Originally published Sunday, October 26, 2008 at 12:00 AM
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Northwest Living
A remodeled Tudor on Seattle's Capitol Hill makes the most of much space
On Seattle's Capitol Hill, an aging Tudor is transformed without ruining its classic bones, thanks to the patience of the family that lived in it before remodeling it.
BENJAMIN BENSCHNEIDER / THE SEATTLE TIMES
''Bogart'' (created by Seattle artist Randall Statler entirely out of bottlecaps) watches over one of the family's cats, Max, who lies on a custom wool rug from SEVA Home. A previous renovation had altered the fireplace, which Jennifer rebuilt with tiles from Ann Sacks. She designed the fire screen herself. The leaded and stained glass windows on the left and in the built-in cabinet are original. Furnishings are from SEVA Home.
BENJAMIN BENSCHNEIDER / THE SEATTLE TIMES
The asymmetry of the house is original and gives it a quirky bit of character, unusual in a home this size. The long slope of the roof on one side and the different materials on each level make the house look a lot less massive than it is. The wonderful clinker brick is the same brick that was used to build the Volunteer Park water tower across the street.
BENJAMIN BENSCHNEIDER / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Although the home is in the middle of busy Capitol Hill, its location on a large corner lot gives it the feel of a traditional country house with plenty of outdoor space for entertaining. A bed filled with easy-care perennials sits against the terrace wall on the edge of the lawn.
BENJAMIN BENSCHNEIDER / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Emrich and Kwatinetz's youngest daughter, Nicole, has her own little dining table in this alcove off the formal dining room, where three leaded-glass windows are flanked by another on each end. Seattle Stained Glass restored the windows by numbering each original piece of glass and then taking the windows apart. Then they releaded them in the original order to ensure a perfect fit.
BENJAMIN BENSCHNEIDER / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Emrich created a breakfast area by removing the door between the old kitchen and sun porch. Wherever she renovated, Emrich made sure to match the woodwork exactly. Because of that and the craftsmanship of Phoenix Construction, the flow from old to new is seamless. The kitchen counters are ''Costa Esmerelda'' granite slab, and the backsplash is crackle tile in ''lily pad'' from Walker Zanger's Newport series.
BENJAMIN BENSCHNEIDER / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Emrich designed this front gate, a matching side one and another across the driveway. They were built of iron by Automated Gates and Equipment.
BENJAMIN BENSCHNEIDER / THE SEATTLE TIMES
The master bath, with its period tile and colorful stained-glass window, may look like it has always been in this 1906 Tudor, but it was actually built in what was formerly the servants' quarters. Emrich designed the window and had it made by Seattle Stained Glass. The tiles are Ann Sacks' Candle White Satin offset with Lunada Bay glass tiles in Sage.
BENJAMIN BENSCHNEIDER / THE SEATTLE TIMES
The cherry hardwood floors are the highlight of this children's playroom in the Emrich tudor.
Everything has its place, even in the garden
Landscape architect Holly Moore helped the family design their large (13,579-square-foot), level corner lot. By dividing the garden, Moore gave the family outdoor "rooms" it could use as easily as the ones inside. The result is an easy, harmonious flow from inside to out.
Off the sunroom is a large patio where the family can eat and entertain. It faces a wide lawn for the children to run. Off to one side is a children's garden with herbs, vegetables and fruit. On the other side is a pathway that meanders in a wilder-feeling plot where something is always blooming. Tucked in a corner there's a waterfall and pond. Just like Jennifer Emrich's results inside, every beautifully tailored inch has a purpose.
Jennifer Emrich, Andrew Kwatinetz and their daughters moved into their home on Capitol Hill near Volunteer Park and lived in it for a year and a half before embarking on its remodel.
"I really think that's a good idea," says Emrich, who remodeled the family's two previous homes and has an undergraduate degree in architecture and studied interior design. "Because you might see it and think, 'I've got to do all this,' but there are lots of decisions that you'd make differently after living in a house."
Emrich then translated her observations and experiences into ways to make the old house work for them, hand-drawing all the architectural plans and elevations herself. The idiosyncrasies of the 1906 Tudor that could have driven her crazy were incorporated into her designs in ways that respect the original structure, but still work for her family.
For example, while the kitchen had been renovated a number of times, previous owners had maintained its floor plan. Originally designed to be used by household staff, it was cramped, stuck between a back staircase and a narrow butler's pantry. Before the renovation, the couple put a small table in the pantry and used it as a breakfast room. They found it claustrophobic and unpleasant.
Emrich's solution was to combine the kitchen and pantry spaces, and steal a few feet from the powder room. Because she knew exactly how she was using the kitchen, her elevations laid out every detail — so the knives are next to the cutting boards, there's an outlet hidden in a cupboard for a mounted handheld vacuum, and shelves are set low so the children can get their own dishes and cutlery.
Another major project involved incorporating the servants' quarters into the master suite. In Emrich's reconfiguration there is an airy walk-in closet and a new master bath accessed from the closet so that whoever wakes first won't disturb the sleeper. There are two sinks with large, well-lit mirrors, and the drawers and cupboards hide outlets for charging razors, toothbrushes and another handheld vacuum. A soaking tub is mostly used by the children now, but its size was restricted in order to build a roomy shower stall.
Other projects may not have been as complicated, but every one of them has improved the family's quality of life. For example, Emrich retained the old laundry chute and included it in the design of the master closet. It also has an opening in the main-floor powder room — perfect for dropping down table linens and kitchen towels. Pregnant with their third daughter during the planning, she made sure the baby's bedroom, fashioned from a dressing room, would feel as spacious as the others.
Understanding that her older daughters needed a place to play that wasn't underfoot, she opened up the old nanny quarters in the daylight basement and replaced it with a large, well-organized playroom. And for Kwatinetz, a 6-foot-6 veteran techie, Emrich installed Internet connections and built a comfortable media room. She even cut out a small arch on the way to the basement so he could stop ducking.
With more than 6,000 square feet of living space, it could have been easy to waste. But Emrich's keen understanding of how she and her family would use the house means that they use every room.
Kwatinetz says it's his forever house. But the serial renovator in Emrich just says, "maybe."
Leora Y. Bloom writes about beautiful homes in and around Seattle. Her e-mail is leorabakes@hotmail.com. Benjamin Benschneider is a Pacific Northwest magazine staff photographer.
Copyright © 2008 The Seattle Times Company
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