In a bustling suburb north of Pittsburgh sits an unassuming, traditional-style home. You will likely not stumble upon this house, as it is tucked away on a lot surrounded by a busy commercial district rather than a traditional residential neighborhood. The family of three bought the home from a neighbor. It had been unoccupied for several years and needed a major interior facelift. The homeowners liked the stone exterior, and other than putting on a new roof and adding landscaping and hardscaping, did not change much about the outside of the home.
The inside of the home was a completely different story. The upper floor of the home had been used for storage only, so part of the challenge was to reconfigure electricity, HVAC, and plumbing for the new rooms, including two bathrooms and an upstairs bar. After the homeowners gutted the house down to its studs, moved a staircase and built new walls, the next logical step was to hire designer Natalia Dragunova, owner of Notion, LLC in Pittsburgh, and give her free rein to add style and grace within those walls, while making an average sized home feel a bit larger. Keeping in mind the homeowners’ desire for a light, airy and calm feel to the home, Natalia created a contemporary look with clean lines, incorporating grays and whites, for a modern feel reminiscent of a New York loft.
House renovation resources:
Contractor: East Suburban Interiors; Designer: Natalia Dragunova, Notion, LLC.; Landscaping: Funyak Landscapes
Kitchen
A dining room wall was knocked down to add to the kitchen’s footprint. The couple wanted the kitchen to be “…bright, airy and clean,” says Natalia. The whites and grays give the home an avant-garde appeal. The cabinets are reminiscent of Shaker style, though with an updated modern look, as the recess on the cabinets was only about an eighth of an inch deep and the edges were widened up to three inches. Ample storage space provides a convenient hideaway for most kitchen utensils, contributing to the uncluttered look of the space.
The kitchen features a selection of mixed materials. The flooring is porcelain tile, a material that gives the illusion of natural stone without the maintenance. The countertops are manmade quartz featuring the luxurious alabaster and gray veining depicted in marble, while the stone on the island is a natural quartzite with a leathered finish. The refrigerator blends seamlessly into the woodwork, giving it a built-in appearance. Other appliances are also built in, such as a coffeemaker. Under cabinet lighting and other recessed lighting add to the modern feel.
The polished chrome finish on the cabinetry hardware provides sparkle to an otherwise neutral room. The knobs feature a square, concave shape, while the handles offer a textured finish, which catches the light on sunny days.
Kitchen resources:
Cabinetry: High-End Custom Cabinetry by Ken Leech; Countertops and backsplash: Viatera Minuet quartz, Ultimate Granite; Island countertop: Dolce Vita quartzite, Dente; Appliances: Don’s Appliances; Cabinet hardware: Primitive Pulls and Knobs, Splash; Flooring: Bellagio Silver, Ceramiche Tile & Stone
Powder room
The high gloss black lacquered Piano vanity and matching mirror in the powder room come in startling contrast to the soft, muted shades of gray and white present throughout the rest of the space. “Everything in the bathroom started with the vanity,” says Natalia. After that, it was just a matter of making sure that everything else blended.
The vanity’s scalloped edges are in harmony with the other spherical elements in the room, including the marble floor, which is inset with mother-of-pearl. The room is unique for another reason: it is not often that you will find a shower in a powder room, but there it is, with its intricate tile-work. The homeowner explains that the bathroom is one often used for guests, as it is located on an upper floor next to a spare bedroom. “We wanted that bathroom to make more of a statement since it is a space that guests are going to see,” says the homeowner.
Powder room resources:
Vanity: Porcelanosa Piano Vanity; Faucet and showerheads: Brizo RSVP Collection; Flooring: Olson White, Ceramiche Tile & Stone; Shower tile: Calacatta Chablis, Ceramiche Tile & Stone; Glass shower enclosure: Rex Glass & Mirror; Pendant light: Willow Pendant
Basement bar
One of the first things a visitor may notice in the basement bar area is the dark silver, gunmetal finish on the cabinetry. “The cool thing is that this is automotive paint,” says Natalia, adding that it can have a metallic shine, depending on how the light hits it. The automotive paint was used in other areas of the home and is a nod to the homeowners’ business.
“The countertops are quartzite stone—they’re beautiful, with a leathered finish and swirls of gray and green in them; they’re very cool,” she adds. The bar wall was built out of several sections to create a seamless, continuous curve. The backsplash is comprised of mosaic split face marble tile, featuring a rough, textured look.
The bar is ready for service, thanks to a wine cooler, icemaker and an abundance of storage for glasses and other barware.
Basement bar resources:
Cabinetry: Custom automotive finish, Ken Leech; Countertops: Quartzite Illusion, Dente; Countertop fabrication: Ultimate Granite; Backsplash: Glacier White split face mosaic, Ceramiche Tile & Stone; Sink: Kohler; Faucet: Brizo Loki Collection; Flooring: Nero Classico polished marble, Ceramiche Tile & Stone
Son’s bath
The homeowners’ son is young, so the idea was to create a space that would grow with him rather than one that was overly child-oriented. The designer accomplished that with the shower, incorporating fun decorative touches. A mixture of marble and glass give a mosaic-like design to the shower. The wall tile is laid in a chevron pattern, which was continued behind the vanity—a unique look that creates an impressive focal point.
