Houston Couple Rebuild After a Hurricane Wipes Out Their Home
These homeowners asked their designer to act fast after floodwaters destroyed their midcentury home
Mitchell Parker
June 11, 2019
Houzz Editorial Staff. Home design journalist writing about cool spaces, innovative trends, breaking news, industry analysis and humor.
Houzz Editorial Staff. Home design journalist writing about cool spaces, innovative... More
It’s a nightmare scenario: You wake up to discover rising water in your home. That’s what Angie and Austin Parker found after Hurricane Harvey pummeled the Houston area with wind and rain in 2017, overflowing the bayou near the Parkers’ home and kicking off a monthslong project of trying to put their lives and home back together.
Friend and designer Michele Merz stepped in to help on both fronts, working with the couple to act fast, develop a design plan and order things like drywall before it ran out across the city. “In a natural disaster you take on a little bit different role than you might if it were a traditional design project,” Merz says. “It was very hard for everyone. You are part designer, part therapist, part shoulder to cry on. There’s a certain degree of chaos that comes with that whole experience for people. It looked pretty much like a war zone.”
Friend and designer Michele Merz stepped in to help on both fronts, working with the couple to act fast, develop a design plan and order things like drywall before it ran out across the city. “In a natural disaster you take on a little bit different role than you might if it were a traditional design project,” Merz says. “It was very hard for everyone. You are part designer, part therapist, part shoulder to cry on. There’s a certain degree of chaos that comes with that whole experience for people. It looked pretty much like a war zone.”
“After” photos by Jonathan Calvert
House at a Glance
Who lives here: Angie and Austin Parker; she’s a personal trainer and he works in commercial construction. They have a 3-year-old son, Axel, and two dogs, Henry and Scout.
Location: Houston
Size: 2,000 square feet (186 square meters); three bedrooms, two bathrooms
Designer: Michele Merz of MMI Design
The night before the water entered their home, the couple decided to take their then-18-month-old son, Axel, to stay at Austin’s parents’ house on higher ground just to be safe. Then they returned home. The Parkers’ home had never flooded since it was built in 1952, despite four significant hurricanes, so the couple weren’t too concerned. But Harvey was slow-moving. It lingered, dumping tons of rain on the region.
Shown here is the house soon after the Parkers woke up to discover water rising in their home. They fled to a neighbor’s second floor, where they stayed for 30 hours with 14 other people and six dogs from the neighborhood. The National Hurricane Center ranks Harvey tied with Hurricane Katrina as the costliest hurricane in U.S. history.
Watch now: See how the homeowners and design team rebuilt this midcentury home
House at a Glance
Who lives here: Angie and Austin Parker; she’s a personal trainer and he works in commercial construction. They have a 3-year-old son, Axel, and two dogs, Henry and Scout.
Location: Houston
Size: 2,000 square feet (186 square meters); three bedrooms, two bathrooms
Designer: Michele Merz of MMI Design
The night before the water entered their home, the couple decided to take their then-18-month-old son, Axel, to stay at Austin’s parents’ house on higher ground just to be safe. Then they returned home. The Parkers’ home had never flooded since it was built in 1952, despite four significant hurricanes, so the couple weren’t too concerned. But Harvey was slow-moving. It lingered, dumping tons of rain on the region.
Shown here is the house soon after the Parkers woke up to discover water rising in their home. They fled to a neighbor’s second floor, where they stayed for 30 hours with 14 other people and six dogs from the neighborhood. The National Hurricane Center ranks Harvey tied with Hurricane Katrina as the costliest hurricane in U.S. history.
Watch now: See how the homeowners and design team rebuilt this midcentury home
After the water receded from the home, the Parkers acted fast. Austin works in commercial construction and knew he had to get ahead of any mold that might develop in the walls. They stripped everything from the home, cut the drywall above the water line and removed all the insulation.
They brought in Merz almost immediately to get ahead of the rush for construction materials and services in town. They secured drywall early on and stored it in a warehouse until it was time for installation.
How to Make Your Home Safe and Dry After Flooding
They brought in Merz almost immediately to get ahead of the rush for construction materials and services in town. They secured drywall early on and stored it in a warehouse until it was time for installation.
How to Make Your Home Safe and Dry After Flooding
Before: The Parkers bought the home in 2014. The existing kitchen, shown here, had been remodeled within the last 10 years but the couple took issue with the white floors, white cabinets and white countertops. “It was ugly white, not like your modern white kitchen,” Angie says. “It was hard having a dog and a toddler — and a husband — with all that white. I feel like all I did was sweep the floor.”
