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November 21, 2005
A DIY Home with Charm and Challenges
When you're in the middle of your own renovation challenges and feeling overwhelmed by the scale and expense of things, it's always comforting to see that other people are in up to their eyeballs as well. Actaully, Crystal and Walston Bobb-Semple have a much greater challenge than most, as they are trying to renovate their 4,000-square-foot, Civil War-era house on MacDonough Street in Bed Stuy by themselves over time while living in the house. This pure real estate porn, with details galore and friendly tour guides. We take our hats off to these guys for taking on the challenge. We can't imagine how long it's going to take though! Has anyone ever been inside this place? What's the rest of the block like?
Home with Charm and Challenges [NY Times]
Comments
i had read the article, but just saw the audio slide show... looks like a beautiful house with lots of potential. i love the lincrusta pattern... so cool. maybe they would be interested in documenting their renovations on brownstoner too...
Posted by: lc at November 21, 2005 9:36 AM
Good luck to them. I suspect doing it yourself is harder than anyone realizes. This reminds me of that couple renovating their Victorian mansion in NJ themselves. They're doing a beautiful job and I'm sure this couple will too.
Posted by: Anonymous at November 21, 2005 9:42 AM
The block is fantastic. This is right next door to the Akwaaba Mansion b&b and has won or been in the running for the Greenest Block in Brooklyn for several years. The front gardens are spectacular. The couple featured are really lovely as well, they own two shops on Lewis Avenue.
Posted by: Anonymous at November 21, 2005 9:58 AM
I feel their pain, but what a nice house!
Posted by: Shahn Andersen at November 21, 2005 10:11 AM
i've been inside the house right after they bought it. it's got great bones and floor plan. i love having double sides and it really looks like something from the south with the porch and somewhat of a yard. it's a very unique property. however, there isn't much in the way of original details that's salvageable. apppartenly the winter before they bought it the owner left the heat off and the radiator pipes froze and burst all over. lots of work ahead of them, but totally cool place.
the block itself is stellar. looking forward to seeing the progress.
Posted by: pietro at November 21, 2005 11:27 AM
Yes, I'm sure it will be a long and sometimes painful process, but I couldn't agree more with their philosophy of letting the house tell them what to do with it. And of course something that can only be done by living in it while you renovate and experiencing the house through all the seasons.
Posted by: samandjoeshow at November 21, 2005 5:42 PM
A great NYT feature -- especially loved the audio slide show. That Lincrusta pattern on the staircase is fabulous. While I agree it would be impossible to repair/match, perhaps Walston and Crystal could consider saving a piece of it and framing it as an artifact of the original pre-reno house. Good luck to them. It's a massive project but will eventually be a wonderful home. Btw, Brownstone Books is a very nice place and well worth a visit.
Posted by: Roz at November 21, 2005 6:29 PM
That's what we did with a patch of lincrusta. It wasn't practical to save all of it, so we kept some on the wall along the stairs from the parlor to basement as am archeological time capsule.
Posted by: Brownstoner at November 21, 2005 6:48 PM
The block is amazing, with some of the biggest and fanciest freestanding houses and biggest front yards in Bed Stuy. They also live down the street from a B&B. The two or three times I've been by the house in the last month, it didn't look like anyone was living there. Hope that's not the case.
Posted by: mopar at November 22, 2008 12:28 PM
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