I write about many beautiful homes, but now and then, I come across one so charming that I truly wish I could buy it. This is one of those homes. It really is the perfect University Park family home.
The facade got my attention, and it’s exactly what captured homeowner Mallory O’Connor’s heart. She and her husband lived just three doors down, but one day, while walking her dog, she saw it was for sale. It suddenly struck her that she wanted her house to look like that. On a whim, she made an appointment to see the listing.
“It looked southern and charming,” O’Connor said. “When I went in, there was a dog room. We have three dogs, and I saw it as fate. I called my husband before I even went upstairs and said: I think this is it, the house we were meant to have.”
Loving a home is one thing, but having a vision and the ability to bring it to life through remodeling and design is part of the fun. O’Connor had a clear vision and knew exactly how she wanted the home to look and function for a growing family. She brought in Barringer Custom Homes for the remodel, ensuring that every aspect of the house was designed for functionality and comfort. Tracy Hardenburg Designs provided interior advice.
Formal crown molding came down, textured walls were smoothed, and the entry between the kitchen and family room was widened. Mantles were removed from all of the stone fireplaces and mortar-washed. O’Connor also cleverly reimagined spaces like the mudroom.
“I did not want a desk in the kitchen, so when we remodeled, I put the desk in the mudroom and had wallpaper installed to make it a cheery area,” she said.
Wall treatments are a feature of this University Park family home. The kitchen and breakfast room were completely paneled, the laundry room was wrapped in butterfly wallpaper, and custom-designed pug wallpaper adorned the dog room. The pièce de résistance, however, is O’Connor’s daughter’s bedroom wall.
“I had created a greenery wall behind our tequila sign on the cabana wall and another green wall on the porch off of our bedroom,” O’Connor said. “She liked them and said she wanted a flower wall. So, I did it as a surprise for her while she was at camp one summer.”
During the pandemic, O’Connor turned the family guest room into a craft room for her creative daughter. “She is in there every single day,” she said. “All of her friends love it and hang out there.”
Guests still have a place to call their own, as the property features a lovely back house above the garage. It doubles as O’Connor’s studio and wrapping room because holidays, especially Christmas, are a major part of life in this household.
“Last year, we had three downstairs,” O’Connor said. “Each of my kids has a tree in their room, the playroom has a Grinch tree, and we had four in the cabana. When I had set everything up and thought I was finished, my son, who was seven at the time, looked at me and said: That’s a good start, but we need more!”
The family has loved this home and used every square inch of the 5,578 square feet. “We are only moving because we wanted more house and more yard,” O’Connor said. “I kept driving by a double-lot house and sent it to my husband, joking that it was a bigger version of our house. We quickly went from joking about it to getting serious. When I looked at the interior, I knew it was meant to be our house.”
Yes, it will be gutted and receive the O’Connor magic touch. There will also be plenty of room now for even more Christmas trees and massive ornaments and snowflakes on the trees outside. But the family will miss this house.
“I just love how unassuming our house is from the front — it looks so quaint,” O’Connor said. “Everyone is always surprised when they come inside and see how spacious and well-designed everything is. It’s the perfect home for hosting parties, and it’s been amazing for when our in-laws visit since they can stay comfortably in the back house. Plus, it’s such a fun house to decorate for all the holidays!”
“One of the things we’ve cherished most is being able to walk our kids to both preschool and elementary school — such a rare and special thing these days. The neighbors on this block have been here forever, and we’ll genuinely miss being surrounded by such a lovely, long-standing community,” she said.
