom, which completely pulls open to make you feel like you’re outside. There’s a mirror-tique made diamond pattern distressed mirror on the back of the shower, and we selected Calacatta Gold marble.
One of the reasons we fell in love with this house was the neighborhood. The houses are situated further back on spacious lots that show off larger front yards and beautiful mature trees. We wanted to capitalize on this feature by switching the front doors to iron and glass so that the front yard became something we could see throughout the day. Growing up in Southern California, the outdoors and indoors tend to merge together, so I am always looking for ways to bring the outside in. I also love the contrast of the industrial iron and glass of the new doors with the overall traditional style of the home. Our designer, Kate Hartman, designed the doors and a local metal fabricator, Iron Horse Metalworks, built and installed the doors with our Contractor Cross Building Co. We love the open flow from the outdoors to the foyer and how it is reflected back by the large distressed mirror by a local company called Mirror-tique. The artwork on the console is by our favorite local artist, Emily Debuys. The paneled screen on the other wall was passed down to us from my husband’s parents.
The wet bar in the den was in the house when we bought it and we love how it is somewhat of a surprise to discover. When the doors are closed, it is easily overlooked and assumed to be a closet. It is always fun to pull them open and turn on the lighting, which instantly transforms the entire room. There is even a (somewhat) hidden door to a liquor cabinet. We recently added the beautiful wallpaper and glass shelves to lighten up the space and add more contrast and visual interest.
The black and white powder room was done by the previous owner. The wallpaper is Queen of Spain by Schumacher. The former owner left a framed vintage picture of Mick Jagger posing in his apartment with the same Queen of Spain wallpaper in this bathroom for us. The other pictures in the bathroom are vintage Hollywood pictures that I have collected, including a picture of the Chateau Marmont, which is where my husband and I stayed the night of our wedding.
We wanted to create a shared space for the kids to play, read, watch TV, draw, etc so we finished some attic space and popped in a dormer to create a playroom. We have 2 boys and 2 girls that range from 3-10 years old so our playroom contains a mix of items that appeal to their diverse interests. The chalkboard wall with a pull-down projector screen is probably their favorite part of the room. ¶ The playroom door is a neat feature. We built a Dutch door, added a shelf and painted it a fun accent color. It allows for us to keep an eye on what’s happening in the playroom while keeping small kids and dogs contained on either side - not to mention a fun “storefront” when the kids hold movie night or want to charge us for admission to one of their shows. They also love to use it as a pretend drive up window. We spend so much time in our homes - we deserve to make them something we love being in.
When we discovered a leak in the plumbing in the boys’ bathroom, we decided to take advantage of having to open up several walls and go for a full remodel. With two growing boys that will likely be tall (their dad is 6’7”!), we decided to pull out the bathtub and replace it with a floor to ceiling shower to give them more space. We converted a linen closet to drawers that are flush to the wall, which makes the space infinitely more functional and organized. We built the double trough sink countertop finishing out the space.
We’ve focused the majority of our energy and efforts in our house on the bones and structure of the home. Having four young kids has made us hesitant to invest a lot in furniture. We have therefore held on to the furniture we have accumulated over the years and have tried our best to make the pieces work in the spaces we have created. We painted the room a darker shade to make it cozier and intentionally left the floor bare to show off the original parquet floors.
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