With everything ruined in the flood, the couple took the opportunity to not only rebuild but to make improvements.
Find design and building professionals to help with your project
With everything ruined in the flood, the couple took the opportunity to not only rebuild but to make improvements.
Find design and building professionals to help with your project
After: Merz kept everything mostly in the same location to save money. The Parkers originally thought they wanted gray cabinets and white countertops, but Merz steered them toward colors that were a little brighter. She knew that Angie had loved her teal-colored headboard that was lost to the flooding, so she showed her a kitchen photo from Houzz that featured a teal island. Angie was sold.
“They’re young, have so much energy and are just very fun people,” Merz says. “I felt their house needed to reflect that.”
Cabinet paint: Smoke Embers in satin finish (perimeter) and Rendezvous Bay in satin finish (island), both by Benjamin Moore
Watch now: See more of the story behind this renovation
“They’re young, have so much energy and are just very fun people,” Merz says. “I felt their house needed to reflect that.”
Cabinet paint: Smoke Embers in satin finish (perimeter) and Rendezvous Bay in satin finish (island), both by Benjamin Moore
Watch now: See more of the story behind this renovation
Austin likes industrial design, while Angie leans more transitional. Everyone agreed that industrial style wouldn’t quite work in the context of the midcentury architecture, but Merz was able to introduce some elements to bring balance between the couple’s style preferences. A coppery-bronze metal finish on the backsplash tile appeals to Austin, while the pattern and shape won Angie over.
The countertops are porcelain that mimics the look of Calacatta Gold marble, without the maintenance. Merz says porcelain is comparable to quartz but is slightly more expensive, and when it comes to the look of veining, she says, porcelain does a better job. “Veining in quartz tends to look very digitized,” she says. “It’s getting better, but porcelain veining looks more natural.”
Angie’s main request for the renovation was that the laundry area be relocated inside the house. It had been in the detached garage, which, if you’ve ever tried doing laundry inside a garage at the height of summer in Houston, you’ll understand how uncomfortable that can be.
To create an indoor, air-conditioned laundry room, Merz routed some plumbing into a previously unused sitting area just off the kitchen that had become a catchall. Patterned tile added personality without breaking the budget.
Wood plank floor tile throughout the home gives a durable, family-friendly surface. “You can roller-skate on it,” Merz says. “You can’t get more kid-friendly than that.”
Paint colors throughout the house: White Dove in satin finish (trim and doors), White Dove in flat finish (ceiling) and Shoreline in eggshell finish (walls), all by Benjamin Moore; laundry cabinet paint: Smoke Embers in satin finish, Benjamin Moore
To create an indoor, air-conditioned laundry room, Merz routed some plumbing into a previously unused sitting area just off the kitchen that had become a catchall. Patterned tile added personality without breaking the budget.
Wood plank floor tile throughout the home gives a durable, family-friendly surface. “You can roller-skate on it,” Merz says. “You can’t get more kid-friendly than that.”
Paint colors throughout the house: White Dove in satin finish (trim and doors), White Dove in flat finish (ceiling) and Shoreline in eggshell finish (walls), all by Benjamin Moore; laundry cabinet paint: Smoke Embers in satin finish, Benjamin Moore
This was the couple’s first home, and they had furnished it with a hodgepodge of hand-me-down items collected over the years. When they lost everything, they took Merz’s advice to fill the home with right-scaled furniture appropriate for the 8-foot ceilings. She found pieces that are smaller in profile but comfortable, such as the low-slung gray sectional from Houzz.
“The theme was to make it feel scale-appropriate, family-friendly and not do tons of furniture,” Merz says. “It’s a relatively small house and we wanted it to feel open and not overdone.”
The house presumably had the original wiring, so with all the drywall gone the Parkers were able to rewire the entire house. Merz helped them create a wiring plan and add lots of new lights. “We added lots of cans, pendants, even lights in the closets,” she says.
Tuxedo two-piece sectional sofa in Ash: Apt2B; Olas area rug: nuLOOM
Watch now: Go inside this recently renovated Houston home
“The theme was to make it feel scale-appropriate, family-friendly and not do tons of furniture,” Merz says. “It’s a relatively small house and we wanted it to feel open and not overdone.”
The house presumably had the original wiring, so with all the drywall gone the Parkers were able to rewire the entire house. Merz helped them create a wiring plan and add lots of new lights. “We added lots of cans, pendants, even lights in the closets,” she says.
