Crystal DeCastro Knapik

A senior project designer at Vocon, Crystal DeCastro Knapik lends her combined passion for sustainability and technology to many of the firm’s most transformational projects. She has collective experience in award-winning luxury residential, adaptive reuse and renovation, commercial, mixed-use residential and health care projects. She has been influential in developing office-wide sustainable initiatives, both through design and in practice. Her affinity for the digital arts is reflected in her work at Vocon and has led her to become a firm leader and mentor in design technologies.

Stephen M. Schill

With more than 25 years of experience, Stephen M. Schill of Schill Architecture, LLC, is a preeminent architect in northeast Ohio. Schill’s residential projects have a strong influence from his studies of architecture at Villa Schifanoia in Florence, Italy, where he developed his understanding of scale, proportion and details. Since Schill Architecture was established in 1991, Schill has designed luxury multimillion-dollar lakefront and estate homes throughout northern Ohio. His work has been featured in several regional publications.

Stephanie Schill Hayden

A graduate of Miami University and Kent State University, Stephanie Schill Hayden is a registered architect at Schill Architecture and a designer at House of L Interior Design. While she has known she wanted to be an architect in the family business since she was a girl, she appreciates the opportunity to work collectively on shared projects between both luxury residential firms. By completing both the architectural and interior drawings for residential projects, Schill Hayden can ensure the design intent is followed through from the foundation to the millwork details.

Katie Savakis

A project designer at Vocon, Katie Savakis plans and designs environments that facilitate inspiration, enhance the end user experience and streamline functions. She has collective experience in luxury residential, multi-family residential, hospitality and corporate interiors. Her commitment and experience in all project phases guide each successful assignment. Fresh ideas and innovative approach are coupled with experience in diverse environments, enabling Savakis to provide effective design solutions for a variety of project types.

Read all of the Best of Design Winners.

PHOTOS BY NORA BEST PHOTOGRAPHY

When you step into the airy bathroom of Infinity Custom Homes’ Napa model in Mars, you can almost feel a soft ocean breeze drifting in from the window and hear gentle ocean waves in the distance.

The theme transports you away from Pittsburgh to a coastal getaway — and that’s exactly the point.

Infinity Custom Homes designer Jill Pearsall says she prioritized color and texture to capture the bathroom’s beachy vibes, selecting off-white floor tile to emulate sand and using a warmer wood tone to echo a relaxing day spent at the sea.

The staples used to create the space include “warm greige tones, creamy off-whites, and of course, beautiful blues, layered with jute, rattan and organic elements,” she says.

The combination was a hit with this year’s Best of Design judges, who named it their Best New Bathroom for 2024. Admiring the contrast between the natural wood tones of the vanity and the bright blue walls, judges say the inviting color palette provides a very welcome change to the gray interiors and exteriors they’ve grown accustomed to seeing in many homes.

“I think it’s really warm and inviting,” says judge Katie Savakis, a project designer with Vocon in Cleveland. “I hate going into a cold bathroom.”

As a veteran designer for Infinity who is no stranger to tackling larger bathrooms, Pearsall says she used a single tile line to keep the space cohesive and provide flow to the room. The blossomed-patterned tile along the shower and bathtub wall adds a whimsical touch.

“I fell in love with this Marazzi tile the moment I saw it,” Pearsall says. “[It adds] a playful talking point to this tranquil space.”

The judges and Pearsall agreed the standout tile choices bring the room together.

“Choosing one or two moments to add a ‘pop’ adds interest and elevates the space to keep it on trend without sacrificing timeless luxury,” Pearsall adds.

Read more Best of Design Winners 2024.

VENDORS

Architectural Design: Paul Eichler

Interior Design: Jill Pearsall

General Contractor: Infinity Custom Homes

Plumbing Ferguson: Supply, Kohler

Cabinetry & Hardware: ProSource of Pittsburgh

Appliances: Don’s Appliances 

Fixtures: Ferguson / build 

Lighting: Ferguson / build (Maxim — Bauhaus in this bathroom) 

Flooring: Paracca 

Countertops: Armina (Hanstone — Tofino in this bathroom) 

Windows and Doors: 84 Lumber 

Furnishings: Restoration Hardware / Pottery Barn / Wayfair

Tile: Paracca (Marazzi)

To say the master bathroom in Emily and Christian Moore’s home in Mt. Lebanon wasn’t functional is an understatement.

“The garden tub didn’t even really work; it leaked,” Emily says. “We had a cat’s litter box in it.”

The flooring was an outdated tile, the shower was tiny and the bulky tub also gave off a very 1990s vibe. Updating it was a priority, so Emily enlisted the help of Pittsburgh-based Studio S. Interior Design owner Laura Kostanich, whom she followed on Instagram and whose aesthetic resonated with her.

BEFORE THE RENOVATION.

“The main suite can be something that people think about last,” Kostanich says, “but [the Moores] knew it’s kind of like where they started and ended their day, so they wanted to focus on that and make their bathroom work for what they needed.”

Frampton Remodeling removed the tub and created an arched-entry double shower complemented by striking black tile; the former shower space also was converted into a closet. Adding a vintage touch is a creamy hutch piece with dentil crown detail that Kostanich salvaged from an old fireplace surround in Point Breeze.

Deciding on a metallic faucet, Emily also found a modern, European-style oak cabinet with pewter hardware for the vanity; Kostanich brought it all together with pewter mirrors, picture lights and brass fixtures.

“It’s a really great mixture of materials,” Kostanich says.

There’s also a custom cutout detail in the Carrara backsplash for brass push-button switches, which Emily requested after staying in a hotel in Madrid that had them.

Best of Design judges appreciated the combination of modernity and comfort, as well as the classic checkered tile flooring.

“I love how timeless it is,” says Katie Savakis, a project designer at Vocon in Cleveland. “It’s neutral colors, but the space has so much character and warmth to it. It’s not like walking into a stark white bathroom.”

Emily says Kostanich pulled off her vision perfectly.

“It feels like a spa or a hotel,” Emily says. “I love doing my makeup, doing my hair, and I feel like if we didn’t do it then we would have put it off.”

Read more Best of Design Winners 2024.

VENDORS

Interior Design: Studio S. Interior Design

General Contractor: Frampton Remodeling 

Fixtures: House of Rohl

Countertops: Primo Marble & Granite

Tile: Bedrosians Tile & Stone

Salvaged Furniture: FarmHowz

Vanity: Restoration Hardware

PHOTOS BY DAN STARTA

Theresa and Dan Starta had a clear dream to blur the line between the indoors and outdoors when they discovered 10 acres of forest-filled land in Adams on which they could build their dream home.

After a decade of living in Dubai — plus five years spent in Shanghai on China’s central coast — the couple returned to Pittsburgh in 2020 with plenty of perspective to add from their travels. They hired Kaclik Builders to construct a timeless yet modern home, accented with diverse touches such as Chinese doors and TerraCotta sculptures.

“Through various outdoor spaces, we wanted to evoke fond memories of places we had traveled to and countries we had lived in and to maintain those connections with our home in Pittsburgh,” the couple wrote in an email.

Their experiences also inspired their serene outdoor space, which they hoped would feel like a resort for family and friends. That goal was achieved, according to this year’s Best of Design judges, who named it their Best Outdoor Space for 2024.

Featuring three covered verandas, the lush outdoor space designed by Hook Design Group and Ricupero Inc. has various sitting and entertainment areas where guests can socialize or relax; the indoor living spaces open to outdoor entertaining, while large windows and attached verandas serve to integrate the areas. There’s also a spacious balcony off of the primary bedroom as well as a tennis court on the property.

While the couple says they can’t pick a favorite among the outdoor seating vignettes, Dan adds there are areas to accommodate large and small groups.

“There’s enough space in the space,” he says.

Arabic lanterns, a hanging chair and a hanging daybed add to the vacation-like vibes, as does the home’s natural wooded backdrop of mature trees that change with the seasons.

“I like how they used foliage to create visual walls around the space,” says judge Stephanie Schill Hayden, an architect at Schill Architecture and a designer at House of L Interior Design in Cleveland. “It almost feels like a courtyard in a way.”

The outdoor space also includes a full kitchen and dining area with cabinetry and stone countertops that resemble a traditional indoor dining space.

“We wanted it to be where you could kind of just do everything outside,” Theresa says. “There’s the sink, there’s an ice maker, there’s refrigerators.”

Taking center stage is a pool with an integrated sundeck and hot tub designed by Lesko Contracting. Fountains and a waterfall feature that is part of a sleek firepit add to the calming ambiance, as does a cozy fireplace. Porcelain tiles and natural stone textures surround the space for a smooth transition to the greenery.

“I like that they used one paver but in different sizes,” says judge Katie Savakis, a project designer at Vocon in Cleveland. “I think going with that light stone really allows nature and the pool to speak; it doesn’t take away from it.”

The walking paths are blended with family heirloom plants, as well as shrubs and potted plants. The couple also was careful to make sure the pool was oriented to be in the sun as much as possible during Pittsburgh’s warmer months.

“Dan had studied the sun charts and mapped out the movement of the sun at different times of the year,” Theresa says.

Read more Best of Design Winners 2024.

VENDORS

Home Construction: Kaclik Builders

Pool: Lesko Contracting

Landscape Design: Hook Design Group

Landscaping, Hardscape, Fire Feature and Tile Install: Ricupero Inc

Tile and Brick: PF Cook Brick Company

TV and Sound: Theater Xtreme

Appliances: Don’s Appliances

Cabinetry: National Woodwork & Danver Outdoor Kitchens

Countertop: Primo Marble & Granite

Plumbing: LeDonne Plumbing & Contracting

Electric: Ram Electric

BEFORE RENOVATION

When Dr. Kelly Close bought her Sewickley home in 2020, she knew it would need a major renovation to work for their family. At the time, the house was a duplex, but it was once a single-family residence.

Before everything was shuffled around to create two units, the building also had an expansive front porch.

“I wanted to bring it back to some of its historical character,” Close says. “My goal was to create a home for entertaining, also.”

To accomplish this, Close enlisted the help of Pittsburgh-based Wildman Chalmers Design to reconfigure most of the home — both inside and out.

“Kelly knew what she wanted, but she also gave us the freedom to present to her a solution, which was wonderful,” says architect Heather Wildman, lead designer and co-founder of Wildman Chalmers.

PHOTOS BY TOM O’CONNOR

Praising the expansive, historically accurate overhaul that ensued, judges for this year’s Best of Design contest named the property on Broad Street their Best Renovated Home for 2024.

“The exterior work really elevated the appearance of the home,” says judge Stephanie Schill Hayden, architect at Schill Architecture and a designer at House of L Interior Design in Cleveland.

The Design

This wasn’t Close’s first time undertaking a big project.

“I had done two major renovations on other houses in the recent past, so I knew what worked and what did not,” she says.

With two teenagers at home, she wanted to create space for their hangouts. Beyond remaking the home for single-family use, Wildman designed an addition, a two-story carriage house, and revamped the backyard to include an inground limestone hot tub and saltwater pool.

Working with Sewickley’s Historic Review Commission, Wildman says the design needed to serve two purposes; it needed to blend into the village’s classic neighborhood layout while also including Close’s desire for backyard entertainment.

Today, the home’s newly recentered front door and reconstructed front porch fit right into Sewickley’s traditional architecture, while the surprising oasis in the backyard is barely visible from Broad Street.

“Business in the front, party in the back,” is how Wildman describes it with a laugh.

The Renovation

In the main house, Wildman and her team redesigned the floorplan, changed the configuration of the staircase and constructed a two-story addition; the former second-floor kitchen also became the primary suite. Close’s daughters added their own input for their bedrooms, with one choosing a gas fireplace and the other opting for a steam shower.

“My daughters chose one special feature for their bedrooms to make them feel more at home,” Close says.

For the finish work, Close hired Scott F. Fetterolf Builders, a Sewickley-based construction company. Having had contractor issues in the past, Close says she values how well Wildman and Fetterolf tag-teamed the renovation.

“Heather and Scott worked together seamlessly,” Close says. “Scott was on site almost every day, as were his main staff, such as Joe and Chris. They did an amazing job.”

In the newly imagined kitchen, Close worked with Fetterolf and his team to select classic finishes that were appropriate for the age of the home but still managed to feel fresh and modern. White cabinets and light quartz countertops make the space bright, while the addition of crown molding helped the addition match the rest of the home.

Close says her family did not enjoy the open-concept layout in a house they previously resided in, so for this home, they wanted more delineations. While the kitchen and dining room are one space, the family room is separated by a coffee bar and pantry.

“Previously, my children would be trying to do homework or watch movies while I cooked, blended and grilled in the kitchen, and the noise between the two was distracting,” says Close.

The Outdoor Space

While the main house underwent a dramatic transformation, the backyard truly kicks the property up a notch. Replacing a garage that was something of an eyesore, the new carriage house fits right into the neighborhood. The first level of the new structure is for parking, but the second level is made for parties. Ping-pong, foosball and air hockey tables all make it the perfect gathering space for Close’s daughters’ friends.

The garage is connected to the house via a breezeway. Wildman adds that homeowners often love an attached garage for convenience, but detaching the garage brings more light into a home.

“The breezeway is a nice compromise,” she says.

No fan of icy walkways, Close also splurged on heated sidewalks.

“I hate shoveling snow, so all of my sidewalks, steps and the first 20 feet of the driveway are heated with electrical cables controlled by a weather app,” she says. “It was worth every penny and, surprisingly, is not very expensive to install or run.”

