Greetings,
Thank you for visiting. In this month of traditional "out with the old, in with the new
," we feature the new life infused into a very tired master bath, then take you to the beginnings of a major revitalization of an old industrial part of South Austin. We will join those who are newly discovering the delights of an old cafe in the same area, drop by a unique, "keep Austin weird" business near the cafe, and learn some tips for freshening up your home for the coming year. Here's to the New Year!
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PROJECT SPOTLIGHT
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A Calm Retreat
As the Austin Metro area continues to grow in both population and vitality, so grows the need for many people to seek a quiet and simple respite from the high energy of the city. One such professional couple own a home near Austin in the hills of Lakeway, which is known for its gated communities and lovely, peaceful views. Although this home is in an idyllic setting, its interior style remained sorely lacking. Last year, the homeowners contacted us to bring their jumbled basement and outdated kitchen up to the same standard of visual beauty as their location. They were so pleased with those results that they decided it was time to take care of the master bath.
What you see above is the elegant, well placed and relaxed result of what had once been a a styleless, uninviting room. Although the original bath had been done with the usual generic, builder grade materials which made it functional, it lacked any form that would create a pleasing aesthetic.
As seen above, in a narrow, confined space with nine foot ceilings, a total of five, eight foot high doors placed all in a row on one side of the room. There was the double French door entry, the toilet room door, and three closet doors. When the doors were all shut, the room looked like a door display at a home building store.
And, as seen above and to the right, the cabinetry across from the wall of doors was very dark, which created a heavy, unbalanced feeling in the room. The chunky, outdated corner tub was covered with worn looking tiles, and there was a relatively small, cramped shower.
It was obvious the room desperately needed help. Although we maintained the same footprint and plumbing placement, we were determined to introduce some tranquil beauty through the use of well-chosen materials and fixtures. And do something about those doors!
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Design Quote
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Seen above is the construction of a new, mixed use complex at the corner of South Congress Avenue and St. Elmo. This ambitious endeavor signals a dramatic change to an area which has long been the home of a more modest kind of "mixed" use.
This particular section of South Congress, between Ben White and Stassney, was once also known as Highway 81, a main route directly into the heart of downtown Austin and the site of many thriving roadside motels and other small businesses.
In fact, the motel known as "Austin's Finest Motel," as seen above in the 1950's era postcard*, was located on the very corner of the construction pictured in the heading. The St.-Elmo-Tel offered "modern air conditioned rooms and kitchenettes, TV, radio, telephones, carpet, carports, and was "only 5 minutes from the Capitol."
Close by the St. Elmo-Tel and seen above in another 1950's era postcard*, was the Goodnight Court, built in 1941 and named after the legendary cattleman Charlie Goodnight and undoubtedly the restful sleep promised.
However, as the city grew, I 35 became the major route through Austin and more luxurious motels and hotels blossomed along its corridor. The St. Elmo area changed into a location for industrial warehouses, used car lots and scrapyards.
The St. Elmo-Tel sat abandoned for many years, as seen above*, until it was finally torn down in 2006.
The motel known as the Goodnight Motel has somehow survived, but now apparently remains anonymous, as seen below.
But, follow along and get a glimpse of the new "St. Elmo Market District" that is springing up around the old sites.
Cont'd.
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Here are some hints to get your home off to a clean and healthy New Year:
1) Go room by room and get rid of what you don't use, love or wear and donate it to charity.
2) Clear your counters of everything not used on a daily basis and gather up useful but scattered items such as DVD's and remotes, etc. and store them in woven baskets
3) Check your home for dangerous radon and carbon monoxide and install detectors, easily obtained at hardware and home stores.
4) Make sure your bathrooms and attics are vented to the outside to prevent mold.
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All Around Austin / Design Talk / Good Eats
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What's up in ATX
Keep going south on S. Congress past Hill's Cafe and you can't help but notice Jurassic Car Wash, possibly the most unique car wash anywhere. There is an
animatronic pterodactyl on the roof that goes off every hour, raising its wings and cawing at the traffic along
S. Congress, sundry other dinosaurs that help make you think washing your car is a blast, and a real bat mobile.
But, the fun is just the draw for a professional business that offers superior cleaning and detailing tools and products, such as soap that smells like pina colada.
John Borek, the owner, ran a successful body shop for 30 years, then bought a car wash on S. Congress. He already had the bat mobile and the dinosaurs and decided, why not? It was a good idea - around 140 cars go through his automated car wash on Saturdays alone.
Above, customers admire the bat mobile while a hard working employee gets ready to make it sparkle.
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Virtual Rendering
Do you have trouble visualizing an idea, a room? How about color? Do you feel uncertain about mixing colors and textures in a room? You're not alone, most people find it difficult to picture in their mind's eye, what their project will look like.
Floor plans, elevations and perspectives give you a technical understanding of the room, but what will it really look like?
Now, with modern technology, wicked fast computers and eye-popping, photo realistic software, you can actually see what your new room will look like! Your tile, floor, cabinet and countertop choices can be scanned and inserted into a virtual rendering of your design project. Even your child's artwork can be scanned and displayed on your refrigerator!
read more
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Hill's Cafe
South of St. Elmo Road, next to the old Goodnight Court is another Austin landmark, Hill's Cafe, built in 1947 by the Goodnight family as a coffee shop.
