Made Right Again
Huge cotton mill beams were cut, planed, and sculpted to enhance the Craftsman motif of this Kirkwood home, restored after a 2004 fire

By BECKY STEIN, photos by Becky Stein
Published on: 05/10/09

For more pictures of and information about this house, visit our virtual tour.

Wendy Strassner bought her home in Kirkwood last year knowing it had burned a few years back. But she learned quite by accident who made the 100-year-old bungalow right again.

One day, a friend was extolling a company, Laughing Sun Renovations, that did nice work in the Kirkwood area. When researching the company online, Strassner, an attorney, was happily surprised to see her house featured on its Web site. She then contacted it to get the story of the work done on the home.

The house features salvaged antique oak floors, heart of pine millwork, antique six panel doors and hardware and used historic fir reproduction windows.

Wendy Strassner's home in Kirkwood was restored in 2004 after a fire damaged half of the house. She bought it a year ago and found the restoration company by accident. While talking about the Kirkwood area a friend mentioned a restoration company, Laughing Sun Renovations, that did great work on homes in her neighborhood. When researching the company online, she was happy to see her home featured on their Web site and contacted them to get the story of the work done on the home.		The living room and the entire home is antique heart pine or antique oak. The window and door millwork, picture molding, crown molding, and six panel doors are all salvaged heart of pine from other old houses. The masonry fireplace was stripped of its paint layers and the over-mantel was restored and enhanced using layers of vintage moldings.
	A stained glass Phoenix was custom designed and installed in the attic to relay the resurrection of the home.
The bungalow has one-of-a-kind heavy, custom ceiling millwork designed for drama and uniqueness. Huge cotton mill beams were cut, planed, and sculpted to enhance the Craftsman motif.	Detailed view of the custom ceiling millwork which enhance the Craftsman motif and inject a hint of California's Greene Brothers into Kirkwood architecture.	The hallway's original floors, scorched by fire, have been patched with antique oak.
Wendy loves to hang out in the kitchen and entertain guests. This kitchen features light green walls, burnished cherry cabinetry with heavy crown, under counter lighting, stainless steel appliances, a wine chiller, a huge separate storage pantry, dark granite counters and a mobile island. A restored heart pine French door leads to the backyard.	One of Wendy's favorite rooms, the dining room has a brick chimney exposed for texture and color and a rare oak colonnade from Ohio with flush inset leaded glass doors.	The front bedroom has been turned into a home office and has "new" antique oak floors, salvaged from homes in Buckhead marked for demolition. This was the room the fire had started in with a candle being knocked over.
The master bedroom is complimented with antique furniture handed down from Wendy's grandmother.	In the master bath, the medicine cabinet was crafted from cotton mill beams and built into the walls, fitted with beveled matching mirrors and antique style clasps. The shower has double shower heads and a frameless shower door. The toilet is in a separate water closet.	French doors compliment the master bedroom addition to the back of the home.
The second bedroom has been turned into a sitting room. The oak floors were completely restored and every door and piece of molding restored or replaced. This room shares a Jack and Jill bathroom with the third bedroom.	The focal point of this Jack and Jill bathroom is the jewel-like stained glass window.	The bed in the third bedroom comes from the Amish country in Pennsylvania. Wendy inherited it from her grandmother.
The front porch and the vintage Craftsman front door. This home will be in the 2009 Kirkwood Tour of Homes.	The guest half bath showcases a custom designed white Carrera marble sink suspended by black cast iron Victorian brackets.	Wendy likes to spend her free time doing volunteer work in Haiti. A picture taken of her conducting an economic development survey in St. Pierre , Haiti hangs in the home office.

email: kara@laughingsun.com