A back porch now connects the expanded kitchen to the backyard; the planning was equally careful there. A fireplace not only provides heat during colder months, but was also positioned for privacy.

“The fireplace is a great focal point, because while the yard is pretty, from the porch you’re looking at the driveway and the neighbors beyond, so it provides a buffer,” says Wildman.

The porch includes a dining area, grill and pizza oven for entertaining. Exterior steps to the basement means backyard guests can access the new theater and shuffleboard room that were created below the addition without dripping water through the main house from the pool.

Calling it a “holistic renovation,” Best of Design judges appreciated that the renovation’s design respected the already-established architecture of the town. They also admired the home’s thoughtful details, such as the window surround and half-round gutters, which upgraded the home — and added up to big luxury.

“I like that even with the renovation, it still looks like a historical home. It’s not like they tore it down and put something completely modern in this charming area,” says judge Crystal DeCastro Knapik, a senior project designer at Vocon.

The judges also complimented the home’s substantial new front porch, especially with the property being located on one of Sewickley’s main streets.

“It’s really nice they’ll have that front porch to sit on with different conversation areas set up. It’s like another room in the home,” says judge Schill Hayden.

Now that the family is living in their new space, Close has no regrets about taking on such a large project.

“I love every square inch. There is nothing that I would change,” she says. “Every day I come home, and it is like being on vacation.”

Read more Best of Design Winners.

VENDORS

​​Architecture: Wildman Chalmers Design

Contractor: Scott Fetterolf

Doors & Windows: Marvin Windows and Doors

Front Door: Jeld-Wen

Custom Rear Porch Door: Rogue Valley Door

Exterior Material: TruExterior Polyash Siding & Trim

Heated Sidewalk and Driveway System: Amante Radiant Supply

Realtor: Kathe Barge, Piatt Sotheby’s International Realty Sewickley

Architect Robert Gaskill has built homes the more traditional way, moving earth until he’s left with a level plot of land upon which to lay the foundation.

But when he has the opportunity to preserve the natural land, he takes it, working within the contours and confines of the property so that the house is molded to the grounds.

“I’ve always looked at challenges as the catalyst for creativity,” Gaskill says. “I think it’s the optimum design approach — to let the elements influence what the house wants to be.”

That’s just what he did with the 4,000-square-foot modern sanctuary he built on a former cattle farm in Sewickley. And it is what wowed the judges in this year’s Best of Design contest; they named Gaskill’s creation the winner of two categories: Best New Home and Best New Kitchen.

I love how the house integrates so nicely with the landscape,” says judge Crystal DeCastro Knapik, senior project designer at Vocon. “Because it’s on a hillside, the front of the house looks like it’s only a single story, but the back of the house shows that it’s almost three stories.”

It’s Gaskill’s second victory in the Best New Home category; he won in 2020 with the modern green home he built for his family in Butler County. Coincidentally, the design work for both structures happened simultaneously and across several years, thanks to pandemic-related delays.

Despite the extended timeline, the owners of this year’s winning design (who have asked to remain anonymous) couldn’t be happier with the result. They hail from a rural town in upstate New York, where nature and tranquility prevail, and they longed to replicate that feeling in the Pittsburgh suburbs.

Gaskill’s design delivered everything they were asking for.

“When design is executed well, you can have these effects that are pretty powerful,” Gaskill says.

Even a cursory, drive-by glance at the home gives a hint of the serenity within. It’s set back from the road on a secluded, 6-acre stretch of rolling hills and trees and began its design life with an unusual piece of inspiration — a concrete retaining wall that runs the length of the property. It was both necessary to maintain the prevailing topography and the ideal foundation for a black-and-gray exterior motif.

Because it is built directly into a hillside, from the front, the house appears to be an angular, single-story structure, clad in concrete, black metal and shou sugi ban siding — wood treated and preserved through a traditional Japanese torching process — and topped with a black metal roof.

The view from the back proves the deceit of the front. Multiple banks of black-framed windows rise for two stories, from ground level to roof height, and stretch 50 feet across, allowing ample sunlight to stream in and offering sweeping views of the tree-scaped property to those looking out.

But inside is where Gaskill’s architectural prowess truly shines.

The clients’ previous home in Mt. Lebanon was a traditional Pittsburgh layout with small, compartmentalized rooms and low ceilings, so an airy interior — finished with a monochromatic, minimalist aesthetic and natural materials — was at the top of their wish list for their new home.

The main floor’s living space is completely open and flanked on two sides by floor-to-ceiling windows, strategically positioned to be eye-level with the tree canopy. Wide-plank white oak floors and tobacco-stained wood ceilings flow throughout the space with individual rooms delineated only by clever design, including lighting, furniture and steps.

“I like how they blended the interiors with the exteriors,” says Katie Savakis, a project designer at Vocon in Cleveland. “I feel like so many times you walk into a house and you would never expect the inside based on what the outside looks like. This is all really seamless and cohesive.”

According to the judges (and, also, to the homeowners), the kitchen is a masterpiece, anchored by a sculptural, statement-making concrete island. The island, along with a concrete backsplash, recalls the retaining wall and offers cohesion between the interior and exterior. Streamlined JennAir appliances and a metal stove hood — with a patina oil finish — maintain the modern aesthetic without overpowering the flat-front cabinetry.

The adjoining dining room is large enough for a table that seats eight and boasts the home’s dominant lighting fixture — a single swoop of white light made from a malleable strip of LEDs and wrapped around a metal frame. Gaskill calls it delicate enough to nearly disappear in daylight, but “provocative” enough to serve as a conversation starter and design eye candy when lit at night.

Two steps down from the dining room is the sunken great room where another of the home’s many concrete features, this one a wall housing the television and a built-in fireplace, stands opposite a soft gray sectional sofa and marble coffee table.

An expansive pantry, the primary suite, a guest suite, a bunk room and a mud room finish off the main floor of the home. The bottom floor features another guest room, a gym, an open office and a full bath. It’s all warmed with radiant heat and cooled, in part, by the expanse of windows, which open in the direction of prevailing winds.

If all those features weren’t enough, Gaskill ensured the homeowners would never need to take another vacation by adding a luxurious outdoor space off the great room. It’s one of the homeowner’s favorite areas, with a built-in grill, four oversized chairs, a fire pit, a pizza oven and — wait for it — a four-season plunge pool.

“Apparently, they used to travel a lot,” Gaskill says with a chuckle. “They travel a lot less now.”

Read more Best of Design Winners.

VENDORS

Architect / Interior Design: Gaskill Architecture

General Contractor: R.A. Cress Builder LLC

Site Contractor: W.M. Aiken & Son Excavating

Electrician: Nelmark Electric

Plumber: WE Mertz Plumbing LLC

HVAC: Bolster-DeHart Inc.

Septic: Ron Moretti

Cabinetry / Hardware: Hollow Creek Kitchens

Glass: Rex Glass & Mirror

Tile: Mushinsky Tile LLC

Concrete Countertops: Hoadley Artisan Surfaces

Well: Meinert Well Drilling

Shou Sugi Ban Siding: Pioneer Millworks

Blinds/Shades: Caldwell’s Windoware, Inc.

Metalwork: Joe Ehrenberger

Pool: Aqua Pool Inc.

Appliances: Don’s Appliances

Windows & Doors: Anderson

Art / Sculpture: Seth Clark

Landscaping: Gargiulo Landscape

Flooring: Neil Thompson

PHOTOS BY STUDIO LITHE

Pittsburgh’s historical homes are brimming with charm and detail — but they sometimes lack the features that work for today’s families. For one Shadyside couple, the choppy layout of their 1920s-era, Tudor-style home meant that whoever was cooking was cut off from the fun.

“Everyone would be in the den laughing and giggling, and I’d be prepping in the kitchen,” says the wife, who requested anonymity along with her husband. “The flow and function were not working. I felt left out.”

The couple began to envision what it would be like to move their kitchen from the rear of the house to a paneled addition (and former cigar room) they rarely used.

“There was just not a lot of room to expand or build out due to the driveway,” adds her husband. “There weren’t really many options besides moving the kitchen.”

Eva Knezovich, design director of Pittsburgh-based Shelton Design/Build, which helmed the project, called the addition an underutilized but beautiful space. By centering the new kitchen between two family zones, mom was brought back into the fray.

“It had a great connection to the small backyard and to their main living space,” Knezovich says.

While the Shelton team hoped to preserve the addition’s paneling, it proved difficult to remove intact. “We decided that we were going to keep the concept and build paneling in the same style,” says Knezovich. “It looks like it has always been there.”

Although homes of this age typically have darker cabinetry, the design team chose a paintd finish for the perimeter cabinets to brighten up the space, which does not get much natural light. Tying it all together is a kitchen island and an integrated banquette that match the darker paneling.

“Adding in that paneling as the backdrop to the cabinets achieved exactly what we wanted to accomplish,” Knezovich says.

The couple, who enjoy cooking, chose high-end appliances from Wolf and Subzero for their kitchen. They also incorporated small details for both joy and functionality, such as a striking pink magnolia ceiling sculpture by glass artist Elizabeth Lyons that reminds them of the years they lived in Rochester, New York, where Lyons is based. The banquette seating provides a cozy spot from which the family can watch morning cartoons on a pop-up television or tuck into for a big breakfast.

Shelton Design/Build also completed a mudroom with laundry facilities and a powder room in the footprint of the old kitchen; both work perfectly for a family with young children. Brick flooring and custom wallpaper help those utilitarian spaces feel elegant while still flowing with the rest of the home.

For the Best of Design judges, the seamless melding of history and function made this home a clear choice to win Best Kitchen in 2024.

“I think that most people who renovate their homes or their kitchens renovate so that it looks new, and then it no longer looks like an old home,” says judge Crystal DeCastro Knapik, a senior project designer at Vocon. “What I like about this renovation is that you’re not hiding the fact that it’s an old home. They are allowing those elements of the old house to still resound in the space while making it new.”

Best of Design judge Stephen Schill of Schill Architecture, LLC in Cleveland noted the ogee countertop edge profile caught his eye; it was among many nods to the age of the home incorporated by Shelton Design/Build.

”It’s an edge that’s appropriate for this vintage of home,” Schill says. “I like how they brought together the old with the new.”

Read more Best of Design Winners.

VENDORS

Architectural Design: Franklin Krouse (Shelton Design Associates)

Interior Design: Eva Knezovich & Kendall Soler (Shelton Design Associates)

General Contractor: Shelton Design/Build

Mechanical and HVAC: JA Sauer

Electric: CW Electrical Services

Plumbing: Pro Plumbing + Heating

Cabinetry: Greenville Wood Products

Hardware: Rejuvenation

Appliances: Voss TV & Appliance

Fixtures: Brizo

Lighting: Rejuvenation (Floral ceiling sculpture by Elizabeth Lyons, More Fire Glass Studio)

Flooring: Allegheny Mountain Hardwood Flooring

Countertops: Cambria Quartz/Top Advantage Surfaces

Windows and Doors: Marvin Windows & Doors

Tile: Artistic Tile

The stunning cerulean blue of a Poland, Ohio family’s recently added bar could best be described as the same hue as a cloudless day in Greece, or the clear waters of the Mediterranean Sea — or a certain Gucci bag.

It’s the latter that inspired the jewel-like area, which judges in this year’s Best of Design contest named their Best Space for 2024.

“I actually had a Gucci bag that was just this really beautiful greenish blue,” says homeowner Kate, who asked that the family’s last name be withheld. “I showed [interior designer Alisha Gwen] the bag and she just ran with it.”

Located off the home’s entry, the galley-style bar and lounge was part of an extensive two-year renovation project (also designed by Gwen) that included a two-story addition and revamping most of the home’s first-floor living space, including enlarging the kitchen.

Kate, who shares the home with her husband, Andrew, their 15-year-old son and their 10-year-old twins, says that when the family moved there in 2015, they inherited the previous owner’s wine collection.

“It had beautiful wine racks, but the wine wasn’t preserved because it was in this closed space in the basement,” says Kate, adding she didn’t want to commit to building a large wine cellar.

Instead, Gwen, whose studio is in Shadyside, brought Kate’s dream of open wine displays to fruition, adding custom mini wine closets — that cool at separate temperatures for red and white wine — to the first-floor bar and lounge.

“My intent with the mini cooled rooms was to display the wine in a unique fashion. I wanted the wine to sit stacked in shapes as opposed to the standard slats,” Gwen says. “After a quick sketch, a few hours fine-tuning the design on [computer-assisted design software], and a handful of phone calls with the cabinet pro, my design came to life.”

The space also boasts a dishwasher, ice maker and two under-counter refrigerators, as well as storage for glassware, mixers and liquor. Gwen notes drinks can be prepared, served and cleaned all in one space.

“I also love the efficiency of the mini galley-style bar,” she says. “There is nothing worse than the cleanup post-party of having to carry glasses and all the drink ‘fixins’ back and forth from one room to another. Having everything you could possibly need to make a single drink or serve a party in one space saves precious preparation and cleanup time.”

The thoughtful design didn’t go unnoticed by judges, who praised the space’s blend of convenience and beauty.

“They thought of every detail. Everything is designed perfectly,” says judge Katie Savakis, a project designer with Vocon in Cleveland. “It’s gorgeous.”

Knowing Kate wanted a sophisticated, adult room where she could relax at the end of a long day, Gwen added texture and depth to the bar with antique mirrors, fluted cabinet doors, gold-and-lucite hardware and a rich blue checkered wallpaper on the walls and ceiling.

The equivalent of slipping into a cozy cashmere wrap, the adjacent sitting area has complementary shimmery paper on the ceiling, a curved sofa upholstered in thick mohair, swivel chairs outfitted in wool boucle and drapes embroidered with velvet.

