Reconfiguring a home for four adults was a challenge this millennial couple was ready to take on
N.J. home makeover is a regular feature on NJ.com. To submit your renovation for consideration, email home@starledger.com with your full name, email address, phone number and town/city. Attach "before" and "after" photos of what you renovated.
The making of one young couple's dream home in Piscataway called for lots of blending and more than a little rearranging.
What had been the dining room was a bit too small for the gatherings they envisioned, but it was the perfect size for a husband's home office. The old family room was spacious and a much better fit for the long dining room table they'd fill up with guests.
And what better place for the family to gather than in the light-filled sunroom large enough for a sectional sofa, a recliner, the flat-screen TV and another dining area for casual meals?
A family of four would live in the house: Jessy Joykutty Thomas, a physician, her electrical contractor husband, Joji Thomas, and Jessy's mom and dad.
"I never dreamed that my husband would think of it," Jessy Thomas said of his idea to have her parents move in with them. In 2015, the couple, married three years, had been looking for a home for her parents to move to New Jersey from her childhood home in Maryland. They were still saving for a first house of their own.
"We were specifically looking for a ranch for them," she said of the goal to give her parents ease of access on one level. When the couple came across a large four-bedroom ranch with two full bathrooms and three half baths, "we had this vision of our whole family living there together," she said.
"I am an only child, so I was pretty close to my parents growing up." Her husband is also close to his parents and encouraged them to move to Piscataway, she said. "My in-laws live down the street."
When her husband told her he enjoyed her parents' company, and that they could be there for their parents in their advancing years and vice versa when the couple began to have children, a plan was set in motion.
"I knew I'd want to make it into my dream home," Jessy Thomas said. It was a bit of a challenge to do so, however, as the couple had bought furnishings from the previous owners of their 3,605-square-foot home to save both time and money.
The very traditional furnishings and draperies did not fit their style, and the layout of the living areas did not fit their needs. What did work for Jessy Thomas was the furniture her parents brought with them.
To blend the mix of furnishings and help them reorganize their home, the couple called in Remya Warrior of Remya Warrior Designs.
"These are young, hip, very hard-working millennials," Warrior said of the couple. "The house now reflects who they are, the story of where they grew up and where they come from. It really reflects them as much as their lifestyle right now."
Warrior also found ways to balance the design of a home with four adult occupants, even as parents stepped back to allow a young couple to create their own vision of home.
The floor plan is now easier to negotiate. "Moving the dining room closer to the kitchen was better," Warrior said. "With entertaining, you want the dining room to be in a central space. This way it flows much better from them."
The couple will be replacing much of the previous owner's furniture over time, so the goal was to make everything look its best in new surroundings, Warrior said.
Jessy's childhood furniture -- a sofa, loveseat, chair and accent tables -- joined two of the previous owner's chairs in their living room, which remains in its original setting. Fortunately, all the pieces had unifying features in their white upholstery and similarly dark finishes.
"I was looking to do something a little bit different, otherwise it would have been extremely traditional," Warrior said.
The fireplace, originally covered by black metal within a dark marble surround, was refaced with a mosaic of small, light-colored glass and stone tiles. A white mantel piece replaced the marble. But there was still the long expanse of a white wall around the fireplace. It needed something. Warrior proposed framing the fireplace with horizontal strips in a dark stain that complements furniture.
Next, to create home office space for Joji Thomas, Warrior had the chair rail molding removed, changed the paint and the draperies, and brought in a new rug, a large desk and a conference table. "A lot of people work for him, so he wanted to have a place for meetings," she said. "He was also going to be bringing clients in."
With plans to convert the former family room and study to a dining room, the family would need gathering space. The sunroom, with its slate floors, didn't encourage cozy relaxation. So, a custom-sized rug was installed, and the walls were painted in an eggplant color that resembled a purple the couple had used in their wedding. The room's eleven windows had only blinds, so Warrior added billowy white draperies between each set of windows to soften the room and expand options for light control light.
"I probably sit in the sunroom the most," Jessy Thomas said. "My husband sits in the study the most."
They both love showing off the dining room. The former study and family room exposed their home's 1970s construction with old-fashioned wooden shelving built along one wall. For the dining room conversion, the shelves were painted white to blend with the walls for a display area of decorative items and family photos. The couple purchased a chic Bernhardt sideboard whose three doors have a subtle metallic finish on carved insets that resemble fish scales. Overhead, the room's most stunning feature is a trio of pendant chandeliers with sparkling crystals hanging from metal mesh that reminds Jessy Thomas of fisherman's net.
What they renovated
The living room, dining room, family room, and study/home office
Who did the work
Remya Warrior Designs of Ocean Township, and Alan D. Drake contracting of Long Branch
How long it took
"The construction portion took from December 4, 2015 to about December 30, 2015," Jessy Thomas said. "The design portion was pretty much done in pieces because of our crazy schedule. It was pretty much finalized by September 2016."
What they spent
Approximately $50,000
Where they splurged
"Everything was fairly affordable," Jessy Thomas said. "The drapery in the living room and study felt like a splurge because we had existing custom drapery, but it wasn't our style."
How they saved
"We saved money in many ways," she said. "Many items were bought on sale, clearance or from the previous owner (like the Persian rugs) at a huge discount. Amazon, Wayfair, Overstock and Pier 1 were probably my favorite retailers during this process."
What they did themselves
Some of the shopping. "We are still working on bits of the house ourselves, but nothing major," Jessy Thomas said.
What they like most
"I love every bit of it, honestly," Jessy Thomas said. "I think each room is such a huge transformation. We love showing off the formal living room and dining room."
What they'd have done differently
"I'd have Remya do the kitchen, bedrooms and bathrooms. I'd also probably have taken some days off so I could have finished it sooner."
Kimberly L. Jackson may be reached at home@starledger.com. Find NJ.com Entertainment on Facebook.