letters
CO NNECT W ITH U S
2007 HOME IMPROVEMENT
CHALLENGE WINNERS
THANK YOU, READERS
for entering ou
rBetterHomes and Gardens!*
Home
Improvement Challenge. We received nearly
5,0 0 0
submissions o f inspiring projects.
Here’s a look at the top three category winners, each of whom won cash prizes, and the
grand prize winner, who won $
25
,
0 0 0
. Congratulations!
MY SISTER, LYNNE SM ITH , h a s b e e n
h a u n tin g fle a m a rk e ts , t h r i f t s to re s ,
a n tiq u e a u c tio n s , a n d e s ta te sa le s
s in c e th e 1 970s. S h e tra v e ls e x te n -
siv e ly a n d a lw a y s g o e s to th e lo c a l
fle a m a rk e ts w h e n s h e ’s in a n e w
city.
S h e k n o w s w h e r e all th e u n iq u e
s a le s a re b e c a u s e s h e s tu d ie s tra v e l
b o o k s a n d th e I n te r n e t b e fo re s h e
g o e s; b e fo re a tr ip s h e re a lly d o e s
h e r h o m e w o rk . S h e h a s d e c o r a tin g
th e m e s th r o u g h o u t h e r h o m e —
E n g lis h d o g p ic tu re s a n d fig u rin e s ,
s e a s h e ll a n d s e a c o a s t s c e n e s.
JoannaCamp, Birmingham, AL
W HEN FRIENDS AND re la tiv e s
v is it u s th e y a lw a y s c o m p lim e n t
m e o n h o w n ic e th e h o u s e lo o k s —
c h o r u s e s o f “y o u re a lly h a v e a n
e y e fo r d e c o r a tin g ” a b o u n d . Y et
th e y a r e o f te n d ir e c te d a t th e
w r o n g p e rs o n . H e ’d n e v e r a d m it
it, b u t m y h u s b a n d is q u ite th e
“B e tte r H o m e s a n d G a rd e n s ”
p e rs o n . H e ’s d o n e e v e r y th in g fro m
h e lp in g to c o o r d in a te c o lo rs in o u r
g a r d e n to s p o ttin g a d e a l o n a n
a n tiq u e d r e s s e r a t a lo c a l fle a m a r k e t
(h e p u t it to u s e as a b u ffe t in o u r
d in in g ro o m ). I c o n s id e r m y s e lf
e x tre m e ly b le s s e d to s h a r e m y life
w ith s o m e o n e w h o s h a r e s m y lo v e
o f h o m e a n d g a rd e n .
Tracy (and Doug) Antonioli,
Macungie, PA
We’d love to know.
..
1
v h e n it c o m e s to h o m e ,
V h a t is y o u r sp e c ia l t a le n t- a n d
h o w d o y o u s h a re it w ith
o th e rs? W rite o r e -m a il u s a t
d ie a d d re sse s b elow .
WHOLE HOUSE REMODELING
Grand Prize W
inner
A WINNER
Erin McIntyre, LaGrange, KY
See page 156 for our story.
B WINNER
Carol Samsonoff, Cambridge, NY
Carol morphed her 1850s saltbox into a cozy
three-bedroom farmhouse. Later she restored
three neighboring barns for hobby pursuits
C WINNER
Kea Brooks, Westfield, IN
To turn their house into a home, Kea and her
husband added a butler’s pantry, a fifth
bedroom, and a mudroom all on their own.
EXTERIOR FACELIFTS
A WINNER
Emily Hammers, Medford, OR
See page 114 for our story.
B WINNER Jud/th
Vihonski, Wayne, NJ
See page n8 for our story.
C WINNER
Kevin Kirkpatrick, W
ilmette, IL
See page n6 for our story.
OUTDOOR IMPROVEMENT
A WINNER
Brett Bennink, Portland, OR
See page 168 for our story.