“I just think it’s like the one area in our home that’s just really upscale and luxurious, but it’s still friendly to having people over,” Kate says.

Read more Best of Design Winners 2024.

VENDORS

Interior Design: Alisha Gwen Interior Design

General Contractor: Don Sudon, Sudon Bros., Inc.

Plumbing Fixtures: Crescent Supply

Sink: Thompson Traders

Faucet: Rohl

Cabinetry: Hollow Creek Kitchens

Cabinet Hardware: Modern Matter Hardware

Appliances: Don’s Appliances

Fridge Drawers: Thermador

Dishwasher: Miele

Ice Maker: Uline

Ceiling Light: Visual Comfort

Wall Sconces: Arteriors

Countertops: Kendal by Cambria (Fabricated by Top Advantage)

Windows and Doors: Glass Wine Doors by Rex Glass

Furnishings: Counter stools by Century Furniture

Wallcovering: Chess Ocean by Omexco via The Romo Group

Crystal DeCastro Knapik

A senior project designer at Vocon, Crystal DeCastro Knapik lends her combined passion for sustainability and technology to many of the firm’s most transformational projects. She has collective experience in award-winning luxury residential, adaptive reuse and renovation, commercial, mixed-use residential and health care projects. She has been influential in developing office-wide sustainable initiatives, both through design and in practice. Her affinity for the digital arts is reflected in her work at Vocon and has led her to become a firm leader and mentor in design technologies.

Stephen M. Schill

With more than 25 years of experience, Stephen M. Schill of Schill Architecture, LLC, is a preeminent architect in northeast Ohio. Schill’s residential projects have a strong influence from his studies of architecture at Villa Schifanoia in Florence, Italy, where he developed his understanding of scale, proportion and details. Since Schill Architecture was established in 1991, Schill has designed luxury multimillion-dollar lakefront and estate homes throughout northern Ohio. His work has been featured in several regional publications.

Stephanie Schill Hayden

A graduate of Miami University and Kent State University, Stephanie Schill Hayden is a registered architect at Schill Architecture and a designer at House of L Interior Design. While she has known she wanted to be an architect in the family business since she was a girl, she appreciates the opportunity to work collectively on shared projects between both luxury residential firms. By completing both the architectural and interior drawings for residential projects, Schill Hayden can ensure the design intent is followed through from the foundation to the millwork details.

Katie Savakis

A project designer at Vocon, Katie Savakis plans and designs environments that facilitate inspiration, enhance the end user experience and streamline functions. She has collective experience in luxury residential, multi-family residential, hospitality and corporate interiors. Her commitment and experience in all project phases guide each successful assignment. Fresh ideas and innovative approach are coupled with experience in diverse environments, enabling Savakis to provide effective design solutions for a variety of project types.

An addition to a Ben Avon Heights home contains a room that could have been taken straight out of a Disney movie.

“This is Belle’s library,” says Best of Design judge Crystal DeCastro Knapik, a senior project designer at Vocon, comparing the spot that won “Best Room” in the 2023 Best of Design contest to the room Belle fell in love with in “Beauty and the Beast.”

Lisa Scalo McMenamin of Pittsburgh-based LSM Interior Design, who designed the interior of the home’s addition and cozy-yet-luxurious library, says the homeowner simply wanted a space for all of his books.

“My client had a lifetime of collecting books,” she says, noting the homeowners wished to remain anonymous. “He enjoys quiet time in this second-floor space with all of his beloved books surrounding him.”

McMenamin takes her inspiration from things she loves, and here she drew from the rich jewel-tone fabrics she had selected. She chose the striking dark-blue, high-gloss lacquer paint from Fine Paints of Europe because the color represents knowledge and integrity.

Judges praised the room’s color palette, which added a sense of warmth and coziness to the room without overpowering it.

“It’s a really great balance of calmness and color,” says judge Katie Savakis, a project designer at Vocon, which has locations in New York City and Cleveland.

To give the small space atmosphere, McMenamin installed ambient lighting within the bookshelves, and a window seat was installed as a reading nook. Two vintage chairs the homeowners already possessed were reupholstered for the space.

The ceiling, with a wooden Phillip Jeffries Wallcovering, adds great dimension, McMenamin says, as does the Stark carpeting on the floor with a large square print.

“It’s a really simple room, but it’s really high style,” she says. “I think it’s exactly what the client wanted, to be surrounded by all the books that he loves, and I think we accomplished what we set out to do for him.”

Vendors

Architect: Gaskill Architecture, LLC.
Interior Design: LSM
Interior Design: Lisa Scalo McMenamin
General Contractor: Willner Enterprises
Paint: Fine Paints of Europe
Painter: Colorworks
Flooring: Stark
Carpet Installation: William A. Fischer Carpet Company
Chairs: Vintage
Ceiling Wallcoverings: Phillip Jeffries
Bench Cushion: Brunschwig & Fils
Bench Throw Pillows: Clarence House fabric, Samuel & Sons trim
Chair Throw Pillows: Schumacher
Square Drinks Table: Chelsea House
Electrician: Staley Electric Inc.

PHOTOS BY TOM O’CONNOR PHOTOGRAPHY

As the lead designer and co-founder of Wildman Chalmers Design, Heather Wildman thought she’d heard every possible renovation request: Make it bigger. Make it brighter. Make it modern. Make it functional. Oh, and please, please give us more storage.

But the family living in a two-story, 1890s-era farmhouse in Edgeworth managed to come up with a new one: “Can we get more months in the year?”

It wasn’t a literal request, of course — rather a plea for an outdoor space that could function through (or at least nearly through) a proper Pittsburgh winter.

Wildman delivered, both for the homeowners — who are now enjoying even the chilliest evenings in their backyard oasis — and this year’s Best of Design judges, who declared the Edgeworth house worthy of two awards: Best Renovated Home and Best Outdoor Space.

The judges not only praised the seamless transition from interior to exterior, likening it to a classic seaside home in East Hampton, but also appreciated the organic upgrades that breathe new life into the structure.

“It’s effortlessly beautiful,” says judge Stephanie Schill Hayden of Schill Architecture in Cleveland.

“I like that it doesn’t feel brand new,” adds judge Katie Savakis, a project designer at Vocon’s location in Cleveland. “The whole thing is really timeless and elegant.”

Giving homes a sense of timelessness is central to Wildman’s work. She grew up in Sewickley, so she appreciates the history of the area’s stately Victorians and rustic farmhouses. Her goal is always to work with each home’s essence and quirks — “I want it to be beautiful, but not too beautiful,” she says — to create simplicity and function for modern families.

It’s an approach that spoke to the homeowners, who purchased the house nearly 20 years ago and had already completed two smaller renovations; they also purchased the property next door in order to expand their footprint and accommodate their family of four. Despite the years and the work, the house still lacked the kind of cohesion and functionality the family desired.

“They could have moved to get what they wanted, but they love the neighborhood and they love that street,” Wildman says. “It was about creating a sense of home for their family.”

BEFORE

The Renovation

Wildman started her work at the curb, painting the pale yellow siding a crisp white and installing a new front door and traditional metal roof on the front porch. The most impactful change was a simple one — relocating the driveway, which bisected the once-separate lots, to the far side of the property, giving the family an expanse of uninterrupted green space and a park-like feel. (The spot is a favorite of the neighborhood children, too, who like to take rides on the old tree swing.)

The interior was a trickier prospect. Though the existing kitchen was large and had been outfitted with white cabinets, stainless appliances and no fewer than 11 ceiling lights during a previous renovation, it still managed to look dark and drab thanks to its location at the back of the house and a distinct lack of natural light.

To achieve a brighter space and a smooth transition to the family’s coveted outdoor area, Wildman blew out part of the home’s back wall and built an addition that houses the kitchen, a mudroom, a laundry room, a full bathroom and, below grade, a flex space that functions as a kids’ hangout spot and guest room.

That addition not only gave the family needed storage and functionality, but it also allowed Wildman to incorporate plenty of glass into the back of the home. A wide bank of countertop-to-ceiling windows at one end of the kitchen, and a set of glass doors at the other, manage to maximize light on even the dreariest days.

In keeping with the home’s farmhouse roots, the kitchen is appointed with white, shaker-style cabinets, a white tile backsplash, a shiplap ceiling and shiny brass fixtures. An oversized baby blue island adds a splash of color, and the honed marble countertops hint at a more modern aesthetic.

But it is the seamless way that the kitchen transitions into a backyard wonderland that is the true hero of this home’s design, according to the judges.

The Outdoor Space

French doors situated at the end of the island open onto a covered, bluestone patio with two distinct zones — one for dining and one for relaxing. A long farmhouse table comfortably seats the family of four plus guests, and infrared heaters in the ceiling allow for al fresco dining throughout the fall.

“The outdoor dining room really is their main dining room,” Wildman says. In fact, the family eats dinner outdoors as long as temperatures sit north of 40 degrees.

The adjacent seating area is situated around a wood-burning fireplace and has views of the 10,000-gallon, inground heated pool, which is kept at a balmy 95 degrees, allowing for evening dips throughout the winter. On frigid evenings, steam rises off the water, creating an ethereal ambiance.

Next to the pool is the family’s new garage — though, with a hidden entrance and French doors that face the street, it could easily be mistaken for a pool house. It’s the same crisp white as the house and sports a metal roof that matches the front porch. An open breezeway connects it to the patio; lantern-style exterior light fixtures offer another subtle nod to the farmhouse style.

“I’m not a purist, but it’s so jarring to me when the elements don’t match,” Wildman says. “I love that we made these subtle, lovely changes. It’s a special place for a special family.”

In all seasons.

Vendors

Architectural Design: Wildman Chalmers Design
Interior Design: Wildman Chalmers Design
General Contractor: Scott F. Fetterolf Builders Inc.
Appliances: Don’s Appliances
Fixtures: Splash
Kitchen Countertops: Primo Marble & Granite
Windows and Doors: Pella
Tile: Prosource
Tile: Tile & Design
Landscape Architect: Jack LaQuatra

It’s easy to assume certain things simply won’t work together: Ultra-modern architecture can’t also have a warm, inviting vibe; a home with mainly windowed walls can’t accommodate an extensive artwork collection; the Pittsburgh climate isn’t conducive to a house built around the concept of indoor/outdoor living.

In Fox Chapel, an unusual home has managed to defy all those assumptions through a sophisticated design that lends itself to a lived-in, welcoming space where the outdoors play as much a role as everything happening inside. It also wowed our judges, who named it their Best New Home in this year’s Best of Design Contest.

“I appreciated the custom details that are executed throughout the home. The flow of the indoor/outdoor experience is phenomenal,” says Crystal DeCastro Knapik, a project designer at Vocon, which has locations in Cleveland and New York City.

Indeed, every detail of the home — a collaboration between the homeowners (who wish to remain anonymous), Chicago-based architect Thomas Shafer and lead carpenter Mike Craig — carries meaning and purpose, resulting in a seamlessness that can be both seen and felt.

“There will be those who will have difficulties placing this architecture within their definition of a ‘house,’” says Shafer, principal at Shafer Crowe Kueck Architecture + Design. “It’s not a typical brick-and-wood-sided house. There is not a gable or a brick chimney. There are no columns, or turrets. It is not referential.

“What are those concrete walls for? Is it a museum or a school? What exactly is it? It challenges notions of ‘house.’ And yet that was just it — the starting point wasn’t to be prescriptive,” he says. “It wasn’t an itinerary to fit within a particular look or definition — quite the contrary.”

The exterior alone has been known to stop passersby in their tracks. When the owners were building the home, a woman driving by pulled over to ask the homeowner what the structure was going to be. When he replied, “My house,” she immediately responded: “It’s so ugly!”

Perhaps she was thrown by the sweeping concrete wall leading up to the driveway of the courtyard-style home, one of several that both afford the home privacy and let any visitor know they are not approaching anything typical to the Pittsburgh area.

But any work of art is meant to elicit a reaction, and all parties took the reaction in stride.

“Personally, I love this story,” Shafer says. “It’s so interesting how something so beautiful and natural to one could be so alarming to another. It certainly was outside her comfort zone.”

It also was a hit with Best of Design judges, who praised the seamlessness between the indoor and outdoor spaces as well as the clean lines found throughout the home.

“I like that this is Mid-Century Modern style, but it still felt very warm and inviting,” says judge Katie Savakis, a project designer at Vocon in Cleveland.

That was one of the main goals for the homeowners, who were certain about wanting a modern aesthetic but also wanted to avoid it feeling too sterile or cold. They needed a place where they could come home and put their feet up; a place where their dogs could run around outside then curl up with them by the fireplace; a place where guests didn’t feel like they had to remain standing and not dare touch anything.

To achieve the desired balance, Shafer relied on proportion, scale, color and texture. Use of light was perhaps the most important element in infusing the home with its inviting feel, he says. As such, the floor-to-ceiling windows throughout the home immerse the occupants in the 1.5-acre property outdoors. Shafer also says the house is oriented to maximize changes in light throughout the days and seasons.

“It’s a living and ever-changing sculpture,” he says. “In the fall, the yellows and reds of the changing trees reflect into the house.”

The 4,500-square-feet space was designed in volumes, each made up of a series of cozy areas with guest quarters on one end and the owner’s personal quarters at the other; the two are connected in the center by the main living spaces. Shafer says the idea was to create areas where daily life could overlap but that also allow for isolation when needed.

