Cedar Rapids couple roll up sleeves for midcentury redux

CEDAR RAPIDS — While neither Aaron Murphy nor Brian Kipp claims to be a visual artist, their home is their canvas for the visual artistry that comes with good taste, hard work and a clear vision.

Their midcentury modern masterpiece stands at the corner of Country Club Parkway and Valley Brook Drive SE, a 1958 oasis nestled among '70s split-levels. All are lovely, neat and tidy, tucked into a verdant area of mature trees and lawns, where front doors warmly welcome visitors and back patios beckon friends and neighbors.

The couple's corner-lot, white-and-gray walkout ranch is equally appealing from either street.

Curved stone steps lead to a minty/jade green front door, teasing guests with what's to come stepping out of the sunshine and into a 'Mad Men' realm.

An L-shaped balcony above the two-car garage and patio draws the eye upward to a pitched roof with a massive brick fireplace jutting out the top.

The exterior makes a most dramatic statement for its theatrical homeowners.

Murphy, 32, owns Spruced Up Staging, a house-staging service designed to help homeowners put their best face forward for potential buyers. Kipp, 33, owns The Warehouse Salon in downtown Cedar Rapids, where old meets new in an urban-chic hair salon.

Murphy is a familiar face to audiences at Theatre Cedar Rapids, SPT Theatre and the Classics at Brucemore, where in 2014 he played an artist in the hilarious 'Hay Fever.' Kipp sees his role as a supporter and sponsor in the local theater scene, and serves on Playtime Poppy's board of directors.

Neither was born when midcentury modern debuted, but both are drawn to that era of sleek styling. Murphy, a Vinton native, fell in love with the midcentury homes he lived in and drove by when he moved to Minneapolis after college. Kipp grew up by Pierce Elementary in a pocket of midcentury homes in that northeast Cedar Rapids neighborhood.

'Before we bought this, I kept saying midcentury is the way to go,' Murphy said. 'It's mostly already open-concept; it has great sightlines; it has interesting architectural features and characteristics; plus, you get clean, simple, interesting furniture that you can purchase new.'

They moved into their new home in mid-November 2013, shortly after their wedding.

'That was a big year for us,' Kipp said. 'We got married, bought this house and I started my salon — all in an eight-month span. We are gluttons for punishment.'

Love at first sight

It was a whirlwind relationship that began three weeks before their Sept. 20, 2013, wedding, when one of Kipp's clients suggested he and Murphy look at a property for sale in her neighborhood.

'I drove by and loved it, and was like, 'Oh God, I don't even want to show Aaron,' because it's not a good time,' Kipp said. 'But I knew he'd love it — so I did, and of course, before we had even set foot in the house, Aaron said, 'Well we're buying that house.''

Four or five weeks later, they finally had time to actually walk through the 2,500-square-foot structure, built by W.C. Black, a chemical engineer with Penick and Ford. With three bedrooms, three bathrooms and a finished basement, it was the perfect size for the Blacks and their three young children. Later on, daughter Mimi Stroh and her husband, Fred, lived in the house and updated the decor.

'It was very fashionable for the '90s — lots of frosted glass and brass and white carpet,' Murphy said.

But he and Kipp were ready to put their own twist on the house and restore its original vibe, better suited to their tastes and life with two lively Papillon pooches, Coco and Diane, named for fashion designers Coco Chanel and Diane von Furstenberg.

Color palette

The couple paid $219,000 for the house, and while they call it a work in progress, visitors won't see it that way.

Most walls have been painted in shades of gray, white and cream, with pops of turquoise in Murphy's office and orange on the pegboard in a guest bedroom originally built for the Black family's sons.

One of the bathrooms is painted a muted, dusty blue and has a striking thin blue tile stripe in the shower/tub surround.

Bright splashes of color come from artwork on the walls and items displayed on shelves and built-ins on the main floor and in the basement rec room.

'We like to collect and find interesting pieces that tell a story here and there,' Murphy said.

Not everything is a piece of fine art, but everything is displayed in an artistic way. Black-and-white photographs line a hallway wall. Two offset tracks on the wall behind the living room sofa hold 14 albums from Broadway and movie musicals, purchased locally for $1 each.

Four shuffleboard cues, place horizontally, create a conversation-piece headboard in one of the guest bedrooms. Rustic plaques reminding the couple to 'let it go,' 'simplify,' 'trust' and 'slow down' create a serene affirmation array above the headboard in the master bedroom.

Renovations

The new homeowners tackled the front entry first, peeling away the dark green, heavy, custom-made wallpaper, then painting the walls in a soft, light gray and adding a new bamboo light fixture and restoring the slate floor to open and brighten the area.

'That made a huge difference immediately,' Kipp said.

Since then, they've painted every wall and replaced all but two light fixtures.

Natural light floods the house, from the wraparound windows in the kitchen to the sliding glass doors leading to the balcony.

An open concept floor plan lets conversation and guests flow easily from the recently remodeled kitchen to the dining room, where a massive brick fireplace painted white provides a focal point, but doesn't overwhelm the space.

The kitchen is the largest remodel to date.

The couple rolled up their sleeves and enlisted family members with electrical and plumbing expertise for a daunting two-month, $7,000 makeover.

They kept the cabinets, but painted over the peachy-blond surface for a modern/retro look of white for the uppers and gray for the lowers, and added new door hardware in a muted brushed gold and a light porcelain tile backsplash. Bamboo accents in the light fixtures over the island and on the kitchen bar stool legs blend beautifully with the engineered hardwood flooring. Matte-finished quartz, leather-look countertops set off the countersunk sink which sports a most unusual bend in the back design.

The counter on the island — replaced with a light, retro boomerang design reissued from the late '50s — was lengthened to accommodate more seating away from the downdraft range top at the other end. They wanted a new range, but because the upper floor is 17-inch-thick prestressed concrete, they needed to use the venting that was already in place, routed through the floor.

'To re-vent or get a new range would have cost an absurd amount of money,' Murphy said, adding that only a couple of companies make them, and they can cost $3,500 to $4,500.

Luckily, his aunt stopped at ReStore in Cedar Rapids, and found a Jenn-Air downdraft range for $250 among the store's gently used and new home improvement items.

'So we bought it, and it fits perfectly,' Murphy said. 'It was a May miracle.'

They're loving the final results and take pride in their DIY moxie.

'We did everything but build the countertops,' Murphy said.

It was, however, a lot of work.

'We learned our lessons,' Kipp added, 'that the next time we renovate, we should hire more of the work out.'

Because hardwood flooring can't be nailed to the concrete, new cork flooring will be the next inside project. That might have to wait a while until they've recovered from the kitchen renovation and replacing roof shingles this summer. A walk-in closet conversion in the master bedroom will be done before venturing into the flooring realm.

'We've got plenty more projects to do, but we're working our way through them,' Kipp said.

'It's a process,' Murphy added. 'Renovations are never easy when you don't have the time or budget that you want. So we got creative. There's a lot that paint and lighting can do to change a house. ...

'We're going to be good stewards for this property and respect its structural and architectural integrity.'