by HJ HOLTZ | Apr 24, 2023 | Carpentry Services, Residential Painting
Visitors to Colonial Williamsburg expect to see history interpreters in period-appropriate attire, craftspeople demonstrating skills essential to the era, and residences that show how Colonial Americans lived. But on certain days this year, they can also see how nationally known designer Heather Chadduck Hillegas brought Williamsburg’s oldest house – the Nelson-Galt House – into the twenty-first century as a showhouse and her home away from home.
And H.J. Holtz & Son was a partner and sponsor of the project.
Colonial Williamsburg’s Designer in Residence program is a collaborative initiative established by WILLIAMSBURG, the licensing brand of Colonial Williamsburg. The effort launched in 2019, when the first Designer in Residence, Anthony Baratta, redecorated the eighteenth-century Palmer House. As the second Designer in Residence home, the Nelson-Galt House, parts of which date to 1695, opened its doors for tours in December 2022.
The Designer in Residence program was conceived with twin goals: to show visitors how an older home’s history can coexist with modern-day style, and to showcase the traditionally inspired decor – furniture, paint, and wallpaper – that the WILLIAMSBURG brand has created with business partners.
“How do you make tradition and today work together?” posits Liza Gusler, associate director for WILLIAMSBURG Licensing. “One of our challenges now is to show people that eighteenth-century design is still relevant; it can be inviting and comfortable for a family to live in today.”
Using its extensive archives, WILLIAMSBURG has partnered with Benjamin Moore, Schumacher, Paul Montgomery, and Adelphi Paper Hangings on proprietary paint colors, fabrics, and wallpaper. Inspiration comes from archaeological finds, rare books and prints depicting scenes of the time period, and historic buildings. A 1750s silk gown worn by Martha Dandridge Custis Washington, who married George Washington in 1759, inspired the new Dandridge Damask by Schumacher.
While much of the work on the interior of the Nelson-Galt house was handled by Colonial Williamsburg’s staff – “We have to follow stringent strictures with our preservation team about what we can do and what we can’t do,” Gusler says – H.J. Holtz & Son wallpaper craftspeople were hired to install all the wallpaper selected by Hillegas.
“It’s a compliment to Holtz’s reputation when I share that it was sort of a command from our facilities and maintenance vice president [that we hire Holtz],” Gusler says. “The team could not have been nicer; they were very professional.”
The team’s job wasn’t small.
In the living room, the team hung a WILLIAMSBURG Kensington Whitework mural by Paul Montgomery, which was inspired by a pair of late seventeenth-century embroidered curtains in Colonial Williamsburg’s collection. In the dining room, the team installed a panoramic Paul Montgomery mural, Regency Views, wrapping it around three walls with multiple interruptions caused by entryways and windows. A first-floor hallway and adjacent powder room feature a custom iteration of WILLIAMSBURG Jefferson Trellis by Adelphi Paper Hangings. Adelphi crafts papers in the eighteenth-century manner, using a separate block to print each color.
On the second floor of the house’s annex, the hallway and a bathroom sport a modern Kumano Jute covering in Putty from Schumacher. Upstairs in the original house, the blue-and-white twin bedroom showcases Lafayette Botanical, a new WILLIAMSBURG Shumacher chintz pattern, which covers the walls as well as headboards and bed frames. A nearby second-floor bathroom is papered in Front Waltz in Sage by Schumacher.
As the largest living history museum in the country, Colonial Williamsburg takes its mission of bringing history to life, Gusler says.
“We think the Nelson-Galt House is a good opportunity to showcase the WILLIAMSBURG brand and help people understand we are still relevant today,” Gusler says. “We are so thankful for our partners and sponsors, including H.J. Holtz & Son.”
To purchase tickets for upcoming tour dates in the Nelson-Galt House, visit https://www.colonialwilliamsburg.org/events/tour-designer-in-residence/. The sale of WILLIAMSBURG products supports Colonial Williamsburg’s educational and preservation mission.
by HJ HOLTZ | Apr 5, 2023 | Carpentry Services, Residential Painting
Photo courtesy of Todd Wright
The homes presented in the Garden Club of Virginia’s 2023 Historic Garden Week share many characteristics: they have elegant spaces, they have carefully designed plantings, and they are impeccably maintained, inside and out.