“Several large and colorful pivoting ‘doors/panels’ aid in opening or closing off the spaces to allow for these different activities to occur,” he says. “These thresholds constantly change depending on who is there and/or what is happening. It breathes and changes accordingly, not always the same.”

One of the biggest challenges with modern houses is the lack of trim, according to the homeowners. That means everything has to line up; there is nowhere to hide any disconnect or flaw. The ceilings and the overhangs are on the same plane. Steel beams reach outside with no visible disruption. Charred Shou Sugi Ban walls made from Japanese cypress carry from the inside out to line the home’s exterior. The team also developed a Mid-Century Modern corduroy siding detail for certain exterior walls, which wraps into the house and blends into walnut cabinets.

Throughout the home, hardwood was chosen for flooring over stone to add warmth; it also complements and softens the aluminum curtain wall, Shafer says. The home’s playful color palette ranges from warm grays and whites, to soft blues and sage greens, to even the occasional pop of vermillion.

From the rows of guitars adorning the wall of the home office to the pieces by popular Pittsburgh artist Burton Morris in the main-floor gym, artwork also infuses the home with personality. Living in a home of mostly windows also did not limit the homeowners from displaying their extensive collection. For instance, a tryptich of Damien Hirst artwork is embedded within the glass curtain wall of the living area to work with the open space around it.

Lighting choices also highlight the natural setting, such as the bronze wire Moooi piece above the dining table that illuminates while still allowing the eye to pass through to the outside. Above the custom blackened steel fireplace, fabricated by Jorg Gerlach and his team at Echt Design Services, a wall of polished Venetian plaster dances with light when the sun hits it.

In the kitchen, the granite of the large island comes alive as it reflects golds and blues; new tones are revealed from every vantage point as abundant natural light skims across the surface. A comfortable eat-in nook with seating for two is the ideal spot to sip coffee and look out into the private zen garden. A glass enclosure separating a space from the walk-in closet is intended for a saltwater fish tank.

While Shafer says he doesn’t think the homeowners expected to end up living in a concrete, aluminum, wood and glass house, their willingness to take several chances resulted in a home unlike any other.

“A successful project is a result of a unique client, and [the homeowners] were certainly special,” Shafer says. “They were curious and engaged and remained open-minded every step of the way. They trusted the process and suspended disbelief. It was a unique collaboration, and frankly, is the very reason it turned out to be such a successful project.”

Vendors

Architectural Design: Tom Shafer, Shafer Crowe, Kueck Architects, Chicago, IL
Interior Design: Tom Shafer, Marian Leventon Interiors 
Landscape Architect: Frank Dawson, J.Frank Studios
General Contractor: Hainer Construction Group
Site Work: J.A. Martin Enterprises
Structural Steel: MultiMetal Inc.
Windows and Doors: SCHÜCO Windows
HVAC: Climatech
Electric: S& L Electric
Plumbing: East End Plumbing & Mechanical
Cabinetry/Casework: The Kitchen Gallery
Paint Work: Rieger’s Painting
Custom Millwork: Allegheny Millwork
Countertops: Ultimate Granite, Morrow Brothers Countertops
Tile Work: Mandy’s Tile Service
Ornamental Steel Fabricator: Echt Design Service
Landscaping: Evanovich, Inc.

How do you infuse an outdated kitchen common to countless Pittsburgh homes with casual California vibes? By bringing the outside in, mixing materials and introducing an edgy yet effortless color story.

“We always dreamed of doing this, and to have it come to fruition was a really fun experience,” says homeowner Johann Collins, who lives in Sewickley with fiancée, Kaitlyn, and their two children.

The couple, who moved to the area from California in 2021 (a bit of a homecoming for Kaitlyn, who grew up in the South Hills), have always appreciated the state’s namesake style, which is known for its fusion of modern, natural and neutral elements.

BEFORE

The West-Coast-cool kitchen also impressed this year’s Best of Design judges, who named it their Best Renovated Kitchen for 2023.

The Collins family worked on the project with Upper St. Clair-based design-build firm McQueen Building Company, whose designers ultimately led the couple to the striking color choices.

Johann and Kaitlyn share a love of green and — after seeing another kitchen by designer Bobby Berk in the earthy hue — knew they wanted something similar for their own space.

They considered other variations, but when McQueen presented the couple with the moody charcoal green, it was the unanimous winner. Johann and Kaitlyn say they appreciate the contrast the deep green provides against the gray and white of the Silestone countertops and the light wood of the 12-foot-long island.

“There’s something about the combination of colors that make the kitchen very comforting,” says Best of Design judge Crystal DeCastro Knapik, a project designer at Vocon, which has offices in New York City and Cleveland.

Other elegant combinations of materials that add to the kitchen’s calm aesthetic include the stark white stucco hood floating above the sleek BlueStar commercial range and hybrid material backsplash, as well as a pair of concrete pendant lamps that are suspended above the island.

The luxurious coffee bar features filtered hot, cold and sparkling water on tap. Appliances are tucked out of sight in garage cabinets, and pop-up outlets are hidden throughout the space.

Designers at McQueen, which was founded by husband-and-wife-team Geoff and Christine McQueen in 2017, also suggested the 3-inch lip running above the range area, which is where the family keeps their salt and pepper shakers and “Star Wars”-themed pancake makers.

Best of Design judge Stephanie Schill Hayden, an architect at Schill Architecture in Cleveland, in particular praised the kitchen’s smart design choices and plethora of storage options.

“I love how they made a small kitchen feel large,” she says.

Vendors

Architectural Design: McQueen Building Company
Interior Design: Maria Cross (McQueen Building Company)
General Contractor: McQueen Building Company
Electric: Tatman Electric
Plumbing: Kowalski Heating Cooling & Plumbing
Cabinetry: Oak & Pillar by McQueen
Hardware: Rejuvenation / Larkin finger pulls and Larkin 6-inch pulls
Appliances: Don’s Appliances
Lighting: Shades of Light
Flooring: Lifeproof (8-inch wide white oak vinyl flooring)
Countertops: Silestone by Constantine / Fabrication by Collier Stone
Kitchen Table Set: Restoration Hardware

PHOTOS COURTESY COSTA HOMEBUILDERS

When Georgia Phillips was dreaming up a kitchen for her new home, she quickly knew what she didn’t want.

“I redid our kitchen two or three years ago,” she says. “It was beautiful, but I did it all in white. For this new kitchen, I chose the color palette. I wanted warm tones and a lot of contrast and just went from there.”

She and her husband, Bob, worked with Costa Homebuilders in Elizabeth Borough to design their sleek-and-modern space in Peters, which judges named Best New Kitchen this year.

The contemporary space features chocolate-brown cabinets flanked by a quartzite backsplash and countertop, chrome fixtures, stainless-steel appliances and a 10-foot-by-4.5-foot, quartzite-and-wood island.

Setting the design apart is the abstract chrome light fixture that floats above the kitchen island.

“People are afraid of lights,” Phillips says. “I view the light fixture as the earrings on top of a beautiful outfit; that’s the first thing your eyes are drawn to. The trick is to get the scale right. I’ve seen so many people with beautiful kitchens and they have this rinky-dink, out-of-place light. I think it cheapens the space.

“I wanted something clean and contemporary but not busy. I think we got there.”

Our Best of Design judges agree.

“I thought the wood tones added a lot of warmth to the composition,” says judge Stephanie Schill Hayden, an architect at Schill Architecture in Cleveland.

“I think this is clean and simple but still a really strong, well-designed kitchen,” adds judge Katie Savakis, a project designer at Vocon, which has offices in New York City and Cleveland.

Anthony Ferrare, sales manager with Costa Homebuilders, notes the company worked closely with their clients to meet their needs.

“Their kitchen is seamlessly integrated between the entry from the garage and rolls into the great room,” he says. “It really is the central hub of the home, the heart.”

Costa also partnered with Canonsburg General Woodcrafting to find Phillips’ desired shade of brown for the cabinets.

“The wood is actually cherry, but we had them sealed with the actual color I wanted so they aren’t pulling the red out,” Phillips explains.

Ferrare notes the home was built for a family with cutting-edge taste. “They had a vision and came to us, and we helped them make it happen,” he says.

When designing her new home with Costa, Phillips says she budgeted more for the kitchen to add custom features such as a built-in Bosch coffee maker, an under-the-counter ice maker and a Sub-Zero beverage cooler positioned near the back door for easy access while entertaining.

“They allowed us to be as involved as we wanted to be,” she says.

Vendors

Architectural Design: Costa Homebuilders
Interior Design: Georgia and Bob Phillips
General Contractor: Costa Homebuilders
Cabinetry: Canonsburg General Woodcrafting
Countertops: Primo Marble & Granite

PHOTOS BY JORDAN GRAY, PREP SOLUTIONS

In a traditional home, a bathroom built for two would sport side-by-side vanities on one wall, a tub and shower on the other.

But there is nothing traditional about the custom home architect Justin Cipriani built for lawyer Jacques Moye on Cliff Street in the Hill District. Though the house certainly isn’t short on unique and unexpected design moments — the deep blue cabinets in the kitchen, the blood-red damask wallpaper in the speakeasy, the 60 feet of cantilevered glass that opens the house like a diorama — the bathroom proved to be a standout.

Judges crowned it Best New Bathroom in this year’s Best of Design competition. Judges Stephanie Schill, of Cleveland-based Schill Architecture, and Katie Savakis, a project designer at Vocon’s Cleveland office, both admired the bathroom’s two-way, ethanol fireplace — which they say adds an earthy, organic element to the otherwise contemporary primary suite.

“It’s like nothing I’ve designed before,” adds Cipriani.

Moye had a specific vision for a bathroom built for two with little visual separation. It felt like something of a design riddle, but Cipriani, who owns Pittsburgh-based Cipriani Studios, was up to the challenge.

He responded with a two-sided space that has separate entrances, sinks, dressing areas and even flooring but is linked in the center by a stunning, glass-enclosed wet room that allows its users to see clearly to the other side.

Moye calls the effect “intimately independent,” and it’s an apt description.

The wet room’s oversized black tub is large enough for two. The shower has two glass doors that open to a sunken pebbled floor and three shower heads — including a waterfall. When that one is on, and natural light is flowing through the transom windows, Moye says he feels like he’s “bathing in the Garden of Eden.”

The space’s most inspired element though is a two-way fireplace, framed by ledgestone cut stone veneer, that connects the bathroom to the bedroom and is situated at just the right height for the person luxuriating in the shower and the person lounging on the bed to lock eyes.

“I love what that implies about the couple who lives there,” Cipriani says. “It’s endearing what it says about being a couple in this house.”

Vendors 

Architectural Design: Cipriani Studios
Interior Design: Cipriani Studios/ Owner/ General Contractor
General Contractor: Shape Development Group
Doors and Hardware: 84 Lumber
Framing: Consolidated House (A&O Builders)
Tile Installer: Creese Management
HVAC: D&M Mechanical
Plumbing: Drummond Brothers Plumbing
Shower Door and Bathroom Mirrors: Rex Glass + Mirror Co.
Exterior Glass Railing: Emerald Art Glass
Plumbing Fixtures: Ferguson Enterprises
Asphalt: Forever Paving.  Stonework: Gossard Masonry
Railings: Groll Ornamental Iron Works
Drywall and Insulation: J.G. Drywall Co., Inc.
Excavation: Jeff Helbig Construction
Interior Painting: Kevin Kemmler Painting
Siding: Lezzer Lumber Company
Fireplaces: MAD Design USA
Retaining Wall: Precast Steps
Landscaping, Concrete, and Footers: Orban Contracting & Landscaping
Cabinets and Countertops: Sims-Lohman
Waterproofing: T-n-D of Pittsburgh
Tile Supplier: The Tile Shop
Sauna Supplier: Warm Timber Saunas
Electric: Werner Electrical Services
Roofing: William T. Robshaw Contractor

PHOTOS BY DAVE BRYCE PHOTOGRAPHY

When Glen Feinberg bought his ranch-style home along Beechwood Boulevard in Squirrel Hill more than a decade ago, he swore the first things to go as he began renovations would be the gold-plated, duck-shaped faucets in the primary bathroom.

Fast forward 11 years and Feinberg had gutted and renovated most of the 1940s-era, four-bedroom home — with the exception of the primary bedroom and attached bathroom. As for the gold-plated ducks? They were still there.

“It was hanging around as my last project to do on this house for a long time,” Feinberg says.

Wanting to connect the bedroom’s interior to the outside, Feinberg first replaced the back wall with a folding glass wall system that leads to an elevated patio designed by Cheswick-based landscaping company Eichenlaub Inc. Topping the outdoor space is a louvered roof with a rain sensor — it automatically closes during wet weather — and automated shades.

For the rest of the primary suite, Feinberg turned to Pittsburgh-based interior designer Lauren Levant, who created a sophisticated, masculine space reminiscent of a high-end hotel. Hampton-based Century Interiors was responsible for the construction.

“It used to have a really outdated design; everything about it was very chopped up,” says Levant, who called the original space ’80s glam.

The suite’s total reconfiguration impressed this year’s Best of Design judges, who named it their Best Renovated Bathroom for 2023. Judge Stephanie Schill Hayden, an architect at Schill Architecture in Cleveland, called the bathroom “moody and sexy,” while judge Katie Savakis, a project designer with Vocon’s Cleveland office, praised the thoughtful design choices, including large, built-in wall niches that hold towels.

“It’s a really strong design,” she says.

Levant began the renovation by ripping out the bathroom’s oversized jacuzzi tub and small shower and replacing it with a triple wetroom that hosts two shower heads and a freestanding soaking tub — a favorite of Feinberg’s grandson.

