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Mt Airy was passed down to Catherine and Tayloe Emery, who are fixing it up so they can one day pass it on to their children and grandchildren. They are starting with the kitchen, which has an unusual narrow curved design. It's layout is impractical and it's style is outdated, so they enlist the family to help make it a modern kitchen with a vintage feel.
The main house at Mt Airy is very formal and not really suited for a family with young kids like the Emerys. Catherine and Tayloe take on the challenge of converting an extra bedroom into a casual family room where they can kick back and relax. But just as they are wrapping up the project, they realize they have made a very costly mistake.
The grounds of Mount Airy are massive, but Catherine and Tayloe don't really have a designated place to entertain outside. They want to create an outdoor cooking and dining area complete with a fire pit. Before they start digging in the yard, they must pass inspection from an archaeological team.
The smokehouse is an outbuilding constructed in 1761 that was used to preserve meat. Catherine and Tayloe want to convert this dilapidated space into a speakeasy style bar they can use for their wedding business and for entertaining family and friends.
When Catherine and Tayloe moved into Mt Airy, all of their furnishings went into storage and they lived with Tayloe's grandparents' furniture and decor. It's time for the master bedroom and bathroom to finally feel like their own space, a place to unwind at the end of a long day.
The counting house is an outbuilding that is rich in history but has become a dumping ground for Tayloe's tools and outdoor gear. Tayloe wants to fulfill his grandfather's vision of converting this building into the ultimate man cave complete with a seating and storage area and a functioning workshop.
The lower level of the west wing has warped floors and crumbling brick walls and needs major restoration. The Emerys will turn this wasted space into a multi-functional mud room where they can wash up after a long day on the farm, do laundry, house their six dogs, store the kids sports equipment and even squeeze in a bathroom.
The west wing was originally used as servant's quarters, but in the last century it became a storage space where family heirlooms piled up. Between their large family and the hunting and wedding parties they host at Mt Airy, Catherine and Tayloe are often housing guests in the main house, which is not always convenient.
On the main level of the west wing is the original laundry room where clothes were washed by hand. Despite its lack of flooring and crumbling walls, Catherine and Tayloe want to turn this space into a lounge for their guests.
Catherine and Tayloe want to turn the original kitchen in the west wing into a chef's kitchen for when they host large parties. The old fireplace in this room was used to cook in, but over the last two centuries it went unused and quickly deteriorated.