My Houzz: From Raw Space to Hip Home in a Converted Utah Garage
Creative repurposing with an industrial edge defines the first home of an engaged couple in Salt Lake City
Where better for a motorcycle enthusiast to live than in a former auto garage? For bike lover and communications student Spencer Steed and his fiancée, Alex Tovey, a college admissions counselor, living in such a place was an opportunity neither could pass up. But the first-time homeowners, set to marry in fall 2013, wanted to make the gritty-cool space in downtown Salt Lake City more comfortable.
Keeping with the existing raw style of the space, the couple added mechanic-shop-inspired decor, rustic salvaged pieces and unfinished surfaces to create a place with an industrial vibe that still feels like home.
Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: Spencer Steed, Alex Tovey and their French bulldog, Simon
Location: Downtown Salt Lake City
Size: 2,000 square feet; 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom
Keeping with the existing raw style of the space, the couple added mechanic-shop-inspired decor, rustic salvaged pieces and unfinished surfaces to create a place with an industrial vibe that still feels like home.
Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: Spencer Steed, Alex Tovey and their French bulldog, Simon
Location: Downtown Salt Lake City
Size: 2,000 square feet; 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom
The bedroom maintains a gritty appeal, with gray cinderblock walls, concrete floors and exposed fixtures. The American Oil sign had been left outside the apartment when the couple moved in.
Corrugated fiberglass panels attached to plywood on steel framing make up the bedroom walls. The closet door is weathered steel and slides on a track attached to the ceiling.
"Our favorite spot is the bedroom," Tovey says. "It’s the most comfortable space in our home, and it’s where we unwind."
Corrugated fiberglass panels attached to plywood on steel framing make up the bedroom walls. The closet door is weathered steel and slides on a track attached to the ceiling.
"Our favorite spot is the bedroom," Tovey says. "It’s the most comfortable space in our home, and it’s where we unwind."
The couple sanded old military boxes found at Smith and Edwards, coated them with polyurethane, stacked them up and added simple baskets to create a dresser.
Raw and unfinished surfaces define the apartment's style. The couple simply patched and primed the walls, then left them.
Steed purchased the ram head from a local taxidermy shop.
Steed purchased the ram head from a local taxidermy shop.
A steel surgical sink is the main focal point in the bathroom. To contrast the steel fixtures, Steed and Tovey brought in different wood elements, like another military box from Smith and Edwards.
Scoops of red in the entry contrast the muted tones of the cement floors and steel door. The red "BE" letters against the right wall were a gift from a friend.
Steed welded two schoolbus seats from his grandfather to form a bench in the mudroom. The shoe rack is a repurposed set of utility shelves the previous owner left behind. Steed and Tovey give the owner credit for a big portion of the space's design aesthetic.
Rug: Tandy Leather
Rug: Tandy Leather
A large dining table given to the couple dominates the former garage area. Slide-up doors open to a patio.
Steed also uses this space to work on his motorcycles. "It's the perfect distraction from homework," he says.
Steed also uses this space to work on his motorcycles. "It's the perfect distraction from homework," he says.
Steed and Tovey salvaged, refinished and repurposed most of the design elements and furnishings from military surplus stores and scrap yards.
Steed made the coffee table from reclaimed wood, which he then painted.
A large rug defines the main living room area within the open floor plan. A custom furniture builder at Project Sunday who's a friend of the couple gave them the side table.
This metal Tanker desk came via an online local classifieds site for $17.
The plywood bedroom walls form a wall in the simple kitchen. A large mirror and antique sign add color. The commercial sink and prep counter came from a restaurant supply store next door.
The previous owner installed the dentist's lights above the kitchen island.
Your turn: Do you live in a unique converted space? Share your home with us!
Your turn: Do you live in a unique converted space? Share your home with us!
"The appeal of living in an old auto garage and designing with that aesthetic in mind was fun and different," Steed says. "We probably won’t ever live somewhere quite like this space again. It is our first place living together, which we will always remember."