On The Market

The ultimate bungalow? Lovingly restored Heights house turns heads — an $825,000 time machine

Editor's Note: Houston, the surrounding areas and beyond are loaded with must-have houses for sale in all shapes, sizes and price ranges. In this continuing series, CultureMap snoops through some of the best and gives you the lowdown on what's hot on the market.

A once small, three-bedroom, one-bath bungalow needing some TLC in the Brooke Smith neighborhood in the Greater Heights area now stands as an authentic, accurate and admirable tribute to the original American Arts and Crafts style.

While celebrating its own open house, the local larger-scale "ultimate bungalow" even turned heads and attracted visitors during the recent American Institute of Architects Houston 2014 Home Tour. The house, located at 512 Archer St., is now for sale at $825,000.

"It was the house that we first lived in together. We literally got married on the front porch of this house."

The 2,460-square-foot residence blends period details with modern features. Taken to the studs, careful craftsmanship is evident throughout, from reclaimed hardwoods and shiplap; antique doors, windows, lighting fixtures and shutters salvaged from historic structures; to custom cabinets and bookshelves. The four-bedroom charmer also offers 400 square feet of covered and screened porches, including an outdoor kitchenette, making nature very much a part of the living experience on the 5,000-square-foot lot.

So who is behind this local authentic American Arts and Crafts revival?

Meet Anthony Harnden, president of The Contemporary Craftsmen, a company of six determined to meticulously represent classic Craftsman style in its projects.

Harnden took time to respond to a Q&A email from CultureMap to share more about his latest creation — down to the nails.

CultureMap: Tell us about The Contemporary Craftsmen. What are your inspirations and goals?

Anthony Harnden: We started in 2008 right after the recession. I got my feet wet by moving a house from the Woodland Heights to a piece of property that we had purchased the previous year next to our residence. The Contemporary Craftsmen officially started about a year and a-half ago. I am the sole member of the LLC and have six full-time employees, mostly carpenters/painters.

I started my second period restoration about two years ago. This was a house that (my wife) Kay bought for herself before we met. It was the house that we first lived in together. We literally got married on the front porch of this house. The house was what I call a working-class Victorian — T-shaped with three rooms total plus a bathroom that was added at some point.

I really wanted to recreate the experience I had in some of the homes we visited in New Orleans. I wanted the screened-in porches, the court yards, the French doors, sun rooms and transoms. I wanted there to be a sense of having layers of history. I finished the house, and we had a pretty good amount of interest.

I guess the goal of The Contemporary Craftsmen is to make a connection. My inspirations come from personal experiences. One of the three couples that have showed serious interest in the house at 512 Archer, my second house in this style, spoke with me. She told me that she was from Pasadena, Calif. She lived one-half a mile from The Gamble House. She said that the house that we built reminded her of the house that she grew up in. She was even tutored in a Greene and Greene house.

It's difficult to describe what a gift she gave me by telling me these stories. Not many people have the chance to make that kind of connection with people. I think a lot of builders try to take buyers to the next level. We try to take people somewhere they have already been.

CM: What were the major steps you took in order to begin the process to create a true American Arts & Crafts house?

AH: One of the challenges with this design were the 3-foot eaves. Greene and Greene houses typically have closer to 5-foot eaves. With 3-foot eaves plus a 12-foot-wide driveway, the location of the house on the lot becomes an important factor. So we had to move the house over about five feet. Since we were adding up, we decided to take that opportunity to build a proper foundation for the house, so we had the house lifted about six feet so we could get under there and rebuild the foundation.

CM: Tell us about your favorite repurposed features incorporated into the house and where you found them?

AH: We bought a building, a two-story brick building, in the neighborhood that was built in 1929 located at 1000 Enid, our current project. This property was originally a grocery store and had rental units upstairs. We scored four clawfoot tubs and several sinks from this building. We used two of the clawfoot tubs and one of the sinks at 512 Archer. One of the other sinks came from Adkins Architectural Antiques. Many of the sconces came from August Antiques on Heights Boulevard. We also used reclaimed oak floors.

"I think a lot of builders try to take buyers to the next level. We try to take people somewhere they have already been."

One of the things that gets noticed the most are the industrial exposed track doors, but its the subtle things like the mortise sets and porcelain door handles that are my favorites because people don’t notice those things. They just experience them when they pull the door closed. It's not visual; it's sensory and subconscious.

CM: American Arts & Crafts houses typically have furniture built specifically for certain areas of the homes. Is any of the furniture especially made for the house?

AH: We built the dining table out of ash. We were kind of excited about it actually. We bought the wood from Clark’s Lumber. The ash had been left in the kiln for an extended time. causing the wood to turn a beautiful deep coffee color all the way through and giving it a wonderful smell, almost like a cigar. After it was finished, we decided to rub it down with mineral oil instead of putting a finish on it so you can smell that ash when you walk in the house.

CM: Tell us about the other house you built in this fashion?

AH: We have done two “California Craftsmen” on this street. The other one is located at 506 Archer. We were kind of proud of that house because it was actually a new construction. If we didn’t tell you, though, you wouldn't know it. We definitely used reclaimed material in that house, but it had an element that was greater than the sum of its parts. We felt like we breathed soul into it. It really felt like it had been there 100 years.