Tuxedo two-piece sectional sofa in Ash: Apt2B; Olas area rug: nuLOOM
Watch now: Go inside this recently renovated Houston home
A wood-and-metal console cabinet also hit on a bit of the industrial style that Austin likes.
Serramonte console: Hooker Furniture
Serramonte console: Hooker Furniture
The light over the dining room table also has an industrial vibe.
The Parkers were able to save the table from the flood. Merz stripped off its dark finish to give it a more modern look. She also brought in pops of yellow to complement the teal. “Yellow is such a fun, happy color,” she says. “I like to do color but at the same time not have it scream at you.”
Teal dining chairs: Hawthorne Collections; Junction light in Palladian Bronze: Quoizel; Illusions yellow printed curtain: Exclusive Fabrics & Furnishings
The Parkers were able to save the table from the flood. Merz stripped off its dark finish to give it a more modern look. She also brought in pops of yellow to complement the teal. “Yellow is such a fun, happy color,” she says. “I like to do color but at the same time not have it scream at you.”
Teal dining chairs: Hawthorne Collections; Junction light in Palladian Bronze: Quoizel; Illusions yellow printed curtain: Exclusive Fabrics & Furnishings
Before: The bathrooms, including the master shown here, featured original tile that had been well maintained. But the flooding and the fact that the couple were getting rid of the tub-shower combo and moving the toilet to make room for a double vanity meant it had to go. Merz points out that it also would have been impossible to find and match the three-quarter-inch-thick tile made in the 1950s. Modern-day tile is a quarter-inch thick. “There was just no way to save it,” she says.
After: A new teal double vanity matches the island color. The dark floor tile has a metal look to it, again appealing to Austin’s industrial tastes.
Vanity paint: Rendezvous Bay in satin finish, Benjamin Moore
Vanity paint: Rendezvous Bay in satin finish, Benjamin Moore
A larger shower replaced the former tub-shower combo. Subway tile, a black-and-white graphic tile insert and black hex floor tile help balance out the teal color while offering visual interest.
Before: During the process of renovating, the Parkers and their design team discovered that the original brick on the house was separating from the structure, either from the flood or from something else. Experts deemed it structurally unsound, so it all had to come out.
After: Limestone paired with dark gray trim gives the exterior a fresh, modern look.
As for any fears of future flooding, Angie feels the city has done a lot in her area, such as significantly widening the bayou and updating the drainage on their street. “When we were repairing our home, they were out there redoing the drainage under the streets and adding new sidewalks,” she says. “When the water builds up now it goes away so fast.”
Still, they have a safety plan in place. For now, they’re just enjoying their new home. “Being able to just relax and realize it’s all behind us — we have nothing left to do to this house; it’s done,” Austin says. “So that’s been just a relief.”
Watch now: See how the Parkers and Merz made this renovation happen
Get the look: See products from and inspired by this project
More on Houzz
Retired Houston Couple Replaces Starter Home With Forever Home
Remodeling After Water Damage: Tips From a Homeowner Who Did It
Get home design ideas
Find design and remodeling professionals in your area
Shop for home furniture and products
As for any fears of future flooding, Angie feels the city has done a lot in her area, such as significantly widening the bayou and updating the drainage on their street. “When we were repairing our home, they were out there redoing the drainage under the streets and adding new sidewalks,” she says. “When the water builds up now it goes away so fast.”
Still, they have a safety plan in place. For now, they’re just enjoying their new home. “Being able to just relax and realize it’s all behind us — we have nothing left to do to this house; it’s done,” Austin says. “So that’s been just a relief.”
Watch now: See how the Parkers and Merz made this renovation happen
Get the look: See products from and inspired by this project
More on Houzz
Retired Houston Couple Replaces Starter Home With Forever Home
Remodeling After Water Damage: Tips From a Homeowner Who Did It
Get home design ideas
Find design and remodeling professionals in your area
Shop for home furniture and products
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Looks beautiful and fresh! I love the teal island and vanity! A great house transformation and I am sure you will enjoy your home for many years to come!
But just because a person is no longer young and full of energy or lots of fun ( except with their adorable granddaughter), is no reason to steer away from fun and vibrant colours. I love bright colours in my home because they are so cheery. Everybody deserves to have beautiful colours in their home if they wish!
Why would colors be determined by one's age? Either you like colorful things or you don't. A couple of years ago, when I was "only" 73, I took my blah beige car in and said "paint it that color!" Now I have a most beautiful, strong purple car and love it! I do have to admit that part of the reasoning is to find it in a parking lot! But, it also matches my fireplace....
Very beautiful!!! Love the colours blue is my colour too .