Martin’s auction, and that year the Hubers won,” says Hurley. With her help, the Hubers began work on the redesign. Hurley brought well-known New Orleans architect William Sonner of William Sonner Designs to the project. Plans for a massive reconstruction were begun to meet the growing needs of a family with three small (but getting bigger) children. Just when the plans were complete, a beautiful corner lot across the street from their house went on the market. Never wanting to leave their ideal Old Metairie neighborhood, the Hubers saw this lot as a new and interesting prospect. It didn’t take much discussion to decide that the corner lot would provide the yard they lacked and so desperately wanted for their children. So the plans were retrofitted for the new property. “The Hubers handled this project in the right way. They hired Trudy Hurley first. It is so much easier for contractors and architects to have a designer on board from the beginning. Clients usually know what they want but sometimes don’t know how to communicate it to architects and contractors. Having a designer on the team makes their job so much easier,” says Sonner. Ten months later, with the help of talented contractor Larry Schneider, the Hubers moved into a beautiful 3,800-square-foot Creole cottage with a wrap-around porch and the fabulous yard of their dreams.
Creating a coastal vibe Shannon grew up in the easy breezy lifestyle of the Alabama Gulf Coast. She wanted to bring some of that “coastal vibe” into her new home, so she was very involved in the entire creative process. Every door and window in the 46
Inside New Orleans