CM Anything else you would like to add? I heard a lot of people on the AIA Contemporary Home Tour saw the house and liked it!

AH: I wish I could take credit for planning this, but it was purely a coincidence that our open house was on the day of the AIA tour. Our friends and neighbors have a house that was on the tour. They live four doors down. They sent quite a few people down to see our house.

It turns out that a lot of the people on the AIA tour have an appreciation for Early American Arts and Crafts as well as contemporary. Happy accident, and generous neighbors.

Take a visual tour of 512 Archer St. by clicking through the slideshow above.

Square footage: 2,460

Asking price: $825,000

Listing agent:Kay Harnden, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices

The light-filled parlor with staircase to the right.

On the Market 512 Archer St parlor November 2014

Photo by © William Tadlock

The light-filled parlor with staircase to the right.

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stay gold

Online design juggernaut Perigold opens first-ever store in Houston

Courtesy of Perigold

Perigold combined three different stores into its new Houston home.

Houston, Perigold has landed. That’s right, the online design juggernaut and Wayfair subsidiary has chosen Houston’s Highland Village shopping center for its first (and so far only) brick-and-mortar store.

Turning an online retailer into a brick-and-mortar store is an interesting transition. With consumers looking to return to the throwback nostalgia of shopping with intention and returning to community vibes, it’s an ingenious move.

“We liken our experience to a department store, a Saks or a Net-A-Porter, and we hope to be a convenient place for the community. We know that people like to convene around design — so yes, we hope to be the answer to that,” Rebecca Ginns, global head of Perigold, tells CultureMap.

Referring to the space as a “store” does Perigold a major disservice — it’s so much more than that. While meaning no disrespect, the 20,000-square-foot space is what one would imagine if a Sears and a Neiman Marcus had a baby. It’s a lot, but in a fantastic way.

Extremely high-end, usually trade-only furniture lines find themselves nestled between place setting displays from dozens of brands, plus chef-grade knives by Shun. Appliances, plumbing and lighting fixtures, and tile are also available. Before worry sets in that every visit will break the bank, take comfort in knowing the store stocks more affordable options such as accessories, coffee table books, candles, and gifts as well.

Perigold store Houston This store really does have everything.Courtesy of Perigold

The folks from Perigold took the time to research Houstonians and their expectations. In a town where the local furniture emporium promises same day delivery, they knew they couldn’t play around. While it may not be same day, a local warehouse keeps larger showroom items in stock and ready for delivery in an expeditious fashion — they guarantee it.

Perigold’s design team utilized an area with plate glass walls and a courtyard to showcase outdoor furniture and accessories. Upstairs, local interior designers may use meeting rooms and workspaces to hold meetings with clients or Perigold associates.

Once shoppers pass through the chartreuse double doors, everything from Waterford crystal, Wedgewood, and Michael Aram, to the more daring Jonathan Adler is on offer. Chaddock, Fairfield, Century, and Stickley all come to play as well — with a showroom of this size, nearly every designer brand has representation.

Interestingly, there are many brands apparent, like Jonathan Adler in the village, who are showcased at Perigold. Most high end designers don’t allow what some may deem “competition” to exist in the same market as their showcase stores, but Ginns doesn’t see it that way.

“That’s something we worked through with brands when we first partnered with them in the e-commerce setting,” she says. “What they learned through that experience is that because we have such a wide reach, being featured with us ends up being an additive. So if you think of a customer searching for an item — just search for a luxury home on Google — something comes up that’s highly relevant or comparable, and that’s when they discover a lot of brands.”

On the topic of discovery, Perigold has made their in-store experience purposefully versatile, with different types of shoppers in mind. Whether someone chooses to engage one of the store’s seven product specialists, five interior designers, or simply go it alone, Perigold has it covered. Category shopping includes chairs, lighting, and almost everything else side-by-side, so there is no need to scour the store for every product decision, although that’s also possible. Shoppers who require some inspiration, or perhaps fancy a lackadaisical post-brunch stroll, will be pleased to discover that vignettes, or “style clusters,” have been curated throughout the store in the most popular home design styles.

Perigold partnered with acclaimed interior designers to create rooms in their respective styles to better assist buyers who may require inspiration. Each designer’s curated vignette features a robust mixture of brands and price points. Find transitional designs curated by Houston’s own Marie Flanigan, modern approaches by Jessica Davis, traditional inspirations by Julie and Isabelle Neil, glam styles by Evan Millard, modern glam looks from Xander Noori, and curated coastal vibes from Helen Bergin — all in one place.

“[For] that customer who doesn’t maybe know a brand, or is still discovering, we have a wide reach, and customers have found that to be true,” says Ginns. “So we are incremental and additive, but not competitive. There is just an element of discovery in the shopping process that we see a lot of [online], so we expect to see that replicated in the store.”

Courtesy of Perigold

Perigold combined three different stores into its new Houston home.

furniture design home-design perigold shopping store opening