Houzz Tours
Houzz Tour: Beautiful 1929 Tudor-Style House Made Whole Again
A thoughtful renovation reveals original architectural details and removes an unfortunate 1980s addition
The 1929 Tudor-style house was gorgeous on the front, but a 1980s addition marred the back. Interior designer Laura Lee and her husband, John, completed a remodel that returned the home to its original glory while adding their personalities. During renovations, they uncovered boarded-up original stained-glass windows and other original architectural details, and added new elements that brightened up the house while respecting its original style. Most important, Laura thought carefully about how her family would live in the home, and the result is that they use every room every day.
AFTER: The new addition’s rear facade honors the original architecture of the home. (That’s the family’s golden retriever, Charlie, relaxing by the pool.)
“We had to excavate to work on the foundation, so the covered outdoor room beneath the addition was a happy accident,” Laura says. John has a TV out there for enjoying sports, and the room provides a comfy shaded spot on hot days.
“We had to excavate to work on the foundation, so the covered outdoor room beneath the addition was a happy accident,” Laura says. John has a TV out there for enjoying sports, and the room provides a comfy shaded spot on hot days.
The couple made a lot of cosmetic changes to the entire home, which has a central-hall plan, with the living room to the right and the dining room to the left. One small change was adding an outlet behind the mirrored console so that they could light up the space with a vintage blue Murano glass lamp. (These lamps are a favorite of Laura’s; you’ll spy more as we tour the rest of the home.) The threshold you see on the floor marks where the addition meets the original home’s footprint.
Tip: Matching different hardwood species may require using different stains. The original floors were white oak, while those in the addition are red oak — which meant that using the same stain on them resulted in different colors. While the stain on one of the woods came straight out of the can, Laura says it took a lot of custom-mixing to get the other wood to match. “I drove my contractor crazy getting it exactly right,” she says.
Wall paint: Bridgewater Tan, Benjamin Moore
Tip: Matching different hardwood species may require using different stains. The original floors were white oak, while those in the addition are red oak — which meant that using the same stain on them resulted in different colors. While the stain on one of the woods came straight out of the can, Laura says it took a lot of custom-mixing to get the other wood to match. “I drove my contractor crazy getting it exactly right,” she says.
Wall paint: Bridgewater Tan, Benjamin Moore
This view is just to the right of where the last photo was taken. At 25 by 16 feet, the living room is long and graciously proportioned, but when the Lees moved in, this was the only interior entry into the room. They decided to create another entrance, and during demolition, they discovered an original opening right where they wanted to put one. It had been covered up during a previous remodel.
The formal living room serves the family as a music and TV room. The piano is a 1917 Steinway. “I gave it to myself for my 40th birthday, as I’d always wanted to learn to play,” Laura says. She loves tickling the original ivory keys, and the piano’s vintage is a good fit for the 1929 home.
The formal living room serves the family as a music and TV room. The piano is a 1917 Steinway. “I gave it to myself for my 40th birthday, as I’d always wanted to learn to play,” Laura says. She loves tickling the original ivory keys, and the piano’s vintage is a good fit for the 1929 home.
The second restored opening into the room is on the left near the fireplace.
Laura loves to mix metals, but warm brass and gold finishes dominate in this room. Wiring for ceiling lights was part of the renovation. “They are so pretty — they are made up of little brass leaves, and they just glow overhead without being glaring,” she says. The golden tones in the hand-knotted soumak rug pick up on the metal finishes.
On both sides of the fireplace, two original stained-glass windows had been covered up from the interior during a time when they were out of vogue. The remodel revealed them.
Although a large sectional sofa is not a common choice for a formal living room, it was the right one for the Lees. “I’m a big believer in making a home work for the way people live,” Laura says. “We wanted a place where all five of us could sit and watch TV together, and with all the other seating in the room, we can seat 10 to 12 people comfortably in here.”
Paint: Wedgewood Gray (walls) and Early Morning Mist (ceiling), Benjamin Moore; ceiling lights: Crystorama
Laura loves to mix metals, but warm brass and gold finishes dominate in this room. Wiring for ceiling lights was part of the renovation. “They are so pretty — they are made up of little brass leaves, and they just glow overhead without being glaring,” she says. The golden tones in the hand-knotted soumak rug pick up on the metal finishes.
On both sides of the fireplace, two original stained-glass windows had been covered up from the interior during a time when they were out of vogue. The remodel revealed them.
Although a large sectional sofa is not a common choice for a formal living room, it was the right one for the Lees. “I’m a big believer in making a home work for the way people live,” Laura says. “We wanted a place where all five of us could sit and watch TV together, and with all the other seating in the room, we can seat 10 to 12 people comfortably in here.”
