2012 Minneapolis St. Paul Home Tour

I am so excited to be part of the 2012 Minneapolis and Saint Paul Home Tour celebrating urban living, the preservation of vintage homes and new construction that features “green” and energy-efficient construction. It’s a unique opportunity for the community to share remodeling and expansion ideas, the history of city housing, urban lifestyles, and eco-friendly building practices.

The tour is FREE and SELF-GUIDED. You can get information and maps from the MSP Home Tour website, or at any Hennepin County Library (including Minneapolis), Ramsey County Library or Saint Paul Public Library. Look for Home Tour signs at major intersections directing you to the homes.

Homes are open to visitors:
Saturday, April 28, 2012 from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Sunday, April 29, 2012 from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.

There are almost 60 homes on the tour this year. Two of them are homes I had an opportunity to help renovate. So be sure to include Homes #16 and #33 on your tour.

Below is what the homeowners had to say about their renovation projects. The photos are by Mark Ehlen of Ehlen Communications.

House # 16

Rhonda Gilbraith and Jeff Radford

 

Kingfield Neighborhood

4011 Wentworth Avenue South
 

Built 1912

 

 

 

We love our vibrant neighborhood with its proximity to the lakes, great restaurants and gem of a farmer’s market, so we were committed to staying in our house, despite the daunting prospect of a badly-needed kitchen remodel. 

We had a modest budget and needed to stay within the existing footprint.

Designer Christine Nelson came to our rescue with an ingenious plan. All major appliances had to be relocated to improve
flow. When the refrigerator came out of its former home in the pantry, the appliance shuffle blocked a doorway to the dining room. Solution? Refashion the doorway and create a pass-through.  See how orange makes a statement on the walls and in beautiful, Morris-inspired handmade tile. Other fun details include contrasts in cabinets, counters and whimsical hardware. We can’t tell you how much we love our new kitchen!

Handmade tiles by Roger Mayland of North Prarie Tileworks.

 

House # 33

Kris Davidson

 

Nokomis East

Neighborhood

5145 29th Avenue South
 

1939 

1.5-story

 

 

My kitchen had dark cabinets, orange counters and linoleum floors and was, as typical for the era, separated from the dining room. 

We opened the kitchen up to the dining room, eliminated a dropped
ceiling and removed an
unused chimney to add more space in this small room. 

We kept the historic flavor of the home by adding an archway between the rooms that matched those in the rest of the home. 

 

We lightened everything up by adding painted upper cabinets that went to the ceiling and a new wood floor.  

The fantastic handmade tile is from SoMi Tile in Minneapolis. The tile mural over the stove is removable for cleaning and future moves.  

A small bathroom got a face lift with historic subway tile and all new fixtures which improved the space greatly!