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Because the homeowners

entertain often and have pets,

Iconic 20th-century
style combines with
everyday livability in
a highly functional
Franklin home.

Lynne Konstantin I Design Writer
Beth Singer I Photographer

hen a Jewish couple moved into their traditional Cape Cod-style home in
Franklin early in their marriage, it was everything they wanted for raising
their family. Years later, when almost all of the kids had flown the coop,
their tastes had evolved and their needs had changed.
Down the street, a spectacular Irving Tobocman design taunted them daily as their
new idealized dream home. So when the contemporary home became available, their
dream came true. To expand and tweak it to their precise needs — to make sure they
had plenty of space for their three children to visit and to host their large family and
many friends for holiday dinners — they recruited a design team that included archi-
tect Alex Bogaerts, founder and president of Alexander V. Bogaerts + Associates in
Bloomfield Hills; builder Joel Lerman, owner of Lerman Corporation in Bloomfield
Hills; and interior designer Lynda Charfoos, owner of Charfoos Design in Bloomfield
Hills.
"It was a major restoration project:' says Lerman, who created a two-story addition
with four new bedrooms, baths and walk-in closets, plus a sunroom, a landscape reno-
vation with stone patio, a theater room and more. Each component of the stellar team
had been recommended by friends whose taste the homeowners trusted and respected
explicitly, and each was brought on at the beginning of the project
"When a client recognizes how beneficial the partnership between architect,
designer and builder can be, and we all have a great rapport together with the client,
we are able to problem-solve issues before they become real issues — the end product
becomes seamless, flawless and has literally no drawbacks:' says Charfoos. "We were
fortunate that these homeowners realized this, and we all benefited from understand-
ing exactly what the clients wanted from every perspective. It moved like clockwork,
and there were no problems that needed to be readdressed later because everything
had been thought out early on. And the home became exactly what they wanted:' ❑

the front entrance gets a lot

of traffic, so designer Lynda

Charfoos opted for marble

rather than wood floors. "This

is a great bridge room between

the kitchen, living room and

the private spaces in the

house, and it sets the stage

for what's to come," says

Charfoos. The use of marble,

the brightly toned palette

punching up neutrals and even

the Knoll Platner chairs are

echoed throughout the home.

"The homeowner comes from a

family of art collectors, so we

created the potential of great

art walls," says Charfoos, who

is on the board of directors at

Cranbrook Art Institute and

worked with art consultant

Marilyn Finkel, president of

Marilyn Finkel & Associates in

Southfield, to find the works

throughout the home.

Contemporary on page 34

Do you have a home you'd like to share with the community? Contact Lynne Konstantin at Ikonstantin®thejewishnews.com .

January 10 • 2013

33