Cravotta Interiors - Austin Home / Summer 2016

8/16/2019 Cravotta Interiors - Austin Home / Summer 2016

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Austin Home

CHANGED

FOR LIF E

A former 1930s

Hyde Park dup

underwent a m

jor renovation

accommodate

major life even

its homeowner

B Y G E N E M E N E ZP H O T O G R A P H B Y B R I A N M I H E A L S I C K


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Austin Home

HHad Nelda Yaw been able to find someone, anyone , who had the

knowledge and desire to clean her “silly” white love seat last year,

you wouldn’t be reading this story. You wouldn’t be flipping through

these eight pages, looking at the photos of her completely renovated

home, with its entirely new furnishings, or t he ubercool art studio/

pool house/guest quarters/potential HomeAway gold mine in the back.

But Yaw didn’t find someone to clean her love seat so you are reading

this story, and that story begins with that love seat.

But Yaw didn’t find someone to clean her love seat so you are reading

this story, and that story begins with that love seat.

“I was a single woman, and four years ago I fell in love, foolishly, with

this 100 percent cotton velvet white love seat,” recalls the 53-year-old

Yaw. “It was gorgeous.”

But 100 percent cotton velvet white love seats get dirty easily, espe-

cially when two rambunctious granddaughters are running around.

Yaw searched all over Austin trying to find someone who could clean

it, but, because it was 100 percent cotton, no one would guarantee

their work. Yaw tried to clean it herself but failed. Final ly, last year

she asked interior designer Mark Cravotta, who was working on an

unrelated project for her, to come over to her Hyde Park home and

help her have the love seat reupholstered.

“As I walked him through the house, Mark started drawing things

by hand,” Yaw recalls. “I looked at them, and they were new plans for

the house. I said, ‘Let’s get rid of this hallway. Let’s take that window

and move it down. Let’s take this window out.’”

“I went from ‘Let’s recover this love seat’ to [spending] a lot of

money,” she says, laughing.

“As I walked him th

the house, Mark sta

drawing things by h

Yaw recalls. “I look

at them, and they w

new plans for the h

I said, ‘Let’s get rid

this hallway. Let’s t

that window and mdown. Let’s take th

dow out.’”

The kitchen-dining

space (below) is

anchored by a table

that was designed by

Cravotta and built by

Yates. As is the case

with the rest of the

house, the furniture

and artwork in the

living room are all new.

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Austin Home90 Austin Home Summer 2016

What began as a simple upholstery job has evolved

into a changed home for the changed lives of those who

live there: Yaw, a former elementary school art teacher

for eight years, who has owned the house since 2012;

her husband of two years, Tennessee businessman

Karl Buckman; Yaw’s two granddaughters, Sofi and Ella

(now ages 8 and 7, respectively), who were adopted by

Yaw last year; and their two supersize dogs, Phinnegan

and Phoenix, who were b oth rescued from shelters.

The updates to t he home’s landscaping—which

was the first of the major projects to be initiated,in 2013—hints at the work on the inside. Formerly

a space filled with palm trees and a tropical feel,

the new backyard features plants that are native

to Texas, giving the space a natural look.

“Nelda wanted us to create a space that made

her feel comfortable and creative,” says Rodney

Stoutenger, president and lead designer at Native

Edge Landscape, which handled the project. “And

the previous tropical-like setting was not that for her.”

A heated, rectangular pool sees a lot of action, whether it’s the girls

doing flips into the water or Buckman swimmi ng laps, even in the winter.

The biggest change to the backyard, however, is the art studio. What

once was a termite-damaged, rodent-infested garage that was original

to the property has become a multipurpose space with two full beds

and one queen-size Murphy bed, a half bath, a sink and gobs of stor-

age, all in 297 square feet. Sliding doors that pocket and disappear

into the wall allow Yaw to practice her encaustic painting “in nature.”

“We were inspired by Nelda’s desire to have this indoor-outdoor

experience and do her artwork in the backyard,” says project architect

Brian Carlson, of McKin ney York Architects, which designed the studio,

“but still have the convenience of a bathroom, sink and art supplies.”

A tour of the overhauled interior provides no hints t hat the home

once was “a wreck” (Cravotta’s words) that had no flow and needed

to be renovated “badly” (Buckman’s). The house had two inefficient

bathrooms and one closet in the master bedroom that was woefully

inadequate after Buckman moved in. The second bedroom was not

ready to be shared by two elementary-school-age girls.

The space that was a

collection of various

things has been turned

into a sophisticated

listening area known

as Karl’s Corner. The

swiveling Minotti chair

is a popular spot for

the two girls.

“It was like a reality show

without cameras,” Cra-

votta recalls. “They were

so excited. The girls were

delighted. Nelda was de-

lighted. I think Karl may

have been in shock.”

Cra

loft

(to

bed

bec

Gir

we

Ya

ma

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Austin Home92 Austin Home Summer 2016

The remodel left virtually nothing untouched. Cravotta and

Risinger Homes put in a wall in the master bedroom that doubled

as a second closet. They gutted the central core of the house and

replaced the two bathrooms. They either touched up or replaced

the wood floors, kitchen cabinets, kitchen countertops, windows,

doors and lighting.

The family, who moved out during the project, first saw the new space

after a 10-week vacation, and the big reveal was worthy of an HGTV show.

“It was like a reality show without cameras,” Cravotta recalls. “They

were so excited. The girls were delighted. Nelda was delighted. I think

Karl may have been in shock.”

The living room, which sits just inside the front door, features

a circular brass Ochre light fixture. The adjacent dining room is

anchored by a table that was designed by Cravotta and made by

local furniture maker Michael Yates. For the sake of expediency,

Cravotta designed many of the pieces and had them made locally,

including the hutch, the shelving system in the music room and

the multifunctional loft bed in the girls’ bedroom.

To Cravotta, the area that has undergone the biggest makeover is the

room between the kitchen and the backyard. Prior to the renovation

it was a “catch-all room” and wasn’t well defined. Today, the space is

known as Karl’s Corner and has a Minotti chair and ottoman, high-

end turntable, boutique Japanese-made amp and speakers so that

Buckman can listen to his collection of vinyl records.

“The house feels like it’s more of a home now,” he says.

The project, which was completed in the summer 2015, left no detail

unattended. Every piece of furniture in the house is new, which means

Yaw’s old pieces were jettisoned one way or another.

That includes the 100 percent cotton velvet white love seat, which

now sits in the house of Yaw’s son, Kenny Haney, slipcovered and all.

The music room (left),

which has another

Cravotta creation in

the steel-and-wood

shelving system, is

designed as a play

area for So and Ella

while the art studio

can double as a guest

bedroom. F R O M L

E F T : R Y A N N

F O R D ; S T Y L E D

B Y

A D

A M F

O R T N E R

; B R I A N

M I H E A L S I C K

Cravotta Interiors - Austin Home / Summer 2016

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