Foundation trouble gives Houston couple a fresh start

The house had four bedrooms and 4,000 square feet, but adding the apartment was a practical matter for this family of four.

The couple's builder, Wamhoff Design&Build, put them in touch with designer Erika Barczak at By Design Interiors.

Barczak helped them create a tidy, one-bedroom apartment with its own exterior entrance, a wrought-iron spiral staircase in the backyard.

In the living room, a window seat that holds a twin-size mattress, offering one more bed for visitors.

A kitchen hugs one corner of the main living area; it's outfitted with efficiency-size versions of the major appliances, including a refrigerator, an oven, a microwave and a dishwasher.

The kitchen, breakfast nook and dining room of their 1976 house were walled off from the main living room, which felt "cavelike" and dark, Adam Chunn says.

[...] Barczak helped them make the kitchen modern and fun, with bright colors and more room to move around.

The Chunns chose a soapstone counter and sleek, industrial light fixtures.

[...] the room has enough traditional touches - the farmhouse sink, the hickory floors - to make the space blend with the rest of the house.