Custom touches accent Wauwatosa home

In a neighborhood full of lovely houses, the uncommon French styling of Cheri and Charlie Runge's home gives it a presence all its own.

There's the curved chimney that towers over tall, whitewashed brick walls, and small triangular sections of slate that pop ever-so-slightly from the roof over the second-floor windows like eyebrows raised in surprise, creating the tiniest of dormers. Placed on a lot that backs up against a quaint Hansel and Gretel woods, the home's exterior is enchanting.

A massive, carved wooden door with a great iron knocker embedded in the center opens to a foyer warmed by terra cotta-colored tiles and dominated by a sweeping curved staircase with an iron banister.

The home and five neighboring houses - all varied in style and built between 1941 and 1952 - are tucked away in a discreet Wauwatosa neighborhood. They will be open for visitors on Oct. 6 as part of the Wauwatosa Historical Society's "In the Shadow of Hawthorne" tour of homes.

Construction of the Runges' custom home began in 1941 but was halted by the start of World War II. Completed after the war, it had amenities unusual for its time, including an in-ground sprinkler system, a formal garden with a fountain and pond, and a sizable air conditioning unit in the basement that foreshadowed modern central air.

When the couple moved in with their two young sons, they had only a few decorating changes in mind. Thirteen years later, the couple are empty nesters. Wallpaper has given way to painted walls in buttery hues, floors have been refinished and the kitchen and patio have been redone. A dusty screen porch has been converted into a dining room and sunroom combination, with windows on three sides and a stone floor with radiant heat to make it a true four-season room.

An unexpected ceiling collapse in the former dining room/library had a happy result: the creation of a large yet surprisingly cozy family room. The dark wood shelving, trim and paneling were painted a sage green to add lightness to the room, which looks out on the woods, and a lovely box beam ceiling was created to replace the dated popcorn-stucco ceiling that Cheri is certain was applied by a sprayer.

The Runges were initially drawn to the home by its convenient but private location, the wooded lot and extra bathrooms. But their true appreciation for the house has grown as they've come to see it through the eyes of the craftsmen and decorators they've worked with over the years.

We redid the kitchen first, repainted every room in the house, reworked all the windows and resurfaced the floors. We changed the screened porch to a sunroom, landscaped the patio and the front yard.

The dining room/library was changed to a family room. Two bathrooms are above it, and the old shower pan cracked, and the whole ceiling fell down. It happened at the same time we were turning the screen porch into a sunroom, so we decided to add stereo throughout the first floor. You don't usually get to do that sort of thing in these old houses because you need ceiling access.

The floor was ceramic tile set in cement with this beautiful medallion in the center. It was the most permanent thing you ever saw, and we tried to save it, but we couldn't. It had to be jack-hammered out. What a mess! We put in a new subfloor and a wood floor.