Severna Park Re-living

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Walking through a newly listed home for sale is a regular occurrence in Diane Mallare’s world. The accomplished realtor and married mother of six is no stranger to all the ins and outs of a competitive real estate market, so she is uniquely adept and certainly qualified to see the potential and the promise of a quintessential fixer-upper.

And that’s exactly what happened back in early 2019, when a property posted to the multi-list system particularly caught Mallare’s eye. She instinctually knew that she needed to get the keys and do her own walk-through of this Severna Park residence ASAP.

At that time, Mallare and her husband, Jason, had been looking for a larger home to accommodate their growing family for the better part of three years.

“Given that we have six children, I was looking for a home with a large enough footprint that we could customize,” Mallare explains.

Fortunately, along with her real estate background, Mallare says she also benefits from a solid family association in the home building industry with her father, Mike Thomasson, owning a building company. “My love for homes started at an early age,” Mallare explains. “My parents would build a new house in the area every five to six years.”

It would be this unique expertise and her personal experiences growing up in Severna Park, that enabled the couple to look at the property for not only what it was, but what it could be. Back in her Severna Park neighborhood, it was just a short bike ride to the community beach, and she recalls fondly being able to make that quick leap on the bike seat and peddling her way to the water’s edge to meet friends for a swim. Providing this same experience for her own children decades later was a must-have for Mallare.

The couple also wanted to be in a community that would offer an ample amount of social activities, that was close to the Baltimore and Annapolis Trail, and near the heart of Severna Park. This property had it all, it just needed some work…a lot of work.

Undaunted

When asked how she felt when she realized the home would require a total gut job, Mallare simply replied, “invigorated!” “It truly was a diamond in the rough, and the possibilities excited both my husband and I to re-create this home that once was ahead of its time as a custom home in the 1950s.”

While it was indeed a forward-thinking design with some interesting architectural details and a built-in, state-of-the-art intercom system, most homes of that era neglected to provide the types of views that many of us in the greater Chesapeake region enjoy today.

The innovation of the open floorplan and advent of sliding glass wall systems was decades in the future when this home was originally built and, thus, very few rooms provided any glimpse of the water at all. That was all going to have to change.

“I fell in love with the fact that this home had the potential to have water views from many rooms in the home after a renovation,” Mallare says. The floorplan would not change the footprint but would add an additional story to the home. It was created by Mallare’s friend and architect, Tina Colebrook, with much input from the Mallares themselves. Along with an open-plan living concept that would comfortably accommodate how eight people, six of them being children, would move about the home, Mallare wanted uninhibited views.

“I said I want seamless, because when you walked in the old front door, it literally led you straight into the brick fireplace, and then you had to walk all the way around it to see the water. I said we need to have a front door that as soon as you open it, the water catches your eye, and you are drawn into the home.”

Mallare, who served as general contractor on the project, brought in the natural choice to manage the day-to-day supervision of the renovation. “I cannot thank my Dad enough because, honestly, dreaming about building versus the reality of building are two different things. Going through this and having his expertise and his knowledge to lean on during the supervision of the project, was instrumental.”

Another huge aspect of this renovation was framing, or re-framing the home. Jason found an expert who could handle a much older home that had existing structural issues, and one that could manage the addition of a second story to the existing structure. Mallare knew that nearly every wall and surface was going to be affected.

“Our framer, Nick Rusk of Garth Enterprises, was instrumental because he read the floorplans that our architect designed…doing a remodel is quite different than building it from the ground up because our house was not plumb; it was not straight. It was not [built] to today’s standards, so there were a lot of complexities that had to be solved on site,” she says.

Eye For Interiors

Everything that was once walled off and choppy about the home became free-flowing and light-infused. And now the “fun part” of any tedious remodel could commence, and Mallare was relieved she had resources to help in that phase of the renovation, as well.

“I had two of my friends help with this aspect: Jackie D’Amico was instrumental in bringing our kitchen vision to life (including a space for two dishwashers for our family) and Suzi Hopper of Hopper House who helped me pull together the finishing touches for decor in the home.”

Like many homeowners today, Mallare confides that much of their inspiration came from scrolling Pinterest and Instagram. “We sourced everything, from ordering flooring samples online to visiting showrooms, and sourcing a mix of high-end items with budget items that achieved a great combination for our final vision,” Mallare says. “[Suzi] was able to work with all my eclectic design choices; I have a mix of Bo-Ho, Modern Farmhouse, and a little nautical style in there, too. She was able to help me pull it all together, so those mismatched styles could blend nicely.”

While the couple definitely aspired to the dramatic, roomy feel the open floorplan and its two-story, vaulted great room provides, they did not want the vibe to feel “too over the top.” Mallare notes they needed it to be spacious for entertaining, but they also wanted it to convey a certain level of comfort. When asked to describe their new home in three adjectives, Mallare chose “…understated and dramatic, yet comfortable.”

From the ground up, this was accomplished first with their choice of flooring, a true, white distressed oak, to which was added touches of wood furnishings, and warm metals employed for the light fixtures throughout. A series of windows that span a large stretch of wall in the living area draw in the natural light that is then enhanced by keenly placed reflective decorative pieces, such as the striking, antique mirror that sits atop their rich, wood fireplace mantel.

Beyond all the things that make a home look great, there were some boxes to check on the function list, as well. With six, school-age children, the Mallares understand the importance of an efficient mudroom. “The mudroom is the center of home,” Mallare explains. “It’s what keeps our family running.”

Just off the first-floor laundry, there are six awesome cubbies along one wall with drawers below and cabinets above—all the space needed for weather gear, backpacks, shoes, and even storage for smaller items. Their design here is just as intentional as seen in the rest of the home with their blended neutral tones, crown molding, and wood accent bench seating.

Mallare did deviate from the distressed oak floors and chose a handsome re-claimed Chicago brick that was cut down and then set in a herringbone pattern to offset the cabinetry in the space. Similar function was created on the home’s lower-level family living area in a space specifically designed for the children to do their studies (a necessity during the pandemic) with an extended homework space to accommodate three children at a time.

And as lovely as the upstairs great room is, the more casual living space downstairs is a great example of what basking in quality family time is all about, with its additional seating and an entertainment area with a gorgeous, expanded fireplace wall dressed in white brick. This level provides space for a home theater and a roomy home office for Jason, an aerospace engineer.

On The Right Path

While there are several ways to easily access the outdoors on the home’s main level, including a private balcony off the primary suite, it is from this level where the family has seamless access to get out and enjoy the exceptional outdoor living area that they created.

And for Mallare, it is from here that she sees most keenly why this property was worth the undertaking. During her initial walk-through, which included a comprehensive survey of the existing grounds, under some overgrown brush and bramble, she spotted a path that led down to the community’s beach. It was in that moment that she knew that this property was truly destined to be their next home.

“I found this secret walkway to the community under ivy—a secret brick walkway—and at the time it was overtaken, and that to me just spoke volumes of what I envisioned for my kids,” Mallare explains. “For them to be able to run from the house down to the beach and back up from the beach to the house with their friends…and now that has happened. That vision and having it come to life has just been amazing. So that little hidden walkway was it for me, and I was ready.”

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