Blueprint Remodel: Tract Home Transformations That Turn Everyday to Extraordinary

A quick word of caution: What you are about to see may shock you. Not to worry, though-the shock-factor in this book is meant to inspire, not scare. The star of this show is the ordinary American tract house. The latest in Gibbs Smith, Publisher's design series by Michelle Kodis, Blueprint Remodel looks at ten cookie-cutter tract houses in a new light. Uninspired siting, run-of-the-mill floor plans, boxy rooms, low ceilings, poor lighting, and bland materials are transformed to well-designed, distinctive homes, adding character and charm to fit with any style and budget. From a one-floor interior makeover in an Omaha tract for a couple of empty-nesters to a full renovation of a Texas bungalow to accommodate a growing family, these examples encompass a variety of challenges and solutions, and they include everything from sleek modern design to a remodel influenced by the Arts and Crafts movement. Featured in a wide range of cost, style, size, and location and illustrated with phenomenal before-and-after photographs, these profiles will enbolden tract house homeowners to remodel, taking their homes from mediocre to marvelous. The proof is in these pages: Even the most lifeless tract house can be magnificently transformed.
Michelle Kodis is also the author of the Gibbs Smith titles Blueprint Small: Creative Ways to Live With Less and Blueprint Affordable: How to Build a Beautiful House Without Breaking the Bank. Since receiving her master of science degree from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism in 1991, she has written about a broad range of topics, including architecture and design, science, the environment, health and medicine, business, and cuisine. She lives with her husband near Telluride, Colorado, and is currently at work on additional architecture/design books for Gibbs Smith, Publisher.