Plenty of storage is to be found in the cabinetry, while a custom mirror was made to match the cabinet color. As a reflection of the homeowners’ business, the high gloss vanity was painted using automotive paint. Like the powder room, the floors are a natural marble stone.
Son’s bath resources:
Vanity cabinet and mirror: Custom automotive finish, Ken Leech; Countertop: Black soapstone, Ultimate Granite; Sink: Kohler Verticyl; Faucet and showerheads: Brizo Odin Collection; Vanity sconces: Sonneman LED wall sconce; Tile supplier: Ceramiche Stone & Tile; Flooring: Calacatta marble; Shower floor tile: ONBM Glass and Stone Mosaic; Striped shower wall tile: Porcelanosa Glass Blanco; Palm Glass Smoke; Glass shower enclosure: Rex Glass & Mirror
Master bath
The footprint of the master bath was expanded a bit from its previous incarnation, and the result is a chic, modern space. “She wanted it to be a calming, spa-look,” says Natalia.
The focal point of the master bath is the elegant tub in the center of the room, sitting atop the intricate chevron-patterned, two-toned marble tile floor, which practically beckons you to luxuriate in its soothing waters underneath an exquisite, shimmering chandelier.
The glass-enclosed marble shower is accessible from both sides and features a rain head as well as a hand-held showerhead. A bench runs alongside the entire back wall. “On the back of the shower, we wanted to mimic the floor but not to fight with it, to create more of a detail, so we custom created that color pattern,” says the designer.
The quartz counters placed on top of each vanity mimic the look of marble, which eliminates the possibility of staining. A bonus makeup area was positioned in front of the window for the wife, while ample storage space resides on both sides of the room.
Master bath resources:
Cabinetry and vanity mirrors: Ken Leech; Countertops: Polar Calacatta quartz, Dente; Sinks: Kohler Ladena; Faucets and showerheads: Brizo Virage Collection; Vanity sconces: Corbett Roxy Collection; Chandelier: Eurofase Cameo Collection; Flooring: White Haze and Chenille honed marble; Tile supplier: Ceramiche Tile & Stone; Tile installation: Darren Jarvis, Mosaic Tileworks; Shower floor and bench tile: White Haze Mosaic; Shower Wall: Custom Nadeau Mosaic; Hardware: 1.75-inch Diamond Crystal, Splash; Glass shower enclosure: Rex Glass and Mirror; Bathtub: Maidstone
Basement bath
To date there have been no crocodile sightings in Pittsburgh, but the next closest thing is the crocodile-embossed veneer of the basement bath’s vanity, which is illuminated by the unique pendant lighting on either side of the mirror.
The bathroom is predominantly marble, with alabaster marble floors complementing the back wall tile, also marble, which was custom-cut into a hexagonal pattern. The interplay of blacks, grays and whites throughout the space creates a soothing environment.
Marble is again featured in the shower, which has a convenient bench, against a custom cut marble tile background.
Basement bath resources:
Vanity: Acqua Crocodile Faux Leather cabinet; Countertop: Green soapstone, Ultimate Granite; Sink: Bissonnet Cubic; Faucet: Brizo Siderna Collection; Pendant lights: Bonn LED Pendant Smoke; Flooring, shower floor and bench tile: Dynasty White Honed marble, Ceramiche Tile & Stone; Shower wall tile: Triangle Mink honed marble, Ceramiche Tile & Stone; Glass shower enclosure: Rex Glass & Mirror
Upstairs bar
The homeowners envisioned the upstairs lounge area to become a teenage boys’ hangout in a few years. For now, though, the area is a family space. As the room is located in a former attic space, the ceilings are necessarily sloped to follow the roofline. “Because it was not possible to change the roofline, we used the angles of the room to our advantage and made the ceiling part of the bar design. Because the ceiling is on the angle and our backsplash tile has a textured, shimmery look, the ceiling catches the light differently than the wall tile, which creates a more fun and playful look,” says Natalia.
The custom Shaker cabinets are painted gray and feature soapstone countertops. The bar includes an icemaker, a sink and a double-drawer refrigerator. In addition to polished chrome hardware, the pulls adorning the two center cabinets resemble tennis players—an homage to the son’s love of the game.
Beneath the rug is a porcelain tile featuring a combination of light and dark stripes.
Upstairs bar resources:
Cabinetry: Ken Leech; Countertops: Black soapstone, Ultimate Granite; Backsplash: Linen Glass Frost, Ceramiche Tile & Stone; Flooring: Alberto porcelain, Ceramiche Tile & Stone; Cabinet hardware: Pomegranate Pull and Man Handles, Splash