Michael Huller Architects 1831 Washington Street Newton MA 02466 617-965-4618 rmdrdk@verizon.net
Listening
Collaborating
Creating
Michael Huller Architects
Newton MA
South End 1
Brookline 1
Our clients had recently purchased a Philadelphia-style two-family and desired to convert it into a conventional two-family. The idea was that they would live on the top two floors and their mother would occupy the first floor. They wanted a contemporary design for their own living space and a more traditional design for the mother’s. The concept we developed was to put a screened glass wall in the living room to create a separate sitting area large enough for a couch, a chair and a large screen television. This allowed us to have a more formal sitting area focused on the fireplace and an area for the kids to watch TV
This was our second collaboration with these clients. Previously we had renovated a townhouse in Beacon Hill. This project consisted of three floors in a South End townhouse. On the first and third floor we made subtle changes with the walls and door openings to create more closets, a larger master bathroom and rooms that allowed for better furniture layouts.
Our clients enjoy cooking and entertaining. The existing kitchen, however, was only large enough for one person to occupy at a time and had minimal counter space. Several brokers, who had seen dozens of renovations in the South End had suggested that they turn the dining room into a large kitchen and place a small breakfast table in the location of the existing kitchen. Our goal, on the other hand, was to design a large kitchen without eliminating the existing dining room or living room. I had the pleasure of seeing five people working in the new kitchen at one time, and the design maintained an area for a large dining room table and a comfortable seating area in the living room.