Paint: Wedgewood Gray (walls) and Early Morning Mist (ceiling), Benjamin Moore; ceiling lights: Crystorama
The dining room is a mix of traditional and eclectic style; the overall goal was to make it happy and bright. A solid mahogany table from the 1850s, antique chairs and a crystal chandelier ground the room with traditional style. Laura scooped up the chairs at an antiques store in Atlanta years before. “We fit all six of them in our Toyota Camry somehow!” she says. A new octagonal sisal rug lends a more casual look.
An abstract painting by Cyndy Aldred adds a modern touch above the bar. The custom drapes are alternating stripes of Prussian blue and cream linen. “It’s a light space; I wanted something dark for balance,” Laura says. She designed them so that the blue stripes anchor the top and bottom of the panels.
An abstract painting by Cyndy Aldred adds a modern touch above the bar. The custom drapes are alternating stripes of Prussian blue and cream linen. “It’s a light space; I wanted something dark for balance,” Laura says. She designed them so that the blue stripes anchor the top and bottom of the panels.
Although the sideboard has traditional style, the blue paint gives it a fresh, updated look, as do the bright green gourd lamps and the starburst mirror. But it’s primarily the yellow wallpaper that gives the room its cheerful personality. The traditional paneled molding beneath provides a balance.
Sideboard: Hickory Chair; wallpaper: Thibaut
Sideboard: Hickory Chair; wallpaper: Thibaut
Through the dining room’s French doors and down a step is perhaps the happiest space in the house, a charming little sun porch with arched windows. “I love this little room — it gets so much light,” Laura says. “If I have just one friend over for coffee, we’ll sit and visit out here.” Her kids also enjoy doing their homework on the sun porch.
Doses of orange and pink enliven the room with color. The area rug keeps things light and covers original terra-cotta tiles that didn’t work with the color scheme.
Wall paint: Snowfall White, Benjamin Moore
Doses of orange and pink enliven the room with color. The area rug keeps things light and covers original terra-cotta tiles that didn’t work with the color scheme.
Wall paint: Snowfall White, Benjamin Moore
The pink accents continue in Laura’s office, off the porch. A contemporary desk contrasts with the more traditional chairs and chandelier. The chair on the left is an antique that she had re-covered in a pink botanical fabric.
“I thought about getting a desk with file drawers, but I really wanted to keep it more open,” Laura says. She had it custom-made so that she’d have lots of room to spread out when she’s working.
Wall paint: Halo, Benjamin Moore; window treatment fabric: Kravet Couture; chair fabric: Romo
“I thought about getting a desk with file drawers, but I really wanted to keep it more open,” Laura says. She had it custom-made so that she’d have lots of room to spread out when she’s working.
Wall paint: Halo, Benjamin Moore; window treatment fabric: Kravet Couture; chair fabric: Romo
This view is from the dining room into the kitchen, thanks to a large opening between the two that replaced a narrow swinging door. The yellow continues in here on the counter stools and the needlepoint art. The room past the kitchen is the family room and is part of the addition.
Counter stool fabric: Miura, Thibaut
Counter stool fabric: Miura, Thibaut
“This area between the island and the range is my zone,” Laura says. She can work in the kitchen while others keep her company (and stay out of her way).
Seeded glass-and-brass pendants outfitted with Edison bulbs provide light over the new island, which has the Calacatta Oro marble counter Laura dreamed of for years. “I have always wanted white marble counters and was willing to put up with its challenges,” she says. The counter is mitered to appear 2¼ inches thick, which gives the beautiful stone an even stronger presence. The backsplash also plays with unexpected proportions — it’s a subway tile that is 8 by 4 inches rather than the common 6 by 3 inches.
“I love mixing metals,” she says. The mix includes brass on the lighting and upper cabinet grilles, stainless steel on the appliances, and chrome on the faucets. The drawer pulls are Lucite.
Kitchen Counters: Elegant, Timeless Marble
Seeded glass-and-brass pendants outfitted with Edison bulbs provide light over the new island, which has the Calacatta Oro marble counter Laura dreamed of for years. “I have always wanted white marble counters and was willing to put up with its challenges,” she says. The counter is mitered to appear 2¼ inches thick, which gives the beautiful stone an even stronger presence. The backsplash also plays with unexpected proportions — it’s a subway tile that is 8 by 4 inches rather than the common 6 by 3 inches.
“I love mixing metals,” she says. The mix includes brass on the lighting and upper cabinet grilles, stainless steel on the appliances, and chrome on the faucets. The drawer pulls are Lucite.
Kitchen Counters: Elegant, Timeless Marble
Although the family room has a TV, Laura says that with all her clanging around in the kitchen, it’s not the best place to watch. “This is a room we use more when we have friends over, for after-dinner drinks,” she says. The large coffee table with the tortoise finish and brass details has four ottomans that can pull out to use as extra seating or footrests.
