Clean slate: a second act for a home destroyed by fire

Custom Home, Jan-Feb, 2005 by Meghan Drueding

RELATED ARTICLE: Details: good vibrations.

After sifting through the scorched remains of their home and belongings, the Crowders felt they were due for some good fortune. So they took a course in feng shui, the ancient Chinese art of creating environments that promote well-being and positive energy. "We found that feng shui is all about sound design principles," says Thomas, and the new house incorporates some of their discoveries. Operable windows, clerestories, and oversized sliding doors permit a constant flow of fresh air, a feng shui mainstay. High ceilings are also thought to be lucky, and the vaulted ceiling in the main living space measures over 15 feet at its topmost point. Kay's side yard pond, with its gentle waterfall and darting goldfish, is a model of correct feng shui.

* Not everything fits into the complex system; exposed ceiling beams, for example, contradict feng shui rules. "That's one reason why we also have some flat ceilings, to minimize the effect of the beams," says Thomas. "It was very important, especially for Kay, to have some form of spirituality in the design. But we didn't get to the point where it was going to dictate what we did."--M.D.

RELATED ARTICLE: The builder: people power.

It took T.W. Smith Co. about nine months to build the Crowder residence. For a highly detailed, custom job like this one, that's a pretty quick turnaround time. To vice president Tony Zlatovich, though, it seemed long. "The timeline for our usual projects is 4 to 6 months," he says. * As a commercial contractor, T.W. Smith generally runs on a tighter schedule than a home builder. The company gets help from SureTrak project management software by Primavera, but the biggest factor in its ability to deliver well-built, on-time projects is the high caliber of the people it hires to work on its jobsites. It employs several tradespeople full-time, including the skilled finish carpenter who hung the doors and detailed the trim at the Crowder house. And prompt payment policies have given it access to the best subs in town. "For our entire existence, we've paid our invoices in a timely manner," says president Dan Hill. "That's getting less and less common, so if our subs are choosing between us and another contractor, it really helps us. It's the most important reason why we've been able to hire top people."--M.D.