Projects: Windsor Terrace Renovation, Pt. I

(Celebrating our 2 year anniversary!)

Cousin John's at it again with another killer renovation in Brooklyn.  He and the owners were kind enough to give us a sneak peak inside this contemporary Windsor Terrace beauty...

The owners are Mark & Lori Mendelis. Lori is one of our favorite brokers who brought you such gems as 536 Court Street and a nifty condo in 360 Court Street.  And, from what we can tell, her and her husband are simply loving life in Windsor Terrace these days.  Bright wood floors coast seamlessly into the 24' x 24' tile of the tasteful Ikea kitchen with a sliding glass door out to the backyard deck...

We were curious how they'd found the place.  No stranger to the game, Lori says they'd lost a few places while searching and bidding, so they knew what time it was.  They were thinking Boerum Hill, weren't too jazzed on Park Slope proper, and said they really like the old-school neighborhood flavor of Windsor Terrace.  In Fall 2010, before the market rebound was in full swing, they suddenly got beat-out on an 18'-wide place across the street by a slightly lower bid with a higher downpayment.   By chance, they came across this 20' x 50' beauty, listed with a no-name broker.  They took one look at it and had a contract signed in 5 days.  "It wasn't even on-line," Lori told us, "just a sign out front."  Suddenly they're picking up a nice canvas around the corner from Prospect Park and the F train for a nice price.  Now that the renovation's finished, Lori says, "We don't even wanna go out."

Lori says her and Mark had a dark apartment in Cobble Hill, so one of the objectives of the renovation was to achieve as much natural light as possible.  Our iPhone pictures without flash and pics provided by Cousin John don't even capture the feel of light that pours through.  Besides removing the back wall and installing the sliding glass door downstairs, they left the one existing skylight and added two others, including in the baths...

These are very affordable moves that make a BIG difference in the feel of the space.  Even little details like the frosty liner on the window in the tub achieves light and privacy without the need for clunky window dressing...

Lori says she knew they wanted neat, right angles and certain materials and that Cousin John "and the crew were good with that."  Besides Lori's experience from being in & out of homes as a realtor, her husband Mark also works in design, so his sensibility informed a lot of the process.  Once you're doing anything resembling a gut renovation, it's a slippery slope towards doing everything right once.  You don't wanna do a B-minus job now and rip the house up again soon down the road.  So radiant floor heating and central air-conditioning were moves they knew it was time to make.  Lori says achieving the level of finish they wanted within budget was a challenge, but that prioritizing, value engineering, and scouring the country for the discontinued Ikea kitchen cabinets they liked the look of was where they really saved some money.  $1,300 total for cabinets in a caliber of job where people often spend $60K-$80K on cabinets allowed flexibility in other places.  Lori says, "We probably paid more for [Cousin] John than the average contractor, but it was worth it.  With his design background, and having seen the modern renovation he did on Warren Street... plus we know he's not pounding Coor's Lights in our basement."  She says architect-wise they knew what they wanted, they didn't need someone to pick materials, they just needed someone with the same vision to help execute it.

We're impressed with the results.  In our next installment, we'll sit down with Cousin John, hear his take on this renovation, and see a few more photos...