“My grandson uses it, but not me,” he jokes. “He loves it, so that’s all that matters.”

Although the bathroom floors and walls appear to be marble, Levant says she actually used porcelain, which is more scratch- and stain-resistant — not to mention more sustainable and affordable — than marble.

“This is practically maintenance free,” she says.

The high-end hotel vibe extends to the bedroom, where Levant installed an open-corridor dressing room and closet at the entrance. The wardrobe cabinets act as a room divider; on the other side is a custom, pebbled leather headboard wall. To the left and right of the bed are floating nightstands, freeing up even more room in the design. Using marine-grade upholstery and seating, Levant also furnished the patio so that it resembles a contemporary outdoor lounge.

To the delight of Feinberg, who had been camping out in the guest room during construction, the primary suite renovation finished up in spring of 2022 — and there’s not one gold-plated duck in sight.

“I’m very happy — and I am done,” he says.

Vendors 

Interior Design: Lauren Levant Interior
General Contractor: Century Interiors
Mechanical: Bolster DeHart Inc.
HVAC: Century Interiors
Electric: Pittsburgh Heating and Electrical Service Inc.
Plumbing: Brolley & Schmitt Plumbing
Flooring Service: Nova Flooring
Cabinetry: Lauren Levant Interior, Crystal Cabinetry
Hardware: Lauren Levant Interior, Hafele
Plumbing Fixtures: Lauren Levant Interior, Jaclo, Brizo, Victoria & Albert
Lighting: Lauren Levant Interior, Lightology
Flooring Materials: Lauren Levant Interior, Surya
Tile Setting: Giuntini Tile & Marble
Countertops: Lauren Levant Interior, Silestone, Ultimate Granite Surfaces
Furnishings: Lauren Levant Interior
Tile: Lauren Levant Interior; porcelains through Tile & Design

PHOTOS BY STUDIO LITHE

The modern mountain home, perched in the Appalachian peaks of Clarksburg, West Virginia, presented Stan Adamik with the designer’s version of a complex mathematical equation. He had to somehow turn his client’s 40-by-18 square-foot main living area, with its polished cement floors and 15-foot ceilings, into a cozy, cohesive space without detracting from the panoramic views.

He started with the rugs.

For a designer at Weisshouse, which has a focus on rugs, it was fitting. Rugs, he says, not only define and anchor spaces, but they are also a reliable way to pull in color and texture. For this project, they were hand-loomed in Tibet using wool and silk and carefully dyed a golden ochre.

But in this massive open floor plan with its wall of floor-to-ceiling windows, rugs just weren’t enough. Adamik needed something bigger to build upon. Something grander.

He landed on an Italian marble dining table. The 86-inch diameter Maxalto piece he chose is lush green; situated directly in the center of the expansive room, it effectively divides it into distinct zones and allows Adamik to build a refined and visually connected design around it.

“It guided me and helped me weigh out that space,” Adamik says. “The table defines the room.”

Equation creatively solved.

The Best of Design judges agreed, naming the modern, European-influenced creation the winner of this year’s Best New Interior category.

While the Emperador marble dining table and its perimeter of 10 Saarinen chairs by Knoll upholstered in mocha-colored mohair create an impressive centerpiece for Adamik’s design, what lives above it is just as dramatic — a collection of two dozen hand-blown and individually lit crystal pendants, artfully arranged and hung at various heights from a teak-clad ceiling.

“The feature that stood out to me in this home was without a doubt the stunning wood ceilings,” says judge Stephanie Schill Hayden of Cleveland-based Schill Architecture. “The wood tones helped bring the tall and spacious living and dining room to a more human scale and added warmth to an otherwise minimalist, contemporary space.”

The dining area is flanked by two living spaces, each defined by one of the Tibetan rugs and topped with low-slung European furniture. The pieces, including a leather lounge chair by B&B Italia and a side table made of petrified wood, serve the dual role of being both unobtrusive and inviting, allowing the more striking pieces of the design to shine.

“You can’t love everything equally,” Adamik says. “It’s really the combination of how it all comes together. You need balance and harmony.”

Shades of saturated gold and peacock green pop throughout the design: on throw pillows, on counter stools and even on the kitchen’s vertical, hand-glazed backsplash. The carefully considered palette was chosen to work with the architectural elements of the home and complement the seasonal colors of the natural setting outside. While the homeowner, who asked to remain anonymous, trusted Adamik’s design decisions — “he was unafraid and gave Stan free rein,” Weisshouse owner Stacy Weiss says — he did insist on one must-have element. He wanted a black elm, Poliform kitchen.

No one relished the idea of procuring the cabinetry from Italy in the midst of a pandemic, but shipping turned out to be the easy part. Because the mountain house’s steel structure sits on a slab, all mechanics had to run through a slim conduit, leaving no room for error.

“It was a very precise installation,” Adamik says.

The sleek, state-of-the-art kitchen features four ovens (one microwave, one steam and two conventional), three oversized wine coolers and a sprawling island seated with B&B stools.

In addition to the great room/kitchen combination, Adamik also tackled designing the office, bedrooms and bathrooms of the 7,600-square-foot home. In keeping with the European-born homeowner’s roots and aesthetic, much of the material is imported and modern, including Belgian linen wall coverings, a Turkish-style sectional and an Italian sauna.

“As big as the house is, it feels cozy,” Adamik says. “I love that everything has a warmth to it. We made it a true sanctuary.”

Vendors
Architectural Design: Jason Miller
Interior Design: Stan Adamik with Weisshouse
General Contractor: March Westin
Project Manager: Patrick Garcia
Cabinetry: Poliform in Kitchen; Office and Closet via Weisshouse
Hardware: Luxe
Appliances: Don’s Appliances
Fixtures: Luxe
Lighting: Weisshouse
Flooring: Wood Floors from Weisshouse; Tile Floors from Luxe
Countertops: Ultimate Granite
Furnishings: Weisshouse
Tile: Luxe

Crystal DeCastro Knapik

A senior project designer at Vocon, Crystal DeCastro Knapik lends her combined passion for sustainability and technology to many of the firm’s most transformational projects. She has collective experience in award-winning luxury residential, adaptive reuse and renovation, commercial, mixed-use residential and health care projects. She has been influential in developing office-wide sustainable initiatives, both through design and in practice. Her affinity for the digital arts is reflected in her work at Vocon and has led her to become a firm leader and mentor in design technologies.

Stephen M. Schill

With more than 25 years of experience, Stephen M. Schill of Schill Architecture, LLC, is a preeminent architect in northeast Ohio. Schill’s residential projects have a strong influence from his studies of architecture at Villa Schifanoia in Florence, Italy, where he developed his understanding of scale, proportion and details. Since Schill Architecture was established in 1991, Schill has designed luxury multimillion-dollar lakefront and estate homes throughout northern Ohio. His work has been featured in several regional publications.

Stephanie Schill Hayden

A graduate of Miami University and Kent State University, Stephanie Schill Hayden is a registered architect at Schill Architecture and a designer at House of L Interior Design. While she has known she wanted to be an architect in the family business since she was a girl, she appreciates the opportunity to work collectively on shared projects between both luxury residential firms. By completing both the architectural and interior drawings for residential projects, Schill Hayden can ensure the design intent is followed through from the foundation to the millwork details.

PHOTOS BY CRAIG THOMPSON

The sloping, wooded lot in Upper St. Clair had already been on the market for a while when Justin Cipriani noticed it. The Pittsburgh native had previously spent a decade living on the West Coast, where he honed a modern design aesthetic and a knack for building one-of-a-kind homes on less-than-ideal plots.

So, the steep grade of the Upper St. Clair lot didn’t faze him. In fact, it looked like a good challenge for his Cipriani Studios. He purchased the land, designed a kind of modern treehouse to tuck into the hillside and posted the rendering online to entice buyers.

That’s where Rob Michelucci and Kevin Williams spotted it in 2020. The Pittsburgh natives were ready to return to their Western Pennsylvania roots, but after 10 years of living in modern apartment buildings in Washington, D.C., and Florida, they weren’t looking for just any house.

“We’re unique, so we wanted something unique,” Michelucci says. “We wanted something that really speaks to us.”

Cipriani’s Frank-Lloyd-Wright-meets-California-contemporary design was, in their eyes, “woodsy, modern, masculine” perfection. The Best of Design judges agreed, and named the steel-and-stone stunner this year’s Best New Exterior winner.

“I really like the juxtaposition of materials on the exterior of the home,” says judge Stephanie Schill Hayden of Schill Architecture in Cleveland.

The home’s approach is purposefully unassuming. Situated at an angle to the street is an oversized stone veneer wall that cleverly conceals much of the 2,800-square-foot structure behind it — including the gutters, roof and garage — but you do get a peek at what appears to be an orange box floating amid the trees.

That’s the corten steel top floor overhanging its corrugated steel foundation; it gives anyone standing at its bank of floor-to-ceiling windows the feeling of sitting in the treetops. Corten is a metal that arrives on site a shimmering silver but, with time and weather, rusts to a terracotta-colored finish. Or, as Cipriani likes to say, “it will age with the trees.” He hung it in a pattern of variable sizes to give it a more organic feel.

The windows that run the length of the top floor are off-the-shelf, 5-by-10-foot frames that Cipriani uses to achieve maximum effect at a homebuyer-friendly price. They flood the 20-by-40 square-foot great room in light, offering sweeping views of the changing seasons and wandering wildlife, and open to a 12-by-16 square-foot timber-frame and steel-bracket deck.

“The large and expansive glass offered a great visual connection between the interior and scenic surroundings,” Hayden says.

They also had the added benefit of making the COVID-19 lockdown and dreary winters a lot less depressing, according to Michelucci and Williams.

More oversized windows adorn the top floor’s master suite and the ground floor’s spacious living area, allowing light into the cave-like quarters, which are nestled right into the hillside.

Achieving the stacked, treehouse construction wasn’t a simple feat. The lot ended up being even steeper than it appeared. The crew had to move a lot of earth, and Cipriani had to shift the home’s orientation slightly, to make it work.

“It was like a National Geographic moment,” Cipriani says. “I was waiting for David Attenborough to start talking about taking down nature.”

But he’s thrilled with the outcome — a design that, though unique to the area, still suits it, blending seamlessly into the nature around it. It’s a refreshing alternative to the traditional “Pittsburgh home,” according to Cipriani.

“Modern doesn’t have to be scary,” he says. “Building a modern home in a suburb is sort of progressive, but Rob and Kevin are progressive guys, and they took a leap of faith. They took a chance and they won.”

Or, if you ask Michelucci, they were destined for this house. Just a few months after moving in, he rediscovered a souvenir from one of the couple’s many trips to Disney World. On that particular visit, they rode Epcot’s Spaceship Earth, which at the end spits out a photographic prediction of the rider’s future. For Michelucci and Williams, it was a house.

“And …” Michelucci says, pausing for effect as Williams grins, “it looked just like this one!”

Vendors
Architectural Design: Cipriani Studios
Interior Design: Cipriani Studios, Owners
General Contractor: Crews Construction
Mechanical: C.S. Meyers Mechanical
Masonry: Pangallo Contracting
Cabinetry: Adornus
Appliances: Samsung
Fixtures: Moen
Flooring: LL Flooring / Delaware Bay Driftwood
Countertops: Specchio White Quartz from Armina Stone
Windows and Doors: Anderson 100
Tile: Elida Ceramica Hampton Beach Glass Stone from Lowe’s Home Improvement.

PHOTOS BY NICK SARGENT

It’s hard to believe upon seeing it now, but this year’s Best Renovated Home winner was once the barn of a 1920s-era estate in Sewickley Heights.

“It has a really neat history,” says Betsy Wentz, owner of Betsy Wentz Interior Design in Sewickley. “It was turned into a house sometime in the 1980s.”

Now a three-bedroom, stucco-and-stone structure, the former barn had gone through several significant renovations — including a major overhaul in 2010 that added a separate carriage house with a two-car garage — before the current homeowners bought it in 2017, falling in love with the 5-acre property.

“The land is just beautiful,” says the homeowner, who asked to remain anonymous. “It’s at the top of a hill and there’s a pond.”

The owners were also charmed by the century-old building itself, which included a gourmet kitchen, elaborate millwork and striking herringbone wood floors. But, with five young adult children who visit often, it was obvious some changes needed to be made.

For one thing, the basement below the main house was a small, cramped space; in some cases the ceiling was less than 6½ feet tall. The owners envisioned it as a spacious lower level where their family could gather. They also decided to connect the main house to the carriage house, located about 25 feet away.

For that, they turned to architect Timothy J. Morgan, owner of TJM architecture + planning in Sewickley. Besides the seamless new gallery at the main level and the lower level below it, Morgan made plans for a new laundry room, mudroom, study and powder room, as well as a dramatic new stairwell, topped with a skylight, between floor levels. The space above the garage in the carriage house also was turned into a guest suite with a full bathroom and an office.

Getting there wasn’t easy. Much of the nearly two-year construction process involved excavating a gigantic hole between the house and the garage. Builders also needed to keep the excavation dry — no small feat in Pittsburgh’s rainy climate.

“The new lower level was actually lower than the foundation of the existing house,” Morgan says, crediting builders Rob Bogel and Rick Joseph for their quality work in keeping the construction moving. “There were a lot of structural challenges, a lot of foundation work and waterproofing.”

When it came to designing the interior, the homeowners enlisted Wentz, a friend whose work they admired.

“She is very creative and very collaborative,” the homeowner says. “She identified a few colors we really like and she was able to come up with all sorts of shades and patterns that sort of played off each other to give it a really fun outcome.”

