All of the wood used in the shelves and trim in this four-walled, floor-to-ceiling library were milled from a single standing dead ash tree. (The emerald ash borer has killed most ash trees in southeast Michigan, making ash a kind of “recycled” wood.) Pieces with interesting grain, knots, holes, or borer-marks were saved for the more visible parts of the shelves.

The reinforcing beams were salvaged from an old barn – and, somewhat miraculously, fit right in place without needing to be cut.

The floor is maple that had been reclaimed from a shoe factory.  Certain pieces had darkened from the oil of machines placed nearby, and other pieces were partially painted or worn from traffic. Instead of sanding it all down and refinishing it, we patterned all of the light and dark pieces together.

The wood door to the side porch (as well as two other doors in the house) came from a school in Terre Haute, Indiana.

The sliding step-stool still has an index card taped to its inside that says, appropriately, “Chicago Public Library.”

Furniture and fixtures: salvaged / Skylights: secondhand / Windows: new, low-E, Energy-Star / Building materials: 40% salvaged

There was originally a wall separating this bedroom from a small 6-foot-square closet at the end of the hallway. We removed the wall and closet door to create a small sitting room with built-in shelves and large, South-facing casement windows.

The transformation of what could have been a dedicated closet into a small room with a built-in shelf created a storage problem that was solved by the use of two smaller shelves, two large wardrobes (one antique, one modern), four vintage, hot-pink “Jersey Fruit” peach crates, a couple vintage trunks, and several sizes of finished particle-board and plexiglass display cubes from an outdated Victoria’s Secret showroom installation.

Floor: cork tile / Window trim and library detail: salvaged urban walnut / Door: salvaged / Door hardware: original to house / Furniture and fixtures: salvaged, secondhand, heirloom / Décor: salvaged / Baseboards: salvaged onsite / Building materials: 60% salvaged

The floor is the original wide-plank pine floor, repaired, sanded down, stained, and sealed to keep the history embedded in some of its deeper gouges.

The double doors leading to the adjacent room were originally sidelights (windows on the sides of doors) from a nunnery in Monroe, Michigan. We cleaned, stained, and sealed them to reveal original antique leadwork and beautiful wood grain under years of soot, grime, and water damage. The matching door to the hallway is from the same source.

The antique secretary and floral brass table lamp also cleaned up nicely after having been found in two different garages, covered in years of dirt and dust. The secretary has a

The coatrack is a repurposed Hollywood stage light that has “Chrysler” (probably from the local theater) printed on its side.

The large painting depicting an abstract soldier’s head hovering over a war-ravaged landcape was rescued from the abandoned Artillery Armory on 8 Mile Road before the Armory was demolished. It was probably painted by one of the National Guardsmen stationed there.

The vintage dishes in the cabinet were castoffs from what used to be just the Boys Club of Detroit, who needed new branded dishes once their name included “Boys and Girls.”

The thresholds leading to the adjoining library and kitchen were made from reclaimed urban walnut.

Sliding glass door: secondhand / Sconces: secondhand / Door and window trim: salvaged from onsite / Furniture: salvaged / Building materials: 50% salvaged

The stipulation that there be a full-sized bed on the West wall of this small room made it difficult to find other pieces that could fit. But with a flexible eclecticism and a limited color scheme, we managed to turn it into a striking yet functional guest bedroom, complete with dresser, desk, mirrors, bedstand, cubbies, ottoman, that could be easily converted into a children’s room in the future.

Bed: supplied by client / Overhead light and fan: existing / Wall paint color: existing / Dresser: salvaged / Chair and ottoman: salvaged / Floor and table lamps: salvaged / Wall hangings: series of drawings by local artist, salvaged / Cubbies: salvaged / Desk and bedstand: heirloom