Exciting news! Chuck’s C W Quinn Home showroom is expanding to a new location just 400 feet away from the previous location at 142 Cross Street. The new space has 4300 square feet, more than twice the size of the previous showroom. He will open on September 2 with an expanded collection of tile, along with his existing lines of cabinets, countertops and hardware.
We’ll soon have cool photos of the new space, which has a fantastic industrial vibe with tons of natural light.
It’s fun to look at old photos of our house, before it was renovated. Here’s the space that’s now our dining room on December 6, 2012. Yes, this used to be a place where people cooked food. Gee, I have no idea why the house fell out of escrow twice before we came along. No, not scary at all…
We closed on December 31, 2012, and started work immediately. Here it is on February 6, after demolition and all-new plumbing and wiring.
There was nothing salvageable, including the old linoleum floor, which Chuck ripped up with the help of a friend’s BFT (otherwise known as the Big F****** Tool), a giant iron pry bar that looks like it was passed down over generations since the Viking era.
By February 8, new oak hardwood was down, matching original 1955 hardwood throughout the rest of the house.
On February 26, new cabinets went in, followed by a beverage fridge.
By March 9, we were moved in, but still hadn’t put away all of our stuff. The cabinets were still missing the quartz countertop.
And here is the finished product, completed in June 2013! It was a ton of work, but we love our dining room.
I love our front porch. Surprisingly, it’s one of the most private areas of our house. It’s set back from the façade, points directly toward the ocean, and doesn’t face any of our neighbors’ houses.
Chuck completely remade the porch into an outdoor room with sleek tile and landscaping. 
Here’s what it looked like when we bought the house. Chuck painted the vintage wrought iron black to emphasize this classic mid-century design element.
On warm nights it’s fantastic to sit outside and watch the city lights.
It’s been a while since I’ve posted. The interior is done, and we’re finishing up a few projects on the outside. Here’s our front raised planter bed! It’s built from Ipe, the same sustainable hardwood featured in our back deck. We’re letting it weather naturally, the striations and mottled colors becoming a design element. Our drought-tolerant lavender plants will be happy with all the sun, and the new drip irrigation system supplies each plant directly, which is really important in our semi-arid climate. The brown lawn will soon be replaced with native plants that require minimal watering and will look great.
Our new planter replaces a brick border that was falling down and came apart easily.
The asymmetrical step down by the chimney was necessary because of our yard’s slope, and we turned it into a design opportunity.
The off-center placement adds a 21st century touch to a 1950s house. Stay tuned for more yard work!
930 Stratford 