That playful mix is evident in the light-filled lower level, where Wentz chose a deep blue grasscloth wallpaper that she says is reflective of the homeowner’s tailored style and gracious personality. Wentz also created a set of three, large-scale prints by cutting out the pattern repeats of a wallpaper mural and framing them.

“If you love something, frame it,” Wentz says. “It doesn’t matter what it is. It could be a page from a coffee table book or your kids’ artwork.”

Best of Design judges raved over the color choices, as well as the lower level, which, thanks to a large window that gives views of the property, is hard to believe is underground.

“I love how each room is unique and different, yet still feels cohesive,” says judge Crystal DeCastro Knapik, a project designer at Cleveland-based Vocon.

For the gallery, Wentz added grasscloth wallpaper as a way to warm up the space. The herringbone floors — chosen to match flooring in the original house — are dotted with vintage, vegetable-dyed rugs sourced from New York City.

“They’re all one-of-a kind and a little bit different, but that’s what makes them so interesting,” Wentz says of the rugs, which she estimates are between 60 and 70 years old.

For the study, which she calls one of her favorite rooms in the house, Wentz chose a powdery blue wallpaper with an abstract design by Lindsay Cowles. She also added a cork board wall covered in glittery mica paper to the area above the desk.

“We do that in every project; it’s our signature,” Wentz says. “It’s just a cool backdrop for anything you want to hang there.”

Another showstopper is, of course, the staircase, which leads between the serene new guest suite — outfitted in calming shades of gray-green, cream and purple — and the new lower level. For the stair runner, Wentz went with a bold striped pattern from STARK Carpet Missoni Home collection.

“It’s a classic, and my, it’s really striking,” Wentz says.

Since it was completed, the homeowners have been enjoying the renovation, particularly the lower level, which now houses a media area, bar, dartboard and other games; it often serves as a gathering point for family members and friends when they come to visit.

Another source of relaxation is the newly expanded terrace. Situated outside the gallery, the homeowners often gather around the gas firepit, where they can take in the property’s peaceful surroundings.

“In the summer, we sit out there under the stars, and it’s great,” the homeowner says.

Vendors
Interior Design: Betsy Wentz Interior Design
Architectural Design: TJM Architecture + Planning
General Contractor: Bogel and Joseph Builders
Mechanical Bolster & HVAC Bolster: DeHart Inc.
Electric: Timothy Loeffler Inc.
Plumbing: W E Mertz Plumbing
Cabinetry: The Kitchen Gallery
Progressive Woodworking
Hardware: Habitat Hardware
Appliances: Don’s Appliances
Fixtures: SPLASH Kitchen Bath Home
Lighting: Betsy Wentz Interior Design
Flooring: Boswell Lumber
Countertops: Ultimate Granite and Stone Gallery
Windows and Doors: Marvin Windows and Doors.
Furnishings: Betsy Wentz Interior Design, walnut bar console by John Malecki
Tile: Ceramiche; powder room tile from Tile & Designs.

PHOTOS BY ROMBOUT PHOTOGRAPHY

When she was planning her family’s Northwest-modern style home in Wexford with luxury home builder Barrington, Nikki Manilla knew she didn’t want it to be like some of the cookie-cutter homes seen throughout the region.

“I really wanted to have a clean look,” she says. “I wanted that white, with the matte black, but I also wanted some wood brought in to warm it up a bit.”

For that, Barrington partnered with Pittsburgh-based Laken Design to select finishes and furnishings that would create the home’s modern, organic feel — and at the center of that was the primary bathroom and the kitchen.

“I wanted everything in my home to feel like a high-end hotel, but also be homey,” Manilla explains.

The designers nailed the look; Best of Design judges chose two of the home’s spaces as winning rooms, Best New Bathroom and Best New Kitchen, for 2022.

Best New Kitchen

Best of Design judges fell in love with the Manilla family’s inviting dining space.

“I really enjoyed the way the design team balanced a contemporary material and color palette with warm wood tones to add depth and richness to the kitchen,” says judge Stephanie Schill Hayden, an architect at Schill Architecture in Cleveland.

Lindsey Longacre, co-owner of Laken Design, agrees achieving balance was a particular focus for the design team.

“Nikki had a vision of it being cleaner and more modern, but she didn’t want it to feel stark,” Longacre says. “That was something we prioritized, using specific finishes that would help feel soft but still clean.”

Besides a quartz countertop, walnut cabinetry and dark accents peppered throughout, the kitchen space also boasts a spacious pantry and a matte-black oven-range hood.

A herringbone wood design, accented by black beams, adorns the ceiling in the dining room, something Schill Hayden calls “one of the coolest new design details” she has seen recently.

Longacre and Laken Design co-owner Kate Tomalis say it was important that the kitchen feel just right; as a family home, it’s the space in which the family — including two children ages 4 and 6 — will prepare meals and entertain guests. Manilla also loves to cook, so functionality was a must.

“We want it to feel like somebody lives here,” Tomalis says. “Like it’s comfortable.”

Best New Bathroom

Staying true to Manilla’s spa-like vision, the bathroom boasts a full steam shower and a large soaking tub set against a feature wall of textured, geometric tile. The designers also balanced the bathroom’s light and airy tones by adding warm walnut wood and darker accents.

“It’s just so beautiful. Nobody would ever hesitate on owning a shower like that,” says Longacre.

There’s also a custom-height vanity built with enough storage to house Manilla’s plethora of makeup and skincare products.

“That’s a hobby of mine — I love all things beauty,” Manilla says. “It turned out perfectly.”

The designers also incorporated plenty of natural light into the bathroom’s design, adding transom windows above the cabinets as a way to bring daylight into the space without sacrificing privacy.

“It’s a big bathroom, but it’s not huge, considering the scale of the house,” says Tomalis. “The natural light makes it feel bigger than it is.”

The luxury bathroom also vibes with the additional “bonus space” — a full-blown massage room.

“That is probably one of my favorite spaces to be in,” Manilla says.

Vendors
General Contractor: Barrington Homes
HVAC: Jeff Sorick Heating and Cooling
Electric: Mel Stettler Electric, Ferguson, Restoration Hardware
Plumbing: SPLASH/Nicklas Supply
Cabinetry: Barrington Homes (Kitchen Craft and Decora Cabinetry)
Hardware: Top Knobs
Appliances: Bridgeville Appliance, Monogram Appliances
Lighting: Ferguson, Restoration Hardware
Flooring: Prosource, The Tile Shop, Antenucci Flooring
Countertops: Premier Granite and Stone
Windows and Doors: Pella, Pivot Door Company
Furnishings: Denver Modern, Restoration Hardware
Tile: Prosource, The Tile Shop.

PHOTOS BY TYLER NORMAN PHOTOGRAPHY

Designer Christine McCall says it’s always fun to think outside the box.

That’s exactly what she did when designing the bathroom of an Aspinwall home, which judges named their Best Renovated Bathroom for 2022.

The owner of Christine McCall Home says she was motivated by the 116-year-old home’s original architecture, which included “beautiful” dark woodwork and original tile.

“I was inspired by all the original touches that the house had,” she says. “I didn’t want to lose sight of that.”

The goal was to embrace modernity by adding clean lines and a delicate color palette while honoring the home’s authenticity by incorporating a vintage element into the design — something McCall calls a “moment of drama.”

With that in mind, she chose an Old World-inspired wallpaper for the water closet, bringing balance to the otherwise airy and modern space. Judges appreciated the contrast between light and dark, old meets new.

Judge Stephanie Schill Hayden, an architect at Cleveland-based Schill Architecture and a designer at House of L Interior Design, adds she was drawn to the bathroom’s soft, spa-like color palette and “unexpected” dark accents.

She also praised McCall for selecting furnishings that optimized space. Among them was a floating vanity, which Schill Hayden says makes the room feel larger.

McCalls notes that working with a smaller space such as this one limited her design options, which called for some ingenuity.

“We had to get creative in the way we created the new layout … but I think we reached a beautiful conclusion,” she says.

She calls the bathroom’s shower the pièce de résistance. Tiled floor to ceiling with porcelain and ceramic, the curbless walk-in piece marked the first time her firm has installed this type of shower.

“It just turned out so luxurious,” she says.

The clients, who asked to remain anonymous, asked McCall to keep a black clawfoot tub previous homeowners had left behind in the final design — something she was excited to do.

“I have a soft spot for vintage pieces like that,” she says. “I still wanted to keep a touch of that architectural integrity of the home and I think that piece really spoke to that. It was the perfect fit.”

BEFORE PHOTOS

Vendors
Interior Design: Christine McCall Home
General Contractor: Frampton Remodeling
Electric: Red Beard Electrical
Plumbing: Tedeschi Plumbing
Cabinetry: Wockenfuss Custom Wood and Metal Furnishings
Fixtures: SPLASH Kitchen Bath Home
Lighting: Circa Lighting
Countertops: Premiere Granite & Stone
Windows and Doors: Allegheny Millwork & Lumber
Wallpaper Installation: Cliff Hayes Paperhanging Co.
Tile: Bedrosians Tile & Stone.

PHOTOS BY LAURA KOSTANICH

Studio S. owner Laura Kostanich and her husband, Dave, have prided themselves on the California-cool aesthetic of their Mt. Lebanon home since 2016, when the couple moved in.

“We styled the first floor of our home with tons of texture and mixed wood, so we really had that textured, collected, lived-in style,” the interior designer says.

BEFORE

While the first floor of Kostanich’s home perfectly represented her distinctive, modern style, there was a notable exception — the dated, 1990s-era kitchen.

Kostanich says her family, which includes two young children, dealt with the kitchen’s obstacles for years. Besides an awkward layout, it lacked storage, causing clutter to pile up on the countertops.

“The real pain was the door going outside. When you opened it, it hit the refrigerator — so the door didn’t open up all the way,” she says. “That was really the thing that just drove us crazy for five years.”

After a full remodel, the cumbersome layout is no more. To maximize space, Kostanich took down the wall between the dining room and the kitchen. She also decided on banquette seating instead of a traditional kitchen table.

“It really ended up gaining us so much kitchen space that it just made sense,” she says. “I thought it might be awkward having the banquette in the corner, but it’s actually really wonderful. I love it.”

Applauding Kostanich’s clever design and timeless color scheme, Best of Design judges named the finished product their Best Renovated Kitchen for 2022.

“The designer made a small kitchen feel much larger than it actually is,” notes judge Crystal DeCastro Knapik, a senior project designer at Cleveland-based architecture firm Vocon. “I love the beautiful casework and the integration of the natural wood tones.”

Kostanich says she had the kitchen’s hardwood flooring patched in and refinished, giving the room a lighter, more welcoming mood. Custom-made, pocket-door cabinets let the family precisely plan and maximize storage.

The dark-hued cabinets were paired with unoiled soapstone countertops to create depth, while the mixed metals and different wood tones enhanced Kostanich’s West Coast style.

Judge Stephen Schill, owner of Schill Architecture LLC, says he particularly enjoyed the kitchen’s welcoming, warm color palette.

“I love the contrast between the painted woodwork and the natural woodwork,” he says. “The casework seems more like furniture.”

Kostanich adds one of her favorite details is the plaster oven range hood, which she credits with creating the space’s textured, lived-in style.

“We had plaster walls in our house and we patched and skim-coated them in the kitchen,” she says. “I added the plaster hood over my range to tie that in with the rest of the house.”

One of the best things about the renovation, though, is that Kostanich says it gives the family the opportunity to gather in the same place while cooking. It’s also great for entertaining.

“Everyone always says the kitchen is the heart of the home, and it’s so true,” Kostanich says. “No matter what you do, everyone just keeps gravitating towards the kitchen. It’s true when you have people over, and it’s true with your family.”

Vendors
Interior Design: Studio S.
Cabinetry: Custom Design by Studio S. and Trademark Cabinet Company
Hardware: Rejuvenation
Appliances: Don’s Appliances
Fixtures: Newport Brass, Kohler
Lighting: Circa Lighting, Mitzi
Furniture: Custom designed by Studio S., Wooden Whale, Nuevo and McGee & Co.
Flooring: Kerb’s Hardwood
Countertops: Premier Granite & Stone
Drywall Contractor/Skim Coating: Mark Madey.

PHOTOS BY POEMA PHOTOGRAPHY

​​When Blue & Blanc Design’s Meghan McDermott was approached to design a pool house in Upper St. Clair, she took it a step further, creating a luxurious retreat perfect for all seasons.

“We knew from the start that it was going to be an enclosed structure with plenty of natural light and nature-inspired decor to bring the outdoors in,” McDermott says.

Praising the neutral, green-and-black-and-white color palette and many thoughtful details, Best of Design judges named the all-weather pool house their Best Space for 2022.

“The furniture selection is fantastic,” says judge Crystal DeCastro Knapik, a senior project designer at Cleveland-based architecture firm Vocon. “Those chairs and armchairs are so fun.”

Working alongside builder Rolling Lambert Building Co. and JMAC Architects, McDermott and her clients selected glass retractable doors that span the entire front and sides of the pool house.

“We wanted it to feel airy, like we could be outside all year long,” says the homeowner, who asked to remain anonymous. “We can cozy up by the fireplace with the doors closed in the winter or watch the kids swim in the pool with the doors open in the summer.”

Giving a nod to the outdoors are chairs wrapped in rattan that sit atop a jute rug on Bambusa tile floors — a type of tile made to look like bamboo.

“The flooring is a key element of the design for me,” McDermott says. “It’s natural with a bit of a pattern to it. We were so happy with it.”

