With its commanding presence upon the hill at the busy intersection, it's a recognizable house to people traveling through the east end of Pittsburgh. 

Over the past century the house has acted as a gatehouse to the wonderful neighborhood of Friendship.

John does the landscaping of the house and tends to the varity of colorful, mostly native flowers, bushes, and trees on the property.

Not wanting to live in a stark white house, Mike and John have taken it upon themselves to bring color back into the house.

The foyer was repainted to be a stately green blue color that matches the white trim well.

Retaining the previously installed wallpaper, Mike and John have elected to bring color into the room by hanging curtains that have a similar color to the foyer. This helps tie the room in with the rest of the house and matching the green glazed tile of the fireplace.

A dark blue color was needed to help bring out the white painted trim and wainscoting of the living room. Matched with the dark blue couch and blues found elsewhere in the house, this room has become a stunning feature of the house.

Gone are the fully white walls of the kitchen with the painting of the eating area's walls a light stone blue color. 

Perched on top of the plate rail are Mike's "You Are Here" Starbucks mugs from his travels. On the wall beneath the mugs are two US geological maps from the 1960's showing the west and east halves of Pittsburgh. They both contain hints of how the city used to be and what could have been.

The overly white stairs were repainted to be a muted grey blue and it is continued all the way up through to the third floor hall.

On the left of the hallway are the two Pittsburgh Post-Gazzette articles featuring the house and the 1939 photograph of the house.

An amazing picture window greets people to the seating at the landing. Facing west, it captures the afternoon sun in spring and autumn to fill the stairwell and foyer with bright, warm sunlight.

This window was at one time a stained glass window like many other nearby houses' landings, but it was likely sold off during the house's rental property years to pay for needed repair costs. 

At the top of the second floor stairs is the hallway in the center of the house. Mike and John painted the far wall a darker blue grey color matching that of the foyer to help give depth to the area.

What was the master dressing room has been redisignated as the master drawing room. A name deemed more fitting now that the build in wall cabinets are gone, replaced with a blue wall matching that of the living room directly beneight it, adored with Pennsylvania Railroad posters and calendars from the 1940's. 

This room's colors match that of its sister room across the hall to give symmetry to the two front bedrooms with their large east facing windows that brighten up the room with the morning sunlight.

The two large windows in these bedrooms had to be special ordered because of their large size and desire to keep with  double hung design the house has always had in these openings.

Nestled in the rear corner of the house is the guest room. It's a quiet, cozy, private room that is used by guests. This room and the second floor bath, is called the "Guest Suite" by Mike and John.

The current mantel in this room is another that is not an original mantel. The original was stolen on the day of the house's sale closing in 1999. The current one came from a house up the road that was being renovated.

Mike and John are hoping to paint this room a soft yellow color to further bring color back to the interior of the house.

Older, grand houses such as this one were seemingly built for the modern decorating style and features of Halloween. Here is the house decorated for Halloween.

Inside the house also shows off its stuff when decorated for Halloween. A blacklight lit spider web is put over the landing picture window making it shine bright and glow from the outside.

Coupled with the orange lights going up the railing and purple lights throughout the house, it really gets into the Halloween spirit. 

The resident black cat Barry makes an apperance sitting on the bench at the landing. The trees show off their colorful leaves and welcoming autumn days.

Much like Halloween, big older houses like this present themselves with majesty during the winter holiday season. 

Here is the house after the first snowfall of the season with its grand porch decorated in white and red lights.

The inside of the house is equally decorated for the winter holiday seasons much like it has been for over a century.

Here the stairs are decorated with garland and white lights. Throughout the house are colored and white lights with a holiday tree in the dining room corner so that it can be viewed and enjoyed from the side window by those walking on the sidewalk.

Barry's brother Archer makes an apperance sitting on the landing in December. He's helping to show off the remaining snow outside and the lights around the boarder of the picture window.

A fun room is the red guest room on the third floor. It is designed and themed to be of the 1940's with vintage art, bedroom furniture, and features. From its windows, one can see out over East Liberty to Shadyside and beyond.

Yet another room reclaimed from white walls is the third floor bath. It has been repainted with a dark green wall behind the curved mirrors and light blue walls throughout the bath. Back again are the over mirror lights to brighten up the space.

An English garden has pea gravel paths, lavendar, boxwoods, and rose beds. All those elements are incorporated into the backyard to make it a stunning experience. 

Seen here is the backyard patio area and the custom made wrought iron back gate in early spring just as the roses are starting to bloom.