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A tree-lined boulevard, which initiallyaccommodated a streetcar line, anchors

the Historic Houston Heights area, known

for its turn-of-the-20th Century charm.Many of the original homes and architecture have sur-vived more than a century of weather extremes and realestate trends, but various lots and blocks have beenreinvented and redeveloped as opportunities arose.

One of those opportunities came to be in 2008 whenthe homeowner’s godfather, a longtime Heights resi-dent, sold the vacant lot adjacent to his own historicproperty to his godson. The lot has long history withthe family and had been sold to H-E-B decades ago,when the nearby H-E-B store needed space to maneu-ver its large delivery trucks. After the H-E-B store

The History of a New Home

A

A 2008 home with family connections to a Heights blockdating back more than 100 years

STORY BY SANDRA COOK • PHOTOGRAPHY BY RAYMOND ALDERETE

TOP OF PAGE: Many Craftsman touches were worked into the design of this recently built home. The full-front porch, complete with brick pedestals with tapered columns, evokes a Craftsmanlook, which is complemented by traditional plantings by Strong Landscaping. The home was featured on last December’s holiday home tour in the Heights. OPPOSITE PAGE: The overall lookof the living room was created by Brett Duhon from Boxwood Interiors and features several of the homeowners’ collections. The stair wall displays close to 40 landscape paintings, while themantle hosts an assortment of antique spools. The walls throughout the home are Pittsburgh Paint’s Santa Fe with Linen on the trim.

Floors throughout the first level are engineered walnut finished in a distressed chicory color. Theseries of botanical lithographs in the office were purchased at The Antiquarium, and the light fix-ture linen wingback chairs and ottoman are from Boxwood Interiors.

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closed, the godfather purchased the property back from thegrocery chain.

This transaction opened the door for the godson, a land-scaper, and his partner, a downtown professional, to pur-chase the lot and build their dream home. The coupleworked with David Weekley Homes to develop the designand build a two-story, four-bedroom, Craftsman-inspiredhome. It was the builder’s first custom project in theHeights, a project of their build on your own lot program.

“We worked with an architect to customize the houseplan,” says one of the owners. “We wanted to incorporatehistoric Heights touches, such as the Craftsman-stylecolumns with the brick base with tapered column on top.We also added the tin roof on the front porch and the win-dow shutters to the original design.”

The resulting two-story home is just over 3,000 squarefeet with four bedrooms and three and a half baths, plus agarage apartment. This allows plenty of room for the cou-ples frequent guests.

RIGHT: The formal dining room dazzles with its iron and rock crystal chandelier fromBoxwood Interiors suspended from the coffered white pine ceiling. The table was found atZ Gallerie, and the chairs were recovered and refinished by Joaquin Renteria. The chinahutch had belonged to one of the owners’ great grandparents and was redone by Renteriawith a milk paint finish. The two paintings are by artist Katy Frost Neil of Galveston.BELOW: The homeowners’ collections include many antique toys and animal figures, aswell as paintings by local artists.

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The couple’s previous home had been a three-storytownhome in Rice Military. Nowadays, they are glad to bein a traditional, two-story amidst the neighborly atmos-phere of the Heights. “We love our neighbors,” says one ofthe homeowners. “We recently became godparents to theyoung daughter of one of our neighbors, and since wepurchased this lot from my godfather who lives next door,to us, this is a very special block.”

It’s clear the couple treasures family connections. Manyfurnishings in the home are family heirlooms, includingseveral paintings, a rocking chair and a hope chest. Thecouple also enjoys buying furniture and art while on vaca-tions and shipping it home. To pull together the look oftheir home, the owners worked with Brett Duhon ofBoxwood Interiors to establish décor themes, but admitthey have made adjustments to the look after settling in.

BELOW: The back courtyard features a French Quarter look with brick laid in a herring-bone pattern, strings of lights overhead and French ironwork hung on the wall (a NewOrleans find). Joaquin Renteria made the zinc-topped dining table; the chairs weresourced from Restoration Hardware and Thompson & Hanson..

RIGHT: The homeowners purchased the iron wall art and antique shutters during tripsto New Orleans. The wicker furniture is from Smith & Hawken, while a glass-toppedantique urn between the chairs functions as a side table.

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The owners made the kitchen the center of home, as theylove to entertain. The generous kitchen functions as the hubof the first floor. The large island handles plenty of foodprep, and often serves as a buffet for family-style gatherings.The deep farmhouse sink handles piles of dishes, while theCambria quartz countertops continue to shine after count-less cleanups.

The homeowners desired a balanced design for the much-used kitchen. “I like that your eye doesn’t stop in one place,but the space works as a whole,” says one of the owners.And while they have both a formal dining room and a com-fortable breakfast area, the couple takes advantage of theiroutdoor dining room more than any other option.

The couples’ two pugs, Samson and Buttercup, were con-sidered with the choice of flooring on the first level. Thefloors are engineered walnut with a distressed and variedfinish to allow for wear. The owners also chose to put sisalon stairs to make it easier for the dogs to get up and downthe staircase.

Grand Central Kitchen

BELOW: Craftsman Joaquin Renteria made the kitchen table with antique barn wood togo with the set of heirloom antique English pub chairs and 19th Century Swedishbench. The chandelier was a wedding gift from one of the homeowner’s grandfather tohis grandmother. RIGHT: Cambria quartz countertops in Sussex (on island) and HydePark provide resilience and beauty. The roomy farmhouse sink and faucet, both byKohler, handles heaps of dishes. The off-white subway tile backsplash gets an Italianaccent from the decorative tile piece behind cooktop, imported from Florence, Italy. Allappliances are GE Monogram.

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A New ClassicThe homeowners selected neutral colors for the walls and finish-es throughout the home. “I was raised with the idea that youdecorate with art,” says one of the owners. The use of a time-less, classic foundation both inside and out allows the uniquepieces in their collections to stand out, but not overwhelm.

“We wanted our home to look decorated, but still feel homeyand warm,” says one of the homeowners. “When our friendsbring their kids over we don’t have to worry about anything get-ting broken.”

Resources Builder: David Weekley Custom Homes, 800.758.3238

Landscaper: Strong Landscaping, 832.567.6561

Interior Design: Boxwood Interiors, 713.528.1501

Custom furniture & decorative items: Joaquin Renteria, Fine Finishes & More,832.277.4521

Outdoor furnishings: Shannon’s Patio, 713.237.6060

Antique prints: The Antiquarium, 713.622.7531

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