One of the standout features is the kitchen, which makes a striking statement with its black matte foil cabinets, gold hardware, quartz countertops and an emerald green True Residential refrigerator, one of the homeowners’ favorite aspects of the design.

“When we learned that the refrigerator came in green, it was too good to be true,” the homeowner says. “I remember saying to Meghan, ‘Is this too much?’ and she said, ‘Oh no. It’s perfect.’ And she was right.”

Knowing the homeowners have three kids and wanted a year-round space, McDermott selected Perennials Fabrics, an outdoor-grade fabric line, for the couches, chairs and window seat.

“I always design for real life,” McDermott says. “Working with clients to match their desire for beautiful spaces with furniture that stands the test of time is my favorite challenge, and as a busy mother of four, one I completely understand.”

The front bar includes a window that opens to the outside, with countertops and seating on both sides — making it a lovely entertainment spot regardless of the season or weather. Seagrass bar stools add to the nature-inspired decor. There’s also a gorgeous full bathroom with black penny-tiled floors that makes hosting get-togethers and swim parties a breeze.

Another standout is the iron staircase leading to the pool house’s upstairs loft — also known as the kids’ favorite hangout spot. McDermott commissioned Red Star Ironworks to custom build the staircase as a functional, and artistic, addition to the space.

“The kids love having sleepovers in the loft area,” the homeowner says.

Vendors:
Interior Designer: Blue & Blanc Design LLC
Builder: Rolling Lambert Building Co.
Architect: JMAC Architects
Cabinetry: Dura Supreme
Appliances: True Residential
Countertops: Primo Marble & Granite
Staircase: Red Star Ironworks
Fabrics: Perennials Fabric.

PHOTOS BY DAVE BRYCE PHOTOGRAPHY

Michael and Kim Pezzone had a vision. Inspired by their travels, as well as Michael’s Italian heritage, the couple — both physicians — dreamt of bringing the vineyards of Italy to their backyard in Upper St. Clair.

The Pezzones, who also have spent time in the Napa and Sonoma regions of California, love to cook for their four sons, extended family and friends — and they even make their own wine.

“It’s become a hobby that we really enjoy,” Kim says. “We hoped to capture that and translate that into the space.”

To do so, the couple enlisted Pittsburgh-based interior designer Lauren Levant to transform their yard into a modern Italian vineyard, one that’s as show-stopping and luxurious as it is functional and practical.

“I wanted to create a space that gave others a glimpse into everything the family enjoys,” Levant says. “Making pizzas, making wine, cooking and eating together and just having fun.”

One of the space’s standouts is the entrance, which features a striking gate and pathway bordered with tall arborvitae trees and fig trees, as well as planters filled with lavender and fresh Italian herbs used for Kim’s favorite recipes.

It was just one of the features impressing this year’s Best of Design judges, who named it their Best Outdoor Space for 2022.

“When you walk around the corner, wow,” says judge Crystal DeCastro Knapik, a senior project designer at Cleveland-based architecture firm Vocon. “I like the layers they have in the landscape.”

Despite being 6 inches deep, the entrance’s porcelain-clad, concrete planter walls appear paper-thin. Levant says her zero-edge design utilized beveled edges and Porcelanosa tile to create their modern, organic aesthetic.

The path flows seamlessly to the outdoor kitchen, Mike’s favorite part of the new design. Overlooking the pool is a spacious island with seating that features Dekton by Cosentino countertops, a stain-resistant, low-maintenance material that has a smooth stone appearance. There’s also a grill, sink and pizza oven encased in custom steel cabinetry. Levant calls the space a low-maintenance, yet striking, mixture of function and form.

“The serving counter is a fun and beautiful place to be,” she says. “There’s enough space to house their pool gear as well as food items.”

A statement-making, 22-foot-long glass sliding door separates the outdoor kitchen from its indoor counterpart, a smart design move that allows both spaces to flow.

“If I’m inside our kitchen, and my husband is outside working in the pizza oven, we’re able to communicate,” Kim says. “The entire design gives us connectivity.”

Adding to the beauty is the patio’s grid-like design, constructed with pavers made of rectified porcelain and black pea stone. Depending on the time of day, the trellises cast intentional shadows on it.

“When you stand looking down from one end of the trellis to the other it’s just visually stunning,” Kim says.

As a nod to the Italian vineyards, Levant also designed a series of custom aluminum trellises (some hung with outdoor chandeliers) for the family’s wine making that encompass the eating area. As the arbor’s grape vines mature, they’ll grow across the trellises, creating an intimate dining space below the lighting.

“This is a design that’s intended to grow with the family and become more and more beautiful over time,” Levant says.

Vendors:
Interior Designer: Lauren Levant Interior
General Contractor: TK Construction
Cabinetry: Lauren Levant Custom Cabinetry
Countertops: Cosentino Group
Rectified Porcelain Pavers: Landmark
Porcelain Tile Cladding: Porcelanosa
Outdoor Appliances: Alfresco
Appliance Distributor: Voss Appliance.

AFTER RENOVATION | PHOTOS BY TOM O’CONNOR

It’s a minimalist oasis that harkens back to a simpler time in more ways than one.

The two-story, Mid-Century Modern home across from Schenley Park with spectacular views of Downtown and the Cathedral of Learning was previously a one-story, Mid-Century Modern home on the grounds of the W. L. Mellon Estate.

BEFORE RENOVATION

Amy Baron Brourman, who owns Samuel Baron Clothiers in Shadyside, purchased the property in 2018 and saw the potential to add an upstairs to take advantage of the views and open up the first floor to let in lots of natural light. She enlisted Wildman Chalmers Design in Pittsburgh (with a team including architects and designers Chad Chalmers, Heather Wildman, Sara Coax, Bill Baker and Jeff Blough) to help her update the 1950s structure she and her significant other now live in.

Just after buying the property, Brourman vacationed in Palm Springs, California, where she took a tour of Mid-Century Modern homes. She returned with an idea for how to make the exterior stand out while remaining true to its history, including keeping an original stone wall in the driveway.

“I came back and I said, ‘Chad, I want a completely cedar house with the stone and I want glass balconies.’ Everyone thought I was crazy. It has made it what it is.”

Chalmers says the cedar shiplap siding, which complements walnut cabinetry throughout the home, is appropriate for a Mid-Century Modern home. Combined with the stone wall outside, which has been restored, it’s a perfect juxtaposition of the old and the new.

“The wood itself and the stone are classic materials in this kind of a house. A lot of times [in Mid-Century Modern homes] they would use a lot of these materials, but with the technology of new horizontal siding, it brings a modern flair to it, modernizing the Mid-Century Modern,” Chalmers says.

Judges named the home Best Renovated Home, Exterior, and were drawn to the “flawless execution” of the addition while keeping it true to the Mid-Century Modern style, says judge Stephanie Schill Hayden, a registered architect with Schill Architecture in Cleveland.

“The design was so seamless that it was hard to tell where the existing home ended and the addition began,” she says. “I loved the introduction of the cedar siding as well as the large windows used in the second-story addition to add height to the space.”

Chalmers says the design work took about six months and the build took approximately a year and a half as it was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic; availability of materials was a challenge.

The second-story addition houses a master suite with a walk-in closet, laundry facilities, a cappuccino machine, a wine fridge, a cheese and fruit drawer, and an indoor/outdoor gas fireplace in between the master bedroom and the balcony.

“[The bedroom] really kind of separates itself from the main house because the main house is so open,” says Chalmers. “It’s still so cozy, you have the TV, you have the fireplace — you could almost live upstairs.”

The basement renovations included adding a stylish mudroom with porcelain slate flooring, a laundry room and a gym.

But renovating the main floor was perhaps the most work. Four load-bearing walls had to be removed to create an open floor plan. New beams were installed but were hidden in the ceiling, and one column was put in place.

In the middle is a floating staircase made from walnut, steel and glass, which serves as a sculpture, window to the kitchen and centerpiece all at once.

“What I loved most about the floating staircase was that the glass let an ample amount of natural light flood into the living area and was a delicate architectural element in comparison to the rich wood tones found throughout the home,” says Hayden.

Brourman says her favorite part of her home, in addition to the stunning views she frequently enjoys in the evening with a cocktail from her balcony, is the kitchen.

“The kitchen is all of my dream appliances in one spot,” she says. “I’m wild about the waterfall countertop workspace in the middle.”

Sara Coax at Wildman Chalmers says the walnut cabinetry in the kitchen was also used in the mudroom as well as upstairs on the coffee bar and in the master bath.

“It doesn’t feel jarring as you move through the home,” she says. “Each space sort of moves on to the other one.”

Brourman, who previously lived in Fox Chapel, says she wanted a clean palate fitting with the Mid-Century Modern style.

“I literally expelled everything out of my life … all of my belongings, all of my antiques my grandparents and parents gave me and everything I grew up with because I wanted to be in a home where I could be very minimalist,” she says.

She did bring her art collection, including a number of drawings and illustrations by Andy Warhol (Brourman is on the board of The Andy Warhol Museum), paintings by Devan Shimoyama, Nicole Eisenman, Firelei Baez, Chloe Wise, Joaquin Navarro and Johnny Abrahams and a sculpture by Kennedy Yanko. There are also a few new works by Brourman’s daughter, multimedia artist Isabelle Baron Brourman. Isabelle Brourman also designed the wallpaper in the powder room, which was screen printed then finished with a 24-karat, double gold leaf overlay she applied herself.

“It’s so satisfying as an artist to have something that complete in someone’s home forever,” Isabelle Brourman says. “The house is such a fabulous piece, so I feel excited to have some skin in it.”

“All of my little details that I’m crazy about came together as it’s just a really great house that requires so little maintenance,” Amy Brourman says.

“Everything I wanted is here now.”

Vendors

• Architect: Wildman Chalmers Design.
• General Contractor: Owner with Gary Smith Construction LLC.
• Interior Design: Timothy Komen/Owner.
• Furniture: Weisshouse and Urban Tree.
• Fixtures and Lighting: Weisshouse.
• Kitchen Design: Wildman Chalmers Design/Owner.
• Cabinetry: National Woodwork.
• Countertops: Primo Marble & Granite.
• Custom Steel Staircase, Railings, Kitchen Hood and Picnic Table: SFTDRV, LLC, Will Vitous.
• Flooring: Allegheny Mountain Hardwood Flooring.
• Artwork: Owner’s collection.
• Hardware: Splash Kitchen Bath Home.
• Appliances: Don’s Appliances.
• Windows: Pella Window & Door and Kolbe Windows & Doors.
• Landscaping: ToadFlax, Eichenlaub and LaManna Landscape Contractor.

PHOTOS BY ED MASSERY AND JESSE REISMEYER

When Renee Gwin discovered a heavily wooded, 10-acre property in Cheswick, pocked with deep valleys and deemed practically unbuildable, she knew she’d found the perfect location for her family’s new home.

After all, her husband, Rothschild Doyno Collaborative Principal Mike Gwin, loves a good design challenge.

The couple, longtime city dwellers who had previously renovated a Victorian-era house in Lawrenceville, wanted their new home to be a 21st-century sanctuary, existing in harmony with its environment and filled with modern amenities. In order to get the balance just right, Mike had to first understand the landscape they’d just purchased — the way the prevailing breeze moved through the valleys, the amount of noise trickling in from the road, the depth and breadth of each valley. So he and Renee spent long weekends hiking and camping the property with their three sons.

They finally chose a spot in the center of their 10 acres, tucked against a hillside in the midst of a largely undisturbed tree canopy, to construct their three-story, 2,800-square-foot home.

The biophilic design — a concept that increases the occupants’ connection to nature and is said to have both health and environmental benefits — wowed the judges and took Best New Home honors in this year’s Best of Design competition.

“I love how they kept the finishes, colors, textures, and details minimal so as not to take away from the outside views,” says Judge Carissa Smith of Cleveland-based AoDK Architecture. “It truly feels like a treehouse.”

The home also won an AIA Pittsburgh Design Award Certificate of Merit last year.

“It’s beautiful in both form and function, and it serves as an exemplary example of designing homes that can reduce our impact on the environment,” adds Judge Crystal DeCastro Knapik of Vocon.

Much of the praise heaped upon the home has been for its passive and sustainable design solutions, including natural ventilation, shading and rainwater collection. Mike has long used sustainable concepts in his work with clients and the Gwins were eager to adopt the practices in their own home. To minimize tree removal, they purposefully positioned the structure within the trees, so naked branches allow sunlight to warm the home in the winter while leaves provide shade in the summer. The breezes that regularly skim the valley enter the home on the lowest level, sweep up through the house in a chimney effect, and exit via the top-floor windows.

“That,” Mike says, “is just a good old design principle.”

The system for collecting and processing 100 percent of the rainwater that falls on the home is a seamlessly integrated sustainability feature. Greenscape roofing absorbs stormwater, a gravity-fed harvesting tank collects water for tending to their vegetable and pollinator gardens, and processing tanks with a drip irrigation system allow wastewater to return to the ground.

Though the wooded landscape and use of sustainable design have led many to believe the Gwins live in the middle of nowhere, the property is actually adjacent to a neighborhood and just off a main artery in Cheswick. Clever positioning of the house on the property and the windows on the house maintain that away-from-it-all aura.

The side of the home that faces the road is covered in custom aluminum siding complemented with warm wood panels. A narrow bank of windows looks in on the home’s open staircase, flooding it with light. The back and opposite sides of the home are nearly full glass, offering unobstructed views of the flora and fauna that come and go with the seasons.

“Every space has a different feeling,” Renee says. “No matter how you’re feeling, there’s a space where you can go.”

