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I’m a little late in passing along this story but thought it deserved some additional attention. Our friends Ivan and Priscilla got a nice feature from the Statesman a few weeks ago for their wonderful work on The Marlin House – a subject I was going to write about anyway but the paper beat me to it. My husband Baird and I always say that, “when we grow up, we want to be Ivan and Priscilla”. They are doing what we have done and will continue to do as the economy improves, just a bit bigger and dare I say it, a lot better than we have had the luxury of doing so far, which is invest in properties, improve them and resell them. Some could call it “flipping”, but let me assure you, none of their homes are “flips”. They carefully select a home with great bones and sometimes historical architectural significance, then painstakingly repair, refinish, revive, refresh and renew every single detail, resulting in a masterful work of art every single time.

I met Ivan while he had Floribunda Plantworks on Lamar. http://www.floribundaworks.com/

I needed a water feature for our back yard and after seeing his portfolio in the shop, I knew he was the right one for the job. He did not disappoint.

Photo by Ivan Spaller

Since then, we have been trying to keep up with his projects with Priscilla on a grander scale, the first being the Nickerson house, just off the main drag area of South Congress. They took a little craftsman, gutted it, made historically accurate improvements like replacing bad windows with new ones that look and operate like the old ones, adding new white oak flooring and white marble countertops but also added fresh, smart architectural details that are distinctly modern, like the steel gable on the front of the house and two giant wooden beams used as stairs, hand torched to bring out the grain. He also took great pains to add custom steel and glass doors that lead to a small courtyard with – you guessed it – a water feature. Outstanding.

Now they have done it again with The Marlin House. The link to the Statesman article is here:

http://www.statesman.com/search/content/business/stories/statesmanhomes/01/25/0125marlin.html

Whoever buys this house is like a lottery winner. You get the magic of a grand old Victorian with all the luxuries of a contemporary home. The detail is dazzling.

Luckily, the home is for sale and represented by Carrie Bills at Green Mango. Here’s their listing.:

http://greenmangorealestate.com/index.cfm?p=homelisting&type=forsale&id=672

I have much more to say about Ivan and Priscilla’s plans for other homes in 78704. Just wait – you won’t believe it!