Page 42 - Galveston Monthly Apr2019

arOuNd The islaNd | iSLANdER SPOTLiGhT

he admits, “But the longer you’ve lived in or visited the center of the ceiling to divide the top floor into pie-
Galveston, the cooler this house is. Everybody’s got a shaped rooms,” she says. “The breakfast area, kitchen,
different version of its story, and it’s just that thing that living room, master bedroom and bathroom fill that
everyone tells a story about.” space.
“During ike it got 15 or 16 feet of water, which is crazy Two additional beds downstairs, along with hammock
to think,” she says. style chairs suspended from the ceiling complete the
“But it survived, and is stronger than it has ever been space.
with the new bracing,” he points out. The most obvious change to the kettle to passersby is a
“This one was definitely a challenge. My two semesters large, elevated entertaining deck that has been added to
of welding in school didn’t quite prepare me for this,” the home.
Ashley says with a laugh. “it’s so different from anything “There’s also a sitting area downstairs beneath the
we’ve ever done.” upper deck so you can escape the sun in the afternoons,”
“Of the eight houses, this took the third longest to Ashley says.
complete,” he adds. “The house we live in now took the The original steel spiral staircase connects the upper
longest, partly because it’s large.” and lower floors in the center of the house. The Cordrays
“This took a long time because no one else could work admit that the stairs are quite steep, but were told by
while they were welding,” she adds. “it’s also the first engineers that taking the central support out of the
time we’ve put in a deck, first time using spray foam structure would compromise it.
insulation, and definitely first time having to figure out “This little place is so darn cute,” she gushes, obviously
how to put in walls inside an orb shape. it feels bigger on having had a change of heart from when they bought it.
the inside because of the sloped walls, which we covered “it’s so quirky. i love it.”
in cedar. We added a few more windows and installed The Cordrays plan to list the kettle house as a rental
casement crank style, so that they could be opened to for up to six adults, so countless people who have been
catch the breeze.” curious about it over the years will actually have a chance
“Since the kettle was put here in the ’60s, we wanted to stay there.
it to feel mid-century modern on the inside. Most of the for now the Cordrays are back in the business of saving
pieces are vintage.” history in Galveston - one historic home at a time - and
The spaces in the small home are invitingly open, and anticipating the premiere of their new show.
the smallest details have been given attention down to Watch the premiere episode of “Big Texas fix” on Photo by Kathleen Maca
an original drawing of the kettle house done by local hGTv on Saturday, April 6. follow the Cordrays on their
artist Rosa Morgan. instagram account @save1900, and on their website
“We kind of used the original braces that came out from www.save1900.com. GM

42 | GALVESTON MONTHLY | APRIL 2019