In this part of town, if you haven't been to Hill's, you can't call yourself a Texan. That's because Charlie Goodnight was: a famous Texas cattleman, the innovator of the the first cowboy restaurant known as the chuckwagon, his steaks served from the chuckwagon became famous, and his family founded this cafe.
Since 1947, Hill's has weathered the economic challenges along S. Congress not just because of its history, but because its reputation for good food endures. It still serves delicious, satisfying, Texas style chicken fried steaks, rib-eyes, and other comfort food favorites.
So, after you've seen the bustling energy of the St. Elmo District, relax at Charlie Goodnight's chuckwagon and enjoy a truly Texas cultural experience.
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St. Elmo District, Continued.
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The old area of St. Elmo and S. Congress will be turned into the St. Elmo Market District, intended by its visionary owners and developers to become one of Austin's hottest new cultural districts and a one-of-a-kind, iconic destination.
Seen to the right is the Andersson-Wise Architects' rendering of the envisioned St. Elmo Market.*
To be modeled after El Mercado in Madrid, Spain, the $150 million project will be Austin's first indoor-outdoor market place, encompassing 12 acres and including spaces for residential, entertainment, office, tech, video gaming, music, a boutique hotel, and creative opportunities for farmers, artists and restaurateurs to launch new concepts.
Seen above, left, is a side view of the vacant lot where part of the District will be built. In the background, behind the lone feline visitor and the even lonelier trailer, are new apartments and the new construction in our lead photo. The right photo shows the sign, raised beside the ragged flag of an old lot of used cars, that signals the spanking new future for a part of the town where the relics of the past will be either removed or repurposed to adapt to the new St. Elmo Market District.
So now you've seen a tiny bit of the past, present and future of the St. Elmo and S. Congress area, only a small part of the rapid, continuing transformation of Austin, Texas. Next year, perhaps we can visit again to see what it has become.
*Postcards from the collection of Casey M. Weaver, http://austinpostcard.com/pclist.php?list=photos
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PRODUCTS
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The NEFF family tradition began in Canada over 40 years ago when Paul Neff began carefully building a reputation for creating Extraordinary Kitchen Environments. Today, now under the ownership of Paul Gardner, this family tradition committed to the highest standards of quality, service, style and function continues with a focus on providing cabinetry solutions for the entire home.
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Whether you're hosting a holiday party or catching up with a friend, the kitchen is where it all happens.
Let's design the ideal space with quality cabinetry from North American Cabinets. We take great pride in creating truly customized contemporary, classic or traditional kitchens that complement your family's lifestyle, taste and budget... so let's eat in!
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Whether your style is Modern, Classic, Eclectic or Rustic, your home is where your heart is. Choosing the right cabinetry to fit your style will create a space that's warm, inviting and personalized. Woodland offers thousands of color, door style and organizational combinations that are sure to fit your exacting tastes.
Woodland's flexibility and affordability allow you to pick and choose the features that fit your style, your life, your budget... and your dreams.
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A Calm Retreat, Continued-
One of the things we did to soften the row of doors was to add an obscure glass to the toilet door, as seen to the right, which provided some visual depth and lessened the closed in feeling.
We opened up the shower by extending the existing half wall and putting in a 3/8" thick glass panel. This added rectangular length to what had been merely a dark box. The sense of length was increased by the horizontal installation of beautiful 6" x 36" Cathedral Heights, Marrazzi tile on both the back wall and in the shower, which created a textural flow of rich wood planking. Pebble stone flooring completed the overall harmony of tone.
Kohler Archer shower fixtures in chrome provided subtle accents and three waterproof cans added more light to the area.
The flow in texture that enhanced the sense of space in the shower was carried on by the flooring of the room, seen to the left. This gave the room continuity and harmony instead of awkwardness.
The tired corner tub and tile gave way to a graceful, streamlined and free standing Jacuzzi tub with chrome fixtures.
Besides the change in the toilet door, we eliminated the narrow center linen closet, replacing it with handsome, open shelving that provided access without opening and shutting another door.
Seen to the right, the ponderous lower cabinets were replaced by semi-custom cabinetry of soothing, pewter colored painted maple. Stainless steel, Hafele appliance pulls finished the sleek looks of the frameless, Bridgewood mission style doors.
To create a more open furniture style look, the cabinets had no toe kick, but were fitted with custom, 6" tapered feet, locally crafted by Bob Zirpoli of Supreme Cabinets in Hutto.
The cabinet run was so long, (126") we had to use a jumbo size slab, 60" x 128", of quartz, to fabricate the top with no seam. The Silestone quartz finish was honed by the fabricator. The sinks within the counter were rectangular, Kohler, Kathryn bowls in a clean white.
The sink area was elegantly fitted with slim, vertical, book ended cabinets bridged by three separate mirrors, custom framed. The classy, Stromboli chrome sconces and electrical outlets were artfully cut through the frames of the mirrors. Matt Perry did a fantastic job with the installation.
So in addition, to the previously remodeled rooms, our clients were quite pleased with their new tranquil, beautiful master bathroom.
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Virtual rendering continued...
You're able to see what the kitchen looks like with tile or hardwood. Do the furniture and drapes go together in the living room? What does the bathroom look like with a pedestal sink instead of a cabinet. You can feel confident about the materials you have chosen because now you can see them in the room!
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| Thanks for perusing our newsletter. I trust you have found it informative and even a little entertaining. If I can be helpful regarding a project or you just have a question, please don't hesitate to contact me.
Sincerely,
Joe Currie
Capitol Design
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