Renee tends to retreat to the third-floor master bedroom, particularly on stormy nights when she can enjoy the calming effect of rain falling on the metal roof. Plus, Mike says with a hint of glee, when you peer out from the top-floor windows or lounge on one of the balconies, “It’s kind of like living in a big treehouse.”

Despite the childhood nostalgia created at the top of the house, Mike prefers the cozy feeling of being tucked against the land on the first floor. And their boys — now 17, 15 and 12 years old — spend a lot of time in the hammock chair, which swings on a small balcony built especially for the family-favorite piece of furniture.

Eventually, though, everyone tends to end up in the open-concept main level of the home, which features a kitchen stocked with custom cabinetry and topped with leathered granite. The adjacent dining and living areas have an expanse of windows and a collection of large balconies.

The one thing it does not have is a lot of wall space.

“We purposefully kept the inside of the home very simple and let the windows be the artwork,” Mike says.

Well, save a few standout pieces. One is a starburst-shaped, custom coffee table designed and built by friend Jason Boone of Pittsburgh’s Urban Tree. Another is an open-tread staircase, made from reclaimed, western Pennsylvania barnwood, that twists from the bottom floor to the top. And then, there’s a sweet, personal touch — a trio of charcoal drawings that Mike made of the couple’s sons when they were cherub-cheeked toddlers.

In addition to providing artwork, Mike served as the architect, general contractor and builder on the project. That not only made for seamless communication with construction manager Adam Stickle of Stix and Stones, but also allowed him to work closely with his father, Alan Gwin, a builder who, years ago, sparked Mike’s love for construction by allowing his son to tag along when he went to work.

“I grew up working on job sites,” Mike says. “He really shaped my appreciation for building and construction and approach to making architecture.”

Together, father and son poured the home’s polished, concrete floors, laid the stonework outside, installed the wood panels and all the cabinetry and constructed the greenscape roofing, among other projects. Both Mike and Renee are reminded of those moments as they move through their home.

It’s fitting, they say, because the best parts of the house aren’t the physical spaces. The best parts are the satisfaction, work and the tranquility that comes from living in harmony with nature. With each day, each rise and set of the sun, each change in season, they learn something new.

“Our house has taught us a lot,” Mike says.

Vendors

• Architectural Design: Michael Gwin, Rothschild Doyno Collaborative.
• General Contractor: Gwin Construction.
• Construction Manager:  Adam Stickle, Stix and Stones.
• Structural Engineer: Capstone Engineering.
• Interior Design: Michael and Renee Gwin.
• Windows and Doors: Marvin Windows,  Allegheny Millwork.
• Window Install: Santico Inc, Don Santillo.
• Exterior Siding and Roofing: Imetco.
• Siding Fabrication and Install: Bryn Enterprises.
• Exterior Wood Panels: Prodema, Barbara J. Sales.
• Exterior Stone: Realstone, Architectural Clay Products.
• Exterior Railings: Wolfe Metal Fab.
• Interior Railings: Temper+Grit / Wheaton Steel.
• Mechanical: Jeff Chips.  Electric: Lagamba Electric.
• Plumbing: Wise Plumbing.
• Plumbing Fixtures: Penstan.
• Lighting: Cardello.
• Cabinetry: Team Laminates Company.
• Reclaimed Barn Beam Stairs: Barry Lang.
• Countertops: Armina Stone.

PHOTOS BY ANTHONY MUSMANNO

The property in Fox Chapel had a lot going for it: an open-concept living area, enough windows to brighten a gray Pittsburgh day, a collection of mature trees and a relaxed, cozy ambiance — but there was one problem.

The house had a single functional bedroom and the client needed three.

So the team at mossArchitects—principal Andrew Moss, associate principal Darren Lloyd, project manager Anna Foster and associate and senior interior designer Gina Konopack—embarked on what was basically two jobs in one, fully renovating the existing structure and building two new bedroom wings.

“There was a lot of potential in the house, and we tried to extract as much of that potential as we could from it,” Lloyd says.

According to this year’s Best of Design judges, they accomplished just that. The team won the title of Best Renovated Home Interior for their efforts.

“I really like the crispness and balance of the interior,” says Judge Carissa Smith of Cleveland’s AoDK Architecture.

Balance was a concept the team strived for since the inception of the project.

The Edge Wood House, as mossArchitects came to call it, was built in 1952 and had been renovated several times over the years, resulting in an uneven, disjointed layout. The team’s first project was to fix the flow, particularly the awkward, diagonal sequence from the foyer into the heart of the home. They simplified entry points and created logical pathways and sight lines to interior and exterior spaces.

Then there was the matter of the living area. The kitchen, living room, dining room and sunroom already had an open-concept design, but it wasn’t a particularly welcoming space because of the exposed roof trusses. The team reinforced and modified the existing roof trusses, vaulted the ceilings and painted them bright white. The result was an airy gathering space for the family.

The largest undertaking, though, was the addition of the twin bedroom wings.

“We wanted to enhance the house, not overwhelm it with the addition of suites,” Foster says. “So, we really tried to mimic the style of the original house.”

On the exterior, that was accomplished by covering the entire home with a standing-seam metal roof and creating two serene courtyards that are visible from the interior. On the inside, new hallways not only connect the original home to the additions but also offer function and storage by housing an office, laundry room and linen closet.

In a further effort to marry the old and new spaces, the team used the client’s preferred black-and-white color palette throughout the home, in some places playing up the stark contrast — as they did with black window frames against the white walls — and in other places softening the dichotomy with warm wood tones.

They also refinished, rather than replaced, many of the home’s existing elements. The original hardwood floors got a light, almost whitewashed, treatment, and the kitchen cabinets and island were reborn with a sleek, black finish that pops against white walls. They even repurposed some of the home’s old millwork to make a custom console.

But the team agrees that the black-and-white bathroom, with its floating countertops, oversized walk-in shower and slate floor, is a true standout.

“It sounds funny to say it, but I do love my bathroom; it’s the nicest bathroom I’ve ever been in,” says the homeowner, who has asked to remain anonymous. “Really, I love it all. I never thought I could love a house so much.”

She visited, and dismissed, 20 homes before she bought the property in Fox Chapel. Though she was nervous about the renovation process, she was determined to get the home she envisioned. As the mother of two teenagers, she wanted a design that was just big enough to give each family member the privacy they needed, but also offer inviting common areas for them to spend time together. The team at mossArchitects understood and embraced that vision from the very beginning, she says. In the end, they delivered just what she wanted—a bright, airy home with intimate spaces.

The master bath and finished basement are prime examples. The bedroom is situated at one end of the home, and its sliding glass doors that open to a private courtyard make it feel like an oasis, yet it’s only steps from the kitchen. The basement functions as a teenage hideaway, but also walks right out into the family’s backyard with its kidney-shaped, inground pool.

“It was just a great project,” Foster says. “She was a fabulous client with a beautiful design aesthetic.”

The homeowner had equally laudable words for what she dubbed her “dream team.”

“I had never been through the renovation process before, but they were so patient with me and really understood my vision,” she says. “I don’t know whether it was because we’re all about the same age or I just happened to fit in with them, but I was so sad when the project was over because I miss them.”

Vendors

• Architectural Design: mossArchitects.
• Interior Design: mossArchitects + homeowner.
• General Contractor: Diggins Builders.
• Electric: McCoy Electric.
• Plumbing Fixtures: Crescent Supply.
• Cabinetry: Macri Custom Woodworking.
• Door Hardware: Emtek.
• Cabinet Hardware: Schoolhouse Electric.
• Appliances: Existing.
• Tile: Tile & Designs Architectural Clay Products.
• Flooring: Pro Source Monroeville.
• Countertops: Ultimate Granite.
• Windows & Exterior Doors: Marvin (Allegheny Millwork local rep).
• Shower Glass: Rex Glass
• Doors: Allegheny Millwork.
• Painting & Refinishing Existing Kitchen Millwork: Colorworks.

Tony and Sandy Torchia had a dream. Both busy partners at global accounting firm KPMG’s Manhattan office — where they owned an apartment — the couple, who often traveled for work, desired their own land where they could relax and where they could preserve the greenery.

Their wish came true almost a decade ago when they purchased 150 acres in New Galilee, located about an hour north of Pittsburgh in Beaver County. The land came with a farmhouse — and so the couple became farmers.

Over the years, they’ve added crops as well as cows, goats, chickens, donkeys, and even a few peacocks to their property.

“We’ve gotten much better at [farming] over the course of the last nine to 10 years — at least better at the basics,” jokes Tony.

The couple worked with Pittsburgh-based interior designer Lauren Levant to revamp several rooms in the farmhouse, including the kitchen and master bedroom. As it turned out, Tony — whose first-generation Italian-American father and uncles all made their own wine — had another dream.

Throughout the farmhouse renovation, he spoke to Levant about his vision of an underground wine cellar with a tunnel similar to the ones he and Sandy enjoyed during visits to California’s Napa Valley region.

“The wineries have tunnels in the hillside that open into underground wine space,” Tony says. “It was always just beautiful, and it felt like such a relaxing space.”

Levant was listening. Aided by architect Fred Cincala and builder P.W. Campbell, what she came up with was a rustic yet sophisticated indoor/outdoor building — dubbed The Gathering House — that includes a subterranean wine cellar (which can be accessed by a tunnel), a hearth room, full bar, gaming area, a tasting hall, a whiskey saloon, a gun room with a secret ammunition door and a humidified cigar bar. There’s even an outdoor axe-throwing course.

“I blame Lauren for it,” Sandy says with a laugh. “She convinced [Tony] it was possible.”

This year’s Best of Design Judges were so impressed they named The Gathering House their Best Room/Outdoor Space for 2021.

“I love all of the different ideas that were put into this space,” says Judge Carissa Smith. “It almost feels like everything but the kitchen sink, but I do appreciate the creativity and innovation to create a unique and fun outdoor space.”

After Tony, a Pittsburgh native, retired from KPMG last fall — and Sandy transferred to the company’s Pittsburgh office — the couple now live full time at the farmhouse.

Largely finished just before the state’s COVID-19 restrictions, The Gathering House — also called The Party House by Tony — has become a popular hangout for the entertainment-loving couple. They often play host to Tony’s large family; on weekends, it’s not unusual for 20 people to head up to the property.

“This space gets used by people to really make fun memories,” Levant says. “These guys are so about having fun — good old-fashioned fun.”

On the main level, The Gathering House features a double-sided fireplace that, on the exterior, is surrounded by a patio, a pizza oven and views of the pastoral setting.

On the interior side are two massive, tiered circular chandeliers that hang from the cathedral ceiling above oversized, custom couches that Sandy says could probably seat eight people each. Three sides of the building have retractable glass garage doors that in warmer weather open to let the outside in. In winter, the large glass doors provide a cozy view of the chilly landscape.

“It does feel like being in a snow globe,” Sandy says.

Perhaps the standout feature of this level though is a sophisticated bar that would fit right in at any high-end restaurant. Levant used sheets of steely Dekton material — typically used for countertops — as wall cladding behind the bar. She also used the textured material to create shelves for the liquor. The result is similar to an art installation — or possibly something out of “Game of Thrones.”

“It’s like ‘The Wall’ in the North,” Levant says.

The main level also includes a full-size shuffleboard table, a reconditioned soda machine that holds bottles of soda and beer and a 1950s-era chrome jukebox that plays 200 songs.

“It really adds to the festive atmosphere on that level,” Tony says.

The building was cleverly positioned against a hillside so that Tony could have his stone tunnel, which leads out to an arched opening with a view of the property’s creek.

At the tunnel’s entrance to the lower level is a rounded, custom-made wood door that reminded the couple of the beautiful old doors they’ve seen in Italy. That and a live-edge tasting table made locally by Pittsburgh’s Urban Tree are two of Tony’s favorite features.

Along with a billiards table, a whiskey room and a cigar room, the lower level also features two rooms enclosed by arched glass doors. One is a temperature-controlled wine room. The other holds Tony’s gun collection, which ranges from pistols to rifles to weapons used in World War II. The wares in both rooms are displayed using a slat wall system with a concrete finish that Levant says gives the room a modern, industrial take on Napa Valley’s wine caves.

Also of note is a hidden door in the gun room that opens to an ammunition storage room. It may only be accessed after pushing the secret release.

“Everybody likes a hidden door,” Levant jokes.

Although the COVID-19 pandemic put a damper on the Torchias’ party plans — the couple had to cancel their annual summertime Farm Party — they’re hopeful they’ll be able once again be able to host gatherings. After all, they have a space made for it.

“As soon as COVID’s over, we’re looking forward to getting big crowds again,” Sandy says.

Vendors

• Architectural Design: Fred Cincala.
• Interior Design: Lauren Levant Interior.
• General Contractor: PW Campbell.
• Cabinetry: Lauren Levant Custom Cabinetry (main bar); Crystal Cabinetry (wine room and gun room).
• Hardware: Top Knobs.
• Appliances: Sub Zero, Uline, Miele.
• Fixtures: Brizo, Rohl, Inserkerator, Staebell, Steel Ladder and Rail by Ed Parrish.
• Lighting: Uttermost.
• Wine and Gun Room Concrete Slat Wall: Advanced Display Systems.
• Wine Room Enclosure: Rex Glass
• Countertops and Bar Wall Cladding: Dekton by Cosentino.
• Windows: Andersen E Series Windows from Lezzer Lumber.
• Polished Concrete flooring on Lower Level: Special Coatings.
• Porcelain Tile: Massaro.
• Solid Knotty Alder Interior Doors: Homestead Doors.
• Boral Stone: EC Masonry.