B WINNER
Brian Andrews, Phoenix, AZ
By enlarging a carport into a two-car garage and
creating a private entry courtyard, Brian gave a
i950s-style ranch home a fresh new look.
C WINNER
Tom
W
ills, Plains, PA
Tom replaced a worn-out cedar deck with a low-
maintenance stone patio and added a fireplace.
"It’s relaxing to enjoy breakfast next to a crackling
fire as the autumn leaves are falling,” he says.
KITCHEN
A WINNER
Tanja Vujic, Chapel HiS, NC
See page 41 for our story.
B WINNER
Emily Kennedy, Loretto, TN
See page 164 forour story.
C WINNER
Kristin Thompson, Ada, Ml
Kristin gutted her kitchen and used bamboo
flooring, nickel hardware, and blue tile to create
a "beach mod” took for less than $5,000.
BATH
A WINNER
Brett Youmans and Rich Ault,
Berks County, PA
See page52 for our story.
B W INNER
SusanneKerns, Seattle, WA
Susanne transformed a cramped bathroom into
an airy sanctuary by borrowing space from a
walk-in closet to build a shower with a skylight.
C WINNER
JacquiNorman, Ames, IA
See page 272 for our story.
To see winners’ projects not published in this
issue,go to
BHG.com/HICwinners.
DECORATING
A WINNER
George Marrone, Aston, PA
See page 46 for our story.
B WINNER
Lynette Hasselgren, WalkersviSe, MD
See page 62 for our story.
C WINNER
Kristin Thompson, Ada, Ml
Using a gray, black, and silver palette, Kristin
created a stylish nursery that doesn’t have the
expiration date of its powder pink counterparts.
ADDITIONS
A WINNER
Joseph King Arlington, VA
Joseph transformed a ranch into a Craftsman-
style bungalow by tearing off the roof and
keeping the bones of the structure intact. "We
gave our house character, personality, and soul
with a simple pop-top and a facelift,” he says.
B WINNER
Yvette Conte, Richmond, VA
The kitchen and dining room flip-flopped in
Yvette’s renovation project that included a
seven-foot expansion and the addition of a
second story above the kitchen.
C WINNER
Sarah Patterson, Ridgefield, CT
The Pattersons went from living “very carefully”
to "very comfortably” with the addition of a
55-square-foot entryway mudroom in their
960-square-foot home. The room functions as
a space-saving catchall for this family of five.
GREEN IMPROVEMENTS
A WINNER
Tina and Jordan Sheff, Barrington, Rl
The Sheffs call their makeover the “Al Gore
Revelation Renovation” because their project
was inspired by the film,“An Inconvenient Truth.”
B WINNER
Susan Rooney, Fairport, NY
A self-proclaimed green pioneer, Susan used
bio-based foam insulation and solar hot water
panels to update her 1860s farm house.
C WINNER
Becky Hogg West Linn, OR
Misfortune fueled Becky’s greenhouse project.
She recycled materials from a storm-damaged
storage shed to build a pretty potting cottage.
ORGANIZATION
A WINNER
Kirsten Brice, Fremont, CA
Kirsten increased space and functionality by
using built-in beds with drawers to replace bulky
dressers in her children’s rooms
B WINNER
Amy Nash, East Amherst, NY
Amy’s kidney disease prompted a bedroom
makeover to create space for medical supplies.
Built-in cabinets and a window seat hide clutter
and foster a serene healingspace.
C WINNER
Brett Youmans and Rich Ault,
Berks County, PA
Brett and Rich turned a third-floor bedroom into
an energized studio by adding lots of shelving
ordered storage, and a moveable workstation.
S U B S C R IP T IO N S E R V IC E B H G .c o n Y se rv ic e E -M A IL U S B H G E d ito r@ m e re d ith .c o m W R IT E U S
1716
L o c u s t St., D e s M o in e s, IA
5 0 3 0 9 -3 0 2 3
16 SEPTEMBER2008 BETTER HOMES AND
GARDENS
