A Dream Home Made Out Of an Empty Austin Lot

Jeremy and Amber Scardino lived for 11 years across the street from the spot where they eventually built their dream home. “We loved the area we lived in so much that when we saw that a for-sale sign show up in the empty lot across the street one day we thought it just made sense to build there,” says Jeremy. “The timing was fantastic.” The couple chose to take advantage of the room’s enormous (9,000-square-foot) lot, building a slick and contemporary house with plenty of outdoor space to themselves and their three children.

in a Glance
Who lives here: Jeremy and Amber Scardino, daughter Madison, sons Baron and Rider, puppies Gumbo and Emmylou, and cats Sebastian and Munchkin
Location: Austin, Texas
Size: 3,000 square feet and 600-square-foot detached garage, to 9,000-square-foot lot; 4 bedrooms, 3 1/2 bathrooms

Kara Mosher

The couple was determined to get the most from the huge lot, so they assembled just a couple square feet beneath the maximum floor-to-area ratio permitted by Austin’s McMansion Ordinance.

“It’s very hard to have a perfectly timeless design, and by no way could we presume our design is truly classic. We tried to design the home in this way that in 20 years from now it would be hard to tell it was assembled in 2012,” Jeremy says. “We wanted to try for something which could be interesting to look at but impartial enough to work alongside other layouts in the long run.”

Kara Mosher

The family enjoys living so near downtown, but they pay the price with more traffic and less privacy. “With our slim yet deep lot, we faced a challenge that proved to be a blessing in disguise,” says Jeremy. A big open courtyard between the garage and the house helped solve their privacy issues and made for a exceptional landscape design.

Kara Mosher

“We have always adored colour on our walls previously, but at this home we moved with white walls to assist attribute our art set,” Jeremy says.

The couple made it a goal to hang every bit of artwork they have and have artwork on every wall throughout the home. “We went for an open and tidy design, balanced with a mixture of classic and new decoration, adding splashes of colour by way of art,” he adds.

Kara Mosher

The yellow and green painting in the hall was purchased in Poland by one of Jeremy’s friends, who later sold it to him.

Kara Mosher

The stairs showcase a set of family photos old and new, with a few Kate Breakey photograms combined in. The couple left a couple of frames empty to fill in with future photos of the children.

“The staircase project was something I started working on when I was pregnant and nesting, but the house was still being built,” Amber says. To keep with a classic feel, only black and white and sepia photos were used.

Kara Mosher

The open living area connects into the kitchen with a comfy and family-friendly kitchen table. “From the kitchen, we moved with a mild celery-green glass tile for a backsplash, and that we feel adds a hard-to-miss dab of colour but does so in a comforting, appetizing type of way,” says Amber.

Range/oven: Viking; Copenhagen dining table and Dixon dining seats: Four Hands Home

Kara Mosher

Stainless steel appliances reflect the same classic and clean lines found throughout the house.

Kara Mosher

Brown tufted leather furniture helps make the living area’s inviting texture. Dark wood cabinetry and Santos mahogany floors create heat that is balanced with fresh white countertops and hardware at the living area.

Kara Mosher

A large gas fireplace, one of the family’s favourite things, sits at the middle of their living area. Built-in wooden shelves fit the kitchen cabinets.

Kara Mosher

The fearless blue paint colour on the walls in the downstairs toilet inspired a classic pendant light with glass. A Moroccan-style glass tile fills the rear accent wall with five different colors of blue.

Wall lights: Purist Collection, Kohler: classic chandelier: Room Service; mirror: Goodwill

Kara Mosher

“When designing each room, we tried to be very cautious not to have any 1 perspective move without at least a little colour and something interesting to the eye,” says Amber.

A classic workbench at the corner of the dining area serves as a buffet. Amber purchased it at Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Chandelier: Edison, Pottery Barn; dining table: Four Hands Home

Kara Mosher

Daughter Madison picked the paint colour (Wisteria, Benjamin Moore) and the wallpaper in her bedroom.

The family found the glass armoire in the Salvation Army, but it’s sold in Pier 1.

Headboard: Urban Outfitters; wallpaper: Monchique, Osborne & Little

Kara Mosher

Amber and Jeremy detached their garage which allowed them to create a large porch and oversized glass doors on the front of the home where the garage would have been. “Instead of a conventional garden, we ended up with a large (by city criteria) private courtyard at the front of the home that our open floor plan virtually spills into,” says Jeremy. The open design allows the whole family to enjoy indoor and outdoor living spaces, all within view of one another.

Kara Mosher

The biggest dilemma the family faced when building their home was the McMansion Ordinance. “The ordinance caused lots of headaches. One of the greatest was needing to drop the rear half of the home down 1 foot to make it fit within the invisible tent outlined in the ordinance,” Jeremy says.

Kara Mosher

“Our area is known for using its own flavor — the atmosphere is festive and inspires creativity,” says Jeremy, shown here with Amber, Rider (on lap) and Baron. “A few of the greatest restaurants in Austin are less than 3 miles from our property, not to mention Alamo Drafthouse and Barton Springs. I can’t think of several things we like about Austin that aren’t a bike ride or short taxi ride off.”

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