Bedroom Remodel Tour

A Chic Master Suite

Urban chic meets Southern charm in a master suite built for comfort

Teenagers need privacy and space—two qualities that Carolyn Marsel's suburban Chicago home lacked. But rather than create a kid's retreat that would lay dormant once daughter Ande graduated from high school, Carolyn decided to build a refuge that she and her husband, Gary, could escape to when Ande entertained and could continue to enjoy long after their daughter left home.

Working with Bud Dietrich of HFD Architects and McElligott-Smith Builders, the homeowners tore down the master bedroom addition they had built 14 years earlier and created an expanded suite in its place.

Carolyn, an Alabama-bred artist, wanted the 1,000-square-foot addition to combine the edgy urbanity of a Manhattan loft with the genteel charm of a Southern country home. Dietrich complied, pairing high ceilings and exposed brick walls with tall, transom-topped windows. Generous moldings evoke a sense of history, while an illuminated cove set 2 feet below the ceiling lends human scale to the bedroom's lofty dimensions.