{"id":901365,"date":"2026-10-31T19:06:18","date_gmt":"2026-10-31T19:06:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/901365\/"},"modified":"2026-10-31T19:06:18","modified_gmt":"2026-10-31T19:06:18","slug":"before-after-how-an-artist-and-architect-couple-turned-the-worst-house-on-the-block-into-their-dream-home","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/901365\/","title":{"rendered":"Before & After: How an Artist and Architect Couple Turned the \u201cWorst House\u201d on the Block Into Their Dream Home"},"content":{"rendered":"

Before they stepped foot inside the crumbling brownstone on a landmark block in Brooklyn\u2019s Boerum Hill, artist Katherine Keltner<\/a> and architect Douglas Gauthier<\/a> had toured 30 homes and browsed more than 200 online. Neither of them expected to become instantly captivated by the 1869 Italianate townhouse, which was being sold in a stately yet dilapidated condition, having once served as a single-room occupancy (SRO) residence. But it happened nonetheless.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis was the first one that had the bones that Katherine wanted,\u201d recalls Gauthier, who runs the firm GAuthier Architects<\/a>. \u201cIt follows the classic real estate rule of buying the worst house on the best block.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ModernAmy Barkow<\/p>\n

Opal glass pendants from Lyfa hang in the kitchen extension, which also features Brutalist-style wooden dining stools.<\/p>\n

The strategy paid off: Once their offer was accepted, the couple embarked on an 18-month-long odyssey that saw them jump through a series of hoops (preservationists; concerned neighbors; skeptical engineers) to completely transform the moldering pile into a creative haven for them to live, work, and raise their daughter.<\/p>\n

A true joint-effort, Gauthier oversaw a modest two-story rear expansion and structural alterations, while Keltner took charge of spatial arrangements as well as color, pattern, texture, and artwork\u2014much of it her own.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt follows the classic real estate rule of buying the worst house on the best block.\u201d \u2014Douglas Gauthier<\/p>\n

Once deteriorating, the interiors now have an easy elegance, with plaster walls, arched passageways, and curved corners that give the soaring ceilings an intimate feel. Pink takes an unexpected starring role, appearing throughout the parlor floor and also in the zellige-clad primary bath, but other adventurous hues like mint green and crimson also feature prominently. Capping it off is a plywood-sheathed office for Gauthier\u2019s practice, allowing the family retreat to double as a place of creative inspiration.<\/p>\n

Below, Keltner and Gauthier share their biggest lessons (and some \u201cbefore\u201d pictures) from the painstaking passion project.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t Let a Gut Reno Scare You Off\"AbandonedCourtesy of GAuthier Architects<\/p>\n

The old kitchen had dated appliances, peeling paint, and a view into an overgrown garden.<\/p>\n

When the townhouse was converted to an SRO, it had been chopped up into at least 13 units and two kitchens, and few of the original decorative elements were still intact. A couple had bought it in the 1960s and made it a family home again and added an art gallery space. But by 2021, when Keltner and Gauthier first saw it, the house was in a state of severe neglect, with peeling paint, crumbling floors, ancient appliances\u2014not to mention a 1,500-pound printing press in the studio (that the couple later preserved). Yet, Keltner and Gauthier saw an opportunity, not to recreate the past, but rather forge their own set of rules.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe house wasn\u2019t burdened with pristine historic details\u2014our moldings were trashed,\u201d says Gauthier. \u201cThere were a few things that we kept and celebrated, but to me, it was like a tabula rasa. We can just go in and make it ours.\u201d Katherine agreed: \u201cI feel like sometimes having to preserve things is more expensive than just starting clean,\u201d she says. \u201cAnd so I thought that was an advantage for us.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ModernAmy Barkow<\/p>\n

In the living area, Gauthier installed an elliptical ceiling light installation that casts its glow upwards. The chairs are upholstered in a sangria fabric from Knoll. The installation on the right is by Keltner, while a green Albert Weaver canvas hangs in the stairwell.<\/p>\n

Not having to be too precious with ornamentation allowed the couple to make a bold statement about crown moldings, eschewing tradition and installing curving corners and coved ceilings instead. Nowhere does the effect have more impact than in the parlor, where Gauthier devised a ceiling light in the shape of a giant oval that casts light upward rather than down. \u201cI really like indirect lighting,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\"StaircaseCourtesy of GAuthier Architects<\/p>\n

The stair railing was one of the few preserved elements.<\/p>\n

Crafted out of laser-cut plywood, the elliptical fixture is an abstracted homage to the ceiling medallions found in neighboring historic brownstones. \u201cSome of them are incredibly ornate and beautiful, but they don’t really have any use\u2014they\u2019re just decoration,\u201d says Gauthier. \u201cAdding ambient lighting to the living space takes that historical reference in pocket.\u201d<\/p>\n

Use Constraints as Opportunity \"ModernAmy Barkow<\/p>\n

The rear addition holds the kitchen extension and opens to a newly built terrace.<\/p>\n