H.J. Holtz & Son is proud to have helped numerous homeowners through the years – including two on this year’s tour – prepare their homes for the hundreds of HGW ticket-holders who come every spring to see not only their gardens, but also their homes. Holtz craftsmanship will also be on display this year in Charlottesville at Carr’s Hill, the residence of the president of the University of Virginia.
“We know our clients want to show their homes at their best every day,” says company president Rick Holtz. “Garden Week takes that up a notch, because these are public tours.”
The origins of Historic Garden Week date to 1927, when the Garden Club of Virginia hosted a flower show to raise money to save trees planted by Thomas Jefferson at his mountaintop home of Monticello. That first effort netted $7,000 – the equivalent to roughly $117,000 today. In 1928, the club raised money to help save Kenmore, the Fredericksburg-area home of Betty Washington Lewis, George Washington’s sister. In 1929, multiple houses and gardens were opened for a “pilgrimage,” with ticket prices going to fund restorations of historic properties and gardens throughout the state. This year’s Garden Week comprises 29 tours organized and hosted by members of clubs from Virginia Beach to Roanoke, from Martinsville to Middleburg.
Richmond, as in years past, has three tour days: April 18, 19, and 20. Tuesday’s tour, in the Westhampton neighborhood, includes 6407 Roselawn, where the Holtz team has assisted with painting and carpentry work. Thursday’s tour, along Three Chopt Road, includes 6207 Three Chopt, another property where Holtz craftspeople have completed projects.
Company president Holtz says he’s always pleased when a client reaches out for assistance prior to Garden Week. “It’s usually someone we’ve worked with in the past, who knows we can come in for touch-ups,” he says. “Sometimes, people will use the fact that their home is going to be on tour as a reason to do a project they’ve been putting off, like painting exterior trim or shutters, or the front door. Everyone wants their home to look good as people are walking up to the entrance.”
It’s common for homeowners to think about improvements prior to big life events, such as a wedding, graduation, retirement party, or the birth of a child. Rick Holtz advises those considering fresh painting or wall coverings as well as carpentry repair – which is managed by the in-house Holtz carpenters – to reach out well in advance of the special occasion, so there’s ample time to complete the project.
“You don’t want to rush into making decisions about color or décor,” he notes. “From our years in business, we know that a selected paint color, once it’s on the wall, may appear to be a different hue, based on the way the light is hitting it. We all want time to make sure that the final project is done to everyone’s satisfaction.”
For more information about the 2023 Historic Garden Week, visit vagardenweek.org. Tickets are $50 per day if purchased in advance; $60 per day at the tour headquarters.
by HJ HOLTZ | Mar 15, 2023 | Carpentry Services, Residential Painting
Lizzie Cox’s clients knew they wanted to revitalize their comfortable river place … but not too much.
“The key theme throughout was to maintain the integrity of the old charm of the cottage,” says Cox, principal of Lizzie Cox Interiors in Richmond. “We wanted to update and refresh it without losing character.”
Cox recommended H.J. Holtz & Son to the client after having worked with Holtz on prior projects. She knew the team could handle the many tasks involved – and with the right touch.
“Because our goal was to make the house feel like it had not been updated, we did not want people to notice any major changes,” she says. “Holtz was definitely the right team for the job because they always listen to what the clients want.”
The interior project included painting the first floor’s walls, as well as redoing the floors both on the main level and upstairs. The original heart pine floors were refinished before they were painted, but were finished gently, both with stain and paint, to allow their history to show.
In addition to the painting, Holtz carpentry craftspeople patched stair boards, and even designed and fabricated a new stair banister. “We worked together to come up with a charming design, and they executed it perfectly,” Cox says. “It feels like it’s been there forever.”
The cottage was painted with Benjamin Moore Simply White, Cox says, because it has no undertone and looks good in all types of light exposures.
“It was really important that the painting not be so perfect,” she says, explaining that the homeowners really wanted to maintain the cozy, comfortable feel of a house that had been in their family for some time. “Because of [Holtz’s] experience with faux finishes and because they are such professional painters, they were able to get it just right.”
