Breathing Life Back Into History
We don't just restore old buildings - we rescue their souls from the grip of time and neglect.
You're dealing with structures that've survived wars, fires, earthquakes, and decades of questionable "improvements" by well-meaning but misguided owners.
I've spent the better part of fifteen years elbow-deep in crumbling stonework, decaying timber frames, and mystery structural issues that'd make most architects run for the hills. And honestly? That's where the magic happens.
Every Gothic archway tells a story. Every hand-carved corbel represents someone's craft and pride from centuries ago. Our job isn't to modernize these beauties into oblivion - it's to understand what the original builders intended and bring that vision back while making sure the building'll stand for another hundred years.
Restored Structures
Years (Oldest Building)
Original Materials Saved
Built in 1887, this chapel was basically a disaster when we first walked in. Water damage had turned the wooden ceiling into something resembling Swiss cheese, and the original limestone facade was held together by layers of cement patches that did more harm than good.
March 2021 - Severely damaged masonry and compromised structure
October 2023 - Fully restored with period-accurate materials
Key Challenges: Sourcing matching limestone from original quarry (thankfully still operational), reconstructing the bell tower's timber frame using traditional joinery, restoring 16 stained glass windows
Duration: 29 months | Original Materials Preserved: 94%
This 1902 stone manor had been "renovated" in the 70s, and let me tell you - that decade did heritage buildings dirty. They'd covered beautiful granite walls with drywall, dropped the ceilings, and ripped out nearly all the original fixtures. It hurt my soul.
January 2020 - Hidden under decades of inappropriate modifications
August 2022 - Returned to Gothic Revival glory
Key Challenges: Removing modern additions without damaging original stone, recreating lost decorative elements from historical photos, addressing foundation settling issues
Duration: 31 months | Original Materials Preserved: 89%
This Gothic Revival library from 1894 survived a fire in 1968 that gutted the interior but somehow left the exterior mostly intact. The city'd been using it for storage for decades. Criminal, really.
June 2019 - Fire-damaged interior, neglected for 50+ years
December 2022 - Now functioning as community cultural center
Key Challenges: Rebuilding vaulted ceiling system using traditional techniques, restoring fire-damaged stone carvings, integrating modern HVAC without visible impact
Duration: 42 months | Original Materials Preserved: 86%
Forget the corporate nonsense about "phases" and "deliverables." Here's what really happens when you hire us to save your historic building:
We crawl through every inch of your building. Attics, basements, behind walls - anywhere problems hide. I bring my structural engineer, and we document everything that's wrong, everything that's salvageable, and everything someone screwed up in the past.
This is where we become detectives. Archives, old photos, original blueprints if we're lucky, talking to longtime residents. We're trying to understand what the building looked like originally and what changes were intentional vs. damage vs. misguided "improvements."
Now we design the restoration approach. What can be saved? What needs replacing? How do we match materials from 150 years ago? This isn't guesswork - it's informed by everything we learned. We create detailed plans and 3D models so you can see exactly what we're proposing.
Here's where it gets interesting. We need limestone from the same quarry used in 1880? Timber milled the old way? Hand-forged iron work? This takes time and we work with craftspeople who still know these traditional methods. Yeah, it costs more than Home Depot. Deal with it.
This is where most of the time goes. We start with structural issues first (always), then work our way through masonry repair, woodwork restoration, recreating lost elements. I'm on-site regularly because surprises always pop up when you're working with century-old buildings. We adapt, we problem-solve, we preserve.
We create a complete record of everything we did - what we found, what we fixed, what materials we used, maintenance recommendations. Future generations will thank you when they need to work on the building. Trust me on this.
We create detailed 3D documentation of every restoration. These aren't just pretty pictures - they're accurate records of the work that'll help future architects and historians understand what we did and why.
Complete interior and exterior 3D scan showing structural repairs, original vs. restored elements, and hidden mechanical systems integration.
Layer-by-layer documentation showing what we removed (70s additions), what we discovered (original stone features), and what we rebuilt (period-accurate details).
Interactive model showing the vaulted ceiling reconstruction process, before/after comparisons, and the integration of modern accessibility features.
Here's what bugs me about a lot of "restoration" work I see: it's either so heavy-handed that the building loses its character, or it's so timid that real problems don't get fixed.
We walk a tightrope. Yeah, we use modern engineering when it makes sense - I'm not gonna let a building collapse just to be "authentic." But we also respect the hell out of traditional craftsmanship and materials.
Every decision we make, we're thinking: "What would the original builders do if they had access to what we know now?" Sometimes that means using period-accurate lime mortar instead of modern cement (because cement destroys old stone). Sometimes it means hiding steel reinforcements where they'll never be seen but will keep the structure standing for centuries.
We're not building museums. These are living buildings that need to function in 2025 while honoring their past. That's the challenge, and honestly, that's why I love this work.
"The goal isn't to make it look new. The goal is to make it sound, stable, and true to what it was meant to be."
Whether it's structurally compromised, aesthetically butchered, or just tired from standing for a hundred years, let's talk about bringing it back to life.