Lighting plays a large role in the room. It includes the sea glass drum shade, the vintage blue Murano glass lamp and the lamps configured from vintage Lucite sculptures.
Charcoal paint on the trim emphasizes the lovely new windows. Note the way the Greek key trim on the drapes works with the window trim.
Midcentury Lucite sculpture (back right corner): Hivo Van Teal
Lighting plays a large role in the room. It includes the sea glass drum shade, the vintage blue Murano glass lamp and the lamps configured from vintage Lucite sculptures.
Charcoal paint on the trim emphasizes the lovely new windows. Note the way the Greek key trim on the drapes works with the window trim.
Midcentury Lucite sculpture (back right corner): Hivo Van Teal
Lucy the Shih Tzu enjoys this blue leather chair. When renovating and expanding a tiny powder room behind the family room, the couple gained a bit of extra space. So Laura used it to create a recess for a serving bar and cabinets where they store their photo albums.
Paint: Nimbus (walls) and Paradiso (bar recess), Benjamin Moore
Paint: Nimbus (walls) and Paradiso (bar recess), Benjamin Moore
Just around the corner from the kitchen is a cozy breakfast room with plenty of space for the whole family to sit comfortably. It continues the pinks and grays seen on the sun porch and in Laura’s office.
Part of this renovation included expanding the 4-by-4-foot powder room to 10 feet by 5 feet, using part of an awkward back hallway that Laura reconfigured. The new vanity has the look of a repurposed chest of drawers. Rather than a stone top, she decided to keep the wood top to maintain that look.
“The millwork is true raised-panel molding — I wanted something significant in here,” she says. A sweet floral wallpaper is a lovely surprise.
Wallpaper: Oleander, Sanderson; vanity: J. Tribble
“The millwork is true raised-panel molding — I wanted something significant in here,” she says. A sweet floral wallpaper is a lovely surprise.
Wallpaper: Oleander, Sanderson; vanity: J. Tribble
Upstairs, the couple gave their master bedroom a mini refresh. The Murano glass lamps were an eBay find, while the sculpture was a lucky HomeGoods score.
The radiator cover is new but was designed based on the original ones in the house. It has brass grilles.
The radiator cover is new but was designed based on the original ones in the house. It has brass grilles.
But it’s the nightstands that mean the most. “Back when we were first married and had no money, I bought these for $25 at a yard sale — inside one of the drawers, someone scribbled, ‘Kimberly was here,’” Laura says. “They were in our guest room, then in one son’s room, then the other son’s room, then back in the guest room. … They are always somewhere in the house!” To give them a chic makeover, she had them lacquered and added beautiful new brass bamboo hardware. “It’s so important to collect and incorporate pieces with history and a story behind them in a home,” she says. “I never want everything to be brand-new.”
Their daughter’s room and bathroom are the second-story portion of the addition. Laura chose a soft peach for the light-filled room, and paired it with gray, white and cream. The painting over the bed brings in shades of coral.
The tiny gold table in the corner is a vintage outdoor plant stand. Laura painted it with a high-gloss metallic spray paint to add a little bling.
Wall paint: Rosebud, Benjamin Moore; painting: Alexis Walter; ceiling light: Kelly Wearstler
The tiny gold table in the corner is a vintage outdoor plant stand. Laura painted it with a high-gloss metallic spray paint to add a little bling.
Wall paint: Rosebud, Benjamin Moore; painting: Alexis Walter; ceiling light: Kelly Wearstler
In the daughter’s long, skinny bathroom, a clever narrow makeup counter makes the most of the space. More custom wainscoting fits in with the original architecture. The wallpaper adds a wavy texture to the walls. It is vinyl and can stand up to steam.
Tip: Turn any mirror into a medicine cabinet. Laura installed a standard medicine cabinet in the wall, then had the mirror installed on a piano hinge.
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Tip: Turn any mirror into a medicine cabinet. Laura installed a standard medicine cabinet in the wall, then had the mirror installed on a piano hinge.
Browse more homes by style: Apartments | Barn Homes | Colorful Homes | Contemporary Homes | Eclectic Homes | Farmhouses | Floating Homes | Guesthouses | Homes Around the World | Lofts | Midcentury Homes | Modern Homes | Ranch Homes | Small Homes | Townhouses | Traditional Homes | Transitional Homes | Vacation Homes
Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: Laura and John Lee, their three teenagers, and two dogs
Location: Clayton, Missouri
Size: Five bedrooms, 5½ bathrooms
Designer: Laura Lee Home
As you can see, the wonderful 1929 architecture looked great from the street.