Despite the “normal” hiccups that come with any renovation project, Cox says, the update went very well. And working with the Holtz team makes her job easier, too.
“I know they’re going to get the job done from start to finish, and I don’t have to check in with them all the time,” she says. “They own their projects and put their heart into it and get it done. Essentially, they’re like the contractor for me – they coordinated it all.
“At the end, it turned out better than anticipated, which was really fun,” she adds. “It feels like an old river cottage that’s been there forever.”
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by HJ HOLTZ | Mar 6, 2023 | Carpentry Services
A fireplace naturally commands attention, whether it’s in use or not.
Often situated in the center of a room, a hearth conveys warmth and invites gathering. Most homeowners think carefully about what they place on and around the fireplace, hoping to set a tone or create atmosphere. Few consider how what surrounds the fireplace also matters.
“You can change a room completely with a custom mantel,” says John Rhodes, a new member of the Holtz Built custom carpentry team. “You can go from something painted to a natural or stained finish. You can have something small and simple go to big and ornate. You can also cover brick or stone [surrounding the fireplace] to create a whole new look. A custom mantel can bring new life to an old space.”
Rhodes recently constructed two custom mantels for customers who had specific visions in mind. One customer saw a DIY mantel kit at a big box store, liked its look, and installed it himself. It didn’t take long for the family to realize the purchase wasn’t working as planned.
“It wasn’t custom, it didn’t fit their house; it was functional but far from pretty,” Rhodes says. The new mantel, designed and constructed intentionally for the space, complements the room’s dimensions and existing trim – baseboards, door and window frames, and moulding – in a way no prefabricated mantel could.
“It’s not so much about the decorating, but how the room is put together,” Rhodes says. “You want to coordinate with what’s there.”
The second custom mantel Rhodes built has a similar traditional style as the first, but is made from walnut, so it can be stained to show the natural grain. “If a mantel is going to be painted, it’s often poplar or birch plywood,” he says. “With staining, it’s dealer’s choice – whatever wood they want.”
As with any custom work, the time it takes to fashion a mantel depends on what’s being done. Size doesn’t matter as much as the detail, such as carvings or panels. Rhodes says stained mantels also take longer than painted mantels because the surfaces have to be pristine. “You have to get rid of the marks left by woodworking tools,” he says. “Everything’s on display.”
Rhodes, who has worked 35-plus years as a builder and carpenter, lived in Chicago for the past two decades and recently returned to the Richmond area to be closer to family. He came to H.J. Holtz & Son on the recommendation of a previous employer.
“This was the place he thought would be the best fit,” Rhodes says. “He was right. It’s been very easy to come work here. Rick Holtz is a great guy, and these guys have been great to work with.”
Rhodes says he is enjoying being part of the growing Holtz Built team. “We have a lot of talent in this shop, which is rare these days,” he says. “Most places I’ve worked, when you’re the most talented one there, you end up doing everything. Any of these guys can pull off what I can do, so if I’m busy, I don’t have to worry about what I’m not doing. It’s great being part of a team when you have a bunch of really good players.”
by HJ HOLTZ | Mar 28, 2022 | Carpentry Services
Sometimes, a small request leads to big opportunities.
In February, a Richmond designer who often partners with H.J. Holtz & Son asked Carpentry Division Manager Jeff Nonnemacker if someone at the company could build, from scratch, an open end table with shelves, using a photo for guidance.
The designer’s client had a specific need, and the table the client had found was on back order – with a delivery date months in the future. Knowing of the Holtz carpentry team’s ability to repair and replace interior woodwork, the designer wondered if the table could be made in-house.
Nonnemacker thought so. He turned to Josh Hastings, a new co-worker who had been at the company from 2005-2014 – before Nonnemacker’s tenure began – but left to focus on custom, interior jobs, which Holtz & Son wasn’t doing then. Hastings returned to Holtz & Son in January, after his previous employer closed his business.
Hastings made the table, to the designer’s specifications, and handed it over.
It was a game-changing moment for Nonnemacker.
“As soon as I saw Josh’s skill, I ran to Rick [Holtz, company president], and said ‘We really need that new table saw now,’” Nonnemacker says, noting there had been ongoing discussions about when it would become necessary to add a saw to the carpentry division.
