Meet the Grand Prize Winners: Best Whole House Remodel 2012

And Ed, a master painter and fellow old-house nut from the neighborhood, who restored many of the crumbling plaster walls and taught me how to reglaze all the windows rather than replace them. Insisting that I use only vintage wavy glass for the broken panes, Ed even had me driving around on trash day in search of old sashes to cannibalize. And there was Chris, an electrician who'd just moved in across the street; I hired him on a day rate, and the two of us wired the entire house.

Shown: Freshly plastered and painted walls in a warm peach color give the parlor a welcoming feel. But it's the natural light that streams through the restored one-over-one wood windows that Mark and Katie love most about the room. In the evenings, they rely on light from the Gothic-style wrought-iron chandelier and sconces that Mark bought at an auction.