These August award home winners "leave no surface untouched"

The well-known idiom "leave no stone unturned" is what springs to mind when absorbing the amount of head-spinning changes that have taken place at 4428 Indiana Avenue in four short years. A more appropriate adaption would be "leave no surface untouched" which is exactly what its owners, Nathan Gage and Zach Loubier have accomplished with their 1929 Craftsman Foursquare at the corner of Indiana Avenue and Pasadena Drive. Purchased in the summer of 2012, this home was formerly owned by the same family for several decades but had fallen into a difficult financial situation with a subsequent family owner and became vacant. As with many homes in this situation, buyers tend to question the structure, roof, mechanicals and larger ticket items and they were no different. They had a feeling after looking at it that it had tremendous potential aside from its superficial issues. Fortunately his positive instincts were soon confirmed when his beloved grandparents, who owned their own construction company also toured the home. Afterwards they assured him that the home was indeed strong, sound and would be perfect to renovate. Nathan shared with a smile "That was all I really needed to hear. We closed on it as quickly as possible and got to work!" And work they have. Four years later and the exterior transformation is obvious to neighbors or regular walkers who can certainly recall its former state. The once white aluminum siding with redwood accents was replaced with sharp charcoal grey lap siding with cedar shake-style shingles accents on the solarium room, porch and garage. All of the windows are new, trimmed in a crisp white and a few eliminated for the sake of interior upgrades. A new roof, a complimentary medley of greys and dark browns cover the main body of  home with a contrasting copper-look standing seam style which tops the the solarium and porch. The copper also ties in nicely with the original warm red-brown masonry of the porch; itself a well-appointed shady spot to sit in relative seclusion and take in the views of the street. One could sit and enjoy sounds from a fountain nearby in the flower bed where all former shrubbery was removed, leave two ornamental trees flanking the porch. A curving line of delineation now exists between the lawn and beds, filled with dark mulch, pavers and a contrasting mix of hydrangeas, cannas, grasses and flowering perennials. The beginnings of stained wood installed horizontally on the north side of their home nearest the garage is the beginning of a large pergola that will extend out over a concrete patio toward the garage that currently holds a table and chairs (and in my opinion provides them a lovely place to sit, sip a cold drink and take a well-earned break while enjoying the view of their garden and their fantastic wood-look garage door with mission-style sconces.)This tireless and talented pair have tackled nearly all of their homes daunting projects single-handedly, hiring out only the roof, siding and windows. The pair again displays what their talents and hard work have produced on the interior. Remodeling the main upstairs bathroom, removing carpet from the main floor rooms and stairway and refinishing the two-inch strip oak floors and treads. They have scraped wallpaper from every wall and ceiling throughout, restored (filled, sanded and painted) all of the plaster walls, re-coated the main floor rooms in a warm earthy craftsman inspired tones and re-stained the homes original wood crown moldings and trim. With the assistance of Nathan's aunt, they stained and installed a gorgeous coffered ceiling in the solarium/music room which is home to a treasured family gift of a refinished burled wood upright piano. Another heirloom can be found in the dining room, in a lit beautiful six-arm crystal tear drop chandelier that Nathan received from his late grandmother that he lovingly resprayed silver. Beyond the dining room are two largely plaster and lathless rooms because the home stretch of this renovation marathon will conclude with a new kitchen, mudroom and bath. Whew!The monumental efforts and accomplishments of this duo are nothing short of amazing and we thank you for honoring your home and our neighborhood with your hard work and for giving us the opportunity to recognize and appreciate it. Congratulations! -Erika Stuller