A Starting Point
with everything on the line
Words by Jessica Hagemann Photos by Amanda Kirkpatrick
Architects are a dime a dozen in Austin, so a young architect launching his first private practice needs to make a major splash.
For Shane Pavonetti, that meant designing a one-of-a-kind calling card that would simultaneously showcase his years of experience spent working in New York City and Europe, plus his minimalist, approachable, highly-functional aesthetic made for the laid-back kind of living we do here in Austin.
Shane’s first project, now known as The Garden Street Residence, was a budget-friendly, three-bed, one-bath house for his family. As soon as he got approved for the $175,000 loan, he quit his job with another firm in town and went to work designing. As Shane says, he and wife Holly “put everything on the line to build this house, knowing that it would be the starting point for my office.” To save money, he did the general contracting, often learning on the fly how to place glass window panes for example, or weld its signature steel staircase. He also reused as many materials as possible, repurposing the siding from the property’s original structure into stair steps and floating shelves.
“I definitely have a ‘fake it ’til you make it’ kind of attitude,” says Shane, “especially when it comes to my own stuff.” His “experiment” (what they sacrificed in budget, the couple made up for in design) paid off big time. The result—an open, sun-filled, eye-catching space that has attracted the attention of design gurus like Chip and Joanna Gaines—“is still,” claims Shane, “our most popular project, and I’ve built 10 or 15 houses since.”
Holly, who works for The Nature Conservancy and travels extensively, decorated the couple’s home. Committed to sustainability, she opted for a funky collection of vintage and secondhand furnishings, all of which tell their own stories. A table in the kitchen accompanied her grandfather from the Philippines. It’s surrounded on four sides by intentionally mismatched chairs. Holly bought the headdress that adorns a side bureau from her tour guide in Vietnam. “I’m very much about local support,” she says, wherever “local” happens to be that day.
It was Holly’s eye for accents that convinced Shane to buy the lot on Garden Street. A Michigan native, Holly admits, “I was insistent on this area. I’m used to really, really big trees, and when Shane brought me down to the east side of Lady Bird Lake, it just felt so ‘neighbor-hoody.’” Between the number of families with kids in the area and easy access to the trail, the Pavonettis cite the many ‘wow’ factors that got them to buy, and the strong community that gets them to stay.
This year, the Pavonetti family grew by a factor of one. Dad, Mom, their 3-year-old, and a brand new baby are currently hard at work on a new home-to-be, which Shane is building in The Garden Street Residence’s backyard. True to form, “The Shack in the Back” features a bright orange salvaged spiral staircase from an old apartment complex, and more statement-making windows—like the large skylight directly above the kids’ beds. Maybe they’ll wish on Austin’s stars at night and dream about one day taking over their father’s business.
Architect Shane Pavonetti and his wife Holly were living in New York City when they visited Austin in 2011. Shane’s family is from Austin, and Holly had studied Environmental Sciences at UT, so they already had a fondness for the city. What they’d forgotten, however, is just how far a dollar can stretch here; while Austin may be the 11th largest city in the nation, the cost of living remains well below that of comparable environments. At the Scoot Inn that weekend, Shane ordered two drinks. His bill totaled $5.50. “I was like, ‘No, no—a beer AND a vodka tonic,’” Shane recalls. When the bartender confirmed, “Yeah, it’s $5.50.” Shane said, “That’s it, we’re moving back here!”
Contact:
(512) 792-0158
2235 E 6th Street #105
pavonettiarchitecture.com
@pavonettiarchitecture
