Jeff Schmerker photo
The exterior was redone with tan-colored vinyl siding and grey paint was scraped from the front porch which later was given a mocha stain.
Summer Makeovers
Staff writer
Leatherwood home
When Shawn Leatherwood bought his home on Leatherwood Street in 2002, he wasn’t just buying a classic house in need of a bit of work. He was also investing in a family heirloom.
The home was first built in 1905 by Leatherwood’s great-grandfather Joseph. The four bedroom, one bathroom, 2,000-square-foot home was later purchased by Leatherwood’s great aunt and first cousin, who remained the sole owners until they put it on the market in 2001.
At the time, Leatherwood had just moved back from Charlotte to start his own architectural business and was finding his feet in his hometown again. The home stayed on the market for a year. He decided to purchase it.
Despite misgivings from some of his relatives, who thought he’d sink too much into the house in renovations, Leatherwood felt the home had great intrinsic quality.
“It’s got oak studs,” Leatherwood said. “When they were drywalling they had to use drywall nails because the screws would just snap off. You don’t find that kind of quality in a home built these days.”
While the home was solidly built, it was in sore need of updating.
While he lived in a home down the street, Leatherwood brought in contractors to take care of some of the home’s tougher projects, though he did much of the work himself. Work lasted six months.
Leatherwood started by gutting the first floor in order to fully update the plumbing and electrical systems. Next, the back porch was enclosed, allowing him to expand the kitchen and living room.
In the kitchen, Leatherwood added new hardwood cabinets and stainless steel appliances. The hallway, living room and dining room all got recessed lighting. All rooms were painted in warm palette of beiges, Tibetan reds and sage greens.
Once finished, Leatherwood furnished the downstairs rooms with leather furniture and family heirlooms, including his great-great-grandmother’s dining room table, and his grandmother’s bed and corner cupboard. Leatherwood gave an equally dramatic makeover to the house’s exterior and the 2.8-acre lot the home is located.
First, he clad the home in a tan-colored vinyl siding as a temporary stopgap to preserve the rotting heart of pine lap board.
Battleship grey paint was scraped from the front porch, which given a luxurious mocha stain.
Then, Leatherwood set to work on the landscaping. Back in 2002, the home had just three trees, one of which was rotten and had to come down.
Leatherwood totally transformed the look of the home by adding lush landscaping around all four sides. The front has a shade garden featuring planters, boxwoods and mondo grass.
The south side of the home has sweeping planting beds lined with reclaimed brick and holding everything from coleus and cosmos to coneflower, blue sage and Chinese forget-me-nots. To the side, meanwhile, is a spacious greenhouse and a tumbled stone patio.
The north side of the home features a former dog run Leatherwood plans to convert to a secret garden a la Charleston, and a fair-sized garden full of corn. The rest of the yard is a marvelous sweep of grass which, rather amazingly, Leatherwood says he mows in just 90 minutes.
“It used to take four hours,” he said, “until I got one of those commercial mowers. When they tell you it cuts your mow time in half, they aren’t kidding.”
Not yet done, Leatherwood envisions a “phase two” for the home. That includes expanding the second floor off the back to include two new bathrooms, removing the siding and restoring the original wood siding and, naturally, more landscaping.
Reach Jeff Schmerker at 452-0661, ext. 131, or at jos@themountaineer.com
