Turning a 1928 house with ‘good bones’ into a forever home: – Winston-Salem Journal

It didn’t take long for the Winston-Salem resident with an affinity for old homes to convince her husband that the 1928 Colonial Revival she was smitten with was “on a great corner on a great street” with heaps of “potential.” . “

As with most—if not all—old houses, the Stanleys will learn that “dry basement” is a relative term in the real estate industry.

“The night our daughter was born — our first child — we had the worst flood in that basement ever,” Lindsay recalls. “My dad and Blake’s brother were here knee deep in water while I was giving birth, begging Blake not to leave me and go help them.”

Over the next few years, the Stanleys, still operating on a shoestring/newlywed budget, limited themselves to basic cosmetic updates while dreaming of remodeling in the future. Little by little, they tackled bigger projects like replacing pipes, installing central ventilation and, of course, waterproofing the basement.

With the birth of their second child, Lindsay says their home — “ready for renovation” from the start — was bursting at the seams. “It was just time,” she says.

She knew exactly who to turn to to make her dream house a reality.

One of the first things he did when he returned to Winston was join the Junior League, Lindsay says. Every spring she visited or volunteered on the JLWS Fine Spaces Tour, and there she discovered the interior design work of the talented Emily Taft.

“I loved the way Emily gave new life to these old homes in a modern way,” says Lindsey. Taft seamlessly blended old and new and captured what Lindsay describes as her ideal dream house.

However, by the time the Stanleys were ready to renovate, Taft had moved to Vero Beach, Florida.

“I just reached out and popped the question,” says Lindsey, who adds, “She knows Winston-Salem and she knows the history. She also lived in this neighborhood.

Taft’s design sensibility for mixing old with new was a perfect fit for a client who loved the character and flaws of her old home, but knew she didn’t want her new addition to feel like it was just tacked onto the back of her house.

When it comes to building the new over and into the old, Brent Adams of Adams Design Build is more than up to the task.

“Brent was a true knight in shining armor,” says Lindsey. “I really liked everything he brought to the table in the design of the kitchen and the addition.”

About the avid chef, Lindsey says she loves everything about her new kitchen.

“I like that I have room to move around without tripping over the dog,” she says. “Most of all, I like that every time I turn around while I’m cooking, I can see the kids.”

From a kitchen so small it looked like her kids were always waiting to be excused from the dinner table, to a much more open space that was clutter-free and inviting—”I love that it’s always clean”—Lindsay says dinnertime has become her favorite part of the day.

“We all sit down, say the blessing, eat and talk.”

It’s no surprise that Lindsay’s favorite holiday has always been Thanksgiving – getting the family together, cooking and sharing good food and watching football. This year, the Stanleys look forward to heading east to their Uncle Matt’s reclaimed 130-acre farm on the New River, where the tradition is to eat turkey surrounded by family and a herd of registered Texas Longhorns.

“I’ve already called next year,” says Lindsay. “Thanksgiving will be here at our house.”

And Christmas? Well, Lindsay recently overheard her kids talking the other day downstairs.

“My son asked my daughter, ‘Sister, where do you think we’re going to put our Christmas tree this year?’ My daughter replied, “The Christmas tree is always in the living room window – [Mom] I’m not going to move it… Christmas is all about tradition and you know mom loves tradition.”

Looking back, Lindsay says, COVID definitely threw the couple into a bind when it came to renovation plans, but it gave them time to consider what was really important.

Where will the family’s Christmas tree end up? Only time will tell. For now, the promise of new traditions in the Stanley household is the gift that keeps on giving – the gift of living in their new/old “forever home.”