A Richmond House That Was Fully Rehabbed: a house log

Let us take a tour through some stranger’s house, shall we? In fact, meet Karyn and Eric. There, now they are not strangers.

Eric is in fact a well known house rehabber here in Richmond (here is his site) and Karyn is his lovely lady (she makes remarkable jewelry by the way). They live in this charming and fabulous sixty-year-old home that Eric purchased years ago when it was in major disrepair. We are talking crumbling walls and old unusable bathrooms. But thanks to his handy house-fixing skillz, he whipped his new abode right into shape, and in fact converted four of the other buildings on the spacious two acre property into fully functional guest houses which he now rents out to cover a large chunk of his mortgage. Not a bed set-up eh? But sufficient chit chat, let us go inside.

This is their especially lively game room complete with a pool table and an old wooden Ralph Lauren sign they snagged years ago when Bloomingdale’s was getting rid of it. How lively and Americana is that with the navy pool table?

They also have these vintage honeycomb chairs nearby- with navy, orange and white upholstery (snagged at a thrift store). Are not they cheerful and cozy and ideal for a game room?

Every room of their house has remarkable architectural detail that was either tirelessly restored or brought in by Eric. Here you can see that even the hallway has crisp chair rail molding and clean white trim that makes the house feel polished and stately.

And this is the dining room that you see in the doorway above on the left. The deep slate colored walls and of course that vivid chair rail truly give the room character while the refinished fireplace makes it feel even more inviting and warm. And I know you are staring at that vivid wood plank table so I will spill the beans…

… Eric in fact made it himself with reclaimed wood. And it rocks our world.

Speaking of rocks, Eric also redid the whole upstairs bathroom and brought in some truly strong stone work in the shower. Gotta enjoy the combination of over four distinct types of neutral tile and those built-in alcoves for soap and shampoo.

The living room has yet another remarkable wood fireplace mantel that Eric took from old and crumbling to mint condition.

And the original kitchen got a facelift with painted cabinets, new knobs, and some new stainless appliances (the dishwasher’s next). We enjoy how the woven rug truly keeps things feeling warm and rustic.

And the outside of their house is simply as breathtaking as the inside.

In fact, John’s sister and brother-in-law in fact got married here (feel free to house crash their fabulous modern masterpiece while we are on the subject). The rolling hills, blooming shrubs, and private woodsy feeling made Karyn and Eric’s home the ideal place to say I do.

Off in the distance you can see one of the other homes on the property that Eric also restored and now rents out along with three others. Not a bad way to pay the mortgage, eh? And everyone still has a lot of privacy thanks to the shrubs and trees that envelop each property for that leafy and lush feeling.

There is even a charming little gazebo behind Eric and Karyn’s home, and they enjoy to spend time out there planning future house projects (next on the agenda is a pergola that Eric will build using reclaimed wood columns!).

And we could not leave without sharing one of the smaller details that makes this house such a stunner. Check out the restored dentil molding above the front door and the custom plaque they had made to draw even more attention to the remarkable architecture:

We also enjoy that they brought in shutters to either side of their front door to give it more presence (along with plopping down two matching rocking chairs for inviting ambiance).

Thanks so much for skipping through Eric and Karyn’s vivid home with us (feel free to pipe up with your go-to part!). And stay tuned for another home invasion coming soon…