Once they were through the process of changing the structure\u2019s zoning from an SRO to a single-family home, Gauthier and Keltner had to contend with its landmarked status, meaning a series of approvals were required for any additions or exterior modifications.<\/p>\n

The couple originally planned to construct a three-story extension in the back, but they ended up compromising on two floors. This expansion includes a bump-out for the parlor floor\u2019s kitchen, leading to a rear deck that steps down to the garden. On top, a private terrace connects to the primary bath. \u201cInstead of having that third story, we now have a deck off of our primary suite,\u201d says Keltner. \u201cIt\u2019s kind of amazing,\u201d adds Gauthier.<\/p>\n

Splurge on Radiant Heat\"EmptyCourtesy of GAuthier Architects<\/p>\n

Though both individually landmarked and set in a historic district, the 1869 Italianate townhouse was in neglected condition.<\/p>\n

One decision the couple wrestled with mightily was whether to replace the original, 150-year-old pine flooring with ebony-stained white oak. \u201cThe floors were part of the reason we liked the house so much,\u201d says Gauthier. But their contractor talked them out of keeping them. \u201cIt\u2019s a lot of extra work for them,\u201d says Keltner. \u201cThey have to take it up, save it, put something else down, and then put it back. I think we reached a point in time and money where we were like, Okay, fine.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"SunlitAmy Barkow<\/p>\n

A vignette in the living room features a game table bought at auction and Biedermeier chairs. Art by Rosemary Taylor.<\/p>\n

Another flooring regret was not adding underfoot heating. \u201cI was pushing the mechanical engineers to do radiant heating and radiant cooling,\u201d says Gauthier. \u201cRadiant heat is really lovely\u2014you have warmth under your feet all the time.\u201d But the mechanics behind the system proved complicated and technically redundant, as the home was already configured with a forced-air HVAC system.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn doing research and other projects, it\u2019s clear that the cost-to-pleasure ratio would have been worth it,\u201d he says now. \u201cWe regret not putting the warm floors in.\u201d<\/p>\n

Invest in Quality Windows \"CozyAmy Barkow<\/p>\n

Bathed in crimson hues and illuminated by skylight, the \u201cRed Room\u201d is primarily used for watching movies and reading.<\/p>\n

While windows might sometimes be an afterthought, Keltner and Gauthier have advice: Go with triple-glazed. \u201cWindows provide heat and cool insulation as well as security,\u201d explains Keltner. \u201cAnd they can define both the outside and the inside of a space.\u201d The couple went with triple-glazed windows from Austrian-based firm Bewiso that come pre-wired for easy connection to alarm systems. \u201cThey\u2019re almost like hurricane windows,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can’t break through three panes of glass,\u201d says Gauthier. Due to the building\u2019s landmark status, they had to use historic-style windows on the front facade. \u201cWe were able to get these old-fashioned type of windows that when you close them, they feel like you’re closing a Mercedes,\u201d says Gauthier. \u201cThey completely silence the outdoors.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hire the Best Contractor You Can Afford\"StylishAmy Barkow<\/p>\n

Inspired by Turkish hammams, the primary bath is sheathed in coral-toned zellige tiles from cl\u00e9.<\/p>\n

The final piece of advice is perhaps the most crucial: \u201cHire the best contractor you can afford,\u201d says Gauthier.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe typical advice is to get a few bids and throw out the lowest and the highest,\u201d says Keltner. \u201cPeople usually take the second lowest.\u201d However, that could be the determining factor between an on-time project and one that drags. \u201cYou\u2019ll end up paying the difference both in money and time,\u201d she says. \u201cIt\u2019s often hard for people to bite the bullet and go with the slightly higher price, but it really pays off.\u201d<\/p>\n

Before & After in Boerum Hill\"InteriorOpen Gallery\"\"\"Headshot<\/p>\n

Geoffrey Montes is an associate editor at ELLE Decor with a serious love for all things real estate and design. Before that, he worked at Architectural Digest, Galerie, and Preservation magazines, covering everything from jaw-dropping listings to world-famous architects and design events like Salone del Mobile and Homo Faber.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Before they stepped foot inside the crumbling brownstone on a landmark block in Brooklyn\u2019s Boerum Hill, artist Katherine…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":901366,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[56],"tags":[228,226,227,320380,377484,6837,377483,229,874,88,265529,873,260683,377482,316394,212754],"class_list":["post-901365","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-arts-and-design","tag-arts","tag-arts-and-design","tag-artsanddesign","tag-collection-elle-decor-premium","tag-collection-elle-decors-guide-to-renovations","tag-content-type-default","tag-contentid-7a0c8051-732c-46ce-9e22-fc2a5e679471","tag-design","tag-displaytype-standard-article","tag-entertainment","tag-issyndicated-false","tag-locale-us","tag-read_time-8","tag-shorttitle-a-former-sro-becomes-a-brooklyn-dream-home","tag-sponsored-false","tag-subsection-house-tours"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/901365","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=901365"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/901365\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/901366"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=901365"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=901365"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=901365"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}