The Holtz carpentry team occupies its own building on the multiple-lot campus the company owns in Richmond’s bustling Scott’s Addition neighborhood. Inside the shop, there are multiple work benches, shelves holding wood of all shapes and sizes, and hooks for tools, some of which date to Rick Holtz’s grandfather, who founded the company. “We’re still using them,” Nonnemacker laughs.
Because of an increase in carpentry work over the last five years – Nonnemacker estimates a 50%-75% surge in that time – the company has been adding staff and equipment to accommodate larger jobs. The table project became a tipping point, as it showed another area where a larger saw would be useful.
The company located a 3’x7’ table saw from a Northern Virginia seller, and Hastings built an extended table to connect to the saw so a whole sheet of plywood – usually 4’x8’ – can be fed through in a single motion, with only one person involved. A sophisticated internal sensor detects when anything that conducts electricity, such as human skin, comes into contact with the blade. If contact occurs, the saw stops immediately and drops below the surface of the table.
“The table allows me to do everything by myself,” Hastings says. “I don’t need an extra hand and I get a more precise cut because the board has support as it’s being fed through.”
Nonnemacker says the new saw means the company doesn’t have to rely on wood shops for millwork, such as molding and trim, that customers routinely need. “Now we’re competitive with the skills we have and the tools we’re using,” he says. “Given the economy, it’s good for us and the client.”
Following the original end table, Hastings built two coffee tables from “inspiration” photos – one for a designer, and one for that designer’s client who saw a photo and wanted one of her own. Hastings also built wooden plant stands for the H.J. Holtz & Son office, to move pots out of reach from a new member of the team. “Rick’s puppy was eating the mulch, so we’re getting the plants up higher,” Hastings laughs.
All laughs aside, Hastings is happy to be back with the company. “My wife makes fun of me because I’m always watching YouTube videos to learn new woodworking skills, but this is the kind of work I want to be doing,” he says. “I understand this is a new endeavor for the company, and it will take time to develop, but we’re going in the direction where I want to be.”
Nonnemacker says he’s also pleased with the new venture, christened as Holtz Built Furniture. “So far, we’ve had a great response,” he says. “Even within the company, I’m kind of bragging about it. And I want to learn from Josh; that’s what carpenters do.”
by HJ HOLTZ | Jul 20, 2021 | Carpentry Services
Andy Cobb, principal of the Charlottesville design firm William A. Cobb Interior Design, knew his client’s Monument Square home would benefit from a tweak. A front room, adjacent to the foyer, was slated to be a welcoming parlor. But it lacked oomph.
The solution: architectural elements, added by the H.J. Holtz & Son carpentry team. Now, the room is clearly a separate space, set off by floor-to-ceiling columns and a soffit, accented with a two-part crown molding.
“I explained [to my client] the wide opening needed to be defined, and that it would frame the view into the room,” Cobb says.
Cobb has worked with Holtz & Son on numerous projects in Charlottesville and Richmond. For this Monument Square townhome, he trusted Holtz to hang wallpaper and bring his vision of the architectural elements to life.
“I know how thorough [Holtz & Son] are,” he says. “I can always rely on them to stop and ask a question before proceeding, if something unexpected comes up.”
Just steps inside the home, the Holtz team built a soffit, installed molding, and painted all, including the pine columns, which were sourced from Richmond’s Siewers Lumber & Millwork. The plan – and the columns in particular – had to be executed with great attention to detail, Cobb says.
“It was vital the columns be of the proper proportion and the proper style for the classic architecture of the house, which is filled with amazing antiques,” he notes. “[The columns] are solid wood and not fiberglass. They feel substantial to the touch and take the paint finish properly.”
Holtz & Son craftsmen also hung wallpaper, made in the United Kingdom, in the home’s bathrooms and powder rooms. In the first-floor powder room, the paper is from England, is 54” wide and has a “huge” pattern repeat, Cobb says. “It’s very tricky to lay out and to install, something I would only entrust with the Holtz paper hangers,” he says. “The other papers are all handprinted papers from the UK and require special skill and talent to install.”
Cobb says the client is thrilled with the finished look.
“She’s really happy with everything,” he says. “Everything in this house is a certain level, so you have to step up to that.”
