Beautiful renovation blends the past and present with a nod to the future.

Story by Joan Bellinghausen | Photography by Angier Photos

On the exterior, the Italianate Renaissance house dating to 1914 commands attention in a Brookside neighborhood of stately homes. On the inside, the house offers the creature comforts necessary in the 21st century. A whole-house renovation brought together the best of both worlds.

Enter homeowners Kelsey and Tyson, who guided this historic home into the present. Their vision, attention to detail and intentionality in making decisions have resulted in a lovely home perfect for the couple and their two young children balancing the history of the house.

The couple purchased the house in June 2021 in the height of the Covid pandemic and with a toddler and newborn in tow.

“We thought it was a good idea to go house shopping,” Tyson jokes.

In actuality, the couple had been house hunting for quite some time, long enough to place bids and lose out on seven other houses given the competitive housing market. But, finally, with this house came success!

Kelsey and Tyson knew without a doubt that MOJO Built would be the perfect contractor for their renovation. They had been in various houses renovated or built by MOJO and loved how the houses looked and felt.

So, the couple collaborated with Joe Woods from MOJO Built and Architect Adam Pfeifer from apd_studios+ to design a home that would meet their current needs and provide flexibility to evolve as the children grow.

Their vision included preserving key architectural elements original to the home’s exterior and reconfiguring the interior space to better meet the needs of their family.

“We were looking for the feel and amenities of a new build but wanted to maintain the character of the exterior,” Tyson explains.

Renovation started in January 2022 during a “crazy and unpredictable time”, according to the homeowners. They cite construction challenges, such as supply chain issues, the skyrocketing cost of lumber and scarcity of workers, all contributing to the project taking far longer than initially planned.

During the remodel, Kelsey and Tyson stayed put in their existing house in Waldo since the renovation would take the house down to its studs.

On the exterior, the renovation retained the original arched front door and surrounding decorative carvings, another arched door on a side porch and an elaborate frieze under the soffit.

Inside, the project kept built-in cabinets and reinstalled French doors long ago removed. The homeowners updated the fireplace surround to better reflect their aesthetic but took care in finding new homes for items no longer needed such as doors and the fireplace mantel.

One of the biggest changes involved moving the location of the garage from one side of the house to the other. Now a new two-stall garage attaches to the house, a huge improvement over the former detached garage partially tucked behind the house, according to Adam.

While “the structure of the house was in great shape” says Adam, the interior renovation addressed the shortcomings inherent in a house built a century earlier and subsequent modifications previous homeowners made over the decades.

Moving walls, opening up smaller rooms and reclaiming space from a back staircase walled off made space for a larger half bath, laundry room and small office on the main level. Reconfiguring space also netted a children’s playroom, chef’s pantry and mudroom.

“We were very mindful and intentional that the rooms could change as our family’s needs evolve over time,” says Kelsey.

The renovation created a large open area – featuring the kitchen, dining area and bar – that spans the entire length of the back of the house. Adjacent to this space sits a cozy screened-in porch with large sliders that can be opened up as weather permits.

A transformation occurred in the entryway. At some point over the years, two narrow closets had been built on both sides of the front door, making the entryway narrow and dark. Demolishing these closets added extra space on each side of the door and exposed two long windows hidden by shutters.

“This made such a difference in the entryway of the home,” explains Adam.

The renovation also involved moving and “reconfiguring the staircase to maximize the space upstairs”, explains Kelsey.

On the second level, efforts focused on modifying the existing four bedrooms and two bathrooms. The result features a Jack and Jill bathroom in between two bedrooms, a guest room with its own full bath, and a proper main suite with an en suite bathroom.

Today, the entire house feels bright and crisp with a mixture of white and gray cabinetry, new windows with black frames and beautiful millwork, achieving the “simple” and “clean” feeling the homeowners wanted.

“With the chaos of young kids, we need calm,” Kelsey says.

Looking toward the future, Tyson and Kelsey hope the house will stand for another 100 years.