On “Home Town,” Erin and Ben Napier love to bring historic homes back to their former glory. But it’s not often they have clients who are just as interested in historic preservation as they are.
In the Season 7 episode “Ginkgos and Gondolas,” Erin and Ben meet Bob and Linda Kaliski, who have purchased a 1906 registered historic house in Laurel, MS, for $260,000. The four-bedroom, three-bathroom property needs a lot of work. Luckily, Bob and Linda are willing to invest a healthy budget of $190,000 to fix it up.
“We’re basically saving a piece of art,” Bob says.
Read on to find out how Erin and Ben fix up this house—and get ideas on how to spruce up an older home without obliterating its past.
Remove dated wrought iron
Before: The entry was covered in this wrought iron, which didn’t seem to match the rest of the home.
HGTV
When Bob and Linda first see the house that will eventually be their home, they love the exterior. With a beautiful ginkgo tree out front and stately architecture, it’s certainly an impressive property. Still, Bob isn’t so sure about one feature on the front porch.
“Not in love with the wrought iron,” he says. “Makes it look more like a New Orleans house.”
After: Erin and Ben Napier copied the home’s original pillars for a historic look.
HGTV
Luckily, Erin already has plans to remove the wrought iron and add columns to match the home’s original turn-of-the century look. The team takes off the iron detailing and adds four wood posts.
The posts, Ben and Erin explain, will be wrapped in cement board to re-create the elegant pillars that the home once had. They make the house look complete and return some of its historic charm.
Replace one door with two
It seems two front doors are better than one!
HGTV
While Bob’s only exterior concern is the wrought iron, Erin has another idea for improving the look of the entryway.
“It would be really beautiful if we removed the one front door and side lights and replaced it with double doors that have this Prairie-style pattern in the glass,” Erin explains, pointing to her rendering.
These doors add not only charm but also more light to the house.
For added privacy, hide the door
Before: Linda and Bob Kaliski needed a more private entry to their bedroom.
HGTV
Inside the house, Erin and Ben show Linda and Bob two living rooms on either side of the staircase. However, the HGTV stars recommend turning one room into a first-floor main bedroom. Still, having a bedroom right inside the front door could make for some awkward encounters, so Erin and Ben must make sure that guests won’t accidentally walk into the new bedroom suite.
Their solution is to cover the wall and door with paneling, which makes the door to this bedroom all but disappear. Guests who aren’t aware of the door will automatically head in the other direction.
“When you walk into a house, it should be intuitive which direction a guest is supposed to walk,” Erin says. “They shouldn’t feel like ‘I don’t know where I’m supposed to go.’ This is helping them figure out ‘This is the direction I’m supposed to go.'”
After: The new paneling practically hides the bedroom door.
HGTV
When the feature is finished, the paneling adds some era-appropriate style to the foyer while also making the door practically invisible. It’s a fun, historically inspired look that will ensure that no one stumbles into Bob and Linda’s private quarters.
Original flooring is worth saving
This home’s wood flooring was damaged by carpet padding.
HGTV
While this house is in surprisingly good shape for its age, Erin and Ben are disappointed to find that, over the years, the carpet padding has adhered to the shellac on the original wood flooring underneath. They call in flooring experts who can save the floors by removing the carpet pad, the shellac, and a top layer of the pine. The process is expensive, costing about $15,000, but Bob and Linda think the cost is well worth it.
“It’s important that we try to restore as much of the historic character as possible,” Erin says. “And with the floors, they did tell us they’re OK to spend extra money if we can make that happen.”
When the floors are finished, it’s clear that the new homeowners made the right decision. The original floors are an important part of this house, and they help make this historic home feel extra special.
Imperfect tiles can add vintage charm to a new kitchen
Before: This old kitchen needed a historically inspired update.
HGTV
This home’s kitchen needs a lot of work, with Erin, Ben, and the team demolishing everything in the space. While it might sound freeing to start fresh with a kitchen design, these HGTV stars want to make sure the kitchen doesn’t feel brand-new. So they choose a backsplash made of imperfect tiles with slightly different colors. Ben jokes that the off-white and yellow hues remind him of the range of dirtiness of his work clothes.
After: Erin Napier chose a unique tile backsplash.
HGTV
In addition to the yellow tile, the team installs a countertop.
“The countertop inspired the tile choices,” Erin says. “The countertop is very neutral. It’s almost solid white, but when you look closely, it’s got this golden veining. So I wanted the tile to bring out more of the warmth.”
In the end, the new kitchen looks charming and updated, without feeling too new. The unique backsplash helps age the space, while the new countertop brings the design together.
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