In addition to creating a more formal design, the owners of this Brookwood Hills home needed more space for their growing family. As avid gardeners, they also wanted a greater connection to their back yard. The project team, Architect D. Stanley Dixon, Dargan Landscape Architects, and Revival Construction, were presented with the challenge of increasing the living space, unifying the exterior design, and creating an inviting, usable back yard.
This shingled Colonial Revival house is very typical of the early homes built in Brookwood Hills between 1922 and 1926. The original house had standard colonial detailing so Revival used the same materials on the addition but in slightly different ways to create a more formal facade. Over the years, there had been two previous additions on the rear of the house. While the additions had provided much needed space, they created a very confused rear elevation and had not improved upon the overall architectural quality of the house. Moreover, the uneven rear elevation overlooked a back yard with a steep, uneven grade that was difficult to use.

Forty sweet bay magnolia trees were planted along the perimeter to create immediate privacy. This photo also shows the base for the fountain being built in the foreground.
The rear half of the main floor was reconfigured, an additional eighteen feet were added to the rear creating space for a new family room and library and existing areas were reconfigured to create a desk area and powder room pictured below.

The bay window on the main floor overlooks the terraced garden with a strong axis on the new fireplace pavilion.

A look at the new fireplace and a solution for the modern convenience of the flat screen television.

The stairs to the basement were moved into the new addition to create a new secondary entry and mudroom on the lower level. This entry area flowed into a new screened porch that leads on the upper terrace.

The two-story addition with its prominent gabled end and engaged pilasters recalls the two-tiered porticos of many 18th century Charleston homes.
This fitting renovation succeeded all of its goals. The new addition not only remedied the flaws of the previous additions but also created an elegant facade to enjoy from the garden oasis.