I.
Respect the bones
Every old house has a structure, a style, and a logic of its own. I start there, then design around how your family actually lives, without fighting what makes the house special.
Historic home design & project management
Built to last a century. Restored for the next one.
I design and manage renovations that balance a house's original architecture and design intent with the way families live today. Kitchens, baths, and whole homes that work for modern life and still feel true to the house.
Photo · Finished interior: quarter-sawn oak casings, original doors, late-afternoon light
Contractor + interior designerConstruction know-how and design under one roof.
Detailed construction documentsPlans your trades can actually build from.
Period-correct materialsSalvaged pieces and replicated millwork, not big-box trim.
The Pittsburgh metro areaServing homes within about 30 miles of the city.
From a client
[CLIENT QUOTE: one or two sentences from a past client about working with Zach and how the house turned out.]
How I think about an old house
The house is already telling you what it wants. I help you see it, and bring it back to its original design intent.
II.
Proportion is everything
When a room feels off and nobody can say why, it's usually proportion: three-inch trim from the big-box store where five- or six-inch casings belong. I replicate the original profiles instead of grabbing what's on the shelf.
III.
Done right, not right now
A simple kitchen can take three or four months of back-and-forth, and that's expected. I'm not trying to churn through projects. I take on fewer, so each one gets done properly.
Restoration isn't renovation.
"Meticulously restored" shouldn't mean every wall blown out, everything painted gray and white, and carpet over the hardwood. Most homes don't need to become museums. The work is finding the balance.
Renovation
Updating part of your home and modernizing how it works.
Restoration
Honoring the original design intent: what the house was meant to be when it was built.
What I usually do
Find what the house was intended to be and protect it. Then make room for modern life (a real kitchen, better flow, space to entertain), blurring the line where the old house ends and the new work begins.
Featured project
The house with the wavy glass
For years I walked past a house that still had every one of its original wavy-glass windows. When the family who'd owned it since 1960 decided to sell, I bought it so it wouldn't be gutted.
Inside, it already had been. A 1960s remodel had stripped it and painted everything Pepto-Bismol pink. Over a year and a half I took it to the studs and built it back as if it were of the period.
Now people ask what I did. "Just paint?"
Read the full storyWays to work together
All services & processStart here
Hourly consultation
We walk the whole house. You tell me what you wish it was. I tell you what's worth the investment and what isn't.
Buying?
Pre-purchase walk-through
I'll tour a historic house with you. An inspection tells you what's wrong. I'll tell you what's right.
Design
Design & construction documents
Hand sketches, 3D, finishes, then full plans your contractor can bid accurately.
Build
Project management & contracting
I stay on as your representative during construction. As a licensed contractor, I also build select smaller projects myself.
Someone in your corner.
When the contractor wants to rip everything out, you need someone on the house's side. Not sure what your house needs yet? Start with an hourly consultation.