06 / Renovation / Built-ins / Custom work

Home Improvements

Older houses and strange rooms rarely care what the standard-size answer is.

The work

Make the house work better without sanding away everything that made it worth keeping.

I've handled remodels, custom woodworking, built-ins, furniture, repairs, decks, and the awkward in-between jobs that do not fit a clean trade category.

I am interested in the part that makes daily life easier: better storage, cleaner circulation, a piece that fits the actual room, or a repair that does not look like an afterthought.

Backyard build / Cowboy pool deck, pergola, and outdoor screen

One backyard developed for gathering, soaking, and outdoor movies.

Custom builds for the same backyard, designed around how the space is actually used.

Cowboy pool deck and pergola

A compact structure built as one complete space.

For Stephen Belyeu, I designed and built a deck and pergola around a cowboy pool, combining shade, seating, privacy, and the pool into one compact backyard structure.

Backyard before the cowboy pool deck and pergola were built — Before

Layout and early framing for the cowboy pool deck — Layout and framing

Cowboy pool deck and pergola during construction — Taking shape

Complete cowboy pool deck and pergola — Finished deck and pergola

Complete cowboy pool deck and pergola at night — Finished at night

Outdoor projection screen

A freestanding screen built for backyard movie nights.

Built during the early pandemic shutdown to make socially distanced backyard screenings possible, the all-wood screen has remained in regular use ever since.

Finished freestanding all-wood outdoor projection screen — Finished screen / unpainted frame

A group watching a backyard screening at dusk — In use at dusk

A group watching a backyard screening at night — In use at night

Design and construction: Beau Harris.

Historic home renovations / Downtown Buda / Spring 2023

Targeted repairs and new exterior entries for a historic home.

Custom renovations for a historic home in downtown Buda by Beau Harris and Alberto Apodaca.

Enclosed porch floor

A complete new floor system over previously open ground.

The enclosed porch had open dirt below. We built the framing and installed a new plywood subfloor, creating a complete floor system within the existing enclosure.

New floor framing built over previously open ground in the enclosed porch — New floor framing

New plywood subfloor installed over the enclosed porch framing — Subfloor installed

Rear entry

A wider platform and wraparound steps for the rear entry.

The small rear landing was replaced with a substantial wood platform and wraparound steps that better fit the entry and surrounding yard.

Rear entry before construction of the new platform and steps — Before

Rear entry platform during construction — Platform construction

Finished rear entry platform and wraparound steps — Finished rear entry

Front entry

Damaged trim and steps rebuilt as a clean new entrance.

The deteriorated entry was repaired and reframed, then finished with new broad steps that match the scale and character of the house.

Damaged front entry trim before repair — Damage at the entry

New front entry step framing during construction — New step framing

Finished painted front entry steps at the historic Buda home — Finished front entry

Custom renovations: Beau Harris and Alberto Apodaca.

Backyard privacy enclosure

A neglected side yard rebuilt as a finished outdoor space.

All-new lumber was given a vinegar-aged finish and used to build the slatted privacy enclosure. The adjoining fence was also rebuilt, replacing the previous bamboo screening.

Side yard before the privacy enclosure was built — Before

Multiple new lumber boards during the vinegar-aging treatment — Vinegar-aging lumber

Finished vinegar-aged privacy enclosure and rebuilt adjoining fence — After

Design and construction: Beau Harris.

Custom laundry work surface

Unused space above the machines became a fitted work surface.

A wall-mounted butcher-block surface was fitted above the washer and dryer, with enough clearance for both appliances to slide out and rear openings for plumbing and utility connections.

Butcher-block laundry counter being laid out and finished in the shop — Fabrication and finish

Finished butcher-block work surface installed above a washer and dryer — Wall-mounted work surface

Fabrication and installation: Beau Harris.

Beau Harris in safety goggles beside custom shelving in progress

In the shop

Clean installations start with the work nobody sees.

Measuring, cutting, test-fitting, sanding, and rebuilding the part that looked right on paper but did not work in the actual room.

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